American Diesel Locomotives - Which Manufacturer

Ralphmp

Ralphmp

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Having completed an extension to my layout I'm now able to run longer trains and quite like the idea of a "typical" US-style long freight train. I've no experience of this as all my stock is European and LGB apart from a Bachmann Climax which hauls a short logging style train.

As LGB don't seem to offer much in the way of US locomotives (and their new loco prices are excessive in my view) I'm looking for suggestions on which other manufacturers would be a good alternative to get started. I don't have any preferences but I like the look of the USA Trains GP7/9 locos (however this is down to appearance as much as anything else).

My layout is Massoth DCC, and I don't really want to move away from this unless it's maybe to battery/RC power, so locos which come decoder-equipped or are relatively easy to upgrade are essential. I'd also like sound, but if this is easy to add to a non-sound loco that's fine. Everything is on the level with my layout so ability to haul lots of wagons up a steep hill isn't a top priority. I use mainly R3 curves with some R5s so whatever I get needs to be able to negotiate this.

Any suggestions or observations will be much appreciated.

Thanks
Phil
 
Appreciate what your saying about LGB but worth having a look at the LGB F7A+B, seen a few Santa Fe around at £500ish, super bit of kit with great pulling power and sound/chip factory fitted.
Kim
 
Have you checked out Ebay. LGB Alco road diesels are on there quite often. The original blue and white version lettered for White pass and Yukon usually goes for a decent price.
 
I second the LGB F7 A & B

As far as American outline manufacturers are concerned I beleive that USA Trains & Aristocraft hace ceased trading I am not sure if this is correct or not. But both manufacturers did produce some very acceptable locos, however hard wiring may be nescessary to digitize them
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I spent many a happy winters afternoon putting decoders & sound in Aristo & USA trains locos used to do it in hte kitchen when the wife was out, Soldering in the Kitchen is a cardinal sin!!!!
 
Aristocraft are still trading, but with a very limited range. As far as USA Trains are concerned, their latest "in stock" list on their website is dated 19/6/2015 so I assume that they are still in business. I have examples of both manufacturers' products and I think USA trains are better detailed although their locos do seem to use more power. Essentially, I am happy with both although a lot of the liveries seem to be fictional!
 
USA trains are very much still in business, the hardest part is finding them is the UK, and they don't appear too often.

As for fitting Dcc and sound to USA trains, it will be a case of hardwiring the chip, but once you take off the body there's usually lots of space, they also normally have smoke generators

I've got 2 x USA locos, one battery and one track powered and there lovely smooth,quiet runners and good haulers and very comparable to lgb.

The mine reason for buying them was I wanted a big diesel and lgb was out of my price range

Dan
 
Thanks for the info re USA t & Aristo, I had around 12 of their locos in the 80-90s & very good they were too, reminds me of the story of the G scale modeller somewhere in the Preston area who was in his garden one sunny sunday morning he had got 2 Aristo Diesels running on his line with around 20 freight cars in tow.......... He had arranged to take his family to Blackpool for the day................. he got called in to 'load the car' and then they set off for the day out, completely forgetting the railway!!

Arriving home some hours later, the train was still happily running!!
 
Thanks for the rapid replies. Gives me something to do this weekend other than plumbing in a new towel rail!
 
I have also been tempted by US diesels but need to build the extension first. :)


Grootspoor have several LGB F7s:

http://www.grootspoor.com/lgb.html?cat=9&landstijl=69


GRS are a UK stockist for USA trains:

http://www.grsuk.com/USA_Trains-C055000


No personnel experience of these locos so following this thread with interest....
 
The first thing you need to establish Phil is the scale you want to model. USATrains, AML and the former Aristo-Craft are all 1:29. Aristo has ceased trading but Polks GenNext is supplying some of the former Aristo models, albeit very slowly, as they are a newly set up company. Many UK dealers still have some Aristo and also import USAT and AML. There are some USAT, mainly models of older wooden cars which scale at 1:22.5 it is widely suggested, although USAT claim 1:24.
Bachmann gives you two choices. Their lower priced Big Hauler, 1:22.5 range and the more expensive Spectrum range which is 1.20.3.
PIKO have some American outline, but is less detailed it seems. The scale is 1:32.
LGB's offerings vary in scale it seems from 1:24 to 1.27.
Your R3 curves will accommodate easily models which represent the 40ft. and 50 ft. length cars but the R5 are needed, in my view, for the larger more modern type cars that USAT sell.

If you can get to shows, or a club which has American outline modelers, do so. Mistakes in our scale can be costly.

Andrew, http://www.gardenrailwaycentres.info/shop/, is a good, very reasonably priced, retailerand often gets second hand Aristo or USAT items.
http://www.hattons.co.uk/ Hattons do have some Aristo in their clearance section.
http://www.classicloco.co.uk/ This company lists much Aristo but I have not dealt with them as it is a confusing web site, but you may find it OK.

There are other dealers I am aware of with Aristo and USAT stocks but, it seems to me, that they are generally a little on the high price.
 
Prices seem to vary on the same loco depending on what livery it is wearing Union Pacific and Santa Fe always seem more popular and therefore expensive on the second hand market as than to say B&O or Pennsylvania
 
Yep, and finding a 1:20.3 (15mm:1ft) dismal is nearly as bad as finding a hen with teeth.

Bachmann's 45 tonner is an obvious candidate, with Accucraft's Whitcombe next, then what?

All I can find is Worsley Works' SA Class 90 in 16mm:1ft


We is hard done by >:( >:( >:( >:(
 
1 20 dismals are really all switchers,, mostly brass apart from the bachmann pair,,

garden railway centres have a few second hand usat gp9s for sale,, i like both the usat and aristo locos,,, they are usually on ebay quite regularly and are inexpensive compared to the lgb range,,

the lgb f7s are very good but too large if you go 1 29 route
 
I could be wrong but I do not think there are many prototypes for narrow gauge USA diesels.

The obvious exceptions I know are Rio Grande #50 and the White Pass Alcos, and LGB does models of both.

The LGB F7 uses their rubber ruler to sort of look OK with narrow gauge rolling stock. :)
 
The LGB F7 is a mix of a F7 and F9? Plus being about 1:26ish so halfway between Lgb and USA trains size. There are quite a lot of NG diesels but they are very small batches so only the more iconic ones have been modelled. The white pass also has the shovel nose diesels, of which some operate on an industrial line in the lower States to, but they are so unique looking they wouldn't work in the mainline liveries while the Alco just looks like a smaller version of other SG Alcos when they paint it Santa Fe or Rio Grande. USA trains is the main source of standard gauge now as they are still producing stuff.
The Bachmann Ge centre cab is massive compared to their other locos except the K27 so never really fitted in as a generic model with wide appeal. Personally I think they'd have been better modelling one of the 3ft Canadian diesels that look like small SG locos, like the Lgb Alco, and doing some fictitious mainline liveries.
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=129075&nseq=39
 
If it's switchers we are talking, I'm sure I've seen a brass version of Rio Grande #50 which was a thing of beauty. The LGB version is a great little loco though, I'm not sure what scale the little Bachmann 0-4-0 gas mechanical loco is :-\
 
As the thread originators post mentioned running longer trains in the American style switchers are probably not what he is looking for, But, even so, all railroads should have a switcher or two. ;)
 
there have been the rio grande 50 switcher by accucraft,, they make a whitcomb and a small davenport,, they also make a small bobo switcher and a similar one for a now closed model shop in the usa which had the accucraft factory make a range for it,, custom model products i think was the name

then you have bachmanns 44 tonner and davenport,, i think thats about it

there are no big historical narrow gauge deisels in the us,,,, although the drgw trialled a couple of army bigger switcher type locos,,,,, and i think there may be an aluminium smelter or

quarry that may have a few big 3ft diesels for its mineral trains,, and i think they may have had a loco at the white pass could be gypsum,,,,
 
Trainworld .com LGB F7s A unit $500, B unit $300 Plus shipping BUT remember you will have to pay VAT 20% and Handling Charge usually £8 before you get them delivered in the UK
 
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