G Scale Model Train Forum banner

What brand do you run?

57K views 156 replies 97 participants last post by  Greg Elmassian 
#1 ·
 


We had a discussion in the European forum and as usual, it was an education for me.  Now that I'm probably going to stay with this forum and presumably a different bunch of folks, I would be interested in hearing what brands you prefer and why.  I currently have my LGB starter set little green Stanz loco, a new (Santa brought) Aristo Rogers 2-4-2, and a Bachmann 4-6-0.  The little green LGB will out pull both of the others:) and the big Bachman seems to be the weakest and has traction issues(to be fair, it came out of a barn and was very dirty and not in the best condition).  What kind of load am I pulling you ask?  Approx 11 assorted cars on a flat layout.  I find the typical German quality in the LGB line appealing but their price seems a bit excessive and some of their stuff lacks in scale detail (they claim to build toys not models).  My Bachmann loco is a little "junky" (too much plastic), but I really like my Bachman passenger cars.  My Aristo Rogers is a nice new loco that looks good, plenty of scale detail at a very reasonable price.  On the other hand, the Aristo passenger cars are quite a bit more $$ than the Bachmanns and I'm wondering if they are worth it?  I don't know anything about USA or the other brands and would appreciate any and all enlightenment.


i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj185/sailbode/Newyears08013.jpg


D
 
See less See more
#133 ·
Andrew, just not rich enough. Kiss now releases more timely more interesting models, impossible to keep up with this for myself... Still, this is a good development to keep 1:22.5 so healthy, I wonder what they will come up with next! Best new year wishes from Tokyo, Zubi
 
#134 ·
My brand is playmobil, i had 2 sets from the 80's-90's and the latest set, the cargo train, all of them are favulous and i want to explore other brands like lgb, for obvious reasons, i loved them and i want to add more playmobil trains to my collection specially the classic trains like the western train and pensilvanya road, those are awesome...

greetins from Mexico...
 
#135 ·
got a good selection of aristo and usat for the 1 29 side,,, both locos and rolling stock

and a good ***** of accucraft, ams and bachmann for the 1 20,3

and a berlyn rgs 20,,,,,

plus a couple of stainz and some starter coaches, and a lgb track cleaner,,,,,,

still hankering for a k36 though,,,
 
#136 ·
Have had to make a transition from a large outdoor layout to a outdoor 56" x 18' table layout that is outdoors but under a patio cover. With that move came a selloff of many of may larger engines to smaller 0-4-0's and 0-6-0's that work on the smaller 4' radius track. All but one of the 6 small engines are LGB.

My rolling stock is a mixture of 90% short LGB stock, some Bachman short cars and a couple of Aristo.

I mainly look for dual axel cars as they look better on the short layout.
 
#137 ·
LGB in my book have the most bulletproof drive, and best plastic for long term use outdoors(atleast the older German production). I have no experience with the new product since Marklin took over but initial reports are good. My track is going on 17 years outdoors with no major issues. They will cost you more to own in the short term, but in the long term they cost less to maintain and run without any major issues. I do have one non LGB engine, and older Aristocraft Alco FA1 with the fully sprung trucks. Its converted to onboard battery power and runs flawlessly. Mike
 
#138 ·
What Brand do you run?

I thought this thread was too old to comment but it looks like it's still alive so I throw my 2 cents in. I guess I'm part of a smaller group on this site as I run F scale indoors. All my locomotives are Bachmann, I have 17 of them. All are 1:203 Spectrum line except for two Annies and all are steam except for one Davenport, gas. Some were purchased new, some used and some were basket cases bought on the net. For me I think it hard to match the detail Bachmann puts into their Spectrum line of locomotives at a reasonable price. Yes I conceede that the Aster and Accucraft models are more detailed but they don't fit my budget.. I know some may comment on reliablity but it dosen't bother me as I take care of my models and running indoors does not expose them to many of the hazards that you garden railroaders face. I've purchased several locos that have been subject to mother nature's temperment and abuse by their owners and I enjoy restoring them and in some cases modifing their drive trains and electronics. My rolling stock is Bachmann 1:20.3 Spectrum and AMS models.
 
#139 ·
My roster consists of:
(2) Two Truck Shays, 0-4-0 Porter Saddle Tank, 0-4-0 Porter side Tank, (2) Connies, K27, C19, (2) Industrial Moguls, Forney, 4-4-0, (2) 2-6-0 Mogul, Davenport gas, (2) Annies. All the 1:20.3 steam locos have either Phoenix or Soundtraxx Sound boards and are waiting DCC installation some time in the near future. The Annies are being rebuilt to 1:20.3 and I'm still looking for a sound board for the Davenport.
 
#141 ·
What brand I run depends on the interactions of what I want, who makes it, what the price is, and, who I want to trade money for product with.
The several locomotives are a couple Bachmann Big Haulers, an Annie; and by HLW, a couple steamers, Macks, and Sparkies.
Cars are Bachmann, USA Trains, HLW.
Some cars are scratchbuilt bodies on trucks by any of the above 3.
Some day I'll get something finished. Maybe.
 
#142 ·
I run LGB old west steam era (except for the cleaning loco), track and power. I am not as worried about true to life replication as I am about reliability. I have one Bachmann Reindeer car that won't stay coupled so I have stopped using it. I will eventually upgrade to a newer DCC system. Just haven't figured out which one yet.
 
#144 ·
I recomend putting Kadee couplers on all rolling stock. You will have reliable coupling to all rolling stock. They have many options for mounting, body mount is best, but requires larger curves. Most truck mount are pretty simple.

Track power DCC is a good option if you are able to matain your track power. There is a huge selection of decoders that will work with any DCC controler.
 
#145 ·
Kadees do not always require larger radius curves, it depends on the length of cars and how far from the wheels the coupler is located. Case in point is my body mounted Kadees on the short HLW kit cars and my LGB FRR cars which are running on a get this 29 inch circle. that is diameter!!!! 14.5 inch radius!!! This runs at times for hours with no issues.
 
#146 ·
Yes, length of cars will make a difference, but what Mike says is comparing the same car truck mount vs. body mount, body mount will require larger curves is accurate.


But on the other hand, you would be surprised how tight a curve body mounts on rolling stock can handle. Normally it's the locomotives that are the issue, or 2 cars of very different lengths with body mounts.


Classic example is USAT SD70 with a short freight car coupled... overhang of SD70 will literally throw a 40' car off the track. (there are creative ways to mount couplers in this case)



Greg
 
#147 ·
I am looking at NCEs PH-10R system. It's calling to me. "Buy me, buy me!" ;) Just need to save up the money.
So far I do not have any issues with track power. I am using Aristo on rail clamps with Piko conductive grease. I only have one power hook up point at the moment but I also only have about 140' of track surface laid on my patio and wall pavers so drainage is not an issue. Once it warms up and the ground thaws I plan to increase the number of hook up points.
I have one train converted to Kadees (truck mounts). I have issues with the brake hoses catching on track sensors, point covers and other items inside the track. I do have the Kadee height tool and have to continually adjust them. But I can't recall them ever coming uncoupled. I now run a minimum of R3 curves (because I have the space) but that wasn't always the case.
 
#149 ·
Greg,

Can you please explain the overdoing of feeders in DCC in a bit more detail?

This statement has me intrigued, is it G scale specific or would it apply to all scales?

I am constructing a DCC layout albeit in HO (same concept different scale) and I have been advised to connect a feeder to each rail length unless I have soldered the joints, most likely to overcome a joiner issue.
 
#150 ·
It's pretty simple conceptually, but often overlooked since most users are not engineers.


Basically in DCC you are trying to deliver the cleanest signal to the locomotives.


This means with the least distortion as compared to what comes out of the booster.


Have you heard of the use of snubbers at the ends of a "dead end" track?


Do you know about signal reflections?


If you do, then I probably don't need to say much more other than it happens at these frequencies.


Perhaps you understand the concept of ground loops?


Let me know if you are familiar with any of the above, as I can answer you in very few words.


Yes, to "current wisdom" is to connect a feeder to every rail, basically saying my joiners are crap... but you can cause other issues that affect the integrity of the signal, and then that still does not address dead end tracks.


Greg
 
#151 ·
Greg,

As a radio/radar technician with over 40 years experience in both ground and aircraft installations I am very familiar with signal reflections and ground loops.

Have never heard of using snubbers at the end of dead end tracks but it would make sense to control transients and spikes especially when points are switched.
 
#152 ·
Great, so I can speak at a higher level!


So first DCC being a square wave, we have ringing, etc. distorting the signal.


The reflections at the ends of tracks will be necessarily out of phase reflections and further distort the signal, in extreme situations can radically reduce the signal as you know about an 180 degree out of phase signal.


In HO layouts, where the largest market is, it is very common to use a "snubber" at the end of any track segment, normally a resistor and a cap in series, to kill any reflections.


So, the problem of too many feeders is the potential for adding more signal that is not exactly in phase, due to the difference in distance since there is more than one path to any location, and by putting feeders close together, you actually enhance that danger....



most DCC issues is distortion of the waveform, not power issues.


soldering jumpers of course helps indoors, and outdoors the ultimate is bonding track sections together, better than clamps.


Anyway, there's the gist of it, more feeders can control voltage drop and get around bad joiners, but can have a detrimental effect on the signal quality.


Some day, let me tell you why stainless steel track is better for signal integrity than brass track...


Best regards,


Greg
 
#154 ·
By the way, besides gleaning information from people I consider experts, I have actually put a scope on the rails in various places, and I'm lucky enough to have a portable DCC packet analyzer, that combined with my engineering background allow me to be confident in the analysis.



Of course this flies in the face of some of the "common wisdom" ha ha.


Greg
 
#156 ·
Bachmann made 2 lines of Largescale locos. The big-hauler line is inexpensive and you do get what you pay for in quality. Original 4-6-0's were poor runners, the later Annie version with metal siderods is a much better loco. I was not impressed with the industrial loco, no weight/poor puller of cars but has a great look.
OTOH all my LGB locos run great, pull well for their weight.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top