2-10-0 Decapod removed from catalog?

[ryeguyisme]

i will add this in for good measure:  the decapod has been in production for quite some time now, so they should be around for sale for quite some time thereafter

[Pacific Northern]

Heard from a friend that supposely Bachmann has removed the 2-10-0 Russian decapod from their catalog and even repairs are no longer going to be performed,you will get a engine of equal value as a replacement , can the Bachmann verify this....

Is this not a perfect example of an unsubstantiated rumour?

Can the "friend" possibly be on the Bachmann payroll?

I notice that the Bachmann has not responded to this posting.

[GN.2-6-8-0]

Heard from a friend that supposely Bachmann has removed the 2-10-0 Russian decapod from their catalog and even repairs are no longer going to be performed,you will get a engine of equal value as a replacement , can the Bachmann verify this....

Is this not a perfect example of an unsubstantiated rumour?

Can the "friend" possibly be on the Bachmann payroll?

I notice that the Bachmann has not responded to this posting.

My friend had sent a decapod in for repair and was told they no longer were repairing or replacing them and he was given a choice of another engine of equal value he chose the light 2-10-2.....his words.

[bossguy]

I just recieved a brand new Decapod from Bachmann today in exchange for the Decapod I sent in for warranty repair last week. I'm very happy with their service.

[Stephen D. Richards]

florynow,  You've got my curiosity now!  I have two Decapods and they pull about 15 NMRA weighted 40-50 foot cars on level track.  I work the trucks and replace all wheel sets with good metal wheels and axles.  I haven't noticed any problems with the motor especially being underpowered.  Just checked the Bachmann parts section and noticed they do have a motor that "looks" to be less than any of the other steam locos listed.  My decapods do have a tractive effort problem though, I just considered it a part of learning to got the train moving.  What would you suggest would be a good repower motor for them?  If I can get it to pull more then by all means want to repower.  They do lose a lot of tractive effort on any grade that I have.   Stephen

[rogertra]

Stephen I have to aks the guy who remotored them what motor he put in.  He did have to modify the frame.  Before remotoring they were jokes, of no real use on the railroad.  Now they are almost as good as the Spectrum 2-8-0's and with CV's 2, 209 and 210 reset, they can crawl like ants.

PF

I have a couple of 2-10-0s and they run like Swiss watches.  What was wrong with yours?

[rogertra]

Florynow.

Every steam loco I own has been tuned up before being put into operation.  This is normal for any steam loco, no matter the manufacturer.

Piston centre lines?  Never noticed but any clicks etc., on any engine are fixed before the engine goes into service.

Sound chuffing?  Don't have sound equipped locomotives as, in my not so humble opinion, every single sound system I've heard, without exception, sounds like a cheap,  tinny 1960s transistor radio.  Any sound errors are the fault of the sound card manufacturer, not Bachmann.

As for pulling power, as part of the tune up of every steam loco I own, I add weight and ensure that the balance point of every steam engine is as close to the centre of the driving wheels as I can get it.  As a result, all my steam can pull at least 16 cars plus van, the maximum train I could run on my old GER and that includes everything from my P2K 0-6-0 switcher up to and beyond my two, or is it three, Spectrum 2-10-0s.

Decoder settings.  The fault of the DCC circuit board which is not Bachmann.  Again, DCC setting are part of the tune up process.

Finally, "...you shell out $$$$4 for an engine, shouldn't it run perfectly to start with?".  The answer to that is "Not with steam engines."   All steam engines, regardless of the manufacturer, require tune ups to get them to run perfectly.

In an ideal world, you would be correct but the world is far from perfect.

I have four Athearn Genesis steam engines, that I paid for more for than the Spectrum 2-10-0s.  I have two 4-6-2s and two 2-8-2s.  One, if not both, were the Model Railroader's "Model of the Year".  Now Athearn is a respectable name in our hobby but the list of problems with the models is well documented from cracked gears, to balance problems resulting in poor tracking to thin electrical wiring break and on and on.  You think you have problems with the 2-10-0.

However, after an awful lot of work, my four Athearn's now run just fine, thank you very much.  Yes, it was a pain and I paid over Can$1000 for all four of them and they were not sound nor DCC equipped.  By tuning them up, I now have four reliable locomotives, that's what this hobby is about.  It's not plug and play.

[on30gn15]

It's not plug and play.

But this is the 21st century! My whole life should be plug and play! 

Remember an article in 1980s in, was it Model Railroader or Railroad Model Craftsman, forget which, on balancing steamers to get the best tractive effort.
Have seen that it makes a difference.

Look at it this way, think of the proportion of time we spend maintaining the models as a scaled down representation the time spent maintaining the real ones.
But I'm sure we spend far less than 1/87th of the time the real guys spent on the big ones. 

[Doneldon]

florey-

I've been playing with (speaking frankly now) model trains for over 50 years and every steam engine I ever had, other than an old cast iron Lionel O gauger, required adjustment before achieving desireable/acceptable operation. This has been true for little plastic 0-6-0Ts and big articulated brass steamers alike. It has been true for new locos, used locos, modern locos and antiquated locos. It has been true of gift locos, purchased locos and a stolen loco. (More about that after the statute of limitations runs out.) My point is, adjustments and maintenance are part of the cost of doing business in model railroading. I'm lucky that I have the time and inclination to do these tasks myself because I have neither the cash to waste to have it done nor the trust that someone else will be as careful with my loco as I am. If this stuff drives you crazy you'll either have to find the money to hire it done and the patience to wait for the adjusted product, the willingness to do it yourself while enjoying yourself, or another hobby, or at least non-steam locomotives. (The bitter truth is that even diesels can usually be persuaded to run better by the judicious application of time and effort, but it is easier to neglect this step with diesels.)
                                                   -- D

[rogertra]

Of course all steam engine models need something fixed ..... but ..... the degree can be called into question.

My Bachmann 4-4-0's 4-6-0's and 2-8-0's, and a 2-10-2, they all run like clocks with no mechanical work needed. 

PF

Here we disagree.  You may not not think that they need tuning up but I and probably others do.  They need to be balanced around the centre of the drivers and weight add to optimise their pulling power.  Springs need removing from trucks, again to enhance pulling power, though I can't speak for the 4-4-0s as I don't own any.

Many steam engines need a little extra weight in the front of the tender to counteract the lifting forces of the wiring harness.  The DCC needs to be tweaked to get the best speeds.  Speaking of the wiring harness, that needs to be painted black as does the tender drawbar.  Sometimes an extra hole needs to be drilled in the tender drawbar to get the optimal distance between cab and tender or the drawbar needs to be replaced to get the optimal distance. 

Extra details usually need adding to better match your prototype or in my case to make them look more like GER locomotives.  Things like sunshades over cab windows, steam heat connections and communication hoses on dual service and passenger engines.  The engines need a touch of weathering to make them more realistic.  Couplers need replacing with Kadees etc., etc.. 

You get the idea.

[rogertra]

I'm intrigued by your comments regarding the 2-10-0s.

When I finally haul mine out of their storage boxes, I'll take another look at them.  Now you mention it, I think one of mine did have a clicking sound when running.

[rogertra]

Mine are older models, pre DCC.

Perhaps they were better then?

[Pacific Northern]

I remember someone mentioning that there was one very bad batch of 2-10-0's. Most of the run was defective and had to be replaced.