In May 2019, Märklin announced the production of a massive 241 gauge steam locomotive for a recommended retail price of just under 4500 euros. Since the beginning of August 2020, this gem has been delivered to customers on a scale of 1 : 32 under the Märklin item number 55082. It is made almost entirely of die-cast zinc and precision-cast brass and therefore weighs an impressive 8.6 kilograms.
I was allowed to try out one of these 822 mm long tender locomotives on loan for two journalistic articles in specialist model railway magazines. On this occasion, of course, I also recorded numerous video sequences and mixed them together for this extensive unboxing / unpacking video.
The French model of the locomotive originally had the designation 241 001 and dates from 1931. It was also on the road for a while in Germany and has been known as the 241-A-65 since 1950. At the end of the 1960s it was actually supposed to be scrapped, but thanks to an initiative by Armin Glaser from Zurich, it was spared from being scrapped and went to Switzerland. In 1996 the locomotive was completely overhauled in Meiningen (Germany) and in 1997 it was run under steam again for the first time. In 2017 the locomotive was also used for the remake of the classic crime thriller "Murder on the Orient Express" by Agatha Christie. The locomotive has been undergoing a major overhaul since 2018, which will hopefully soon be successfully completed.
The model can be used on gauge1 tracks with a minimum radius of 1020 mm and has a digital multi-protocol decoder for the model railway protocols DCC, mfx and Motorola. It has 32 switchable digital functions - in addition to numerous sounds, this also includes a triple smoke generator (for cylinder, chimney and steam pipe) as well as a filigree simulated servo-motor-driven control.
The video consists of the following sections:
00:00 greeting, shipping box, price
00:19 scope of delivery
01:16 instruction manual
03:25 Additional printed information about the gauge 1 decoder
04:12 Unpacking the locomotive
05:30 Removal from the transport / presentation board
07:44 Locomotive and tender from below (technology)
10:05 a prototype panel under the driver's cab
11:02 Supplied figures made of brass
12:07 Data about the model - length, weight, decoder
12:46 Information about the prototype and many detailed views
13:51 Prototype info (in French) and more detailed shots
14:55 Smoke chamber door, buffer, screw coupling, claw coupling
16:25 Telex coupler on the tender with sound
16:48 LED lighting of the model
17:33 The other switchable noises of the locomotive
20:33 Motorized control with crank noise (on roller test bench)
21:45 roller test bench ride, with rail joint noises
22:42 smoke generatorwith cylinder steam (roller test bench ride)
23:57 Steam whistle in action
24:20 Short test drive on diorama
26:24 View into the tender (decoder, energy buffer, loudspeaker)
27:20 Second loudspeaker in the locomotive
27:59 Coupling of locomotive and tender for driving test
29:12 Test drive slowly on over a switch with a 1020 mm radius
30:09 Module system test drive (tripod recording)
33:18 Second test drive also with smoke / sound (handheld recording)
36:25 Farewell with a short drive on a diorama
More about the original can be found on the website of the association 241-A-65 under the following link - but only in German:
www.241a65.ch/
3 июл 2024
