Rogers 4-6-0

[hagys66]

Any chance Mr Bach Man that Bachmann will ever produce a Rogers 4-6-0? I know you can find used Mantua's and Tyco Locomotives that are based on the design but they do not have the modern technology or detail of today's HO scale standards.

[Trainman203]

The mantua 4-6-0 was grossly oversized, closer to S scale.

[the Bach-man]

Dear Hagys,
I'll pass along your request.
Have fun!
the Bach-man

[hagys66]

The mantua 4-6-0 was grossly oversized, closer to S scale.

I have to agree with you 100%. I have a few of them but would love a true scale model that runs more reliable. I know when they rebuilt Sierra Railway #3 at Railtown they had to have new blue prints created as the originals were lost when the Jamestown depot originally burned down.

[Terry Toenges]

I'd love to see a #3  in On30, too.

[MilwaukeeRoadfan261]

I would love to see a model of Sierra Railway #3 in it's Sierra Railway #3 and Central Pacific #131 (as it was in Back To The Future Part 3) appearances in HO Scale. DCC ready so I can use a Tsunami2 with the Nathan 5 Chime whistle.

[Trainman203]

No one knows anything about steam whistles anymore.  Someone needs to write a book, with a title like " The Music That Built America " or something like that.

You can use any whistle in any decoder with any engine.  Engines changed whistles with shopping  like we change socks.  You need to learn what each type of whistle looks like to be able to ID it in historical photographs. 

If you had to generalize, and there are always exceptions, single chime  whistles like hooters and peepers where the most common until the 1880's when three chimes began to appear .  Right after 1900 you start to see multi tone whistles like 5 chimes and 6 chimes.  Increasing boiler pressures made these whistles susceptible to squealing and overblowing so deeper toned 6 chimes and steamboat whistles came around the early 1920's.

Further generalizations would be:  east of the Mississippi- road preference for 3 chimes (SR, L&N, PRR  along with hooters and peepers) and steamboats (SR, IC, N&W along with hooters).  West of the Mississippi, the sounds of roads like the SP, the MP, the Santa Fe and such were dominated by 5 chimes and 6 chimes, with steamboats finally appearing on the the last and biggest engines like the Daylights and the Challengers and Big Boys.

Road names on decoder whistles don't mean that is the only engine or road it is correct for.  Learn what prototype whistles look like, and proceed accordingly.  There's so much more about these wonderful whistles, but ... the book needs writing.

[Len]

"There's so much more about these wonderful whistles, but ... the book needs writing."

So when can we expect to see the Kindle edition of your book on Amazon??

Len

[Trainman203]

An academic skilled in research and documentation needs to do it.  It would be a good masters thesis for someone studying industrial archeology.  Steam whistles weren't used only on on trains.  They were on all steam powered mills, steamboats, tractors, etc.  They truly were the collective voice of the Industrial Age around the world, and the sound of the US growing into the world power it became.  A ripe book topic waiting for picking.

[MilwaukeeRoadfan261]

Trainman203, I only mentioned the Nathan 5 Chime whistle as I have found from listening to the whistles on a Soundtraxx Tsunami2 decoder that the whistle that Soundtraxx calls a Nathan 5 Chime is the one that sounds closest to Sierra Railway #3's whistle that it's fitted with currently and in Back to the Future Part 3. I do understand that any whistle can be used with this particular prototype depending on the road name. I'm just saying that if Bachmann does make a Rogers 4-6-0 like Sierra Railway #3, if in Sierra Railway or CPRR #131 liveries, that the Nathan 5 Chime whistle on the Tsunami2 Steam Sound decoders would be the best whistle if it was DCC Ready and it were fitted with an after market Tsunami2 decoder.

[Trainman203]

I understand, it's just very, very hard to resist rambling on about one of my favorite subjects, steam whistles!

Sierra No 3 has been in umpteen movies and TV shows, and has had many differently whistles on it that I've seen and heard .  The one I remember best was a  beautiful 3 chime on it when she was in several episodes of a 60's TV western called "The Virginian."  The Soundtraxx B4g whistle is a dead ringer for that one.

The sound of the Soundtraxx Nathan 5 chime(no. 38 on the Tsunami2 decoder) is more akin to a 6 chime whistle.  There is another Nathan 5 chime, no. 39, that sounds like an actual 5 chime. If no. 38 is the sound you want, there are several new 6 chimes on the new Tsunami2-2 that has just come out with (😮😀🤪) NINETY whistles!  To me they all sound better than 38, but that's a personal choice.  Go to the Soundtraxx web site and listen to the sound samples.

[hagys66]

A set of the old timer passenger coaches painted for the Sierra Railway would be cool too!

Here is some inspiration for the Bachmann designers Mr Bach-Man.
Untitled by hagys72, on Flickr

Could even do a design with a wooden cab and cap stack like when she ran in Prescott AZ and early on during her service on the Sierra.

[bbmiroku]

The antlers are a nice touch.  Are they to defend territory from other steam engine, or to attract female steam engines during mating season?


(sorry, I couldn't resist)

[Flare]

The antlers are a nice touch.  Are they to defend territory from other steam engine, or to attract female steam engines during mating season?


(sorry, I couldn't resist)

This feisty little guy has a larger set, what will the first loco do?

[bbmiroku]

It's not the size of the antlers, but how they're used.

But comparatively, it looks like deer antlers on a bull moose and moose antlers on a fawn.

I'd put my money on the moose wearing the deer antlers.