I’m shopping for a current version of a diesel switcher with DCC for club use. I prefer new and current models over used. Medium to medium-high pricing ok, e.g. $150 or above.
My criteria are as follows (weighting of 1 to 10 in importance, with 10 = most important):
Reliability over turnouts (10)
Very low speed crawling ability (9+)
Good weight and pulling power - for a switcher (8)
Fairly accurate detail (7)
Excellent sound set (8)
Ability to easily lash up 2 engines if needed (6)
I hope these criteria are enough to elicit focused opinions and experiences.
You’ll want some sort of “keep alive” installed to keep the switcher crawling over dead frogs or dirty track.
The Athearn SW1000 and SW1500 are good runners.
You might want to look into the up coming Rapdio SW1200. They should be top notch in detail and running qualities and should include a keep alive feature, and can be bought with ESU loksound IIRC.
I have a couple of Walthers switchers which are fine, but one is very light to allow a sound decoder and speaker, so it has traction tires reducing it to three axles to pick up power.
One of these days I will repaint and rebadge these to Milwaukee, but they’re fine for now. Does the road and era matter to you?
I recommend the Atlas S2 for older eras and the MP15 for more modern eras. Neither needs a keep alive over dead Atlas or Shinohara frogs. To accomodate sound in small bodies, they might be considered light compared to older dc version switchers, but that’s a matter of personal choice.
Any of the Bowser Baldwin switchers, with or without sound. Super smooth runners.
Don’t discount older ones, the P2K Alco S1 is a wonderful loco, can be found fairly low priced depending on road name, and is not hard to add DCC to. Very quiet and smooth.
Well, at our club, club use means neglect, rough handling and a lot of action. Dirty track is often a problem. It also means that sound is often burried in the background noise. While theft has not been a problem, it is something that I worry about. But maybe all of these things are not an issue for you. If they are, then I would consider an older, non-sound Atlas diesel, with Kadees of course. Athearns are too fragile. Bowser would be my second choice.
I have two HO Bachmann 44 single motor with LokSound 3.5. I run together. Same address and CV’s. Did about ten years ago. Minor frame cutting to fit speaker baffle. Speaker and baffle up in one end of shell. All wiring and old electronic ripped out. Kept light bulbs.
Union Freight RR in Boston use to do that to haul 14 to 20 freight between North and South Station many years ago. Article in MR, 2001.
There is also an article on how to DCC a two motor 44 ton. I have done that.
I also have a VO-1000 with Tsunami which is quite nice.
All specs for these locos on Wikipedia. I run them at what orototype roads did.
They may not be for your era.
I ran them at our club which had all hand laid track and turnouts. No stay alives. We did not need them.
Agreed, Kevin. I have two and really like them. Unfortunately, converting them to DCC is quite a process. Since the OP was looking for DCC locomotives, I left that one off the list.
My Atlas DCC/Sound SCL Alco S2 is a sweet switcher and it doesn’t stall over Peco insulated frog switches… My BLI DCC/Sound SW7 runs good,doesn’t stall on my Peco switches either but,the chime horns has a annoying echo.
I have done a similar install but used Kapton tape. Electrical tape can be messy. Just make sure all Dremel cutting is smooth. At the time I had a steady hand. I used the Dremel and a couple router bits. No sharp points to penetrate the Kapton tape. Do ohm meter checks.
Yea, that’s the install tutorial I was thinking of, Rich.
I have converted one of the older Walthers SW1 switchers by extending the groove at the bottom of the chassis with an endmill then insulated it with Kapton tape. (I had access to a milling machine at work.) That’s a breeze compared to a Kato NW2 conversion. It’s such a beautiful runner that I would like to convert it someday.
You didn’t mention an era… if you really need pulling power I would consider “heavy” switchers like the SD9 (Walthers or LL Proto) or SD38 (Athearn). (Although you did say good power “for a switcher”…)
On our layout, I often switch with a pair of Athearn SD40s (not for any prototype reason but because it’s what I have). A long string of cars (say 50 or so) requires backing into the reverse loop, which has a curve and a 2% grade. Takes some muscle to shove 'em out of there! I’ve since picked up a pair of Proto SD9s to take over the job.
Don’t forget that railroads often recycled old locomotives, so a GP7 or GP9 makes a realistic switcher. I use my Athearn GP9 for switching when I don’t have to go into the reverse loop.
For sound and value, I really liked the (aptly named) Bachmann Sound Value Alco S2 and S4. They really capture the sound of the 539 engine. Pulling power is OK, but I have had problems with them on non-powered frogs – the wheelbase isn’t long enough.
I ended up with a road switcher for my first HO model. Reason being the flexible use for both mainline hauling and yard work.
I settled on an SD7 for availability based on price, region (rail line) and looks (subjective preference.)
I chose BLI because they are generally a well respected brand, I want to implement Rolling Thunder on the club layout, and their world headquarters is less than 2 hours from my house which I plan to visit soon.
I wouldn’t have thought an SD7 would be the first choice for a switcher, at least I assumed you were looking for a yard switcher.
That said, D&RGW used a chop nose SD9 #5305 for a yard switcher in Grande Junction - on the hump I believe, so it’s not unheard of.
It would be cool if a model company offered a low nose or chop nose SD9. The switcher D&RGW used was converted to chop nose after an accident and was used in Grande Junction for a number of years.
Actually I didn’t realize there was such a thing as a “road switcher.” Since I began this new enterprise with only one engine, I thought it best to have a multi-tasking unit. Makes sense?