Looking to buy a new locomotive step up from brachmann big haulers what company gives you the best bang for the buck?? really like the hartland steam locos sound and power and something to last and hold it's value please let me know thanks Joe
LGB has never failed me, even with some being 10-15 years old. - Peter
Modeling the Bellefonte Central Railroad
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Hi Joey, Try LGB or aristo-craft both are good makes. As we all say a loco will last a good few years if you treat it well and dont over load it If you have the time go to a train get to gether if you are in US or as any one you know who runs g gauge It also helps us if you say where you are as you can see i`m in the UK
Age is only a state of mind, keep the mind active and enjoy life
I myself have not had good luck with Aristocraft locomotives they seem to be of poor quality, I have found that USA trains makes very nice trains and sturdy as well.
John
I have two Bachman 'Annies' - good value at an economical price and five Aristo-craft locos which run faultlessly. These two makes are readily available in the UK but certain road names only as in the States. I have avoided the more expensive locos - you should know that prices in the UK are considerably higher than the United States. I also have avoided the USAT locos as I don't care for the skates that are fitted. LGB was never considered as it was mainly Euro outline that I saw here.
Alan, Oliver & North Fork Railroad
https://www.buckfast.org.uk/
If you don't know where you are going, any road will take you there. Lewis Carroll English author & recreational mathematician (1832 - 1898)
Sticking to the original question...
Bachmann's latest generation Big Haulers/Annies are great bang for the buck, Wholesaletrains.com has always hed some of the best prices around, Ridge Road Station also gets great reviews.
HLW makes some of the most underrated stuff on the market, every bit a bulletproof in reliability as LGB ever was. I highly recommend them myself, again Ridge Road and Wholesaletrains both have great prices.
Have fun with your trains
Joe,
Have you given thought to what type and era of loco you may want. If you want to stay with old time narrow gauge like the Big Hauler line you have a couple of choices.
If you step up to the correct scale/gauge of 1:20.3 you have locos by Bachmann and Accucraft/AMS.
If you stay in the 1:22.5 / 24 scale side you have the Big Hauler line,LGB, Hartland locos and the AristoClassic line (like the C-16) and some USAT cars. I went this way myself.
If you want diesels or big steam you can go 1:29 Aristo and USAT locos and cars and AML cars. MTH has a large line up of 1:32.
-Brian
vsmithHLW makes some of the most underrated stuff on the market, every bit a bulletproof in reliability as LGB ever was. I highly recommend them myself...
Very nice looking steam engines. Do you know what scale they are? I looked over the site but didn't see it listed anywhere.
altterrainIf you stay in the 1:22.5 / 24 scale side you have the Big Hauler line,LGB, Hartland locos and the AristoClassic line (like the C-16) and some USAT cars. I went this way myself.
I don't know that there's any manufacturer with which you're going to go horribly wrong. By and large, they all make reliable products. Some particular locomotives have "known" issues, mostly relative to gears splitting, but (a) they are known issues, and (b) the manufacturers offer replacements either under warranty or as separate parts. Even on those specific locomotives, the problems aren't as rampant as what might appear by reading the forums.
Brian has some great advice. Figure out which genre of railroading best appeals to you, then go from there. If you like narrow gauge steam locomotives, then Bachmann's "Spectrum" line (and the aforementioned "anniversary" edition 4-6-0), LGB, Heartland will all work well for you at reasonable prices. (Some more reasonable than others.) If you're into mainline diesels, both USA and Aristo-Craft make solid performers. So, figure out what floats your boat, then go from there. If you're not sure what that is, flip through the magazine, find a locomotive that appeals to you aesthetically, and if the price seems reasonable, go for it. Nine times out of 10, it will run very well for you.
Later,
K
PJM20altterrainIf you stay in the 1:22.5 / 24 scale side you have the Big Hauler line,LGB, Hartland locos and the AristoClassic line (like the C-16) and some USAT cars. I went this way myself. As you can see Hartland is 1:22.5/24 scale. - Peter
As you can see Hartland is 1:22.5/24 scale. - Peter
Oops! I'm an idiot. Skimming again. Thanks Peter.
I like Hartland and Aristocraft. One thing about Hartland is they use a lot of plasic. If you go Hartland look at this website www.cocry.com - good prices. I think LGB is not worth the money. USA trains are fine (don't own any but have seen them "in action"). The thing with Bachmann is that you need to spend lots of money to get a good engine.
Before purcasing an engine I like to watch it run on YouTube to see how it runs, how well it pulls, etc.
Pretty much you can't go wrong with any of the companys, though.
I buy whatever the Santa Fe had in my era. I have not purchased any locos that did not need some "tweaking". That's how my site got started, notes to myself on how to improve things.
Even the most expensive locos I have (AML K4 Pacific and 0-6-0 USRA) needed some improvements.
I have every brand, but getting rid of the Bachmann because I have focused on standard gauge locos.
Regards, Greg
Visit my site: http://www.elmassian.com - lots of tips on locos, rolling stock and more.
Click here for Greg's web site
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