Me personally, I only purchase ScaleTrains and Athearn Genesis Locomotives. ScaleTrains is a bit more detailed than Athearn Genesis. But… Athearn Genesis (some) seem to have a stronger sound when it comes to the horn/whistle. None the less, ScaleTrains is my first go to and Athearn Genesis is second. Although I purchase multiples units from both manufacturers, the quantities for each tend to equal out every other month. Now, there is one or two switch engines that have recently caught my eye from Intermountain. So I’ll be getting those at some point and trying Intermountain out for the very first time.
I Love Details, but I run my HO Trains, I run them a lot! the Scale trains ( I run 3 Ac44s Scale Trains) on my layout and they just don't run as well ,pulling and reliability just isn't there had many problems with the rivet counters, Broadway Limited and Athearn Genesis for me, I run a few Rapido and Kato too, they are reliable and pull well. When you run 50 cars you need the reliability! really enjoyed the comparisons.!!! FYI I really love Scale trains rolling stock, I have 109 cars from them
👍👍Nice comparison video! Scale Trains puts out some highly detailed units and you pay for it as well, just don't fit in my fixed income budget if you know what I mean? Thanks for sharing. 🚂🚂
I saw these all the time. They never looked like that. Looks like it was in a forest fire. No railroad--even the SP--would never allow any of its locos to get this trashed.
I have two of the SXT SD38-2, and I do love them. They look good and have decent pulling power, though I have to rip on SXT for some of their paint colors. The Genesis GP7s I have look fantastic, but they need help pulling, so I have some old, ugly Atlas Kato units to pair with them. I think you've left out Broadway Limited, but I don't think they offer much in the range of stuff you have in this video. However, I have one of their Paragon 3 Milwaukee Road S3 steam engines, and it is gorgeous. Pulls like hell, too. As far as operating, I'm coming around to the idea of having the prettiest units lead, and supplement them with the uglier bricks from behind.
Good over view of our beloved hobby that once bitten by the hobby it's extremely hard t escape it’ if so, you'll most likely be back lol . . . Thanks for the time you've spent displaying the simple differences of these very nice examples that are offered to us at present. Couldn't be a better time to be a model railroader . . .
Scale Trains has amazing details. They've really worked hard on getting it right and have pushed the boundary for the other manufacturers, but you need to look a little deeper when it comes to Rapido Trains. They are on par with Scale Trains as far as the visible details, but if you flip both locos over - check out the "hidden" underbody detail. Nobody comes close to what Rapido does with the underbody details and their pulling power is a bit better as well. Just my opinion out of the box, but you can add your own details and weathering to make any loco look good. I also have lots of Athearn Genesis, Intermountain and Kato locos that I'm happy with. It's your railroad - do what makes you happy.
It's interesting why manufacturers like Walthers ES44ac's for example don't have a detail kit besides grab irons. ScaleTrains offers one for their Operator brand if you can find them. Details West offers parts. Just got finished detailing a HO Kato UP AC4400. Got the PTC and underbody Traction and piping completed. It looks pretty good but its some work. The Intermountain GEVO's are next. Good Luck To Ya.
Loved your review. The weathering you did on the SP yard switcher...and the chipping on the hand rail stanchions is off the chain!!! Many thanks and look forward to many more.
Great Video man!! For me it's Rapido, but I do have my first Scale Trains SD40-2 in ICG paint coming in a couple months. Yes, it's all about the correct details, that have to be sharp and clean in the correct scale/size.
Howdy! Love the closeup of the details. I am a ScaleTrains man myself. No real reason why other than early on when I got interested in getting into model railroading I found some of their company videos on YT... specially the one that detailed how they produced their first full production of a loco (The Big Blow turbine). I've also become a fan of ESU decoders, which come in the full DCC locos from ScaleTrains... so a match made in heaven lol. Really well done - thanks for sharing 🤠
Walters is not to bad mine is tyco lmfao joke I really like reppeto how ever you spell it.. just way expensive I can't afford $360. For a loco... 5 years ago I was buying locos w/ DCC sounds for $125.00.. thank God I bought 4 2 Canadian and 2 Southern Pacific .. I'll find the right grey and airbrush the Pacific off make it them southern units, joe
I have an old bowser Alco S4 with 8 functions that runs great and I use it for track testing. My preferences are running first, Sound, then details. I agree the ST has incredible details but my sausage fingers tend to mess them up. lol
You should have used a Athearn Genesis GEVO for comparison. That would have really shown how far ahead Scale trains is in the detail department. I think a really good shootout would be a Genesis Dash 9 or AC4400 against Scale trains Dash 9 or AC4400.
Fuck Athearn trash. Fed-ud seeing people talking about them, tried them myself after falling for people that adore toys and it's a TRASH. When we talk about Scaletrains or InterMountain it's no place to bring Athearn name into discussion
I bought one. Good concept, good detail. Is a p.o.s.! Wheel pickups are sub-par, &even with a capacitor, it constantly cuts out. Bought 2 months ago, already sending in for repair. Was bad right out the box! C39-8
WOW... that's TERRIBLE... no way a brand new loco should be giving you that much trouble... i do wonder if that is a constant issue or if it's just a one off
I actually got a replacement from TrainWorld and haven't had a problem. Right after this though I bought another from Ebay, the Canada rail version. 1 month later, I am sending that back with the same exact issues.
There are also some nice companies in Europe that sell their models to the USA. In the AC area there is Märklin, which also has US locomotives. In the DC area we have PIKO, ROCO, BRAWA, Rivarossi, TRIX, "L.S.Models", "A.C.M.E." and "SUDEXPRESS". PIKO (PIKO-America) currently has various US locomotives (SP 9000, SP 9001, SP 9002) in its range. For beginners and collectors, PIKO also has the German ICE-3 in fictitious Amtrak livery as an analogue starter set in its range. I bought this ICE-3 with the Amtrak livery because it is beautiful with the train. I just wanted to write for fans who are looking for something special.
I really can't pick my favorite manufacture, because the hobby in all scales has really come along way from just a Power Pack and Track. I used to dislike Bachman's design on their GP-38 and SD series, because the Engineers doorstep didn't look prototypical. Maybe AHM did the same, but I only remember seeing this small detail flows on Bachman's Locomotives.
Hey Pro Scale Models. I'm like you who appreciates a well detailed & great operating model. Scale Trains has definitely made great improvements in the industry and has been putting distance between themselves and other manufacturers. My only problem with Scale Trains is that they haven't produced a modern EMD locomotive(besides the SD40-2). It just seems like Athearn is running into issues with their factories and they want to drain every drop out of a "model run" before they decide to take certain models to their "2.0" level. Currently, I have 30 Scale Trains locomotives and have unloaded almost all of my Athearn Genesis & Intermountain locomotives.
The only company I usually don’t go with except for their rolling stock is Broadway limited because a lot of broadway limiteds locomotives they run like crap because the motors burn up
When you said your a tattoo artist it shows in your modeling detail work. Almost every artist I've met or know in model railroading does good detail work, your sw9 shows it.
Yes Rapido is located in Canada. They initially focused on Canadian Road names but have since branched out. They may be taking on too may projects. Heard they are missing a lot of release dates. I purchased their SP RS-11. Missed that switcher release. Also own Scale Trains SD40T-2 and thinking of reserving SD-45X due out thus summer. I run trains on Freemo modules, but sometimes better not to run detailed locomotives as I already lost fan blade on the tunnel motor. Own Katos from the 90s, great runners, pulling power and quiet. P.S. Recently watched video on Scale Trains new location in Tennesee (2022).
Okay, there's best detail and the there's the best mechanism for running reliability and working on accessibility. I'd like a review about the mechanism and what brand is best and going down from there. You know of any, who's done that kind of mechanism reviews?
I Like Your Collection Of Engines However, I feel that if you wanted to prove one manufacture is better than the other, I would have Chosen a particular Engine Model threw-out those 5 manufactures for example a GE-9 one made by each manufacture so your comparing Apples to Apples. I've noticed that some manufactures do more detail to different loco types within the same manufacture. This is a level of Detail Video and your Concern with Detail, How about Out-Of-The-Box Physical Performance of the models? Example: Do they run smooth at a low speed - noticing for any jerking motion to report, a good one won't cog and create jerking effect. Coupler Height and Compatibility - Do they work with other manufactures, or just their own ?
I have a Bowser Exec, Stewart/Kato, and Rapido U25B I want to do this exact comparison for, I just need to actually film it. I've been looking at what other models I own where I can do this type of cross-comparison. I've also noticed how inconsistent brands can be across different models, like my Atlas GP7s being bruisers, but my Atlas GP38-2 is a bit of a lightweight by comparison. And even then, I have two Atlas GP7s from the same sub brand, but with different performance because they paid attention and used a smaller fuel tank on one of them. Plus factoring cost of acquisition. I do love the SXT locomotives I have, but I would probably go with other brands if I need to build a fleet of a particular locomotive.
Athearn new RTR with LED and some Genesis level details is a step in the right direction. The lack of walkway detail is deal breaker for me. The one detail that ALL engines should have IMO. As a result ScaleTrains is the go to for what I'm modeling. Lets not mention the easy body removal without wires and true tunnel motor details.
First off let me say, that I am not in any way ridiculing you for your opinion on anything you said. You have your preferences and there is nothing wrong with that. Your likes as well as dislikes are yours period and should not be attacked or questioned. Now. It seems to me that these models and their respective companies should be judged on more than just one perspective. Appearance isn't the deciding factor that makes everything else irrelevant. What about build factors and other qualities that really make a model stand out? Personally, I prefer a model that is liking in detail but is reliable, quiet and built with some forethought. Life-Likes Proto 2K line when first introduced were the rage for many modelers. That same rage turned into anger based rage as these locomotives became known for cracking their traction motor gears. Now the owners had some very good looking side lined locos that I think LL never addressed or offered warranty or otherwise replacement gears to correct the problem. That same SP switcher you presented is by SP modelers that know were very angry when they received theirs as they say these engines need a lot of correction to be considered prototype correct. More recently, I also recall that there was an issue with a NS geep that Rapido or Scale Trains produced that angered NS modelers as well. It was some defect that cause the units to derail. Perhaps a NS modeler can speak more on that. Many modelers were posting videos of fixes they came up with just to make the locos usable. I have had models from every builder Brass as well as Plastic that had their faults one way or another. It seems that while one loco looks fantastic, it lacks in it's ability to pull the train, is to noisy, won't match with it's sisters speed wise or fails the paint test. Athearn produced the SF SD45-2 in Bicentennial paint scheme. The Blue they used in the first run was to light, but it ran extremely well. The Rapido PA's seems to be a great model in their line. I noted that the couplers sat out out to far from the pilot which I was willing to work with. However, the SF version became a deal breaker when i noticed that the sides were not plated as earlier variants from other manufactures were. This combined with the cost of an ABA set and the amount of time as well as the work I had to do to correct them made me say "Thanks, but No Thanks". Now they have announced the only conversion PA ABA set that SF had commonly referred to as Christine.We will see how they compare when there released. I say this as I consider all these factors before buying and rate them based on all these factors. Your video was still good but somewhat hard to watch as your camera kept going out of focus and some components you referred to I had no idea what it was. when you were showing the SP switcher, you called the Drop Step a step.Had it not been for the pointer you used to touch it I still would be wondering what step you were talking about. Please become more familiar with loco parts and components. It helps the audience a great deal.
The manudfaturing time frames span like 20 years of technology. Its impossible to make a comparison berween all 5 models. The Rapido, ScaleTrains and Bachmann are all manufactured in the last three years, the Intermountain in 2011-ish and the Genesis UP was first released in 2002
Scaletrains is the best engine company hands down. Anyone who says different is wrong. I know this is a N scale video but I'm talking about HO scale. They make the highest detailed engines that are the most reliable. While they do have some QC issues at times, especially there last run of. Ac4400's which all had a wiring problem from the factory their engines run flawlessly for quite some time. Now athearn does make some high quality engines but the biggest factor that is a major downside with their engines is they don't come factory with a keep alive which for a massive layout is a necessity. I feel like sound isn't really a factor in a comparison as the best decoder hands down is esu loksound. With unlimited possibilities with esu all Scaletrains engines are eligible for custom sound files that make them sound like the real thing, not the shitty sound files they come with.
I guess I'm odd man out here. I most likely won't be looking for any more ScaleTrains stuff. I model an earlier time frame and there's very little options anyway. But, what I have, I'm not real impressed with. Looking at your video, nice job with the macro lens by the way, I was struck by the detail on all your models. However, look again, I'm thinking that Interstate model you have might be infested by mice! There's a gap between the front of the cab and the walkway or frame big enough that you should tell your crews to not leave any food items in the cab! 🙂 The trucks are quite nice, the lettering detail is amazing. Too bad they didn't eliminate the mold parting lines on the brake cylinders. I'm now sitting here contemplating whether or not to hit the send button. On the one hand, I'm only commenting on what I see. On the other hand, you obviously really like your ScaleTrains stuff and I would really feel bad if I damaged your enjoyment with these items. If you get to see this, you'll know what I decided. If not, oh well.
Nothing from Atlas? ScaleTrains is nice, so is Rapido. Video would have been more helpful if you compared the same road, same locomotive for each manufacturer.
Scaletrains are my No.1, then it's a tie between Intermountain and Athearn Genesis Intermountain would be an easy winners but the box that they come in is rubbish and doesn't offer enough protection to the model.
