Athearn Mike

[Orsonroy]

Hi Wayne,

Fantastic work as usual. But I think Atlantic Central's right: I wouldn't have bothered with all of that work either, opting for a BLI light Mike instead.

I was able to add something like 2.5 ounces of weight to a couple of my Athearn Mikes, without having to do all of the heavy-lift work that you did on yours. Not that my efforts were really all that simpler:



Essentially, I replaced as much of the plastic details as I could with lead and brass parts, added a snotload of brass wire, and then crammed as much flat sheet lead under the polot as I could without interfering with the leads truck's swing.  Most of the new weight was added forward of the sand dome, which is where the engines really need it (it's not that the engines are badly weighted, it's that their center of gravity is behind the drivers).

[Orsonroy]

docterwayne,

That is a good result, but for all that work, I think I will just buy a BLI mike with traction tires or build a Bowser kit before I mess with anymore Athearn Mikes beyond the two I have.

Sheldon

Oof; if you're looking for a USRA light Mike, stay FAR away from the Cary, Bowser, or Cary/Mantua engines. They're really NOT USRA light Mikes; they're freelanced engines that bear a vague resemblance to a real engine (sort of like how a transvestite sort of looks like a real female).

The BLI light Mike will give you FAR more bang for your buck. Sure, the old pot metal engines will pull better (I know; I own dozens), but how many of us really need to pull 100 car freights, or even have layouts large enough to do so? The BLI engines are better detailed, pull very well, run more smoothly, cost less if you factor in all of the parts needed to make one of the old metal engines the equal of the BLI, and even come with sound pre-installed. Even if you're attempting major redetail efforts like mine, the BLI engines are a better starting point, since it's faster and easier to scrape off and reattach details onto a plastic shell than it os on a metal one. Save the time and effort of a metal kit for the engines that you can't find in plastic.

[Atlantic Central]

Ray,

Thank you for your thoughts, I am well aware of the BLI light Mike. And, I would buy a few if they offered it unlettered and stealth as I have no interest in DCC or sound.

Your photos show very nice work - good job!

I model a freelance railroad and have no concern for that level of specifc prototype accuracy, just good, believable proportion and detail. I am well aware the cost will be similar or higher to build and detail such a kit.

And, I do have a large layout under construction (800 sq ft room, double deck, 8 scale long double track mainline), as well as a number of friends with large layouts. 30 to 50 cars trains are pretty normal to us, prototypical for the this loco and my era, 1953. So pulling power is important, but the BLI mike is passable in that department. Sometimes we run longer ones just for fun. My BLI N&W class A pulls 70 cars with ease (with the sound turned off) and I will buy another if the stealth models ever do show up.

As for my reference to Bowser/Cary/Mantua/etc, the quote of mine you posted refered to buying the BLI or building a kit rather than modifing any additional Athearn locos.

My other reference to older kits (which you did not quote) was in regard to creating several Pacifics for my freelanced Atlantic Central. There are currently no other choices (except way too many PRR K4's). I will not buy brass, it has allways been overpriced in my opinion. I want two or more identical locos to give my large layout that fleet equiped appearance of a large railroad. I currently have 5 Bachmann 4-8-2H, 3 Bachmann 2-8-0, 3 Bachmann 2-6-6-2, 2 Proto 2-8-8-2, etc, etc.

BLI appears unlikely to ever produce the B&O P7, and, they have expressed no interest in producing it unlettered. Maybe if they did they would have a few more preorders, at least 3 or 4 from me. The USRA light Pacific does not appear to have bright future either.

But, at the rate they are going, BLI is not going to last long anyway. Their wacky pricing stratigy and misguided view of the market looks like it may already be hurting them. Everybody does not want sound and DCC, a lesson they learned the hard way.

Didn't mean to rant, but your comment reminded me of how disappointed I am with BLI from a marketing standpoint. I have three locos from them, the Class A and two stealth Reading T-1's, but based on their trends in marketing, I am reluctant to even think they will offer anything else I want.

Sheldon