I would not buy ANY HO trains for collector value… It’s a good way to get burned… Play value, rememberance value, and overall enjoyment value, Yes… Future collector value, No.
The N&W J, (I knew you’d end up with 4-8-4 [8D]), it Is an older release…However, I do believe it has a can motor rather than the flat pancake motor of Bachmans of it’s day… Detailing (which there isn’t really a lot of on a streamlined steamer) probably won’t match that of your spectrum 2-8-0 (did you get that one yet?)… Only trouble is, now you are going to want the passenger cars that go with that J. [:D]
The Spectrum GP-30, the two that I once owned, had a problem where the drive train let loose somewhere… Somebody else here stated that the problem was that a clip had slipped off somewhere and reinstalling it cured the problem… Mine have been gone for about 8 years so I cannot verify that… I mention this just in case you set it on the track and it doesn’t move, although the motor runs. Just a heads up if you will…
In any case, I’ve always liked the Bachman trains, especially the steam engines… For what they are/were the detailing is pretty good and with can motors, run pretty reliably…
Defiant…I think their really good buys! I have a lot of my dad’s lionel and leftover HO trains and a bunch of atlas brass track. To some they may mean nothing…but to your son I think they’ll be worth millions. I treasure those gifts from my father. And who knows how much they’ll be worth in the future.
If you are looking for “collector value”, your money will be better spent in Lionel or brass. HO typically does not appreciate much in value. It seems like every time a manufacturer comes out with an improved model; the older one goes down in value. Or so it seems on ePay. We (the HO community) place a value on the looks and running ability of the locos, not in how old they are. The old stuff is usually seen as what it is, an older obsolete version of what is available today. Now, there are exceptions to this, as some morons will pay stupid prices for anything. But this is generally the rule.
Now, on to what you bought. This J is the second version of this model from Bachman. I have the first one and it was horrible. The driver hubs cracked. The motor was from a slot car with a small pancake motor. Nice body though. I ended up putting a replacement kit under it from Bowser. The kit cost more than the Bachman loco but was worth it. The one you have looks like the improved “Plus” version, different drive completely. At least that’s what the box indicates. It should run a lot longer than mine did. The Plus steam locos are not nearly as good as the Spectrum steam locos, however. The nylon drive gears are known to fail on these models. Bachman will repair or you can get the Bower replacement kit when that happens.
The Spectrum diesels are not held in the same high regard as the steam engines however. Generally considered a low-mid grade model. The best GP 30 on the market is the Proto 2000. I have seen non- running junk go for more than what you paid, so you did not overpay. It is probably a good learner engine for a child.
As a side note, if you are looking for good, dependable, long term diesel engines you might want to consider purchasing Atlas, Athearn, Proto 2000, Stewart, or Kato. The best steam engines are Spectrum, IHC, Bowser, and the latest Mantua.
Once again, I wouldn’t buy them for collector value. The Bachman Spectrum are supposed to be fairly good engines but I am sure they won’t have any collector value. If properly maintained they should give you and your son years of good service.
As for collector value, I agree with the rest. Far too many of these things are produced for them to have any intrinsic value beyond their worth as a running locomotive.
I can’t speak for the J, but my Godson has a Spectrum GP30 which, in my opinion, is a highly underrated locomotive. His is reliable, runs well at a slow speed and pulls well. It’s only issue is that it is noisy. But it has been a good performing locomotive for over 8 years now and fits well on a roster with a couple of Atlases, Rivarossis and Athearns. The price you paid on it was certainly a good deal. I’ve got to confess, I’ve always like the rugged look of the GP30.
I have a fairly new 4-8-4 Niagara with one of the Plus mechanisms, and it’s a very nice runner. They’re quiet, detailed, pretty reliable and powerful. $65 is pretty cheap for one of those.[:D]
The GP30 should be a good runner. I have an old 8-40CW diesel with a similar mechanism, and it’s very quiet and smooth. It’s also very powerful because the frame fills pretty much every cubic millimeter of the shell.[:D]
I had a Spectrum GP-30 diesel as well in the mid 90’s. It had a good can motor, but it would break the dog bone drive shafts. I ended up using the motor to power a dummy F-7B. Have had no problems since. The GP became a scrap unit, and since it had UP on it, wound up chopped and in a gondola load.
I think those are pretty good buys! But as mentioned above, the spectrum diesel driveshafts are very unreliable. They break. What I did is replace them with metal driveshafts and higher quality dogbones. I think I got the parts from NWSL but I cant remember. I sold my spetrum diesels when I switched over to DCC so I dont have a picture of it either. But, something I have been doing recently is putting athearn driveshafts in some engines. Take for example this old AHM/Rivarossi U25-C
The driveshaft wasnt the only modification here of course. I took out the old motor, put a high quality can motor in (sagami?). And you notice it is no longer in the nose. I put the motor in the rear, cut a new hole for the athearn driveshaft. Filled the hole in the nose where the old motor was and moved some weight around. Im not done yet, it still needs more weight and some lighting. But this shows you the driveline anyway.
On the subject of HO collector value-When I got into HO model railroading as a 12 yr old in 1978, I eventually got 2 Atlas locos, one a Chessie SD35, & the other a WM GP40. I still have both, but after a year or 2, I decided to try my hand at making the GP40 a hi-nose, with the nose off a Athearn GP9 I had. The attempt was a botch, so I was left with a sweet running GP40 with a screwed up shell. Never got around to getting another shell of any kind for it (to this day).
My model railroading interest went kinda dormant as I got up thru my teen years, but around 1985 or so, I attended a toy/train show here in town, & noticed on display by a vendor, some Atlas locos for sale. I said to him how much I liked them, & mentioned my botched attempt on the WM GP40. “YOU DID WHAT?” he exclaimed. “Those shells are collectors items now!” I was taken aback a little, for I nevered expected items like those to become “collectors items” per se (or I would’ve never done it!) As far as I knew, collector value was in Lionel, American Flyer, & Marx. Up to that point, I had never heard of anything from the 70’s on in HO having collector value.
Reading the above posts on HO collector value, I don’t feel so bad now, but still have a nagging doubt, & still have botched shell!
Even with the brass it is purely speculative. They also go down in value as soon as another manufacturer comes out with an improved model. Look at the price of the PFM Crowns before and after W&R came out with that same unit. People who had just paid high dollars for the Crowns lost their shirts.
IF you want engines that will run … and run … and run …
Bachmann’s are among the the cheapest made … If not #1
but, hey you got a DEAL.
My guess is you GOT what you paid for. If you wan’t something with potential for future, Try Broadway Ltd CZ car’s and a Intermountain WP FP-7 engine. They are examples of our current better effort’s and will always be in short supply.
