Vanderbilt Tenders

[rogirby]

I have acquired a Bachmann Spectrum  Vanderbilt coal tender.It appears to have a DCC board inside as it has the usual 4 and 2 pin wiring connectors. It has been overpainted but under the paint I can make out a running number 1254 and a D&RGW logo. I can't find any reference to a loco of this number on the Bachmann website or elsewhere.
Can anyone tell me
What it was probably originally attached to?
What other Spectrum locos the DCC board is probably compatible with?
What the original catalogue number was?
Any prototype information would be useful also as this seems to be an unusual design tender.
http://s909.photobucket.com/user/Roger_Bratby/media/Bachmann%20medium%20van%20coal_zpsdcateqql.jpg.html

Thanks in anticipation
Roger Bratby, England

[jonathan]

If it is the long tender...

Bachmann sold this as a separate item, once upon a time.  I bought two, and put them on the rear of the Spectrum 4-8-2 Heavy Mountain.

Bachmann also sold the C&O version of the Heavy Mountain with the long Vandy tender.

I don't know of any other locomotive that came with the long Vandy tender.

Regards,

Jonathan

[rogirby]

Thanks for the quick reply Jonathon.
No it is not the long 4-8-2 tender. I think that had 6 wheel trucks. This has 4 wheel trucks.
Roger

[Len]

Use the PhotoBucket 'Direct' link that starts with "http//i" with the [i m g][/i m g] tags to get you picture to show up here. Like this:



What you've got there is a Spectrum Medium Length Vanderbilt Tender. It was sold 'back when' as items:

89901 - Painted, Unlettered, Coal
89902 - UP, Coal
89903 - SP, Oil
89904 - B&O, Coal
89905 - Painted, Unlettered, Oil

So the D&RGW lettering and number were most likely applied to what started out as a 'Painted, Unlettered' tender.

Len

[rogirby]

Len
Thanks for the reply. I suspect you may be right. That's one of the questions resolved.
Thanks also for the Photobucket tip, I had not used it before - must educate myself on the tags and their use.
Roger

[Trainman203]

I hope one day the Bach man decides to offer the separate tenders again.  I could really use two of the little rectangle ones like behind the low boiler 4-6-0.

[rogertra]

Yes, offer separate tenders again.

I need several of the Hicken tenders for kitbashing into Canadian style coal tenders.


Cheers

Roger T.

[electrical whiz kid]

Not sure if I should make this suggestion per Bachmann's policies, but go to "parts" section of this site, and check there for what you want.  I have found the Vanderbilt tenders there.

RIch C.

[Pacific Northern]

I sure am glad that when they had the big clearence sale on the Vandy tenders that I bought a bunch. I used the larger tenders first for my Canadian National 2-10-2 engines

The smaller vandy tenders with the small trucks were for a short while packaged with one of the 2-8-0 engines as well for a while. I forgot the road name, but it may have been a UP loco.  Those were great looked good behind the small steamers such as the 2-8-0 and 4-6-0 engines.  I am lucky to still have a few of these still sitting around from the sale

I agree with the request, would be nice to see these available again.  Bachmann are you listening.

[Bucksco]

Perhaps there was a reason you were able to purchase them during a "Big Clearance Sale".....
It took a Loooooooooooooooooooooong time to get the separate sale tenders out of our warehouse - in other words they did not sell well. It is doubtful that Bachmann will sell them as individual items again but as most here have stated tenders are available through the parts department so that is the best way to get a tender minus the locomotive.

[ryeguyisme]

Also for prototype information, only 1000-class C-41's(2-8-0) and 1400-class F-81's(2-10-2) D&RGW engines are the only D&RGW engines to have Vanderbilt tenders.

1200-class would be a K-59 or K-63 Mikado both of which never sported Vanderbilt tenders and the roster only went as far as 1229, so what you may have is a freelance tender.

The only thing I can think of that's accurate, is prior to the D&RGW it's was called the D&RG and the number 1254 was an F-81 with a Vanderbilt tender. Granted I doubt the Bachmann model would be an accurate representation as the Vanderbilt tender on those engines were short but bulky in size, really chunky looking. Towards the war years (after they were renumbered) the Vanderbilt tender was dropped in favor of the Norfolk and Western 16,000 gallon Water Buffalo tenders which were easier to maintain and ha more capacity for coal and water than the Vandy's did.

Here's 1405(D&RG 1255) with a Vanderbilt tender:


Here's 1404(D&RG 1254) Modernized with an N&W 16K Tender:



Hope this helps!

Would also be neat to see what your tender looks like all lettered up!

[ryeguyisme]

Here's a photo of the original 1254 Locomotive:

[J3a-614]

Rye, I think you've nailed it.  Someone was using this tender with a 2-10-2, or was intending to do so, to replicate the engine you found.  It's not as accurate as it should be, but how many times have we used other things to stand in for what was not available or what was beyond scratchbuilding skills we might have?

[Trainman203]

Those 2-10-2s look ex wabash.

[ryeguyisme]

Those 2-10-2s look ex wabash.

These engines were considered the Heaviest 2-10-2's ever built, they were bigger than the Wabash engines.

Rye, I think you've nailed it.  Someone was using this tender with a 2-10-2, or was intending to do so, to replicate the engine you found.  It's not as accurate as it should be, but how many times have we used other things to stand in for what was not available or what was beyond scratchbuilding skills we might have?

To be perfectly honest with you I'm somewhat in a slow process of kitbashing my own F-81 using a chassis and styrene with some Kitbit sand domes I acquired luckily through some hard work looking.

I nearly bought a PFM collection F-81 but financial reasons(car accident) kept me from owning the brute.

So I am playing with the idea of complete scratchbuilding a boiler over a p2k chassis or making a freelance faux F-81 using an M-78 brass shell over a Bachmann 2-10-2 chassis.