The separately fitted pump on the side of the boiler is the Westinghouse air pump for the air brakes which is why it goes chuff, chuff when stationary. Nice wee locomotive.
Southern subsidiary New Orleans Terminal Company had 5 of these locomotives. They were built in 1905 by Baldwin and numbered 7080 to 7084. They were retired 1933 to 1937.
The piece on the side with the 2 shiny bits in it is what is called a Cross Compound Air Pump. This is one of the key parts of the Westinghouse Brake System. No Vacuum brake on this loco. The pump charges the Main Reserviour on the loco. That sound that began on connection to power is the sound a Cross Compound air pump makes.
Most American locomotives have a cross compound air compressor. All American steam locomotives have air brakes. Even the SR USA class (usatc s100) have sing air compressors and air brakes.
My grandpa gave us two of these, both broken. One had a split drive rod joint and the other had a mangled wiring harness and blown decoder. I made a horseshoe shape out of copper wire to repair the rods on one, then swapped its decoder into the other one. I then converted the one with repaired drive rods to DC and gave it to my brother, who has a DC controller.
Unlike in the UK, most American railway companies bought locos built and designed by Alco or Baldwin -- like smaller companies buying from the Beyer Peacock or Kitson catalogues in the UK. A few American companies designed their own, then had Alco or Baldwin build them. Only a couple of the biggest companies had their own loco-building works. This model looks like a bog-standard Alco product of around 1920 -- each buyer would of course have company-specific requirements for fittings and details.
The bachmann 2-6-0 is based on the Green Bay & Western class R 2-6-0 loco (pretty accurate actually) which bachmann painted in a whole lot of fantasy schemes for other railroads.
The function button for the headlight is button 0, if it doesn't work with button 0 then it is your controller and the reason the locomotive is so fast is that its decoder is designed for a 28 speed-step system, not a 100 step one.
Confusingly there are two kinds of speed steps. There's the speed steps in the decoder. They are like gears in a car. The more speed steps a decoder has the smoother the acceleration is. The Bachman Sound Vale decoder supports 14, 28 and 128 speed steps. In the beginning DCC controllers and decoders only had 14 speed steps. This was soon increased to 28, then 128 speed steps. The 14 speed steps is still included just in case you have a very old controller. We're talking about the 1990s here. The other kind of speed steps found on DCC controllers are notional speed steps that are just there as a guide on how fast your loco is going. On my controller you can set the speed steps to MPH, KPH or just simple 1 to 126. The 100 KPH doesn't mean the loco goes at a scale speed of 100 KPH.
Thanks for sharing Steve - yeah I tried function 0... and all the other functions for that matter! I've had other Bachmann sound value locos that do exactly the same thing on this controller... so I definitely suspect the controller! Interesting about the speed steps... I'll have to see if I can find any settings in Railmaster to change... but don't hold your breath! Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Yeah, and most decoders have 14, 28, or 128 speed steps. I’ve never encountered a decoder with 100 speed steps, though you could fake it (on high-end decoders that have programmable speed tables ) by programming the 1st 100 speed steps in the table, then setting the remainder (28) to whatever top-end speed value you have for step 100.
The headlight should turn on with function 0, and would have a dynamo sound as well. Once these are programmed and the speed limited, if momentum is turned on, they are a fantastic switching loco. It looks like the pilot axle is binding, that pony truck might be gripping a little tight to the axle. As far as the jerking backwards, it could be a number of things, my best guess is that it is the motor shaft has too much play and the worm is slightly lifting every rotation off the idler gear. I’m sorry the sound is irritating to you, the sound selection for these locos is actually really good, but a lot has to be programmed and volumes adjusted. The first sound you hear when power is applied is the air pumps, and it doesn’t loop, it has cadences based on acceleration and deceleration, just like the real ones.
Thanks for that - yep definitely not getting anything on function 0... time for a better controller I think! Duly noted, thanks for sharing, Cheers, Sam :)
The Sound Value line does not come standard with the dynamo sound. Just Bell (F1), Long Whistle (F2), Short Whistle (F3), Blow down (F4) and the idling/chuffing. The Sound Value DCC decoder is a parsed-down Soundtraxx decoder that eliminated extra sounds and functions to make it a bit cheaper for model railroaders who don’t need all the extras when just starting out, but can upgrade later with a drop-in upgrade with more whistles and functions from soundtraxx. I used my Alco 2-6-0 as a test for painting backhead detail, re-lettering, weathering, and programming speeds with the command station.
I have one of these in the Lackawanna scheme and so far it's been a solid runner even if a bit speedy (typical Bachmann). They have headlights on F0 and a nice crawl, so it is your rubbish PC controller! Scrap that thing and get a proper handheld DCC unit and every DCC loco will thank you. Furthermore, the model CAN run in DC mode, you have instructions on how it works and you'd do well to READ those before slamming full DC power through them as some DC units can damage them by overcurrent - indicated by the headlights flashing. For my Bachmann drawbars I've glued on a tiny bit of rubber tube on the tender end to keep them from coming apart, and since I never disconnect my locos and tenders when transporting them anyway, this is a perfectly viable solution.
Thanks for sharing! Yeah solid runners aren't they? As for running on DC, the instructions read "The decoder is set to operate *immediately* using either a 12 volt DC power pack or NMRA-compatible DCC command station". The instructions also say not to exceed 27 volts... so slamming it with the full 12v of my Gaugemaster shouldn't do any harm whatsoever, though I tested it at all speeds with zero response. Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains Hmm, the common trend for H0 controllers is 16-18v though? Is 12v a UK standard by chance? I've experienced that some older controllers could put out well over 20v in some cases but your Gaugemaster shouldn't have that problem if its capacity is 12v... As for the "set to operate Immediately" part of the instructions, I know most Sound Value models I own will play sound and display lights at around 4-6v, then they start moving. It is normal as the decoders need a certain voltage to "wake up" as yours does, perhaps there is an incorrectly set CV making yours not recognize when to start moving??? I have tested mine using a cheapo Mehano controller at 13v and it ran ok with lights... guess you won the raffle and got another "Quality Suprise" from Bachmann! At any rate, get a proper DCC unit for your trains, that Railmaster software drives both _you_ and _us_ crazy. ;)
@@SamsTrains If your DC controller is only putting out 12v that may be the problem. My trusty old ancient Life-Like (Same controller was also made for Bachmann, Lionel, Tyco, etc) puts out around 18v at 100%. I imagine that may be your DC issue. As far as DCC I believe it's likely the DCC setup you are using. I have seen in several videos where lights and other functions don't work on your track so it's either your DCC setup or you have the worst luck in history with locomotives malfunction right out of the box. Get yourself an NCE power cab or some other inexpensive unit to test against your Hornby stuff.
@@Trains-With-Shane 12v is fairly typical, the exceptional H&M, well wellkut, Sykes etc being a highish 14v, and the standard for HO or OO has always been 12v. If a manufacturer wants to sell a too high non standard 18v that's for them, but a 12v controller is definitely not of any issue. And NCE powercabs are not inexpensive.
@@JonatanGronoset I mentioned in a comment below that 12v has always and still is the norm, if a manufacturer wants to put out a motor burning 16v or 18v that's their choice. The issue as has been relayed many times through instructions, reviews etc is how the volts are delivered: any feedback pwm etc are highly recommended to be avoided
I highly recommend these, I had one myself that was being sold off for 50 dollars but it was in absolutely perfect condition, there was even weathering added by the previous owner, the thing lasted me 2 years until she finally gave out from age. But I am extremely satisfied with the life it gave me and I highly recommend any starters to get one Edit: oof, I spoke too soon. I guess the previous owner did some modifications
you highly recommend something that died after 2 years? that doesn't make much sense... edit: i know it was used, but it can't be more than 9 years old since they came out around 2012 or so... it shouldn't be dead after less than a decade
Thanks for sharing! Yes overall for the money they're amazing aren't they? But yeah - locos should last more than 2 years... though it sounds like this was in used condition, so fair enough! Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@jamesm6638 it was just because I was mostly new and didn’t know how to maintain it very well, I got another one and with my new found knowledge I can make this one can last mUCH longer
There’s a Bachmann USA set called ‘Echo Valley Express’ that also comes with a SoundValue Southern 2-6-0, and a Bachmann DCC controller. I see it for sale every now and then for around $200-$250. A DCC sound loco, a DCC controller, some cars and track for that price seems pretty flippin’ good to me, especially considering that the RRP of this model and the EZ Command controller are $160 and $210, respectively.
Wow! That does sound pretty amazing - don't understand how Bachmann can be such good value some of the time but not others D: Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains either they're pricing it at what the market will bear and taking a nice slice of profit, and that's higher for already entrenched hobbyists, or they're taking a loss on the sets hoping to draw in new blood.
The Bachmann Alco 2-6-0 was a locomotive of no particular qualities, basically designed for general lighter duty work. The version you have was based on a design for the Green Bay & Western, a railroad in the State of Wisconsin. This sort of locomotive would be found in and around the American midwest. I believe the American Locomotive Company was larger than Baldwin and ALCO engineered some of the more advanced locomotives built in the U.S.
no light control and bad speed control = dcc steps issue. The basic functions (lights, shunting mode and gradual acceleration) should always work regardless of the dcc hardware used as these are NMRA standardized
As with most USA bachmann models, its pretty much a generic design with as many roadnames they can stamp on it... still, the prices make them great for beginners, which is what we need more of to keep the hobby alive
Its similar to the Hornby Railroad range idea in the UK. Utilise older models that once were in the main detailed locomotive, carriage and wagon ranges and sell them cheaper for beginners or people who want to custom weather and super detail a model.
@@bentullett6068 bachmann does have a few winners in their lineup, the 2-6-6-2 has awesome detail and runs nicely... and their 2-8-4's are much cheaper than brass (or even the p2k version) albeit at a lower level of detail... I haven't tried their new USRA 2-8-2 or PRR k4 yet but I'm assuming they'd be good for newcomers... you can buy a k4 in brass for about the same price tho lol
@@jamesm6638 I have seen some of Bachmanns US diesel locomotive models on layouts here in the UK and they look fantastic. I have seen a few of the US steam locomotives as well and they don't look too bad either.
@@bentullett6068 yeah I've got a couple spectrum gp30's and they're not bad, any kato clone mechanism is gonna hold up pretty well... not sure what the UK locos look like inside but Id imagine they're similar
I am considering getting one of those and relettering it for my own railroad. The Southern Railway had five of those 2-6-0s in real life, although they were all allocated to the New Orleans Terminal Railroad. They were numbered 7080 through 7084, and were used on local freight trains. They were all scrapped at the end of the steam age, with no surviving members.
This is an outstanding small steam locomotive. So good that we bought a second one; combined, they run great together and can really pull a train double-headed. We call them “the Dolly Sisters “. We’ve had them about 8-9years now. 🚂🚂
This would be good if someone has a triple crossing set-up. There’s a post card for Richmond, Virginia made back in the day with the famous triple crossing. There’s a Southern 2-6-0 on the ground level rail crossing.
I actually really love the look of that thing! Just doing a bit of research it looks really similar to the Strasburg Railway Number #89 (ex-Canadian Pacific) locomotive in Pennsylvania, which was built in 1910
I have the AT&SF version, I got mine used and I’ve only recently needed to repair it after 5 years of operation, and it runs very smoothly and pulls a decent amount
I looked into the builders number printed on the builders plate and it actually ties to a preserved locomotive that's still in service, Alco product 45921 was built in 1909 for the Mississippi Central railroad as their number 98 although the only similarity is the builders number as 98 is a 4-4-0 American type and it was never owned by the southern railway but the engine did end up being preserved and served for several years on the Wilmington and Western tourist railroad and it remains there currently undergoing an overhaul to return the engine to operation
Yep, that idling chuff sound is the steam powered air compressor. This is used for the brakes or pneumatic power tools. British steam locomotives used vacuum brakes right?
The "M.R. Cyclopedia Volume1, STEAM LOCOMOTIVES" mentioned below says "Narrow Fireboxes weren't usually built after 1924 when the Green Bay and Western bought this engine new from ALCO. While Moguls were generally used in light freight service, they did as much as 70 miles per hour for an occasional light passenger train.
This body style reminds me of a Manila Railroad 45-class "Porter" as there called, back in the day there were a lot of these but sadly one of the last variant was scrapped in the 1990s.
Strange that the lighs on yours don't work, because it does have a very nice LED in both the tender and headlamp (the tender light is only activated in reverse). Unless your copy has a qc issue, I'd wager the DCC chip is to blame, Bachmann have been known to have pretty sketchy chips in the past. I'm not sure if it was just mine, but after a few weeks, my copy delevoped a wobble that made the performance super janky at any speeds. And good call on leaving the body, on top of screws, its also held on by pressure, and the only way to remove it is to basically pry it off, which *will* leave stress marks, if the body doesn't just break.
Southern’s New Orleans Terminal Company had 5 locos numbered 7080 to 7084. They were built by Baldwin in 1905. As far as I know they were Southerns only 2-6-0s. All retired between 1933-1937.
Yeah I knew there'd be an LED or two in there - but I wouldn't jump to blame the loco, as I've had this happen with other locos on my controller! That's Bachmann mechs for you - they can be pretty janky... and I pretty much knew it'd be a disaster to try and remove this body ;) Thanks for watching, Sam :)
you may have come across this in your research but the Southern Railway had a couple of 2-6-0s in its fleet that it inherited from the lines it was formed from in 1894 but those locomotives would have been much older than this prototype, which would probably represent a 1910s to 1920s built locomotive. still, great find for the price...glad you've become such a Southern Railway fan!!!
I don't have any steam DCC locomotives in HO scale but all of my Bachmann DCC Sound Value diesels, in both HO and N scale, run and operate perfectly. It's difficult to shake the memory of the garbage that they made in the 80's and 90's but their modern stuff compares favorably with other lower cost offerings out there. Of course a nice Atlas, Scaletrains, or other fancy unit with an ESU Loksound is far superior in detail and quality but you're likely to spend double if not more of what you did on the Bachmann. Simple economics. But I am glad that somebody is still offering affordable entry level trains these days as the model railroad hobby in general has inflated quite a bit, cost wise, over the last 5 years or so.
I'm glad that you overall liked this one. I sure hope that adjusting CV's will make it run a lot better; let us know if that's the case. I actually picked up 2 of the DCC ready versions of this in the Canadian National and Green Bay Western guises, I just tagged you on Instagram in a post with a few videos of them. The one I picked up more recently runs well; crawls decent and doesn't seem to have trouble picking up power; but the one I bought in January and haven't serviced yet is a little less good. Take a look if you'd like to know what you'd have gotten for $30-40 less. I'm pretty sure that these replaced an older "2-6-0" model Bachmann had which was basically the Prairie minus trailing wheel (aka the USRA 0-6-0 plus a leading axle)... this is a huge step up from that.
Great video Sam! I personally have this exact mogul, just with the Union Pacific livery, and mine does not share any of the issues that this one does. Although, I do have the DCC non-sound version. I'm not going to say yours is a faulty unit, but I'm shocked at the amount of problems yours has compared to mine that I've had for 4 years. I promise this model is much better performing than the anomaly that you received!
@@F40Productions True. I'm waiting for one of their N scale models to drop through my letterbox any day now. Also looking forward to the Titfield Thunderbolt.
As someone in North America with quite a few Bachmanns, I can honestly tell you that the quality of the engine often depends on which box grabbed at the shop. 3 of us from our club all bought the same engine of the Spectrum line, Bachmann's upscale(?) product. One came out of the box with every little detail broken, bent or botched. One ran perfectly. Mine wouldn't even go. It was dead. No lights, sound or running. The paint and finish were all great, except for the one with all the broken bits. I think the price for ours were right around $200 US w/ DCC. I will say, they were quick about sending out replacements...
If you ever want to take it apart and have a look inside, I finally figured out how! There is one more screw hidden inside the forward dome. The top of the dome is just friction-fit on, and with care, you can pop it off. Remove the screw under it, along with the other screws you removed before, and the shell should slide right off.
We have one of these locos at the model railroad club I go to. (Someone has it there so we can use it) I love running it and it is a very reliable locomotive! I love the sounds on this loco and enjoy running it at speed! They are great locos!
Yea, looking up the reporting mark + number on Google (SOU 7082) only comes-up with either this model or the high-hood EMD GP50 of the same number. Wouldn't be surprised if it never existed IRL, some manufacturers (like Bachmann) have been known to make fictional locomotives that never existed IRL. For example, they sold a GE BQ23-7 in both the Seaboard paint scheme (which existed IRL, as all 10 built were bought and used by the Seaboard Coast Line) and the Chessie System (which was an existing railroad, but never used any BQ23-7s).
According to Model Railroader Magazine this is a 1924 Green Bay and Western design, clearly they believe it's generic enough for other US roads. Interestingly Bachmann doesn't make these engines in the GB&W scheme, go figure
Sam: It is a bogie tender, as they tend to be on American locos. Me: The only American locos I can think of with fixed-axle tenders are pioneering locos, and those locos with centipede tenders (Though those have both fixed axles and a bogie).
haha yeah - another interesting difference between British and American stuff... our tenders almost always had fixed axles, even right up until the end of steam! Thanks for watching, Sam :)
The builders plate identified Schenectady Locomotive Works which wikipedia says is in New York and Alco took over in 1901. The builders plate had the year 1903. Wiki linked the mogul design to Canadian National E-10-a class no. 89 which looks very similar. The external link on the page has a long list of Alco preserved engines and the moguls in that list look similar to. Seems like their standard design.
I actually have the model from the Train set, and I can assure you, it is jerky backwards, but it's still a good model to have. On a regular DCC controller, you can in fact get it to do a crawl. Bachmann locos are good, though I would recommend Broadway Limited locos. All the ones I have are grand, and I run them more than any other loco in my collection.
I bet models in the future are going to be so expensive and detailed that the instructions will have to tell you where you can pick up the the model. They will probably cost the same as o gauge locos do today. As far as the fully coloured catalogue leaflet, you should burn it in the garden and video it and send it to bachmann, haha 😄 😆 😜
You can pretty much assume that minimum radius for all North American models is 18"/457.2mm, as most train sets on this side of the pond come with 18" radius curves. ALCO steam and diesel designs were produced under license in Canada by Montréal Locomotive Works (MLW) which eventually became Bombardier.
They sell a starter set with this Engine now. You get the DCC EZ controller and the new nickle silver track with it. No siding or anything which the Digital Commander set does have and also two powered DCC engines but with no sound card in them.
The Texas & Pacific Railway put Elesco feedwater heaters on some of their 2-6-0s, making them look about twice as big and powerful as they actually were. Seriously considering one of these little engines for my switching layout, with Elesco added of course. Back around 1970 my dad gave me a Rivarossi 0-8-0 (based on a huge NYC switcher) for Christmas, and since then, no steam engine looks complete without an Elesco on the smokebox!
the model is actually based of the greenbay and western 2-6-0, i dont remember if they where built by alco but yeah for the most part bachmann did pretty well capturing the look of the mogul
I had the exact same derailing issue on my brand new Hornby Streamlined Princess Coronation class, King George VI with the pilot truck, after I loosened the screw like you did, it runs fine now, no derailing. I do own the Bachmann mogul, mine is in Boston & Maine Railroad markings, and no it does not represent any Locomotive the B&M ran. But I still like it. American model companies do that a lot. Make one locomotive and paint it in a number of markings regardless of wether or not they used one like it. There is a B&M P4a class pacific under restoration in Scranton, Pennsylvania the class of locos, (3700 class, 3713 "The Constitution" is the one being restored...) A number of companies produced Pacific's carrying the number and are wrong. The two closest are a Very Old Athearn locomotive (1950's or 1960's production) that when it first came out was elastic band drive. And another fairly recent Brass Locomotive for $1,600.00. you would think someone would do an accurate model of a locomotive that will be under steam again and was one of a class of 10.
I have that one too, except for having one of the brakes fall off upon unboxing it the third time. The ALCO 2-6-0 is actually based on the one built for the Green Bay Route.
Hello! American steam locomotive running numbers and be confusing but in this case it's easy! The one shown in this video, the running number is 7082, pronounced seventy eighty two. Instead of seven zero eight two. I hope this helps you Sam!
Nice that you’re getting back into doing more USA steam locomotives! I like the look of this 2-6-0 mogul USA locomotive! It kinda reminds me of the one I’ve seen in a large scale from Garden Trains a few years ago.
I have one of those, and it has got to be one of the most reliable engines I have. 4 of the wires from the tender plug have broken off and yet it still runs and sounds perfect with zero side effects
When I try DCC locos with my DC controller, I need a lot of power to start it. It won’t start making noise till about 60/100 on the dial. And won’t move until maybe 90 or so. I can’t remember. Also. YAY! Another US loco. Also also. For DCC, i use digitrax dcs 51 if that’s any valuable.
Yeah it's strange isn't it? I tried it at all speed settings on my DC controller... with nothing! And thanks for that - definitely time to start shopping for a better DCC controller! ;D Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrainsget yourself the dcs 52 from the digitrax zephyre express set then it will also let you change cvs to make your loco run on dc and it can be plugged into your computer so you can control your trains with your phone
Is there any chance you’ll review any Athearn locos, including Big Boy, Challenger, FEF-3 and DDA40X Centennial? Also will you be reviewing and Scaletrains and Rapido locos such as a GTEL and an F40PH?
Interesting fact I also have the same locomotive, when I run it on standard DC the light comes on and cycles through all the sounds. Even more interesting I get the sound effect of wheels screeching when it takes off and comes to a stop ( doesn’t do it on DCC )
That Mogul's actual basis is a group of engines that were made in 1924 for the Green Bay & Western Railroad. They were among the last 2-6-0s made in America for domestic service and some of the last engines made with narrow fireboxs. Bachmann actually nailed the look fairly well but in typical fashion they threw a bunch of random roadnames on the same model. I own one lettered for the New York Central and it's got next to no pulling power but it looks perfect at the head of a small milk train. They also make good kitbash fodder since it's dimensions are close to many Mogul's from other American and Canadian railroads.
With American modelers pretty much all adjust cvs and such since different people want stuff to run in different ways I’d also recommend getting a different dcc system such as an nce powercab, your dcc locomotives will like a better dcc controller like that
The sound value is just a cheap version of Soundtraxx Tsunami 1. Soundtraxx has made a new drop in decoder option with Tsunami 2 sounds and it sounds better than ever. The drop in replacement board is TSU-BH2, it has resistors for the led lights and a perfect slow speed driver and the dynamic exhaust where running light you hear the rods only or loaded it barks like a freighter climbing a hill. It is a good work session to configure the decoder but worth it for the updated sounds and smooth drive.
Check the smokestack for a screw, that might help. Of course I never cared whether or not the speed was realistic or not because even if it's flying around the track, it does look rather cool.
Another prototype was the Panama 2-6-0, which was used in the building of the Panama Canal,and one is now in Paterson,New Jersey,right by the Cooke Works,and not far from the Rogers Locomotive Works! Both of those companies were in the original Alco family! Cooke exported several 0-6-2T's to Britain,and they ultimately turned up on the GWR,and survived the Grouping!
From MODEL RAILROADERT MAGAZINE "A long pedigree. Though some rigid-frame locomotives with a 2-6-0 wheel arrangement were seen as early as 1852, the first true Moguls with pivoting lead trucks were built in 1866. The Mogul was designed as a general purpose engine, though its low drivers (56″ on early versions, 64″ later) and low top speed suited it better for hauling freight trains than for passenger duties. Though it filled the same niche as the heftier 2-8-0 Consolidation, which was also developed in 1866, Moguls were nonetheless popular, perhaps in part due to their ease of maintenance. About 8,000 were built. Despite the development of larger and faster steam locomotives in ensuing years, Moguls were still being ordered by Class 1 railroads as late as 1924. Some railroads kept these plucky little engines on yard, industry, and light branchline duty until the end of steam. Bachmann’s model is based on a prototype built by Alco for the Green Bay & Western in 1924. The Alco locomotive has a domed smokebox door, a tender with raised fuel bunker and Andrews trucks, a spoked “boiler tube” pilot, a slightly flared smokestack, and a single cross-compound air compressor mounted on the left side of the boiler"
Sam, these locos are actually exact replicas of a fleet of 17 2-6-0s built by ALCo for the Green Bay & Western Railroad. Sadly, all 17 were scrapped, but there are plenty of photographs of these machines on the internet. Happy searching! ~Mike
If you think that plug is conspicuous, wait til you see a Broadway Limited loco...or worse, wait you have to get one out of its box and hook it up! Although their most recent stuff has gotten better with this, thankfully.
An interesting locomotive to look in too is the American 4-4-0 1860s Civil War Era locomotives. Such as The General, Texas, Or York. They are some of my personal favorites and I have a model of the York which is DCC Sound Equipped
Hi Sam, the closest protoype that exists to this engine would be #11 at the Everett Railroad which is presently a running locomotive. Back in the 20's, Alco was building light 2-6-0's, 2-6-2's, 4-6-0's, 2-8-0's and 2-8-2s for export to Cuba to work Sugar Cane Lines. Baldwin, H.K. Porter, and Davenport also had many Engines that were shipped to that island for the same purpose. ALCO built the Engines in batches, so they always had some ready to ship. They were as close to Standard Cookie-Cutter Design, Showroom Floor Engine you could get. #11 was one of those Engines that never went to Cuba and was sold to a shortline here in the states passing through many hands both in active duty and in preservation before finally ending up at the Everett in Pennsylvania.
Odd. I think the place you bought it from may have played around with the settings or something. I have this model in and Pensy scheme (well, I've repainted it to LZW&W), and it didn't have any of those issues; Headlight and directional backup light worked in DC mode, and it ran that way out of the box, although sound only worked at 8v and above if I remember right. The motor isn't the greatest, but I did add some weight to it runs like a champ 6 years on. If I had to guess, the place you bought it from probably tested the model on a test track and screwed around with the settings in JMRI or whatever European equivalent is popular because the model should definitely run in DC mode. Still, I know that is something that can be changed there. I've bought over a dozen Bachmann DCC models, and yours doesn't behave like the default settings at all.
Hi sam loved the video as always. If you ever want to I recommend that you review the Broadway limited 844 steam locomotive if you ask me that is one of the best American locomotive companies we got and this locomotive really shows what Americans can do with model railroading
I own one of these models without the DCC fitted. I paid about 70 dollars for it on trainworld. I absolutely love it, it’s my favorite in my collection. I’ve never had any of the issues in the video. I can get a very good crawl out of mine, so the speed issues Sam is having must be the decoder. I highly recommend the DCC ready version to anyone with a DC layout.
Nice video Sam, I remember I had a Bachman 4-4-0 that also had a faulty headlamp. Out of the box the light didn’t work, but for some reason on October 31 the headlamp started working, I have no idea how that happened.
Regarding the design of the model: It is a model of the Green Bay & Western Company's 2-6-0s. Some of these engines eventually received center-mounted lamps later in their lives. No surviving examples
Hi Sam thanks for the reviews as always. I did buy the DCC ready version for $60 which is good but mine example didn't survive the journey, I would describe it as smashed to bits. My example all the glazing fell out, the tender wheels fell off & the rear driving wheel was only being held on by the connecting rods. I did manage to repair it but it makes a thumping noise as it goes along for some reason but the DCC ready version did have working lights on it & wasn't to fast but still a little too quick. Overall I do like the model but my experience was spoiled thanks to all the damage it had on arrival & sending it back was not an option as I live in the UK. It really looks like your Hornby digital software doesn't like you, I've never had any luck with Hornby digital controllers. A digital controller that might be worth trying is the Bachmann EZ digital controller they are the same price roughly as the Hornby elite controllers, I got mine from rails of Sheffield & have had no issues that the controller was to blame for.
1. Where can I find one at this price, preferably in Australia, and 2. You should do a checkup on all your bachmann products after 6 months to 1 year after you buy them. Most people I've talked to say they break down after 6 months! Nice video!
Funny this review Sam, I actually just bought a bachmann steam loco that ran on the railroads of my home state of Maine, New England in general really (It’s a Boston and Maine 2-6-2.) And it’s a steam generating one too, so first one of those I’ve ever owned
Ya know if you want a high quality locomotives (From Bachmann) you should try to get “my personal favorite” Bachman Spectrum modern 4-4-0 with sound (if you want) they are expensive because it’s from Spectrum so they put a lot of care in these locomotives and I got a say it’s worth the price but it’s up to you. It ranges around $200-300 US. Not to sure how to calculate in UK currency. Anyway I still love the review on that locomotive that’s my first steam locomotives in my collection. Too bad it’s giving you a hard time I’m kinda disappointed in that. All in all keep up the good work Sam!
A lot of American locomotives were off-the-shelf designs sold to various companies. So the American market often has locomotives sold in a variety of liveries and numbers, some of which are entirely imaginary. It is pretty common practice.
Another Bachman engine, one that I also have. Like the people on the forums said, it is a “fake” engine. While the class of locomotive did exist, it was not a general ALCo design like Bachman portrays it, but was the Green Bay Western’s(GBW) 2-6-0 Mogul type. Into the engine itself, I’ve had it for a while, and for me it’s been fine but slowly gotten worse with time, wires coming out of the socket and pickups failing, and this is with minimal maintenance aside from the occasional wheel cleaning. But when it does want to run, it will run fine, with an admittedly small train but overall fine. Hope this helps anyone decide whether they should get one or not. Decent engine, unrealistic to an extent, etc
This locomotive is modeled after a Green Bay and Western locomotive built in 1027. This railroad ran in the upper midwest. I have one of these locos and am happy with it.
Something needs a little tweaking to get rid of jerking it does.. Should be easy to find.. Running pretty nice at 26:10. It needs breaking in. Far as slow take-off and running perhaps you need to adjust the starting voltage for this one's address, in your throttle (unless yours can't do that like an NCE or Digitrax throttle can). Different subject: If you are going to remain on the floor with your track, why not at least re-do it so as to have the track up on a wooden platform say 2-3 inches high so as to not actually on the carpet but on very very low benchwork... Take, say, 1x3s and make a frame. Then cut plywood or mulch/particle board to fit atop it, track on that, the whole layout raised about 3.5 inches off the carpet... Front truck/bogie is called the 'pilot' truck. A rear bogie would be the 'pony' truck... Lookin' good at 36:31...
That's a fun little loco, and cheap as chips (or perhaps it should be 'cheap as fries'?). It would be tempting to turn it into an 'upgrade project', by shoehorning in a good quality five-pole motor, fitting a heavy flywheel the size of a Jaffa Cake, wedging in tasty chunks of lead to fatten it up, and reprograming the software to give it decent pulling power. The thing is quicker than a rat up a stovepipe, but needs more grunt and low down torque to really look the part. Not a bad deal there, Bachmann!
I have a Bachmann 4-4-0 and a 4-6-0. Unfortunately, I'm between housing and they've been in the box since I got them. I might get one of these because they have a family look to them.
I can see the LED + board on the diagram (PC804+00R06), so it should have working lights, even on the tender. My Roco controller (so far) worked fine with US DCC locos, maybe you should try something non British controller too.
We didn't tend to give too many squeaky whistles to any of our steam engines. Even small steam locomotives here tend to have whistles that would find themselves at home on beasts like The Challengers or Big Boys. Also, DCC locomotives normally will not run on DC.
DCC locos nearly always run on DC. It was only Bachmann N Scale decoders from many years ago that couldn't run on DC. It's the other way round. You should not run DC locos on DCC.
Nice seeing the 700 Class in the background! I’d been wanting the black with green Southern lining like yours for ages, and was finally able to snag one second-hand of Hatton’s for a great price. Pulls a long rake of wagons at great slow speed too!
I have this locomotive in CN Livery though, DCC Ready, under 50CAD on a sale price. (I could not find it in Sound value ready in CN colors). It runs real smooth for me, not sure if 100% like that for other people. EDIT: Bachmann North America just LOOOOVE cramming their loco motive package's with paper work to meet safety warning needs, including but not limited too, the catalog *DUN DUN DUUNNNNNNN*
It has a-choice of 3 whistles. I own one and it has front and rear headlites that are quite bright. Maybe a problem with your controller. You will hVE TO PLAY the CVs to get it to run better.
The separately fitted pump on the side of the boiler is the Westinghouse air pump for the air brakes which is why it goes chuff, chuff when stationary. Nice wee locomotive.
Westinghouse is actually the name of one specific company that produced those, the proper term is 'cross-compound'.
@@sambrown6426 don’t be pedantic - just like saying it’s a vac vs Hoover - everyone knows what you mean 🤣
Thanks for this Robin - duly noted! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Southern subsidiary New Orleans Terminal Company had 5 of these locomotives. They were built in 1905 by Baldwin and numbered 7080 to 7084. They were retired 1933 to 1937.
The piece on the side with the 2 shiny bits in it is what is called a Cross Compound Air Pump. This is one of the key parts of the Westinghouse Brake System. No Vacuum brake on this loco. The pump charges the Main Reserviour on the loco. That sound that began on connection to power is the sound a Cross Compound air pump makes.
Thanks a lot for sharing Alan - appreciate this!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Most American locomotives have a cross compound air compressor. All American steam locomotives have air brakes. Even the SR USA class (usatc s100) have sing air compressors and air brakes.
My grandpa gave us two of these, both broken. One had a split drive rod joint and the other had a mangled wiring harness and blown decoder. I made a horseshoe shape out of copper wire to repair the rods on one, then swapped its decoder into the other one. I then converted the one with repaired drive rods to DC and gave it to my brother, who has a DC controller.
Unlike in the UK, most American railway companies bought locos built and designed by Alco or Baldwin -- like smaller companies buying from the Beyer Peacock or Kitson catalogues in the UK. A few American companies designed their own, then had Alco or Baldwin build them. Only a couple of the biggest companies had their own loco-building works. This model looks like a bog-standard Alco product of around 1920 -- each buyer would of course have company-specific requirements for fittings and details.
The bachmann 2-6-0 is based on the Green Bay & Western class R 2-6-0 loco (pretty accurate actually) which bachmann painted in a whole lot of fantasy schemes for other railroads.
The function button for the headlight is button 0, if it doesn't work with button 0 then it is your controller and the reason the locomotive is so fast is that its decoder is designed for a 28 speed-step system, not a 100 step one.
Confusingly there are two kinds of speed steps. There's the speed steps in the decoder. They are like gears in a car. The more speed steps a decoder has the smoother the acceleration is. The Bachman Sound Vale decoder supports 14, 28 and 128 speed steps. In the beginning DCC controllers and decoders only had 14 speed steps. This was soon increased to 28, then 128 speed steps. The 14 speed steps is still included just in case you have a very old controller. We're talking about the 1990s here.
The other kind of speed steps found on DCC controllers are notional speed steps that are just there as a guide on how fast your loco is going. On my controller you can set the speed steps to MPH, KPH or just simple 1 to 126. The 100 KPH doesn't mean the loco goes at a scale speed of 100 KPH.
Thanks for sharing Steve - yeah I tried function 0... and all the other functions for that matter! I've had other Bachmann sound value locos that do exactly the same thing on this controller... so I definitely suspect the controller! Interesting about the speed steps... I'll have to see if I can find any settings in Railmaster to change... but don't hold your breath!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Yeah, and most decoders have 14, 28, or 128 speed steps. I’ve never encountered a decoder with 100 speed steps, though you could fake it (on high-end decoders that have programmable speed tables ) by programming the 1st 100 speed steps in the table, then setting the remainder (28) to whatever top-end speed value you have for step 100.
The headlight should turn on with function 0, and would have a dynamo sound as well. Once these are programmed and the speed limited, if momentum is turned on, they are a fantastic switching loco. It looks like the pilot axle is binding, that pony truck might be gripping a little tight to the axle. As far as the jerking backwards, it could be a number of things, my best guess is that it is the motor shaft has too much play and the worm is slightly lifting every rotation off the idler gear. I’m sorry the sound is irritating to you, the sound selection for these locos is actually really good, but a lot has to be programmed and volumes adjusted. The first sound you hear when power is applied is the air pumps, and it doesn’t loop, it has cadences based on acceleration and deceleration, just like the real ones.
Thanks for that - yep definitely not getting anything on function 0... time for a better controller I think! Duly noted, thanks for sharing,
Cheers,
Sam :)
The Sound Value line does not come standard with the dynamo sound. Just Bell (F1), Long Whistle (F2), Short Whistle (F3), Blow down (F4) and the idling/chuffing. The Sound Value DCC decoder is a parsed-down Soundtraxx decoder that eliminated extra sounds and functions to make it a bit cheaper for model railroaders who don’t need all the extras when just starting out, but can upgrade later with a drop-in upgrade with more whistles and functions from soundtraxx. I used my Alco 2-6-0 as a test for painting backhead detail, re-lettering, weathering, and programming speeds with the command station.
You have to remember this is supposed to work with bachmann dcc controller you only get functions 1-10
I have one of these in the Lackawanna scheme and so far it's been a solid runner even if a bit speedy (typical Bachmann). They have headlights on F0 and a nice crawl, so it is your rubbish PC controller! Scrap that thing and get a proper handheld DCC unit and every DCC loco will thank you.
Furthermore, the model CAN run in DC mode, you have instructions on how it works and you'd do well to READ those before slamming full DC power through them as some DC units can damage them by overcurrent - indicated by the headlights flashing.
For my Bachmann drawbars I've glued on a tiny bit of rubber tube on the tender end to keep them from coming apart, and since I never disconnect my locos and tenders when transporting them anyway, this is a perfectly viable solution.
Thanks for sharing! Yeah solid runners aren't they?
As for running on DC, the instructions read "The decoder is set to operate *immediately* using either a 12 volt DC power pack or NMRA-compatible DCC command station". The instructions also say not to exceed 27 volts... so slamming it with the full 12v of my Gaugemaster shouldn't do any harm whatsoever, though I tested it at all speeds with zero response.
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains Hmm, the common trend for H0 controllers is 16-18v though? Is 12v a UK standard by chance? I've experienced that some older controllers could put out well over 20v in some cases but your Gaugemaster shouldn't have that problem if its capacity is 12v...
As for the "set to operate Immediately" part of the instructions, I know most Sound Value models I own will play sound and display lights at around 4-6v, then they start moving. It is normal as the decoders need a certain voltage to "wake up" as yours does, perhaps there is an incorrectly set CV making yours not recognize when to start moving???
I have tested mine using a cheapo Mehano controller at 13v and it ran ok with lights... guess you won the raffle and got another "Quality Suprise" from Bachmann!
At any rate, get a proper DCC unit for your trains, that Railmaster software drives both _you_ and _us_ crazy. ;)
@@SamsTrains If your DC controller is only putting out 12v that may be the problem. My trusty old ancient Life-Like (Same controller was also made for Bachmann, Lionel, Tyco, etc) puts out around 18v at 100%. I imagine that may be your DC issue. As far as DCC I believe it's likely the DCC setup you are using. I have seen in several videos where lights and other functions don't work on your track so it's either your DCC setup or you have the worst luck in history with locomotives malfunction right out of the box. Get yourself an NCE power cab or some other inexpensive unit to test against your Hornby stuff.
@@Trains-With-Shane 12v is fairly typical, the exceptional H&M, well wellkut, Sykes etc being a highish 14v, and the standard for HO or OO has always been 12v. If a manufacturer wants to sell a too high non standard 18v that's for them, but a 12v controller is definitely not of any issue. And NCE powercabs are not inexpensive.
@@JonatanGronoset I mentioned in a comment below that 12v has always and still is the norm, if a manufacturer wants to put out a motor burning 16v or 18v that's their choice.
The issue as has been relayed many times through instructions, reviews etc is how the volts are delivered: any feedback pwm etc are highly recommended to be avoided
I highly recommend these, I had one myself that was being sold off for 50 dollars but it was in absolutely perfect condition, there was even weathering added by the previous owner, the thing lasted me 2 years until she finally gave out from age. But I am extremely satisfied with the life it gave me and I highly recommend any starters to get one
Edit: oof, I spoke too soon. I guess the previous owner did some modifications
you highly recommend something that died after 2 years? that doesn't make much sense...
edit: i know it was used, but it can't be more than 9 years old since they came out around 2012 or so... it shouldn't be dead after less than a decade
Thanks for sharing! Yes overall for the money they're amazing aren't they? But yeah - locos should last more than 2 years... though it sounds like this was in used condition, so fair enough!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@jamesm6638 it was just because I was mostly new and didn’t know how to maintain it very well, I got another one and with my new found knowledge I can make this one can last mUCH longer
@jamesm6638 tell that too my hornby 0-6-0 peckett died after 3 months
There’s a Bachmann USA set called ‘Echo Valley Express’ that also comes with a SoundValue Southern 2-6-0, and a Bachmann DCC controller. I see it for sale every now and then for around $200-$250. A DCC sound loco, a DCC controller, some cars and track for that price seems pretty flippin’ good to me, especially considering that the RRP of this model and the EZ Command controller are $160 and $210, respectively.
Wow! That does sound pretty amazing - don't understand how Bachmann can be such good value some of the time but not others D:
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains either they're pricing it at what the market will bear and taking a nice slice of profit, and that's higher for already entrenched hobbyists, or they're taking a loss on the sets hoping to draw in new blood.
I love Sam's hatred for the Bachmann catalogue advertisements.
It is funny to see him angry. Maybe it is the accent.
haha yeah... not sure why I have such a problem with those ;)
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Maybe feed the ad to the evil Scrapman?
I also have one of these locos (mine’s in a Lackawanna Railroad livery) and I paid $100 for mine. It was a great bargain at that price
Wow yeah - perfect for that price! :D
Thanks for watching - Sam :)
Same here but mines NYC 1906 and I paid the same when I got it or maybe $10 more, I forgot
I got one off my friend's brother once best $60 I ever spent, granted mine was only DC but it's the best little engine I got.
(A.T.S.F 9446)
I've dreamed of having this loco for years, but now I'm modeling and designing my own locos. Amazing video!
haha awesome - definitely more fun to design it yourself! ;D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
The Bachmann Alco 2-6-0 was a locomotive of no particular qualities, basically designed for general lighter duty
work. The version you have was based on a design for the Green Bay & Western, a railroad in the State of Wisconsin.
This sort of locomotive would be found in and around the American midwest.
I believe the American Locomotive Company was larger than Baldwin and ALCO engineered some of the more
advanced locomotives built in the U.S.
Your right I searched it up and it is the same locomotive
no light control and bad speed control = dcc steps issue. The basic functions (lights, shunting mode and gradual acceleration) should always work regardless of the dcc hardware used as these are NMRA standardized
Thanks for sharing! I do need to investigate this properly when I get time!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
As with most USA bachmann models, its pretty much a generic design with as many roadnames they can stamp on it... still, the prices make them great for beginners, which is what we need more of to keep the hobby alive
Thanks James - yeah you're right, definitely noticed that pattern with the locos I've bought! xD
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Its similar to the Hornby Railroad range idea in the UK. Utilise older models that once were in the main detailed locomotive, carriage and wagon ranges and sell them cheaper for beginners or people who want to custom weather and super detail a model.
@@bentullett6068 bachmann does have a few winners in their lineup, the 2-6-6-2 has awesome detail and runs nicely... and their 2-8-4's are much cheaper than brass (or even the p2k version) albeit at a lower level of detail... I haven't tried their new USRA 2-8-2 or PRR k4 yet but I'm assuming they'd be good for newcomers... you can buy a k4 in brass for about the same price tho lol
@@jamesm6638 I have seen some of Bachmanns US diesel locomotive models on layouts here in the UK and they look fantastic. I have seen a few of the US steam locomotives as well and they don't look too bad either.
@@bentullett6068 yeah I've got a couple spectrum gp30's and they're not bad, any kato clone mechanism is gonna hold up pretty well... not sure what the UK locos look like inside but Id imagine they're similar
#0 turns on the headlight, when you reverse, it automatically dims. Due to rule #17 lighting
I am considering getting one of those and relettering it for my own railroad. The Southern Railway had five of those 2-6-0s in real life, although they were all allocated to the New Orleans Terminal Railroad. They were numbered 7080 through 7084, and were used on local freight trains. They were all scrapped at the end of the steam age, with no surviving members.
This is an outstanding small steam locomotive. So good that we bought a second one; combined, they run great together and can really pull a train double-headed. We call them “the Dolly Sisters “. We’ve had them about 8-9years now.
🚂🚂
This would be good if someone has a triple crossing set-up. There’s a post card for Richmond, Virginia made back in the day with the famous triple crossing. There’s a Southern 2-6-0 on the ground level rail crossing.
I actually really love the look of that thing! Just doing a bit of research it looks really similar to the Strasburg Railway Number #89 (ex-Canadian Pacific) locomotive in Pennsylvania, which was built in 1910
Yeah me too Lach! And thanks for doing that - I found loads of locos it's similar to... but none of them exactly alike!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
It’s an ex Canadian national, not an ex Canadian pacific.
@@SamsTrains The Bachmann model is based on a Green Bay & Western prototype that was scrapped in the '50s.
I have the AT&SF version, I got mine used and I’ve only recently needed to repair it after 5 years of operation, and it runs very smoothly and pulls a decent amount
I looked into the builders number printed on the builders plate and it actually ties to a preserved locomotive that's still in service, Alco product 45921 was built in 1909 for the Mississippi Central railroad as their number 98 although the only similarity is the builders number as 98 is a 4-4-0 American type and it was never owned by the southern railway but the engine did end up being preserved and served for several years on the Wilmington and Western tourist railroad and it remains there currently undergoing an overhaul to return the engine to operation
Yep, that idling chuff sound is the steam powered air compressor. This is used for the brakes or pneumatic power tools. British steam locomotives used vacuum brakes right?
The "M.R. Cyclopedia Volume1, STEAM LOCOMOTIVES" mentioned below says "Narrow Fireboxes weren't usually built after 1924 when the Green Bay and Western bought this engine new from ALCO. While Moguls were generally used in light freight service, they did as much as 70 miles per hour for an occasional light passenger train.
This body style reminds me of a Manila Railroad 45-class "Porter" as there called, back in the day there were a lot of these but sadly one of the last variant was scrapped in the 1990s.
Strange that the lighs on yours don't work, because it does have a very nice LED in both the tender and headlamp (the tender light is only activated in reverse). Unless your copy has a qc issue, I'd wager the DCC chip is to blame, Bachmann have been known to have pretty sketchy chips in the past. I'm not sure if it was just mine, but after a few weeks, my copy delevoped a wobble that made the performance super janky at any speeds. And good call on leaving the body, on top of screws, its also held on by pressure, and the only way to remove it is to basically pry it off, which *will* leave stress marks, if the body doesn't just break.
Southern’s New Orleans Terminal Company had 5 locos numbered 7080 to 7084. They were built by Baldwin in 1905. As far as I know they were Southerns only 2-6-0s. All retired between 1933-1937.
Yeah I knew there'd be an LED or two in there - but I wouldn't jump to blame the loco, as I've had this happen with other locos on my controller! That's Bachmann mechs for you - they can be pretty janky... and I pretty much knew it'd be a disaster to try and remove this body ;)
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains what dc controller are you using? Hasn't got pulse or feedback or anything? Cos those are a no-no
you may have come across this in your research but the Southern Railway had a couple of 2-6-0s in its fleet that it inherited from the lines it was formed from in 1894 but those locomotives would have been much older than this prototype, which would probably represent a 1910s to 1920s built locomotive. still, great find for the price...glad you've become such a Southern Railway fan!!!
I don't have any steam DCC locomotives in HO scale but all of my Bachmann DCC Sound Value diesels, in both HO and N scale, run and operate perfectly. It's difficult to shake the memory of the garbage that they made in the 80's and 90's but their modern stuff compares favorably with other lower cost offerings out there. Of course a nice Atlas, Scaletrains, or other fancy unit with an ESU Loksound is far superior in detail and quality but you're likely to spend double if not more of what you did on the Bachmann. Simple economics. But I am glad that somebody is still offering affordable entry level trains these days as the model railroad hobby in general has inflated quite a bit, cost wise, over the last 5 years or so.
I'm glad that you overall liked this one. I sure hope that adjusting CV's will make it run a lot better; let us know if that's the case.
I actually picked up 2 of the DCC ready versions of this in the Canadian National and Green Bay Western guises, I just tagged you on Instagram in a post with a few videos of them. The one I picked up more recently runs well; crawls decent and doesn't seem to have trouble picking up power; but the one I bought in January and haven't serviced yet is a little less good. Take a look if you'd like to know what you'd have gotten for $30-40 less.
I'm pretty sure that these replaced an older "2-6-0" model Bachmann had which was basically the Prairie minus trailing wheel (aka the USRA 0-6-0 plus a leading axle)... this is a huge step up from that.
Great video Sam! I personally have this exact mogul, just with the Union Pacific livery, and mine does not share any of the issues that this one does. Although, I do have the DCC non-sound version. I'm not going to say yours is a faulty unit, but I'm shocked at the amount of problems yours has compared to mine that I've had for 4 years. I promise this model is much better performing than the anomaly that you received!
Ditto ! And his controller isn't very sophisticated either.. (See my post above)...
I think you should review some Rapido north american locomotives, they are very good
Also very expensive.
@@Poliss95 you get what you pay for though, they are dedicated to making thier models perfect
@@F40Productions True. I'm waiting for one of their N scale models to drop through my letterbox any day now.
Also looking forward to the Titfield Thunderbolt.
@@Poliss95 I have the F59PH locomotive on order, super excited for that one
As someone in North America with quite a few Bachmanns, I can honestly tell you that the quality of the engine often depends on which box grabbed at the shop. 3 of us from our club all bought the same engine of the Spectrum line, Bachmann's upscale(?) product. One came out of the box with every little detail broken, bent or botched. One ran perfectly. Mine wouldn't even go. It was dead. No lights, sound or running. The paint and finish were all great, except for the one with all the broken bits. I think the price for ours were right around $200 US w/ DCC. I will say, they were quick about sending out replacements...
If you ever want to take it apart and have a look inside, I finally figured out how! There is one more screw hidden inside the forward dome. The top of the dome is just friction-fit on, and with care, you can pop it off. Remove the screw under it, along with the other screws you removed before, and the shell should slide right off.
We have one of these locos at the model railroad club I go to. (Someone has it there so we can use it) I love running it and it is a very reliable locomotive! I love the sounds on this loco and enjoy running it at speed! They are great locos!
11:55 that appears to me to be a Westinghouse air brake, no exactly a pump, but close enough
21:29 As a guy from spaceballs once said, LUDICROUS SPEED
Duly noted, thanks for sharing! haha!! xD
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Yea, looking up the reporting mark + number on Google (SOU 7082) only comes-up with either this model or the high-hood EMD GP50 of the same number. Wouldn't be surprised if it never existed IRL, some manufacturers (like Bachmann) have been known to make fictional locomotives that never existed IRL. For example, they sold a GE BQ23-7 in both the Seaboard paint scheme (which existed IRL, as all 10 built were bought and used by the Seaboard Coast Line) and the Chessie System (which was an existing railroad, but never used any BQ23-7s).
According to Model Railroader Magazine this is a 1924 Green Bay and Western design, clearly they believe it's generic enough for other US roads. Interestingly Bachmann doesn't make these engines in the GB&W scheme, go figure
Very nice Greg - many thanks for sharing this! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Although I live in America, I don’t like American locomotives. Good price thought . Good video sam
You're not alone mate.
Sam: It is a bogie tender, as they tend to be on American locos.
Me: The only American locos I can think of with fixed-axle tenders are pioneering locos, and those locos with centipede tenders (Though those have both fixed axles and a bogie).
haha yeah - another interesting difference between British and American stuff... our tenders almost always had fixed axles, even right up until the end of steam!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
The builders plate identified Schenectady Locomotive Works which wikipedia says is in New York and Alco took over in 1901. The builders plate had the year 1903. Wiki linked the mogul design to Canadian National E-10-a class no. 89 which looks very similar. The external link on the page has a long list of Alco preserved engines and the moguls in that list look similar to. Seems like their standard design.
I actually have the model from the Train set, and I can assure you, it is jerky backwards, but it's still a good model to have. On a regular DCC controller, you can in fact get it to do a crawl.
Bachmann locos are good, though I would recommend Broadway Limited locos. All the ones I have are grand, and I run them more than any other loco in my collection.
I bet models in the future are going to be so expensive and detailed that the instructions will have to tell you where you can pick up the the model. They will probably cost the same as o gauge locos do today.
As far as the fully coloured catalogue leaflet, you should burn it in the garden and video it and send it to bachmann, haha 😄 😆 😜
haha you're probably right - we need that with some current models actually... many of them are difficult to handle!!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Could be worse 1:1 scale locomotives cost the price of a supercar to run and fix. Brake blocks for a steam locomotive cost around £1,500
You can pretty much assume that minimum radius for all North American models is 18"/457.2mm, as most train sets on this side of the pond come with 18" radius curves.
ALCO steam and diesel designs were produced under license in Canada by Montréal Locomotive Works (MLW) which eventually became Bombardier.
They sell a starter set with this Engine now. You get the DCC EZ controller and the new nickle silver track with it. No siding or anything which the Digital Commander set does have and also two powered DCC engines but with no sound card in them.
The Texas & Pacific Railway put Elesco feedwater heaters on some of their 2-6-0s, making them look about twice as big and powerful as they actually were. Seriously considering one of these little engines for my switching layout, with Elesco added of course. Back around 1970 my dad gave me a Rivarossi 0-8-0 (based on a huge NYC switcher) for Christmas, and since then, no steam engine looks complete without an Elesco on the smokebox!
Oops wrong, the T&P engines were 4-6-0s.
Not just munitions, a fair number of Sherman tank components were produced by ALCo.
the model is actually based of the greenbay and western 2-6-0, i dont remember if they where built by alco but yeah for the most part bachmann did pretty well capturing the look of the mogul
I had the exact same derailing issue on my brand new Hornby Streamlined Princess Coronation class, King George VI with the pilot truck, after I loosened the screw like you did, it runs fine now, no derailing. I do own the Bachmann mogul, mine is in Boston & Maine Railroad markings, and no it does not represent any Locomotive the B&M ran. But I still like it. American model companies do that a lot. Make one locomotive and paint it in a number of markings regardless of wether or not they used one like it. There is a B&M P4a class pacific under restoration in Scranton, Pennsylvania the class of locos, (3700 class, 3713 "The Constitution" is the one being restored...) A number of companies produced Pacific's carrying the number and are wrong. The two closest are a Very Old Athearn locomotive (1950's or 1960's production) that when it first came out was elastic band drive. And another fairly recent Brass Locomotive for $1,600.00. you would think someone would do an accurate model of a locomotive that will be under steam again and was one of a class of 10.
I have that one too, except for having one of the brakes fall off upon unboxing it the third time. The ALCO 2-6-0 is actually based on the one built for the Green Bay Route.
Hello! American steam locomotive running numbers and be confusing but in this case it's easy! The one shown in this video, the running number is 7082, pronounced seventy eighty two. Instead of seven zero eight two. I hope this helps you Sam!
Nice that you’re getting back into doing more USA steam locomotives! I like the look of this 2-6-0 mogul USA locomotive! It kinda reminds me of the one I’ve seen in a large scale from Garden Trains a few years ago.
Yeah! They are great fun to look at for sure! Ahh nice, would love to see a large scale one of these :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I have one of those, and it has got to be one of the most reliable engines I have. 4 of the wires from the tender plug have broken off and yet it still runs and sounds perfect with zero side effects
Thats pretty interesting
When I try DCC locos with my DC controller, I need a lot of power to start it. It won’t start making noise till about 60/100 on the dial. And won’t move until maybe 90 or so. I can’t remember.
Also. YAY! Another US loco.
Also also. For DCC, i use digitrax dcs 51 if that’s any valuable.
Yeah it's strange isn't it? I tried it at all speed settings on my DC controller... with nothing! And thanks for that - definitely time to start shopping for a better DCC controller! ;D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrainsget yourself the dcs 52 from the digitrax zephyre express set then it will also let you change cvs to make your loco run on dc and it can be plugged into your computer so you can control your trains with your phone
Is there any chance you’ll review any Athearn locos, including Big Boy, Challenger, FEF-3 and DDA40X Centennial?
Also will you be reviewing and Scaletrains and Rapido locos such as a GTEL and an F40PH?
Interesting fact I also have the same locomotive, when I run it on standard DC the light comes on and cycles through all the sounds. Even more interesting I get the sound effect of wheels screeching when it takes off and comes to a stop ( doesn’t do it on DCC )
That Mogul's actual basis is a group of engines that were made in 1924 for the Green Bay & Western Railroad. They were among the last 2-6-0s made in America for domestic service and some of the last engines made with narrow fireboxs. Bachmann actually nailed the look fairly well but in typical fashion they threw a bunch of random roadnames on the same model. I own one lettered for the New York Central and it's got next to no pulling power but it looks perfect at the head of a small milk train. They also make good kitbash fodder since it's dimensions are close to many Mogul's from other American and Canadian railroads.
With American modelers pretty much all adjust cvs and such since different people want stuff to run in different ways
I’d also recommend getting a different dcc system such as an nce powercab, your dcc locomotives will like a better dcc controller like that
You getting upset about that card put me in stitches. I must have watched that part 100+ times.
The sound value is just a cheap version of Soundtraxx Tsunami 1.
Soundtraxx has made a new drop in decoder option with Tsunami 2 sounds and it sounds better than ever.
The drop in replacement board is TSU-BH2, it has resistors for the led lights and a perfect slow speed driver and the dynamic exhaust where running light you hear the rods only or loaded it barks like a freighter climbing a hill.
It is a good work session to configure the decoder but worth it for the updated sounds and smooth drive.
Check the smokestack for a screw, that might help. Of course I never cared whether or not the speed was realistic or not because even if it's flying around the track, it does look rather cool.
Lol your rant about the advert for a Bachmann catalogue gave me a good laugh! XD
Another prototype was the Panama 2-6-0, which was used in the building of the Panama Canal,and one is now in Paterson,New Jersey,right by the Cooke Works,and not far from the Rogers Locomotive Works! Both of those companies were in the original Alco family! Cooke exported several 0-6-2T's to Britain,and they ultimately turned up on the GWR,and survived the Grouping!
From MODEL RAILROADERT MAGAZINE
"A long pedigree. Though some rigid-frame locomotives with a 2-6-0 wheel arrangement were seen as early as 1852, the first true Moguls with pivoting lead trucks were built in 1866. The Mogul was designed as a general purpose engine, though its low drivers (56″ on early versions, 64″ later) and low top speed suited it better for hauling freight trains than for passenger duties.
Though it filled the same niche as the heftier 2-8-0 Consolidation, which was also developed in 1866, Moguls were nonetheless popular, perhaps in part due to their ease of maintenance. About 8,000 were built. Despite the development of larger and faster steam locomotives in ensuing years, Moguls were still being ordered by Class 1 railroads as late as 1924. Some railroads kept these plucky little engines on yard, industry, and light branchline duty until the end of steam.
Bachmann’s model is based on a prototype built by Alco for the Green Bay & Western in 1924. The Alco locomotive has a domed smokebox door, a tender with raised fuel bunker and Andrews trucks, a spoked “boiler tube” pilot, a slightly flared smokestack, and a single cross-compound air compressor mounted on the left side of the boiler"
Sam, these locos are actually exact replicas of a fleet of 17 2-6-0s built by ALCo for the Green Bay & Western Railroad. Sadly, all 17 were scrapped, but there are plenty of photographs of these machines on the internet. Happy searching!
~Mike
If you think that plug is conspicuous, wait til you see a Broadway Limited loco...or worse, wait you have to get one out of its box and hook it up! Although their most recent stuff has gotten better with this, thankfully.
An interesting locomotive to look in too is the American 4-4-0 1860s Civil War Era locomotives. Such as The General, Texas, Or York. They are some of my personal favorites and I have a model of the York which is DCC Sound Equipped
Hi Sam, the closest protoype that exists to this engine would be #11 at the Everett Railroad which is presently a running locomotive. Back in the 20's, Alco was building light 2-6-0's, 2-6-2's, 4-6-0's, 2-8-0's and 2-8-2s for export to Cuba to work Sugar Cane Lines. Baldwin, H.K. Porter, and Davenport also had many Engines that were shipped to that island for the same purpose. ALCO built the Engines in batches, so they always had some ready to ship. They were as close to Standard Cookie-Cutter Design, Showroom Floor Engine you could get. #11 was one of those Engines that never went to Cuba and was sold to a shortline here in the states passing through many hands both in active duty and in preservation before finally ending up at the Everett in Pennsylvania.
Odd. I think the place you bought it from may have played around with the settings or something. I have this model in and Pensy scheme (well, I've repainted it to LZW&W), and it didn't have any of those issues; Headlight and directional backup light worked in DC mode, and it ran that way out of the box, although sound only worked at 8v and above if I remember right. The motor isn't the greatest, but I did add some weight to it runs like a champ 6 years on.
If I had to guess, the place you bought it from probably tested the model on a test track and screwed around with the settings in JMRI or whatever European equivalent is popular because the model should definitely run in DC mode. Still, I know that is something that can be changed there. I've bought over a dozen Bachmann DCC models, and yours doesn't behave like the default settings at all.
It's pulse, anything dcc which can run on DC doesn't like pulse, feedback, pwm etc
To take apart this model, there are two screws under the cab and one hidden under the top of the sand dome which you will have to Pop off
Hi sam loved the video as always. If you ever want to I recommend that you review the Broadway limited 844 steam locomotive if you ask me that is one of the best American locomotive companies we got and this locomotive really shows what Americans can do with model railroading
I certainly would like that - or anything Broadway for that matter!!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I own one of these models without the DCC fitted. I paid about 70 dollars for it on trainworld. I absolutely love it, it’s my favorite in my collection. I’ve never had any of the issues in the video. I can get a very good crawl out of mine, so the speed issues Sam is having must be the decoder. I highly recommend the DCC ready version to anyone with a DC layout.
I have a Bachmann dcc sound value diesel locomotive and I love it. Still nice sounds running on dc
Nice video Sam, I remember I had a Bachman 4-4-0 that also had a faulty headlamp. Out of the box the light didn’t work, but for some reason on October 31 the headlamp started working, I have no idea how that happened.
Another loco for Sam’s Halloween special perhaps🤣
Regarding the design of the model: It is a model of the Green Bay & Western Company's 2-6-0s. Some of these engines eventually received center-mounted lamps later in their lives. No surviving examples
I just absolutely love these reviews! Your accent and calm voice makes it so much better. Keep them coming!
Hi Sam thanks for the reviews as always.
I did buy the DCC ready version for $60 which is good but mine example didn't survive the journey, I would describe it as smashed to bits.
My example all the glazing fell out, the tender wheels fell off & the rear driving wheel was only being held on by the connecting rods. I did manage to repair it but it makes a thumping noise as it goes along for some reason but the DCC ready version did have working lights on it & wasn't to fast but still a little too quick.
Overall I do like the model but my experience was spoiled thanks to all the damage it had on arrival & sending it back was not an option as I live in the UK.
It really looks like your Hornby digital software doesn't like you, I've never had any luck with Hornby digital controllers.
A digital controller that might be worth trying is the Bachmann EZ digital controller they are the same price roughly as the Hornby elite controllers, I got mine from rails of Sheffield & have had no issues that the controller was to blame for.
Hey a U.S. Southern Railroad locomotive. That railroad ran through where I live.
1. Where can I find one at this price, preferably in Australia, and 2. You should do a checkup on all your bachmann products after 6 months to 1 year after you buy them. Most people I've talked to say they break down after 6 months! Nice video!
Funny this review Sam, I actually just bought a bachmann steam loco that ran on the railroads of my home state of Maine, New England in general really (It’s a Boston and Maine 2-6-2.) And it’s a steam generating one too, so first one of those I’ve ever owned
Oh wow awesome - the smokers are definitely a lot of fun! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Ya know if you want a high quality locomotives (From Bachmann) you should try to get “my personal favorite” Bachman Spectrum modern 4-4-0 with sound (if you want) they are expensive because it’s from Spectrum so they put a lot of care in these locomotives and I got a say it’s worth the price but it’s up to you. It ranges around $200-300 US. Not to sure how to calculate in UK currency. Anyway I still love the review on that locomotive that’s my first steam locomotives in my collection. Too bad it’s giving you a hard time I’m kinda disappointed in that. All in all keep up the good work Sam!
I think that whatever is causing the stopping going in reverse, is causing the back of the loco to lift up on each revolution when going forward
I am Going on flying Scotsman tomorrow Sam I can’t wait
A lot of American locomotives were off-the-shelf designs sold to various companies. So the American market often has locomotives sold in a variety of liveries and numbers, some of which are entirely imaginary. It is pretty common practice.
I have a bachmann 2-6-0 mogul but I have modified it a lot and made it into a Canadian national CLC E10a 2-6-0 mogul.
Another Bachman engine, one that I also have. Like the people on the forums said, it is a “fake” engine. While the class of locomotive did exist, it was not a general ALCo design like Bachman portrays it, but was the Green Bay Western’s(GBW) 2-6-0 Mogul type. Into the engine itself, I’ve had it for a while, and for me it’s been fine but slowly gotten worse with time, wires coming out of the socket and pickups failing, and this is with minimal maintenance aside from the occasional wheel cleaning. But when it does want to run, it will run fine, with an admittedly small train but overall fine. Hope this helps anyone decide whether they should get one or not. Decent engine, unrealistic to an extent, etc
This locomotive is modeled after a Green Bay and Western locomotive built in 1027. This railroad ran in the upper midwest. I have one of these locos and am happy with it.
The 2-6-0 Wheel arrangement is called a Mogul. they were primarily light freight and medium powered switching engines.
Something needs a little tweaking to get rid of jerking it does.. Should be easy to find.. Running pretty nice at 26:10. It needs breaking in. Far as slow take-off and running perhaps you need to adjust the starting voltage for this one's address, in your throttle (unless yours can't do that like an NCE or Digitrax throttle can).
Different subject:
If you are going to remain on the floor with your track, why not at least re-do it so as to have the track up on a wooden platform say 2-3 inches high so as to not actually on the carpet but on very very low benchwork...
Take, say, 1x3s and make a frame. Then cut plywood or mulch/particle board to fit atop it, track on that, the whole layout raised about 3.5 inches off the carpet...
Front truck/bogie is called the 'pilot' truck. A rear bogie would be the 'pony' truck...
Lookin' good at 36:31...
4:49 *"Bachmann, how many times, I do NOT want a 326-page full-color combined Bachmann & Williams catalog 6.5" x 8.5" Digest Size!"*
I don't think Southern owned any Alco 2-6-0's but there is an Alco 2-6-0 operating excursions as Everett no. 11 in Pennsylvania
That's a fun little loco, and cheap as chips (or perhaps it should be 'cheap as fries'?). It would be tempting to turn it into an 'upgrade project', by shoehorning in a good quality five-pole motor, fitting a heavy flywheel the size of a Jaffa Cake, wedging in tasty chunks of lead to fatten it up, and reprograming the software to give it decent pulling power. The thing is quicker than a rat up a stovepipe, but needs more grunt and low down torque to really look the part. Not a bad deal there, Bachmann!
I have a Bachmann 4-4-0 and a 4-6-0. Unfortunately, I'm between housing and they've been in the box since I got them. I might get one of these because they have a family look to them.
I can see the LED + board on the diagram (PC804+00R06), so it should have working lights, even on the tender. My Roco controller (so far) worked fine with US DCC locos, maybe you should try something non British controller too.
We didn't tend to give too many squeaky whistles to any of our steam engines. Even small steam locomotives here tend to have whistles that would find themselves at home on beasts like The Challengers or Big Boys.
Also, DCC locomotives normally will not run on DC.
DCC locos nearly always run on DC. It was only Bachmann N Scale decoders from many years ago that couldn't run on DC.
It's the other way round. You should not run DC locos on DCC.
@@Poliss95 Not in my experience.
@@sargentrowell81 DC running is an NMRA standard. The only reason a DCC fitted loco won't run on DC is if DC is turned off in CV29.
Nice seeing the 700 Class in the background! I’d been wanting the black with green Southern lining like yours for ages, and was finally able to snag one second-hand of Hatton’s for a great price. Pulls a long rake of wagons at great slow speed too!
Ahh fantastic - very glad you got one too - yes very nice looking locos those! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I have this locomotive in CN Livery though, DCC Ready, under 50CAD on a sale price. (I could not find it in Sound value ready in CN colors).
It runs real smooth for me, not sure if 100% like that for other people.
EDIT: Bachmann North America just LOOOOVE cramming their loco motive package's with paper work to meet safety warning needs, including but not limited too, the catalog *DUN DUN DUUNNNNNNN*
It has a-choice of 3 whistles. I own one and it has front and rear headlites that are quite bright. Maybe a problem with your controller. You will hVE TO PLAY the CVs to get it to run better.
That engine reminds me of Tweety and Sylvester Mayham express. Whoa! So cool. Can you do the Bachman BR Black Standard Class 4 2-6-0.