A channel dedicated to showcasing the work Ive done on my models, with the goal to inspire others and help guide those who want to copy my work. I specialize in DCC installs, remotoring, repowering, and general engine repair/restoration. I strive to inspire other modelers to become comfortable with working on their own models. I also include a few reviews and "just trains running" videos. The goal of this channel is to share my work and improve my video filming and editing skills. Enjoy! ----------------- My layout is based mostly around "The Virginian" 2012 Model Railroader Magazine layout. ----------------- Find me on forums: Instagram: trainman440 cs.trains(mrr): trainman440 tycoforums: trainman280
@@Neb_fallout that particular loco is a dust magnet? cause i dont see why the rivarossi loco is any different from other models that would make it attract an unusual amount of dust.
@@Neb_fallout how so? i thot it picked up on all drivers (minus traction tires) and each half of the tender truck. have you cleaned your track? or the copper wipers?
@@barkonious Unlikely. These models are expensive and made in very limited runs. Impact on shipping cost is negligible. And with two screws bolting it down I find it unlikely it being damaged. But who knows I guess.
@@trainman440 Samhongsa was known for cutting corners. Friends who were dealers had problems with their engines brand new. Also because these locos came with the weight installed they had to keep the weight down to avoid damage. The reason the micro cast engines had a bigger weight is because they were no installed from the factory they didn't have to worry about the weight shifting and causing damage to the models.
@@barkonious I know of many other brass models that had preinstalled weights inside boilers with MUCH bigger weights. I dont accept that as the primary "reason" for why they included such a small weight.
If you can't increase weight you can increase adhesion with bullfrog snot or traction tires. Considering you would only lose the driven axles electrical pickup I think they are a good trade off.
@@Bdmrr I absolutely despise bullfrog snot. Have you actually used it before? it makes your driver ever so slightly bigger than all the others, and literally LIFTS your engine up so your engine either see saws back and forth or it lifts other drivers off so they barely touch the track. If you havent used bullfrog snot before please dont promote it.
@@Bdmrr perhaps. Maybe I'll have to try again. In general though I dont prefer using snot. If I cant add more weight, I'll simply doublehead the train!
I have followed your videos for a long time, and agree with almost all of your comments on them, including this one. I`m an older retired gentleman, living in Pittsburgh, Pa., and would enjoy an opportunity to meet or talk with you some time, but I don`t know how that could be arranged in privacy. I have worked on many locomotive projects over the years, that I`m sure you would find very interesting.
@@DavidSchubert-h5y hey! Glad to hear my fanbase is of all ages. Pittsburgh is far from where I live though so I dont find it likely for us to meet. sorry :/
Theyre plastic, but decently powerful! especially with the provided traction tires lol. I have a doubleheader of the Paragon2 2-10-2s video on my channel somewhere. It was relatively recent. Feel free to look around!
The amount of weight over the drivers is important. But how it's balanced over the drivers is equally important. Commenting before watching the entire video, so you may have covered that later on. When weighting your locomotives, pay attention to the balance point of it after adding weight. Also, measure current draw before and after. For the most effective weighting of steam locomotives, melt bismuth alloy into the boiler after sealing up any and all holes. This fills every nook and cranny of the boiler. Other materials are heavier than bismuth (lead and tungsten), but you're not going to be able to completely fill the spaces in the boiler.
yes I covered balancing in the video lol. i dont understand why ppl feel the need to comment before listening to the point in its entirety...youd think it would save the effort it takes to write something up. but hey i dont judge. While melting bismuth (or lead, or etc) is the most effective way of packing as much weight to a boiler as possible, it often isnt practical for most of us. Gotta work with what you got.
@@trainman440 Yeah, LOL... You're right of course. I guess it's a matter of attention span. Aside from that... Yes, you have to work with what you've got. I model narrow gauge and the locomotives are small, so space is very limited. Trying to balance between adding enough weight and balancing that weight over the drivers is always a compromise. I equalize the driving wheels using a rigid beam suspension (the scale I model in is too small for springs over the axle bearings), so that just adds another layer of complexity. Good to see someone dissecting and improving brass locomotives. Most guys are too chicken to do such a thing to an expensive brass locomotive. I do it all the time, most don't run worth a darn out of the box (I'm speaking of vintage brass here, modern stuff might be a lot better).
@@WHJeffB agreed! every engine i get will absolutely be run. I have tons of both cheap and more "premium" models. I dont pay much for any of it. And I like getting my hands dirty to get the very most out of each :) cheers!
Yes! Someone agrees with me on this, though what I will add is RTR locomotives aren't super great either. I mean look at the crappy Bachmann Russian Decapod, that's an utter joke in it barely being able to its own weight. In addition, ANY BLI loco can't haul crap without traction tires and I hate having to use them. They're just so much of a dirt magnet. I just found "Liquid Leadshot" from DCC Concepts (I had to have it shipped from Britain) the other week which literally is just leadshot and I plan to put that in my various locomotives to weigh them down. What you do is just fill a little bag with them, then stuff it in the boiler and because its essentially a ton of little lead ball bearing looking things, it easily conforms to the shape. I see that you also got wheels weights for auto wheels. Yeah I got those too but didn't think to hammer them like you did. I was just going insane trying to find something that works well as is more or less fluid or easily. Because without getting a flipping mini furnace/forge to be able to melt down metals and actually cast a weight, I was thinking it was impossible to make my locomotives weigh enough to pull, and yes I am using THE word, *prototypical* length consists on their own with NO traction tires. Its like...my PRR L1 should be able to pull a 40 car train on its own. It did it in real life and what it was designed for, the model should do the same. Its just a scaled down version of the full sized thing. But apparently without a traction tire set on, it can barely pull 20 cars *on* *the* *flat.* Imagine trying to go up a grade. Now with the leadshot, I'll be able to actually do this. I also agree with the smoke units in HO scale. They suck majorly anyway and cause a HUGE weight reduction in the model. They just make no sense for HO as you need all the weight you can get when rolling stock weighs so much in comparison. HO Scale I found has THE WORST size to weight and tractive effort ratio of any scale. Power is utterly fine with us having motors that #1. Don't burn out like the old ones can, and #2. Have loads of overall power plus torque to provide. Flywheel and Can motors are just 100x better. Wheelslip also needs to be allowed to exist and yeah, if you have no traction tires equipped, you'll always get it at some point.
I think you're over generalizing. CERTAIN BLI models cant pull. But not all. Case in point, their paragon2+ I1sa is a plastic loco and a giant smoke unit taking up most of the space inside the boiler. it barely pulls anything. But if youve ever held one of their paragon1/qsi K4s, I think you would have your mind changed. Its got 100% diecast construction, tender shell and all, AND it has a giant lead weight taking up most of the boiler space. Gosh, that thing can PULL. I dont use traction tires, and i reserve the use of "tungsten putty" or "liquid weight" products for only the hardest to add weight areas of steam locos. Most of the time the cheap 1/4oz lead weights hammered into shape has been sufficient. Making my engines TOO heavy only causes them to potentially be damaged during transport. I also like to doublehead locos frequently, so a loco thats not too heavy isnt a big problem, and not being too heavy only helps prevent wheel wear when the two locos arent perfectly speed matched. Gotta make do with what you got lol. I plan to eventually rip out all the smoke units out of my BLI locos and replace them all with a chunky lead weight, for improved pulling power. Cheers!
@@trainman440 Oh yeah. I actually own 2 BLI QSI era K4s I bought from a guy...that both came dead on arrival due to the decoders. I was rather impressed with the weight of them, but that's also because they don't have smoke units. I have a PCM T-1 too which can pull about 40 cars on the flat without traction tires. But unfortunately I still find that rather lackluster knowing how much the real things could pull. I was primarily talking about their more modern iterations where people sacrifice weight for "ooo look smoke" when in reality that smoke also just gets oil vapor everywhere inside the model. (Rather sticky and goopy mess on the inside) And heck, my PRR L1 is die cast, yet only weighs about 14 ounces at most. I bought a scale to see how much all my stuff weighs, and man that is incredibly low because of the smoke unit. The T-1 still outpulls it by about double.
@@nickb.1095 i think the fact that smoke units in lieu of lead weight means youre giving up performance for a feature has already beaten to death. but yes. smoke units are sacrifices. Its not as simple as some people say "if you dont like it turn it off". They dont account for the lost weight that having an unused smoke unit inside their locos is hurting their performance.
@@trainman440 Exactly, then really don't seem to understand why their locomotive can't pull that much. In fact one guy I watch is British and Bachmann didn't even bother to put a weight in their Black 5. The boiler was completely empty! I was honestly shocked.
@@trainman440 I have a BLI Northern Pacific A-3, and it's fairly heavy and very powerful. I haven't really had any major problems with it. It's also THE most expensive locomotive in my entire collection.
yea, and unfortunately there isnt much free space in the boiler. So its hard to add more weight. Although my experience with my Bachmann K4 actually indicates a weak motor/low gear ratio, and not the lack of weight thats causing poor pulling power. The motor itself stalls when pulling a "realistic" size train.
@@trainman440 yeah then thats the probably the problem with mine may club is mostly flat so even most weak locomotives are fine but the moment i try to pull a realistic train 1361 just cant do it so thats probably the problem
I’m just curious how you qualify/quantify ‘enough’ pulling power- certain # of cars, just raw drawbar pull in oz., etc. It seems even just among bli there can be massive variation in pulling power (reading t1s are particularly anemic ime), while others can do 2-3x what the t1s can do. Another great video 👍
Look at what the full scale thing did, if it can pull what it did in full scale, then that's the right weight to me. To me it being "too heavy" isn't a problem. Why? You want to the thing to be as heavy as realistically possible, but that's REALLY hard to do with steam. Its easy for electrics or diesels and you can create real bricks with them. A PRR L1 should theoretically be able to pull 40 cars without struggling. A PRR H10 anywhere between 35 to 40. Each locomotive was designed to haul a specific amounts of cars and perform specific tasks. The PRR used 2-8-0s and 2-8-2s primarily for locals, so your talking 50 cars max or less in most cases. Double heading sure was a thing, but you didn't tend to see the Connies or Mikes on ore or coal drags, you saw their I1sas and N1s on those more often then not.
"enough" is simply when the engine is capable of pulling a realistic number of train cars. For example a single BLI paragon1 PRR K4 can pull 20 passenger cars. that is "enough". A BLI Paragon2 I1sa (plastic shell, smoke unit) struggles to pull 15 40' boxcars. That is insufficient in my book.
@@trainman440 Agreed...I'll be weighing mine down more. That was one of the 1st things I also noticed, the weight isn't balanced over the back driver to give it traction.
yea, i find it pretty insane. but I understand some people are in the hobby more to collect and less to operate. I personally dont understand the draw but I can respect it.
"Shelf Queens" as some call them. My friend has quite a few of those now...primarily because he also bought expensive brass models "just to have", then after receiving them, realized they don't even operate after paying over $1,000 for the model.
My late Grandfather acquired a few locomotives to put on display inside cases. More specifically, he got an HO scale brass Overland Models Inc. Northern Pacific A-2 (which, sadly, doesn't run at all), an O scale MTH Premier New York Central J1e Hudson (which actually runs, and the sounds and lights are really amazing), a brass 2-rail O scale Overland Models Inc. Northern Pacific A-5 (which I have no idea if it runs or not due to the fact that I don't have any 2-rail O scale track), and an O scale MTH Premier DM&IR M-3 Yellowstone (which also runs, has awesome sounds and lights, and it's also the largest and heaviest model railroad locomotive I have ever held, period). All four of those models are really amazing.
Its harder to do in RTR models but yes. RTR models are generally better designed to utilize all the space inside the boiler. They tend to be light simply due to inefficient design and overuse of plastics or other lighter weight materials. For example, the addition of many plastic brackets, large gearboxes, smoke units, excessive PCBs or electronics, etc. Therefore it is generally more difficult to add weight to RTR engines, but certainly not impossible.
hehe thanks! I was afraid the running boards were diecast and part of the boiler. thats why i was hesitant in buying one. cause no way i was gonna leave the boards stock. as soon as i learned they were plastic (implying they were a separate detachable piece from the diecast boiler) AND BLI was selling them for $299 refurbished, i knew i had to get one :)
Very impressive and enjoyable to see a C&O Allegheny doubleheader on a freight train, the Allegheny types were incredible articulated locomotives and must have been wonderful to see in action back during the late steam era.
Very impressive review of C&O Allegheny locomotive models from both MTH and Rivarossi, the Alleghenies are incredible examples of steam power and are among some of my personal favorite types of articulated locomotives. The mth model I assume has more weight but the Rivarossi model has a more accurate appearance, I heard that Rivarossi is releasing a new run of the C&O Alleghenies either later this year or early next year. I would really like to see a new release of the Rivarossi Allegheny type locomotives as the last time they produced this locomotive model was back in late 2014, this was an interesting and enjoyable locomotive comparison- Tom.
Thanks! actually both models have similar weight, despite MTH's being fully diecast. That's because MTH's has an empty boiler, whereas Rivarossi's plastic shell is filled with lead inside. Both have traction tires so I believe they are fairly similar in pulling power. Yes Rivarossi is doing a rerelease, I believe theyre $450 on trainworld, and after a 10% discount that brings it down to around $400. A VERY reasonable price if you ask me, in 2024. Cheers!
The Spectrum car has more details because 'Spectrum' was the higher end line than the 'Silver' series cars. The wider coupler swing on the 'Silver' series car is to allow it to negotiate curves found on commonly found 4' x 8' layouts.
I'll admit its not for me, but I do agree its a rather unique scheme for a rather unique period on the santa fe, during a time full of intense cost cutting measures (1953-1965). Cheers!
On brass upgrades: you may have covered this in a different video but do you generally replace gearboxes on your locomotives or just use the stock gearbox? I know this depends on the model too.
Good question! Most stock gearboxes are perfectly fine. It is totally un-necessary to replace the gearbox unless its performance is not up to par to what you desire. I often will tune and modify gearboxes to run smoother and quieter, enough to be satisfied with the gearbox. That being said the only times Ive replaced gearboxes were either broken/cracked gearboxes (from select/certain ALCO brass), or ones which Im not able to make quiet, notably some PFM/United gearboxes.
Hey, did you ever add sound to that 2-8-4 that came DCC ready? I just bought the Walthers release C&O (2746) that also came DCC ready, and was curious what sound decoder to buy for it. Thanks!
I did! ended up adding TCS wowsound, although i might switch it out with Loksound, since wowsound doesnt have a great NKP whistle. But buy whatever sound decoder you enjoy the sounds of! all of them are equally easy to install, i believe these have an 8 pin dcc ready plug.
Very nice review. Surprised the Rivarossi stacked up so favorably in detail compared to the MTH model. In my head the MTH would have been far superior.
So I’m planing to buy a BLI NW Class A and Y6A/Y6b….but every time I do some research I hear so many bad and good things about BLI. As I am European, I can’t just send them back in case there is a problem. Costums etc are a big problem. So is it safe to buy these models? They had been released before already
MTHs chin ku detail is just lazy design, not a technology limitation. When even Hornby can make lovely, fine British running boards on ~$100 models (j15 & j36), then Mth are just not good at modelling, they could have easily had the running boards be tapered to be thinner at the ends, just like anyone who has made a white metal kit has done.
Gotta also remember the MTH engine was made in 2014. So if youre going to compare, you have to compare with Hornbys fully diecast offerings from 2014. But yes I agree MTH definitely could have made those running boards thinner.
I pre ordered the bli S1 with a smoke unit but the s1 is a big engine so I think it should be fine for me. I do admit I got a little scared clicking on the video, but I also remembered that S1 is a big locomotive
The S1 being brass shouldnt melt. And yea its big enough where youre not losing all that much out on weight. This was mostly directed to those original paragon models which were made of plastic.
Nice job! I just did one of my AEM-7s with a Loksound 5 Direct DCC decoder with built in keep alive. It's nice because the LED resistors are built on to the board. I have it on my channel.
I saw your post on model railroader, and these look amazing!, I have been wanting to do something like this for a while, so thanks for sharing how you did yours!
