I note the new 2-8-2, some to be produced with "Sound Value", and some just DCC Ready, including Frisco and Rock Island. I am sure I recall you announcing a new policy a couple of years ago that, starting with the EM-1, for new locos there would be a separately available plug-in sound module so that anyone could upgrade to sound, whatever their road, instead of the old 'some roads get sound and others don't' approach.

Are these 'plug-and-play' sound modules in the pipeline for new locos like the 2-8-2, or has that idea been scrapped?

Best Regards,
Bill.

Hi, I was browsing the Bachmann Webstore when I came across a loco I did not know about:

Bachmann #51317 DCC-Equipped Baldwin 2-8-0 Consolidation - Rock Island #2123

The Bachmann Webstore shows it as "Sold Out", and "No Picture Available", which seems a bit odd if it has been around long enough to sell out.

I checked Walthers, who do not list it at all in their present or past products, and MB Klein who do not show it.

I checked Bachmann Europe, who show it as "New" and "On Order".

Does anyone know, is this been and gone or yet to arrive? And when was it announced?

TIA,
Bill.

Dear Mr B,

Thanks for recognizing the Rock Island with your recent GP7 and RS-3, and in the best RI paint scheme too!

Unfortunately almost all the photos I can find of locos in this scheme show silver trucks - dirty, but definitely silver! The GP7s also have silver fuel tanks and everything else 'down below'. The one GP7 exception is a photo of #1204 newly delivered from EMD on June 30 1951 in "Rock Island In Color" Vol.1 by Loyd E Stagner, which has black lower parts. The RS-3s have silver trucks, but some have gained black(ish) fuel and air tanks by 1959.

I am guessing that Bachmann produce each loco in a single batch, so there is no prospect of them putting this error right for "the rest of the run".

So my first question is, can dirty aluminium be simulated with a thinned wash of silver / aluminium paint over the black, or will it all settle in the wrong places? I don't want to ruin otherwise good models finding out the hard way.

An alternative, for the RS-3 at least, is a chassis swap with the sound-equipped B&M RS-3, which does have silver trucks. That also solves the problem of the GP7 having sound and the RS-3 not.

So my second question is, do the RS-3 body shells from non-sound locos fit the sound chassis? (I believe this is not the case with the ALCo switcher models).

TIA,
Best Regards,
Bill.

The MB Klein search engine is hopeless, but the service and prices are both excellent.  I am looking at that Rock Island GP7 now, but unfortunately all my other RI stuff is DC Proto (convertible to DCC but not easily to sound) or DC Atlas (less easy to convert to either).

It is interesting that the MB Klein description says "with Sound and DCC", and "DCC-sound equipped", and Trainworld say "w/DCC & Sound", but neither makes mention of "Sound Value".  I think it important that the distinction should remain in the advertising, lest unwary customers be disappointed.  I well remember my childhood disappointment on buying model kits and finding that the size of the model came nowhere close to the size of the box - that experience put me off certain manufacturers.  Akin to buying several supposedly different ships, based on the artwork, only to find the same kit in every box.

Just a thought,
Bill.

Thanks for your comments.  The ex-Spectrum connie is a very well engineered and reliable model, and I have several for when my RR is being the Western Maryland / Ma & Pa, or the MEC / NH.  That is why I would like the WP version to look a bit different! 

I understand the ex-Spectrum connie is not "generic", but an accurate model of an Illinois Central 941 class of 1909 vintage that is used generically by Bachmann.  In fact a lot of Baldwin 2-8-0s of any particular vintage looked very similar, but with different RRs specifying different fittings.  But the tender attached seems to have depended more on the requirements of the RR.  Tender length was usually constrained by the smallest turntable a loco was likely to need to use.  Also I believe that the USRA Medium Coal tender used by Bachmann as a standard post-date their connie by several years, and so is unlikely to be representative of what a connie would have been coupled to in 1906-9, which is when the WP connies were built. 

Regarding comparisons between the US and UK model rail markets, Bachmann's list price for the Baldwin 2-8-0 is $185 in the US and that for the British 2-8-0s is around £130 = $215 in the UK, so the additional cost of individuality is not great.

Another feature I have noticed about the British models is that the loco - tender electrical connection is made in the factory, so you get a wire of the correct length neatly clipped to the tender draw-bar.  None of this business of having to plug a cable vertically into the loco chassis from below which then creates a downward loop which fouls anything between the rails and / or lifts the front tender wheels off the track.

I imagine that all these models are made in the same factory, so I wonder why practice is so different.

Hi, the Bachmann online shop lists "Western Pacific #35 Baldwin 2-8-0 Consolidation", Bachmann #51316.  It is shown as "sold out", but online retailers show it variously as "due 3rd quarter 2013" or "due 3/31/2014", so I guess the B-Man does not have an "Awaited" logo and has to use "Sold Out".

Does anyone know anything about this model?  The WP's Baldwin 2-8-0s were #1-20, built 1906, and #21-65 were ALCos, built 1909, so #35 was an ALCo, not a Baldwin. 

The WP Baldwins had short, boxy tenders (body length 23-ft 5-inches, overall length over couplings 28-ft 5 13/16 inches), and whatever they were delivered as, in later life some were coal and others oil. (The book "Western Pacific Locomotives and Cars" by Patrick C Dorin shows #1 in 1938 with a coal tender and #19 in 1947 with an oil tender).

The body length of the WP Baldwin 2-8-0 tenders scales out at 3.23 inches, which is a bit shorter than the Bachmann Decapod tender body (3.25 inches), and a lot shorter than the USRA Medium Coal (body 4 inches), which Bachmann usually hang on the 2-8-0.

There are several photos of the WP ALCo 2-8-0s on the Don Ross website, and they seem to have tenders similar to the Baldwins.

I am hoping that Bachmann have attached the Decapod tender to their WP 2-8-0, but.....

I am also puzzled why Bachmann USA are not more specific with their models.  If the castings were metal like the 4-4-0 and 4-6-0 loco bodies that might be too expensive, but the connie body and tender are plastic. 

I was looking at the Bachmann UK website,  http://www.bachmann.co.uk/prod1.php?prod_selected=branchline&prod=3  you will see that all their steamers are precise, company specific models, and there are lots of them.  They have three completely different 2-8-0s, 31-004 Robinson Class O4, 31-013 Fowler Class 7F, and 32-261 Riddles WD Austerity 8F.

The population of the US is 5X that of Britain, so how is it that Bachmann can make so many more different steamers for the British market, and each precise to prototype?

Just Wondering.....
Bill.

I believe that the Spectrum Baldwin 2-8-0 was at one time issued with the Medium Vanderbilt oil tender decorated for the Southern Pacific, but I may be wrong.

May I suggest that you take a look at some of the early Peco books (dating from the 1950s – 60s, but still in print), such as "60 Plans For Small Railways", "Track Plans", and "Plans for Larger Layouts".  These were mostly drawn by the late Cyril Freezer, long time editor of Railway Modeller magazine, and are based on real railway practice (albeit condensed), and hence do have a railway purpose. 

They are based on British steam era prototype practice, and hence not quite in the American idiom in terms of track layout or facilities, e.g. they have a strong emphasis on passenger facilities, are designed for small goods wagons, and often have apparently double track main lines handling dense traffic, but they are generally designed to fit very small spaces (i.e. British houses), and many are even smaller than 8x4, yet typically comprise an end-to-end spiral running from a high level terminus to a low level terminus with a disguised continuous run and hidden storage loops. 

Another common feature is for the low level to represent a cramped, busy urban terminus and the high level a more spacious and relaxed rural setting.

Thus one can, for example run services between two busy urban termini or from an urban terminus to a rural terminus, with opportunities to run trains continuously round the circuit for as long as you like or hold them in a hidden loop, whilst you shunt goods wagons at either terminus, shunt passenger carriages, service locomotives, etc.  Another common feature is a central operating well with control panel, so that the  operator (on a swivel chair) can never see the whole layout at the same time, just the bit he is focused on.

Regards,
Bill.

Hi, Greg, on some of the points you have made:

New England locos
- The new Bachmann ALCo 2-6-0 is available in Boston & Main livery, with or without "Sound Value".  Whilst it is not a Spectrum it is a new model and high quality.
- The Richmond 4-4-0 is available in Maine Central livery, with or without sound.  This is a Spectrum.

Bachmann controller - if this is the Dynamis, it relies on a line of sight being maintained between the handset and the control box.  You can improve this by putting the control box up high, e.g. on a shelf above your railway.  When operating there is a strength of signal indicator top-right on the screen.  My Dynamis does strange things from time to time, e.g. suddenly ramping up the speed to max or down to zero.  At first I thought I was accidentally touching the joystick with my thumb, but it still did it when I held my thumbs well clear, so then I thought it was low batteries and changed them twice, but it still does it.  It is fine most of the time, but has bad days.  I am thinking of changing to a cable system.

Programming the DCC - I have no idea how to do this, except for the basics set out in the manual, e.g. set the loco name, speed steps, etc.  The manual can be found on the Bachmann website under the DCC section.

Front light - I believe that the DC and DCC versions of Bachmann locos have different bulbs and DCC will blow a DC bulb, so if your loco was a DC version your bulb may have blown when you connected it to a DCC decoder. (I think DC is 12 volts d/c and DCC is 20 volts a/c, but I am no expert)

Tender compatibility - my high-boiler DCC ready New York Central 4-6-0 ran fine when coupled to a DCC / sound equipped Richmond 4-4-0 tender ( just a test).  However, different Bachmann tenders have different pin configurations, so you cannot simply pair any tender to any loco - if something is not working it may be a matter of needing to swap a couple of wires.  There has been a lot of discussion about this on this board - search for "Tender Swap".

Best Regards,
Bill.

Hi GRZ, the Spectrum Baldwin High-Boiler 4-6-0 was issued with two types of tender.  The NYC and Undecorated versions came with the same tender as the Russian Decapod, and the C&NW version came with the USRA Medium Coal Tender, as supplied with the Baldwin Connie.  Both these tenders have sound and non-sound versions, i.e. with or without perforations in the tender floor, and different shaped weights for whether or not they are intended to accommodate a speaker.  IMHO the medium coal overpowers the 4-6-0 and the Decapod type tender looks best.  Bachmann used to sell tenders separately, but sadly no longer.

The Low-Boiler 4-6-0 comes with the same tender as the Baldwin 4-4-0, but can also be coupled to the tender from the Richmond 4-4-0.

Regards,
Bill.

I assume the Baldwin 4-6-0 will be re-released at some point in the next couple of years? 

May I suggest that you include a high boiler coupled to your medium Vanderbilt tender?  They look rather good together, and the combination is prototypical on RRs such as the Southern Pacific (see these photos of T31 class Baldwins:
#2353 in preserved condition, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Southern_Pacific_Lines_4-6-0_No._2353.JPG,
#2354, operational in 1952, http://espee.railfan.net/nonindex/steam-01/2354_sp-steam-t31-byron_bostwick.jpg, and
#2356, also operational in the 1950s,   http://espee.railfan.net/nonindex/steam-01/2356_sp-steam-t31-gene_deimling.jpg).

This would also allow you the opportunity of fitting sound into the Medium Vanderbilt, which I think many of us would appreciate!

The SP engines were oil burners, but I expect that there were coal burners too on other RRs.

May I also suggest some different road names and regions? 

There were both high and low boiler Baldwin 4-6-0s on the SAL, including many inherited from absorbed lines, and these could partner your SAL Baldwin and Richmond 4-4-0s. 

How about a high-boiler 4-6-0 for the Western Maryland to partner your 2-8-0 and Decapod?

How about New England?  For example the BAR operated 4-6-0s into the early 1950s, including #66, which was an ALCo but looks very like your Baldwin high-boiler and had a tender very similar to that with your ALCo 2-6-0.

And how about the mid-west, south-west, Gulf coast and RRs operating across the Rockies or Appalachians, in the sort of landscapes modellers like to model? (I know you did produce a low-boiler for the Union Pacific, but that has been your only western livery).

Just some thoughts,
Regards,
Bill.

Talking about the Baldwin 2-8-0, originally Spectrum, now demoted to Standard line, if relevant to you one factor to watch for is that in the earlier ones those sold without sound had a solid tender floor, whilst those sold with sound had a perforated tender floor with mouldings to site the speaker.  To see what I mean, see the parts diagrams on this website.  I believe that on the more recent production even those sold without sound have the sound-ready tender floor.  It is easy to tell, just look at the underside of the tender and look for the circle of holes. 

I have several Western Maryland Connies from the different production runs, and apart form the tender floor differences I have mentioned they are indistinguishable in terms of detail, performance, or quality of manufacture.  Highly recommended.

Bill.

About http://www.bachmanntrains.net/Catalogs/2013/NMRA_2013.pdf.   Am I misunderstanding this?  Is this the Bachmann entire future programme? 

I was hoping to see the Spectrum 4-6-0 again next year, maybe for the SAL to partner my Richmond and Baldwin 4-4-0s.  Surely there must be endless road names available for the high and low boiler 4-6-0s?  And for the Baldwin and Richmond 4-4-0s? 

I was also hoping to see the WP ALCo S2 get sound next year.

Come on Mr. B'Man, none of this would require any new capital investment, just a lick of paint!  It's not as if there are a bunch of undecorateds out there for us to finish ourselves.

Regards,
Bill.

I recently bought two P2K FM H10-44 switchers with QSI Quantum sound.  The manual says that "Operation of the functions of keys can be different in Neutral state (locomotive stopped) and the Motive states (locomotive moving in forward and reverse)"

Specifically, the F9 key gives:
Very heavy Load on/off in Motive state, and
Disconnect/Standby/Shutdown in Neutral state.

I have been testing my two locos on my test track and neither gives shutdown when the engine is stopped.  I am wondering if this is because there is no Neutral setting on the Dynamis.  When the loco is stopped the handset still shows a direction set to forward or reverse.  Am I right?  And is there a way to select Neutral on the Dynamis?  Or do I perhaps need to re-program Shutdown onto a different key?  QSI shutdown is wonderful if improbably cataclysmic, and it would be a pity to lose it.

I would be grateful for advice. I have asked this in the HO section rather than the General section as I suspect more people read it and sound predominantly relates to HO.

Bill.

OK, problems solved.  Both locos programmed.  Issues were:

1. The Dynamis will not accept 0 as an initial digit when inputting a new loco number.  You need to just input 118 or 279 and press prog, and it will do it.  Unfortunately this is not apparent from the Dynamis manual, as the example they use for service track programming is 4468.

2. I think that the other problem was low battery in the handset.  The screen was not showing low battery, but I held the handset much closer to the receiver and this tome I got the Prog track icon whilst I input the first three digits (it had not appeared previously) and when I pressed it I got the message PROGRAMMING on screen, which I had not had before.  It did keep interrupting with the STOP / SHORT message showing, but as I could see no reason for a short I just kept pressing the Stop button to continue programming and it completed.  As the locos ran fine before as #3 and after with their new #s there clearly was no short.

Thanks for your advice, Bapguy.

Bill.