Check out these kitbashed cab-forwards for sell on EBay. Looks like a good chance to own a unique model. Not mine, just saw them and copied the link. http://members.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewUserPage&userid=richardcook
nice models. wish you could zoom the pics to see more detail of the 'bash. also some brass up for auction.
The only thing wrong with those loco's is each has one set of drivers (four) that are inoperable.. I've already spoken to the seller. It states this in the description. Stay cool and run steam.....
Mike: I started to bid on that loco until I read some reviews and they were very bad. The loco doesn't run well at all. Introduced: 1991 Here's a locomotive that really lives up to the brass steamer "all-show-and-no-go" reputation. Yes, it looks nice and it has an actual working headlight (a rarity in brass). But my stars, it is one bad runner. I have Bachmann steamers than run better! Pickup is terrible (and this despite all those wheels on the loco and the fact that the tender picks up current as well). I have 0-4-0 tank steamers that can make it through turnouts at slower speeds than this one. Any attempt to move slowly through a turnout results in a guaranteed quick stall. And that's just the tip of the crap iceberg. Keeping the wheels on the rails is a full-time job. Both the leading and trailing trucks are free floating and hop off the rails at the slightest provocation. And the drivers are useless on anything but the widest radius curves, otherwise they're looking for the first opportunity to escape the rails as well. To make matters worse, starts and stops are ridiculously abrupt. I've tested old steam locos from the 1960s that responded more smoothly to throttle changes than this overpriced beast. You might have a use for this loco if you have no turnouts and a lot of 36" radius curves, otherwise... I dunno, either people are spending hours fixing these things up in order to get them to run properly, or there are a heck of a lot of them out there gathering dust on display shelves. To put it bluntly, out-of-the-box these things are not ready-to-run. Grade: F I would avoid it.I'm bidding on several others in that group. Stay cool and run steam.....
Mike: I thought you've given up on steam after your problems with the Bachmann 4-8-4. That loco probably runs better than the brass Hallmark ATSF 4-8-4 which is a "shelf queen". Stay cool and run steam....
Carl, here are the completed listings. http://cgi.ebay.com/SP-Cab-Forward-MC-4-Steam-Loco-with-Whale-Back-Tender_W0QQitemZ6041943266QQcategoryZ19123QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem http://cgi.ebay.com/SP-Cab-Forward-AC-7-4-8-8-2-type-Steam-Loco-MTL-cpl_W0QQitemZ6041943024QQcategoryZ19123QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Nelson, Thanks for the links. I was curious "to see". The man was very up-front about the items in his description, to his credit. I had a friend that did that very kitbash and it turned out nice. I would think the number of bids might indicate the popularity of this loco and possible marketing success if produced to day ( Athearn ? ? ).
I think the cab-forwards will be shelf queens also unless the buyer(s) have new mechanisms to put under them. The Rivarossi engines were notorious for developing warped frames. Al.
I had a basket case once that a friend gave me for spare parts. The front driver chassis was totally crumbled. Had all the pieces but I built up a new one out of brass sheet. Had to file down the cab area of the main chassis so the shell would fit again. It had swelled up a bit but was still mechanically sound. It ran real well again, so much so that a friend who gave it to me just had to have it back. So I sold it back to him.
This would be a very popular RTR model in N Scale. Sometimes it amazes me what IS produced and what they seem to leave out. There were several variations of these locomotives too.
Thoughts on old rivi mallets.... Yes these can have metal fatigue problems. It's better to stick with the newer issues (made till 95 or so). I am having a new front engine chassis machined from aluminum for one of mine because i want to keep mine running forever. They have good mechanisms and pull well. [IF there is enough interest, you guys may be able to talk me into making these frame parts available. I would have to check whether this is kosher legally.] Thoughts on ratings.... I really do appreciate the reviews that are available on the Loco Encyclopedia and elsewhere, but I trust my judgement too. An example is the Atlas 2-8-8-2. I have avoided this loco based on the reviews. However, my brother just picked one up and it runs like a champ. Fixes are available for the known problems. So take the reviews (including this one) with a grain of salt, and make your own decision if you can! Dave
I had one of those ATSF Hallmark Northerns for a couple years before I finally attacked it out of complete frustration. It was the shelf queen, essentially unusable. I ended up blinding the #2 and #3 drivers so it would go around 15" radius curves; I also put an Atlas GP35 flywheel on the motor shaft to smooth it out. Runs pretty darn good now, but this is not for the faint of heart.
Dave: I have one of the newer Rivarossi Mallets and it runs very well. I'm not too sure about the Atlas 2-8-8-2. Stay cool and run steam.....
Mine had a short in one of the insulated drivers between the tire and wheel across the insulated gap. Took a while to find that but runs pretty well now.
Ummmmm....... I just saw this on the All American Train website under Intermountain Railway New for 2006 visit All American trains website: http://www.aat-net.de/ It certainly looks like a preliminary cab-forward to me! Advertised for fall of 2006 and will be offered with and without sound. MSRP at $329 without sound. Unfortunately I think it is only in HO not in N... yet. [ March 18, 2006, 11:15 AM: Message edited by: Calzephyr ]
