So I am new here and have come back to the hobby after many years got my box of old n-scale stuff out of the attic. And I am going to finally build that coffee table layout that I wanted to years ago, except that I will have some help from my 14 yr old son who loves trains YEA!!!. SO I thought I would ask you folks what locos in your opinion are the best deal/running/looking, ETC. I think I have an Idea just wondering what you think. Some may have that old favorite or that new on at the store with your name on it. Also where is the best place to sell/but used stuff, any and all comments are welcome Thanks for looking JDB
You are going to get a lot of different opinions here so heres mine. Coffee table layout = 4 axle power The best 4 axle for the money is by far the Kato F-3/F-7. They can be had for cheap and they purr like a kitten and pull like a mule. I'm not the only one who will tell you this. I have several and couldn't be happier. As far as buying and selling , use the trainstore right here on trainboard . ........next
Small layout needs small locomoitves to work effectively. Atlas, Kato, Intermountain, Bachmann and Walthers/LifeLike all makes some nice smalller units. It all depends more on what roadname you want to run than the manufacturer. Here are some examples: Atlas - RS units, Geeps to GP30/35 Kato - NW-2's, F units as posted above and perhaps a RS-2 for a larger locomotive Intermountain - F units, they have the widest selection! Bachmann - 2-8-0 Consolidation, and other smaller steam locomoitves and diesel switchers Walthers - RS-2's and SW-9's This is not an exhaustive list, more of a starting point for the original poster. Good luck, and make sure to have a lot of fun while you are at it.
Jack, welcome to the TrainBoard, we're happy to have you aboard, and equally happy to offer our help and experience. Now, to your question. I agree with Bremner as to general qualities, but I feel that Bachmann Spectrum and Model Power also offer some excellent locomotives. However, a lot depends on what you expect from your loco(s). You say "coffee table" which implies short straights and tight curves like 9"-11" radius. So a Big Boy with a 40 car freight would look ridiculous, if it would even fit. You are better off to start with small locos like GP-7s or -9s for diesels, or 2-6-0, 4-6-2, or 2-8-0 for steam and 5-8 freight cars or 3-4 passenger cars for starters, so it doesn't look like you have more train than track. Personally, I love my Model Power 2-6-0 and Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0 for reliability and DC operation.
Get something that is smaller but reliable. Since your space will be limited to coffee table size, a lokie like an SD45 would look out of place. But you can have the best of both worlds. Get a Kato RSC2. Small, six axles for superior electrical pick-up, and DCC ready to boot. Oh, and did I mention it's an Alco?
Oh boy... This thread will get several replies, and watch, I'll bet we'll see the number of nominations top the number of posts! Bottom line, the best engine is the one YOU want. In my experience, an engine that runs/looks only average but is the type/road name the owner treasures is priceless compared to a loco that runs perfect, but is an undesired type/road name. The engine I WANT is the engine that will get USED. Others aren't so optimistic, and if a single rivit or detail is misplaced on a specific model, they'll tell you about it, and that model will be banned from their layout. There's nothing wrong with that (though I wonder how one can enjoy the hobby being so pessimistic), that's just how some people perceive the hobby. And of course there are numerous points in between. Since your just returning to the hobby, I assume you'll be more open to what is available as is. So the question is not "What is the best?" It should be "Of what's available, what would YOU want?". In this day, even Bachmann is producing usable products. So no matter the choice, virtually any product will work for you.
I personally love Intermountain F units. FT, F3, and F7 are all great. I have a LOT of them and they all run great and look awesome. As some others said, just about anything from Kato or Atlas is going to be good as well. Depends a lot on the era you want.
Wow lots of replys... I forgot I like deseals and the coffee table is a little long so it will have some track space, but I will only run short trains. I do have some locos that I remember I really liked I have a spectrum dash 40 that is quite nice and a model power f7 that is quite and runs well as well as some atlas/kato and a kato SD 45 . So I am in the process of gathering all my materials Track/scenery and stuff ... where can I ge the foam board in so calif? Lowes? any ways I was looking in the boxes and I have some old atlas engines a bunch of Bachman Plus F7 A & B units and a bunch of misc. brands As to road names I am leaning towards So. Pacific and my son BN JDB
Owens Corning Model #45W Store SKU # 409926 Owens Corning Foamular® F-150 2 in. x 48 in. x 96 in. Scored Squared Edge Foam is available at the following Home Depots for $25 a sheet: Huntington Park Gardena San Pedro Cypress Orange That's for the 2" (4'x8'). Some people prefer the 1" or 1/2". (The HD up here in the SF Bay Area carry all those sizes) Just go to the HD site, look up the product, and click "Check Store Availability". Usually, when you "order" it, they come in pallets. A 4'x8' sheet of 2" foam is a LOT of foam. Bring a straight edge and a utility knife to score & snap in the parking lot, or you might have trouble fitting it in your car (experience!). If you don't like pink, Lowe's carries the blue. Have fun! P.S. My Kato NW2 is a CHAMP of an engine. So fab I got another one. My Spectrum 4-6-0 is groovy too, once I put a DZ125 decoder in it (the stock was ok).
Wow, perfect timing MC. I was just about to ask which foam you preferred. As for you, Jack, welcome back! I'm basically in the same boat. Been out of the hobby for almost two decades. Now I'm married with kids, and my oldest (9) has been bitten by the railroading bug. He can already tell the difference between an SD40 and an SD40-2, Mikados and Pacifics (including wheel arrangements), traction and rail diesel cars, etc. (like a sponge, I tell ya!) Now we're planning a nice hollow-core-door layout (see my link below) and are trying to get our stuff together. Anyway, enjoy and keep us posted! :tb-biggrin: And oh yeah, here's my vote for the Kato F3!
I was playing with a pair of Atlas locos earlier. The first is a custom painted and detailed GP15-1, and the second is a custom painted GP38. They are awesome runners and I keep thinking that I need to put decoders in them but I just never can get around to doing it so I will most likely end up getting rid of them. :tb-sad:
if you want longevity, quiet, power, and overall value, Get a older Kato F unit (F3/F7) I have a orginal run F7 A and B units, they are close to, if not older that 20 years at this point, and they still run super quier and smooth, pull like a mule, and look pretty damn good, even compaired to today's standard. the only maintnance I have ever had to do to them was oil them and clean them occationally.
I have been in this scale for many many years, and own quite a lot of locos of all sorts and manufacturers. Read the above advice and take it from me, these guys are spot ON, and actually seem to have your interest and needs contained in their advice. My contribution is that the purchase of your locos for your layout are very personal. When you see it (them) or each, you will know it on the spot, and build your layout and fleet at the same time. Probably the best starting point is the F series diesel which is selected by us for essentially the same reason as the real railroads selected theirs. Thankfully, they are provided by several manufacturers, Kato, Intermountain, Model Power, and there are others but the quality and performance starts to fall off beyond these locos. The F units can be used either as a single unit pulling a small train around your initial layout, or other A cab units, or B booster units can be added as your trains get a little longer and more resolute. Then on to other hood diesels, like GP's or Alco units and as your fleet grows, every train loco or rolling stock will mean more as you obtain them. I wish you luck. As you make funds available, your journey will result in likely several good locomotives, and like many others and me, you will obtain some duds, but if you stick with the manufacturers stated before here, you will win in the end. Good luck and good hunting!!!! Ken "FloridaBoy" Willaman
Best engines? Easy Atlas hands down. Best engine for coffee table layouts? Any 4 axle Atlas engine. Other nice 4 axle locomotives? Walthers locomotives are smooth runners There are other brands but,I have no hands on experience with those brands.
Picking a best engine used to be quite easy. Not so anymore. Quality has gone up quite a bit and using only quantitative standards will narrow the field only a little. So allow me to get subjective here and nominate my choice for "Best N Scale Engine". It is the LifeLike FA/B1's. This has to be the best purchase I ever made in N Scale. I had an ABBA consist of these pull a 143 car train around a layout configured like a letter "J". At any one time the train occupied seven of the eight 90 degtree curves, including a partial "S" curve. Once the engines were backed and coupled to the train it just walked away with it with no wheel slip at all. The kicker was that I paid a total of $64.00 for those four engines.
Best engine is like who makes a better car... Some won't buy Bachman or Life Like and only buy Kato or Atlas Others don't mind any of the above as long as they run. Mark has spent a LOT of time compiling data on the various makes/models of N scale gear. http://www.visi.com/~spookshow/locos.html Only problem is you can't stop at just one, like potatoe chips.:tb-biggrin: I have 15 GP7/15/20/30/35/38/40/40-2's, 5 Dash 8 32/40-B/BW/BWH's, a P42, ES44AC, 5 SD70ACe's, 3 SD60/Ms, SD40T-2, 2 AC4400's, FP7A, F3A/B, and a 2-8-0 on a 2x4ft oval. Almost enough to cover ALL the trackage, but I'm starting on something a little bigger and an N-Track module to justify having all of it (in my mind anyway).
