The "Amtrak" and "Cafe" lettering on the Bachmann car seem too large compared to the prototypes. The Walthers Amfleet II is a beautiful model, I have a couple of Amfleet II Walthers cars from their first run back in the early 2000s, they are some of my favorite Amtrak cars in my fleet. They don't have the chrome finish, however, so their finish looks much more like the Bachmann car in this review. Also another identifying feature between the Amfleet I and II cars are the larger passenger windows on the Amfleet IIs in addition to the larger door windows. Also the Amfleet II food service cars have an uneven number of windows on each side of the center counter area where I believe the Amfleet Is have equal number of windows on each side.
good point. I forgot to mention this, but yea the lettering is too large on bachmanns, amfleet IIs have larger windows on single doors, and the uneven windows on amfleet II cars. I dont believe I mentioned these since it was less about comparing amfleet IIs to amfleet Is but rather between Bachmann and Walthers cars. Good info to others unaware nonetheless!
The end doors on the Amfleet cars are only closed and locked when the car is the lead or end car in a consist on the prototype, so you see the arched grab iron on the door at the end of the train. Those doors are open when they are not at the lead or the end so you can get between cars. They swing open 180 degrees and latch in against the inner wall of the vestibule. Thus, the arched grab iron you see when the door at the end is closed becomes one of the handrails for the boarding steps when the door is open and latched against the inner vestibule wall. So that is what those are for :)
Hi, i recently got a ho scale Walthers proto Amtrak amfleet phase 1 VI passenger car of the issue I have is getting coupler to lineup correctly with kadee coupler height gauge on track. Could one solution be to of fixing this issue to use nylon washer to put underneath body passenger car and on to truck wheels to adjust height of coupler lineup better with kadee coupler height gauge there?
Yes assuming your coupler is too low (and not too high), adding shims to your trucks will help. If your coupler is too high, you might have to remount the coupler box to lower the coupler height.
@@trainman440 shims? Are you referring to shims meaning adding a nylon washer for truck? What is the right size of nylon washer for me to add between underneath body passenger car and on the to truck? And have you had this same issue with couplers on Walthers proto Amtrak amfleet passenger coupler height too low where you have to modify there!
@@AntonioJohnson-h4p shim is a washer yea. add a shim to the truck to raise the body (and coupler). the right size depends on how low your coupler is, there is no correct size. I dont own any walthers amfleets currently but i dont recall them having couplers that are too low.
@@trainman440 Ok! Another option I got ask what about also too of using Walthers Nylon Hex Nuts pkg(12) 4-40; 100×1/4".25×.64cm for Walthers proto ho scale Amtrak amfleet phase1 84 passenger underbody and on to truck that along should also work of fixing coupler height issues of lineup with my kadee height gauge there correct? And if so then I may have 2 options to 1.) get of using shims to truck or 2.) use Walthers Nylon Hex Nuts pkg 12 4-40; 100×1/4".25×64cm too. I'm just thinking about my 2 options there. But what your thoughts of me using Walthers nylon Hex Nuts part #947-1256 4-40;.100×1/4".25×.64cm that could be another option to add to trunk of fixing coupler height issues be solve by that hopefully too? I hoping get this coupler problem issue on my ho scale Walthers proto Amtrak amfleet passenger car phase1 84 be fix sooner due I'm using that along with other 7; bachmann Amtrak amfleet passengers run together using Amtrak Siemens acs 64 sound equipped electric locomotive on setting up my train set around Christmas time.
Nice review, highly respect your opinion, however with that said when you asked are the amfleet proto Walther's car worth it over the bachman? For prototypical modeling YES. Definitely, period. That's unfortunately why they cost so much. You want quality you have to pay for it. The bachman cars are great if your on a budget or just pleasing your kids for basic running around a 4x8 home layout or a Christmas tree bachmann works., but those plated finish amfleet are by far superior when you want to model Amtrak correctly. Walthers got the chrome paint, amfleet tube shape, wheels with trucks, side and undercarriage details, and inside seats correct on there amfleet run.bachmann dropped the ball on all those points. I will agree the led is over the top, bachmann lighting is better, but those can be easily removed to get rid of the lights. The main problem with the walthers even with they're inside Baring trucks, with massive lubing they still don't roll very freely, I have a dozen of them, I know from experience.
absolutely! Walthers cars are most certainly far superior in detail from Bachmann in every single way! Bachmann amfleets are a tad shorter, the paint has no chrome plating effect, trucks look terrible, etc etc. I believe when I was talking about which one being "worth it" I implied value for money. I think bachmanns are "good enough", and a better overall value for money, but if youre looking for upmost detail and precision, the walthers ones for you. That I dont deny, and I think I already stated in the video. Thanks for watching!
I am no sure tbh since I only have one. It will nagivate 22" fine by itself, but coupled to another car Im not so sure, but probably. One thing to note though is it does look terrible on my 22" curves. If possible id highly recommend getting larger curves. Cheers!
My Amtrak fleet is by LifeLIke which are illuminated with incandescent lighting. I changed the incandescent lighting for 12 volt LED strip lighting with keep alive circuits. I think they look much better with LED lighting. I don't like the Walthers coaches because I don't care for the lack of truck side frames on the wheels. I don't ever recall seeing just wheels and no sideframes on any coaches. I don't like the Bachmann either because of the trucks. They just don't look right. Cheers from eastern TN
Some may go with the Bachmann cars but I would go with Walthers even though they're more expensive. The windows on the doors are more prototypical and the grab irons and stirrups are more prototypical as well. And the shiny finish looks great as well. But Bachmann did a good job on the Acela set.
Indeed, the Walthers cars are definitely better than the Bachmann cars in both detail and accuracy, but their main downside is the price, their rarity, and them requiring bigger curves. Im strapped for cash, I got tight curves, and I don't model Amtrak so Bachmanns work good enough for me, but Im sure if you want to be accurate Walthers are certainly for you. Thanks for watching!
For the underbody details, give me the Walthers. Trucks, Walthers. Lighting, Bachmann. The real ones had warm white fluorescent lights, and the windows were a bronze tinted Plexiglas. I am not a fan of lighted passenger cars. That said, I would have to do something with the lighting in the Walthers car.
agreed, although I would say its much easier adding better lighting to a walthers car than it is adding all the detail and trucks to a bachmann car :) I think everyone agrees that walthers amfleet is far more detailed and better looking. But the bigger question is, if its worth spending almost double the cost for a walthers over a bachmann. The point of this video is for viewers to decide for themselves if they think the bachmann is good enough or if they "need" the walthers version. In my case, I just have a bunch of bachmann amfleets. Cheers!
The details are superb on the Walthers, however Bachmann does turn out a good product. However, buying the Walthers Amfleet cars on eBay is more expensive than ordering on Trainworld which I did, and Bachmann is less expensive on eBay than it is on Trainworld.
indeed. The buyer's decision must balance both choice, availability, and detail expectations. Some people need the chrome finish, prototypical length, and details. Others are on a limited budget. This video's goal was to hopefully help a purchaser in their decision.
@@trainman440 pretty much me in a nut shell. I like to have the best, which is why I stopped going on eBay and just order my stuff through my friend who owns a hobby shop
@@gerardlang1356 yep, unfortunately many of us dont have hobby shops that supply everything near us. And many online shops run out of rare stock, such as Walthers Amfleets.
Black paint is hardly the correct color for an Amfleet wheel. Neither of them are right, but Bachmann by no means got the right color wheels. Neither of them are rust/dirt colored.
@@CSXKid5016 Indeed, from my experience traveling on the northeast corridor, the wheels are a dirt/rust color. I think the original commenter was stating atleast a painted wheel is more realistic than an entirely unpainted wheel. (which I agree with)
honestly though, if you're trying to run full length 85' passenger cars, the fact it can run on unrealistically tight curves really isn't a mark against them imo.
The "Amtrak" and "Cafe" lettering on the Bachmann car seem too large compared to the prototypes. The Walthers Amfleet II is a beautiful model, I have a couple of Amfleet II Walthers cars from their first run back in the early 2000s, they are some of my favorite Amtrak cars in my fleet. They don't have the chrome finish, however, so their finish looks much more like the Bachmann car in this review. Also another identifying feature between the Amfleet I and II cars are the larger passenger windows on the Amfleet IIs in addition to the larger door windows. Also the Amfleet II food service cars have an uneven number of windows on each side of the center counter area where I believe the Amfleet Is have equal number of windows on each side.
good point. I forgot to mention this, but yea the lettering is too large on bachmanns, amfleet IIs have larger windows on single doors, and the uneven windows on amfleet II cars. I dont believe I mentioned these since it was less about comparing amfleet IIs to amfleet Is but rather between Bachmann and Walthers cars.
Good info to others unaware nonetheless!
@@trainman440 I was just rattling off some differences I happened to know, good review none the less!
The end doors on the Amfleet cars are only closed and locked when the car is the lead or end car in a consist on the prototype, so you see the arched grab iron on the door at the end of the train. Those doors are open when they are not at the lead or the end so you can get between cars. They swing open 180 degrees and latch in against the inner wall of the vestibule. Thus, the arched grab iron you see when the door at the end is closed becomes one of the handrails for the boarding steps when the door is open and latched against the inner vestibule wall. So that is what those are for :)
gotcha, that makes sense!
Hi, i recently got a ho scale Walthers proto Amtrak amfleet phase 1 VI passenger car of the issue I have is getting coupler to lineup correctly with kadee coupler height gauge on track. Could one solution be to of fixing this issue to use nylon washer to put underneath body passenger car and on to truck wheels to adjust height of coupler lineup better with kadee coupler height gauge there?
Yes assuming your coupler is too low (and not too high), adding shims to your trucks will help. If your coupler is too high, you might have to remount the coupler box to lower the coupler height.
@@trainman440 shims? Are you referring to shims meaning adding a nylon washer for truck? What is the right size of nylon washer for me to add between underneath body passenger car and on the to truck? And have you had this same issue with couplers on Walthers proto Amtrak amfleet passenger coupler height too low where you have to modify there!
And my coupler is too low by way
@@AntonioJohnson-h4p shim is a washer yea. add a shim to the truck to raise the body (and coupler). the right size depends on how low your coupler is, there is no correct size. I dont own any walthers amfleets currently but i dont recall them having couplers that are too low.
@@trainman440 Ok! Another option I got ask what about also too of using Walthers Nylon Hex Nuts pkg(12) 4-40; 100×1/4".25×.64cm for Walthers proto ho scale Amtrak amfleet phase1 84 passenger underbody and on to truck that along should also work of fixing coupler height issues of lineup with my kadee height gauge there correct? And if so then I may have 2 options to 1.) get of using shims to truck or 2.) use Walthers Nylon Hex Nuts pkg 12 4-40; 100×1/4".25×64cm too. I'm just thinking about my 2 options there. But what your thoughts of me using Walthers nylon Hex Nuts part #947-1256 4-40;.100×1/4".25×.64cm that could be another option to add to trunk of fixing coupler height issues be solve by that hopefully too? I hoping get this coupler problem issue on my ho scale Walthers proto Amtrak amfleet passenger car phase1 84 be fix sooner due I'm using that along with other 7; bachmann Amtrak amfleet passengers run together using Amtrak Siemens acs 64 sound equipped electric locomotive on setting up my train set around Christmas time.
Trainworld has these Walthers Amfleet IIs backordered due 6/30/2021. I might pick it up
ayee yea why not
I sold 8 walthers proto on ebay for 250.00 each quickly. The price is high but the quality and detail is unmatched. Nice video.
dang, thats crazy! Yea ngl I bought the walthers amfleet soley bc it was cheap on ebay, and I planned to sell it. Trying to make $100 for it.
@@trainman440 do it quickly, Walthers is planning another run this summer.
@@egbutler114Its been listed for 2 weeks, no buyers :(
Thanks for the comparison, I'm looking into getting amfleets for my P42
Oooh that sounds like an impressive train! Be sure to share!
Of course =)
What paint scheme is you're p42 locomotive Aussis gunzel
@@bluebearhugs phase 3
@@AussieGunzel i have two p-42s and one p-40 in phase 3
Nice review, highly respect your opinion, however with that said when you asked are the amfleet proto Walther's car worth it over the bachman? For prototypical modeling YES. Definitely, period. That's unfortunately why they cost so much. You want quality you have to pay for it.
The bachman cars are great if your on a budget or just pleasing your kids for basic running around a 4x8 home layout or a Christmas tree bachmann works., but those plated finish amfleet are by far superior when you want to model Amtrak correctly. Walthers got the chrome paint, amfleet tube shape, wheels with trucks, side and undercarriage details, and inside seats correct on there amfleet run.bachmann dropped the ball on all those points. I will agree the led is over the top, bachmann lighting is better, but those can be easily removed to get rid of the lights. The main problem with the walthers even with they're inside Baring trucks, with massive lubing they still don't roll very freely, I have a dozen of them, I know from experience.
absolutely! Walthers cars are most certainly far superior in detail from Bachmann in every single way! Bachmann amfleets are a tad shorter, the paint has no chrome plating effect, trucks look terrible, etc etc. I believe when I was talking about which one being "worth it" I implied value for money. I think bachmanns are "good enough", and a better overall value for money, but if youre looking for upmost detail and precision, the walthers ones for you. That I dont deny, and I think I already stated in the video.
Thanks for watching!
Superb video. Will the walther’s car run on a 22” radius? Thanks for your review.
I am no sure tbh since I only have one. It will nagivate 22" fine by itself, but coupled to another car Im not so sure, but probably.
One thing to note though is it does look terrible on my 22" curves. If possible id highly recommend getting larger curves.
Cheers!
with a long shank coupler
My Amtrak fleet is by LifeLIke which are illuminated with incandescent lighting. I changed the incandescent lighting for 12 volt LED strip lighting with keep alive circuits. I think they look much better with LED lighting. I don't like the Walthers coaches because I don't care for the lack of truck side frames on the wheels. I don't ever recall seeing just wheels and no sideframes on any coaches. I don't like the Bachmann either because of the trucks. They just don't look right. Cheers from eastern TN
you clearly havent seen an amtrak amfleet car before then. Google to see what they look like.
Some may go with the Bachmann cars but I would go with Walthers even though they're more expensive. The windows on the doors are more prototypical and the grab irons and stirrups are more prototypical as well. And the shiny finish looks great as well. But Bachmann did a good job on the Acela set.
Indeed, the Walthers cars are definitely better than the Bachmann cars in both detail and accuracy, but their main downside is the price, their rarity, and them requiring bigger curves. Im strapped for cash, I got tight curves, and I don't model Amtrak so Bachmanns work good enough for me, but Im sure if you want to be accurate Walthers are certainly for you. Thanks for watching!
For the underbody details, give me the Walthers. Trucks, Walthers.
Lighting, Bachmann. The real ones had warm white fluorescent lights, and the windows were a bronze tinted Plexiglas. I am not a fan of lighted passenger cars. That said, I would have to do something with the lighting in the Walthers car.
agreed, although I would say its much easier adding better lighting to a walthers car than it is adding all the detail and trucks to a bachmann car :)
I think everyone agrees that walthers amfleet is far more detailed and better looking. But the bigger question is, if its worth spending almost double the cost for a walthers over a bachmann. The point of this video is for viewers to decide for themselves if they think the bachmann is good enough or if they "need" the walthers version. In my case, I just have a bunch of bachmann amfleets. Cheers!
Great video, I've subbed
thanks! I hope I wont disappoint!
The details are superb on the Walthers, however Bachmann does turn out a good product. However, buying the Walthers Amfleet cars on eBay is more expensive than ordering on Trainworld which I did, and Bachmann is less expensive on eBay than it is on Trainworld.
indeed. The buyer's decision must balance both choice, availability, and detail expectations. Some people need the chrome finish, prototypical length, and details. Others are on a limited budget. This video's goal was to hopefully help a purchaser in their decision.
@@trainman440 pretty much me in a nut shell. I like to have the best, which is why I stopped going on eBay and just order my stuff through my friend who owns a hobby shop
@@gerardlang1356 yep, unfortunately many of us dont have hobby shops that supply everything near us. And many online shops run out of rare stock, such as Walthers Amfleets.
@@trainman440 you’re right, sir. I honestly have that problem because my friends shop is 400 miles away, and I only deal with him
At least the Bachman car's wheels are the right color.
True, that's an easy fix though
Black paint is hardly the correct color for an Amfleet wheel. Neither of them are right, but Bachmann by no means got the right color wheels. Neither of them are rust/dirt colored.
@@CSXKid5016 Indeed, from my experience traveling on the northeast corridor, the wheels are a dirt/rust color. I think the original commenter was stating atleast a painted wheel is more realistic than an entirely unpainted wheel. (which I agree with)
Walthers sucks cant handle 22 inch radius
honestly though, if you're trying to run full length 85' passenger cars, the fact it can run on unrealistically tight curves really isn't a mark against them imo.