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NS2591 wrote:I own a C628 Its a great engine running wise, But it has to be detailed, and its not like a kato, A kato the holes are already drilled, Stewarts have to have the holes drilled.
tstage wrote: bogp40 wrote: The new Stewart drive is not as good as the Kato, a few of mine were slighty noisey until a break-in, but they did smooth out and run very good. The pickup wires to the trucks are very stiff but because of the massive weight of the unit, they don't cause trouble. I like the headlight in the Kato with the polished light tube over the newer LED that just hangs there. Bob,Well, if the newer Buehler and Canon Stewart motors aren't as good as the Kato ones, then the Katos must have been phenomenal because my Stewart FT (Buehler) and VO-660 switcher (Canon) are as smooth as glass and quiet. I did have to finagle around with the LED headlight on my FT though.The original light harness that came with the FT was too short and was stuck underneath the front part of the frame, so the light didn't pass through much of the lens. I replaced the LED that came with the unit with a golden-white one, bored out the lens about 1/2 way so that the LED just fit up inside it, placed black heatshrink around the base of the LED to help focus the headlight beam out through the lens better, and pushed it into the nose cone. Now, that same headlight and LED lights up the back wall and is quite impressive to see.Tom
bogp40 wrote: The new Stewart drive is not as good as the Kato, a few of mine were slighty noisey until a break-in, but they did smooth out and run very good. The pickup wires to the trucks are very stiff but because of the massive weight of the unit, they don't cause trouble. I like the headlight in the Kato with the polished light tube over the newer LED that just hangs there.
The new Stewart drive is not as good as the Kato, a few of mine were slighty noisey until a break-in, but they did smooth out and run very good. The pickup wires to the trucks are very stiff but because of the massive weight of the unit, they don't cause trouble. I like the headlight in the Kato with the polished light tube over the newer LED that just hangs there.
Tom,
Have you run any of the Stewart/Kato units for a true comparison? I don't think that the Katos were phenomenal and without any flaws, but this was the beginnings of the Kato drive and it is propably more of a quality control issue. As I mentioned, of the 20 units 1/2 are Kato and the rest the newer drive. The latest purchase was a special run of WM circus offered through Bessimer Hobbies. These were actually the last run of Stewart before Bowser bought them. The order was 5 As and 2 Bs all powered. Of the 7 drives 5 were noisey out of the box. A couple made gear noise regardless of direction. These haven't had any serious run time yet for any break-in. 4 of my other new drives that had been run did quiet down, but they in no way run like the Katos.
Just my experience and observation of running Stewarts for the past 12 years. Not saying that anything is wrong with the new drive. I wonder what others have found over the years.
My Stewart swichers, by the way, run absolutly smooth and flawless. Go figure.
Modeling B&O- Chessie Bob K. www.ssmrc.org
I don't own any Stewart engines, but I do have one of their HO hopper kits. It only has as many parts as an Athearn BB kit, but the shell and parts are all very finely molded and look great. The paint is smooth and even with sharp lettering. The stock axles are very thick and are poor rollers, so I replaced them with Intermountain 33" metal wheels, which made the car one of my best rollers.
I've heard nothing but good things about their F-unit drives, so I'm guessing they are extremely good runners. The detailing on Stewart's standard engines is about the same as Life-Like Proto 1000, but their new Executive line has much more detail, including grab irons, windshield wipers, MU hoses, and brass horns.
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I bought a C628 a few years ago. It sat in my LHS for years.
The thing ran worse than a BB Athearn. After some tlc, & an email to Bowser, the driveshafts were replaced & it runs better.
Gordon
Brought to you by the letters C.P.R. as well as D&H!
K1a - all the way
I have( 4) vo 1000's ,(2) 660's and several sets of the various "F's".
The one thing they all have in common is that they run GREAT..
IMHO it is hard to go wrong with them.
I think Stewart and Intermountian make some of the best running engines I have had the pleasure of owning.
Not that LL Ptoto, Atlas ,and Kato are bad I just think that Stewart is the best deal for the price. Thay can be had reasonably on E-bait most of the time.
Tom
Simon Modelling CB&Q and Wabash See my slowly evolving layout on my picturetrail site http://www.picturetrail.com/simontrains and our videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/MrCrispybake?feature=mhum
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
I have 4 of the Stewart Fs and I think they are outstanding. You don’t hear as much about them as Kato or Atlas but they look and run great.
Jim
Stewart Fs, especially the earlier Kato drives, run fantastic. I have over 20 locos, some af my first ones ABBA F3s, are 12 years old and must have over 80 hours of run time in a club setting. Not one has given me any problems to date. I don't even know of any problems from other members locos except a few worn drives a member had with his B&M ABBA set that was run to death at the Conway Scenic club layout. Who knows how many hours they ran in the 4-5 years they were used.
The units are lacking in detail as mentioned, but the DA detail kits and Details West or Overland horns take care of that. Kadee #450s for couplers give you the option to close couple (3ft) if your radius allows and the use of American Ltd operating diaphams completes the units. The shells still are not as great as the Highliners. I am a happy coustomer of Stewarts and if a company had to buy them, I'm glad it was Bowser. I know that they will continue in the tradition of Steve Stewart with quality and true to prototype.
Hi all,
I'm starting to plan my engine & car fleet (I'm starting almost from scratch after several years out of the hobby). I've noticed that Stewart Hobbies offers a nice range of models and road names at reasonable prices, but I've never owned anything from them. How do their products compare to others in the market? Specifically, how do their engines compare to, say, Athearn & Atlas? And how do their cars compare to Athearn BB or Roundhouse? Thanks...