Looking to start in TMCC

[kopeck]

I am lucky enough to have some great friends who gave me a TMCC base station, remote and one TPC for a bachelors gift (pretty cool eh?).  The TPC will get me going with my Post War stuff, but I really would like to take the next step and get something with TMCC and RailSounds.  The kicker is that I can't bring my self to sink a ton of money into a locomotive when I've also got a house to finish, see where I'm going here?

The logical choice is the Lionel Lines Berk, which is the direction I'm leaning in.  I've been scouring the adds in magazines to see if I could turn up and older loco that also fits the criteria for maybe a little bit less.  I know Lionel made a TMCC traditional Hudson a while back, but I guess my question is what should I be looking model wise, because beyond the Berk and the Hudson I mentioned everything is pretty much out of my ball park.

Oh, and Steam is my preference.

Thanks,

K

[luther_stanton]

Kopek,

I purchased the Lionel Lines Berkshire in April and have been very happy with it.  It is a great locomotive.  It has a sharp appearance, runs good and has great slow speed performance.  As you stated, it is hard to beat for the cost / features.  I am not sure if you have shopped around – I purchased mine at hobbystation.net (http://hobbystation.net/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=488) for $275.  I have dealt with HobbyStation many times via mail order with great service.

 

I also added the Lionel Lines caboose with the moving conductor for a pretty nice "Lionel Lines" setup.

 

- Luther

 

[dougdagrump]

Start looking at some of the so-called "Big Box" e-tailers and if you have any local hobby stores in your area. Generally you can find better pricing on the net but that does come with a trade-off. Dealer support sometimes really suffers on the net. For new stock, items like the TMCC hudsons and pacifcs sometimes they can be found for $200+ on a good sale which is a little bit less than some of the new berks. Some will agree some won't but at times you can also find some Excellent buys, both new and used, on E-Bay. You just have to be a little slective and check, check, check the seller.

However the most important rule is to buy what you like and run what you like.

Enjoy !!!!!!!