It will cost you extra cash for interface modules which will be far better spent getting decent engines. Cheap, nasty locos can seriously damage your fun. Mike, Thanks again. So now my question 2 you is...what should I look for in a decent, not expensive, engine? Are there particular ones to avoid? Can they be ranked by maker or attributes? Atlas, Atherton, Bachmann, Mikado are just a few that I see regularly. I'm sure that there are others that U could recommend for me to consider. If nothing else, I could use my current one for painting/weathring practice. Your suggestions are welcomed. Also, the term "interface moduals" I presume is same as "decoder" or is is it something else?
Before anyone can recommend a brand of locomotive or type of locomotive, they have to know what you are looking for. Is your pike a switching railroad or a portion of a larger railroad with long through freights? Is it set in the Steam era, diesel era or the transition era? Once you decide on an era, what kind of locomotive would you like to operate? if in the diesel era, are you partial to Alco's or EMD's products. Or if in a more modern era, do you prefer GE to EMD? Are you willing to spend $100 or $ 500 on a locomotive? While you have mentioned DCC in a previous post, are you determined to purchase only DCC equipped locomotives? It would not be correct for anyone to make a recommendation before you have specified your criteria and budget.
Born in the 40's, I like the transition era. Anything that U might suggest will be helpful. Actually my question is more along the lines of what to look for in physical construction attributes of engines. For example, I've heard of rubber band drives & traction wheels & geard drives & etc. I'm wondering what I can hope to find when shopping in the $50-$100 range. I know that there's a difference between what I "hope" to find vs. "expect" to find. In a perfect world (on average), are there one or two or three engine manufacturers that regularly produce good value per $ spent? I know that my limited resources will limit my selections, but any advice U can share is helpful. Re: DCC I'm open as far as being only DCC specific. I've read that many engines can be converted to DCC w/relative ease (probably after some initial guidance).
RR Dick - It would probably be helpful if you were to specify a specific railroad that you have a fond connection with. Or a specific region of the country that you'd like to model. It could be that you want to build your own railroad, or as said in the hobby - free lance. In the transition era (steam to diesel) there were about 120 railroads that were classed as "Class 1" lines. However, on most railroads steam disappeared between 1952 - 1956, and most were dieselized. From the beginning of dieselization until 1956 diesels were manufactured by Alco, Baldwin, EMD, and Fairbanks-Morse. Of course many diesels have a 15 to 30 plus year life span. From approx. 1956-1960, only Alco and EMD were still building. They were joined about 1961 by General Electric. Not that steam had totally disappeared, there were still many short lines that ran steam even into approx. the mid-60's. Typical power were typically small steam engines; 0-6-0, 4-6-0, and 2-8-0. Heck, if you can find one, the Russian 2-10-0 was the epitome of light rail operations. Bachman's "Spectrum" line has all of these wheel arrangements and as far as I know, a good reputation for quality. However, in HO scale, steam is typically more expensive and can sometimes be "finicky" in operation. As you can imagine, most railroads had a preferred supplier of diesels some being basically all EMD or Alco, some with a vertitable smorgasbord of makes and models and every variation in between. So, if you can please advise if you have any preferences as to road name, area of the country, etc. Bet you'll find an expert right here on Trainboard who'll be more than willing to share information with you.
Dick , as far as brand names goes , it can come down to personal preferences and experiences . I don't have enough $$$ for the new sound units ( sigh ) , so happily stick to my transition era diesels as well as steam locos . I've had good luck with Kato and Atlas in the past . The early Proto 2000's gave me some disappointments but probably have improved ( BTW the Mikado you mentioned is a type of steam loco , not a brand name ) Again , ask around . My one Bachmann steam loco has been fine ( a 3-truck Shay ) as has my one diesel . Terry
