# Powered Tenders???



## Festus (Jun 28, 2010)

I never knew there were powered tenders in G scale until a few days ago. I can't find anything in the archives so I'd like to ask all the experts out there. Are there any powered g scale tenders out there now? I'm not talking about someone adding power to a non-powered unit, but a tender that was made with power and sold that way. Does anyone know how many different manufacturers make powered tenders? I noticed one on eBay, and monitored it to see what it would sell for. It's black in color with gold trim and lettering: #87 Denver & Rio Grande. It just has an 1/8" steel rod hanging down vertically in front with two plugs for wires from the loco. It also has sound. It has metal wheels and chains on all 8 wheels. And it has the usual pile of fake coal. For photos and additional info, try the same eBay address I monitored when it was sold to ???: http://www.ebay.com/itm/180718414199?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 and if you'll read the description, the seller says it's a Bachmann, but also asks for help in identifying who the maker is, so he's not certain. If anyone recognizes it, or more importantly, has a powered tender and/or knows who or how many manufacturers make them, please let me know. I'd like to identify the pictured tender because I'm curious, but also know who makes them and why? Thanks for you help. Festus


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## Polaris1 (Jan 22, 2010)

I own a LGB small powered tender (2 axle) in yellow that runs fine with a Stainz 0-4-0 steamer..... 

I also have a MTH 1/32 powered Tender in Black that goes with the RailKing Triplex steamer... 

Dennis M from GBay, WI.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

That is a Bachman Spectrum tender, that went with the Spectrum 4-4-0 and 2-6-0. 
It is definitely NOT "powered" in the sense that it has a motor that turns the wheels..its totally stock. 
the bottom view shows that it has the stock "unpowered" wheels..

the seller probably saw that it has some wires sticking out of it, and electric hookups to the wheels, and called it "powered" because of the electric wires! 
he simply isnt aware that he used the term incorrectly, and that he implied something that isnt true by his choice of words..


but no, that is definitely not a "powered tender" in the sense you are thinking of.. 

however, I know LGB once offered a small powered tender. 

Scot


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## Madstang (Jan 4, 2008)

To me it is either a heavilied modified Bachnamm tender..but also looks like an Accucraft tender with Bachmann couplers...Hard to tell with the CRAPY pics. The pickups I have seen on my Bachmann Connie tenders, but can be purchased from Micromark or such places. The pin on the front of the tender that connects to the bachmann engine is not what the normal Bachmann tenders attach with they have a loop coupler. The Bachmann Connie has that sort of pin. 

The ONLY company that makes a powered tender is LGB, comes in various colors all black, black and red, and a Christmas powered tender. You can find them on Ebay....L.G.B. or L.G.B. christmas trains.

Either forms they look like a europen tender americanised....they are not usually cheap.

Hope this helps

Bubba


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

It is definitely, 100%, no question, a completely unmodified and stock Bachman spectrum tender.. 
I have one attached to my Spectrum mogul on the shelf next to me right now as I type this and look at the ebay photos.. 

Scot


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

It also doesnt have sound..it can take a speaker, but the photo of the underside looks like there is no speaker installed.. 
(although I cant be 100% sure of that..but im 99% sure!  

Scot


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## Madstang (Jan 4, 2008)

The chains on the side of the tender trucks must be a new addition, because I have never seen a bachman tender other then the Connie tender having those chains on the trucks..But then again I only own cheaper 10 wheeler and 1 Annie.

Bubba


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

nope, still not modified! 
Bachmann Spectrum 4-4-0 and 2-6-0 have always had the chains..probably since they first came out, over 10 years ago. 
the chains have always been there.

Scot


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## TonyWalsham (Jan 2, 2008)

They came with chains.


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## Festus (Jun 28, 2010)

Thanks guys. I'll look for an LGB tender on eBay. I just want to have one to watch it go and see how much difference, if any, it makes with pulling power. This tender looks like a good one, even in the crappy pictures, but with no speaker, and no motor, it isn't worth as much as it sold for.


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## vsmith (Jan 2, 2008)

LGB is the only one who made a factory powered tender, it was for the Stainz and used the same power block so they were matched output. This same tender was also used by Playmobile to power the tender of their Wild West set.
http://www.euromodeltrains.com/cgi-...dCfDY5NTcy

This is the latest incarnation


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## kormsen (Oct 27, 2009)

Posted By vsmith on 18 Sep 2011 06:24 PM 


LGB is the only one who made a factory powered tender, it was for the Stainz and used the same power block so they were matched output. This same tender was also used by Playmobile to power the tender of their Wild West set.


yes, the motorblocks of the LGB tenders are the same as in the stainzes.
but no, the playmobil tenders do not have the same block.

i've got two from each brand - the playmobils do not have the strong Buhler motor, but a weaker one.


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## Dan Pierce (Jan 2, 2008)

LGB had many versions of the powered tender, split case, sound, decoder ready, DCC ready. 

Later versions did not have the motor tied to the rails and speed matching can be an issue. Do not mix new versions with old version engines!! 

I have 7 of these and there are 5 different versions on these. 

Sound versions are one with no DCC capability, sound with 6 pin cable needed, sound version with 55021 direct plug in. 

Split case block, 3 wire block, dcc ready block. 

Older version tenders had round holes for front/rear power jacks, and newer tenders had 2 pin connector sockets. 

2 sound tenders did not have 9 volt battery capability, others did. 

Prices paid for non sound ranged from $40 used to $75. I got a sound version for under $100 just a month ago on E-bay and it had no wheel or slider wear. 

New from current LGB production has a list price around $369.


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## Festus (Jun 28, 2010)

Okay, now I want one, just so I can see if it's as fancy as those crappy photos make it look. That 2-6-0 looks great. So SCOTT, if it doesn't come with a speaker, which one do you have installed in yours? Or which one do you recommend?


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## Festus (Jun 28, 2010)

Everyone else please feel free to express your opinion on speakers. It's an important decision. There's nothing worse than paying good money for a good speaker and have it turn out to sound cheap and tinny. Festus


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## Stan Cedarleaf (Jan 2, 2008)

Festus, I'll add my 2 cents.







The guys have mentioned the LGB powered tenders of which I run 4 or 5 of them. The one listed on the ebay link had power cupplying the locomotive with electrical power but has no powered trucks as the LGB 0-4-0 tender does. 

Some years ago, I added USA 44 ton powered trucks under a Bachmann 10 Wheeler tender, they ran ath the same spped as the 10 Wheeler and it was a very successful 'bash. The 10 Wheeler tender had a speaker in it and it was converted to battery power and had a Sierra sound module added as well.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By Festus on 19 Sep 2011 05:45 AM 
Okay, now I want one, just so I can see if it's as fancy as those crappy photos make it look. That 2-6-0 looks great. So SCOTT, if it doesn't come with a speaker, which one do you have installed in yours? Or which one do you recommend? 



I dont have sound installed in mine, so sorry, I cant recommend anything!  I repainted mine, but left the original gold striping:


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## HARRYB1949 (Jul 26, 2011)

Hi , 
I DO have a powered tender on my ERIE TRIPLEX , a 2-8-8-8-2 setup . The last set of 8 drivers is in the tender and it also has smoke in the tender . It's a replica of the Triplex , 
which did have power back in the tender . Very few originals were made , the ERIE had a few and the Virginian had one . They were really worthless , very poor design . One boiler did all the work and only one set of drivers had fresh , high power steam as the front drivers and the tender drivers were powered by low pressure steam . They were mostly used as pushers , and would travel about 10 miles per hour .


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## HARRYB1949 (Jul 26, 2011)

Hi , I forgot to mention that the ERIE is G scale , MTH 1/32 scale but it's a monster !


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

The three Erie triplexes werent *completely* worthless..they just didnt live up to their expectations.. 
but the Erie used them for 10 years as pushers, so they were semi-worthwhile!  
they did their job, they just didnt do it quite as well as had been hoped.. 

and the first one, the "Matt H. Shay" had been in service a full two years when the second two were ordered!, so the Erie had hopes for them.. 
but in the end, overall, it was considered a failed experiment and wasnt repeated. 
but they pushed for a decade, so I dont think its accurate to say they were "completely worthless"  
Scot


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## Ironton (Jan 2, 2008)

I think by powered the seller means it has power pickups. Just an idea.


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## Festus (Jun 28, 2010)

How about a few pictures of that 2-8-8-8-2? That sounds too good to be true. Worth a trip to come see it too if it's ever on the job.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

Prototype photo:


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## vsmith (Jan 2, 2008)

Scotty wasnt the basic problem of the Triplexes two-fold? 

1: the boilers were undersizes and couldnt provide a full head of steam long enough for them to be usefull? and 

2: the tenders were undersized and couldnt hold enough water to keep the steam head pressure where it needed to be? 

The result being they were only good for short periods of time, which is why they were religated to pusher duty. I also read that when the tenders got lighter after coal and water usage, wheel slip on the tender drivers got to be a real serious problem with them.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By vsmith on 19 Sep 2011 09:33 AM 
Scotty wasnt the basic problem of the Triplexes two-fold? 

1: the boilers were undersizes and couldnt provide a full head of steam long enough for them to be usefull? and 

2: the tenders were undersized and couldnt hold enough water to keep the steam head pressure where it needed to be? 

The result being they were only good for short periods of time, which is why they were religated to pusher duty. I also read that when the tenders got lighter after coal and water usage, wheel slip on the tender drivers got to be a real serious problem with them. 






Yes, you are right about their shortcomings..but you are wrong about "which is why they were religated to pusher duty."..they were never "religated to pusher duty", they were planned, designed, and built AS pushers..that was thier whole reason for being, and the only thing they were ever intended to do..So yes, they had some issues, but they still did the job fairly well as pushers, as they were designed to do..they operated for short distances, just "up the hill" then back down, where they could re-fuel..
(This is for the Erie's three engines anyway, im not sure how the Virginian used their one triplex)
So yes, they were not ideal, they had shortcomings..but they still did the job for 10 years, which means the Erie got a pretty decent lifespan and use out of them..
not *complete* failures by any means..just not a good as the Erie had hoped.

Scot


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## HARRYB1949 (Jul 26, 2011)

HI , 
I did read that the Triplex was made to haul 640 50 ton cars - but when built the couplers would not take it , so they were pushers . Also , they wouldn't fit into ERIE's shops . I'm 
glad that Scot added the pictures , as the brand new Triplex that I got from MTH made a quick turn around and headed right back to their shops . After 2 minutes of trying to run it , they agreed that it had major problems and sent me a pick-up tag . I hope that it fits into their shops !


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By HARRYB1949 on 19 Sep 2011 10:39 AM 
HI , 
I did read that the Triplex was made to haul 640 50 ton cars - but when built the couplers would not take it , so they were pushers . 



Nope..its very well documented that the Erie planned, designed, ordered and used the Triplexes strictly as pushers..
this is not uncertain!  this is not in doubt..
Article from 1914, the same year the Matt H. Shay was introduced:
Railway Age Gazette - 1914

Scot


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## HARRYB1949 (Jul 26, 2011)

HI SCOT , 
I STAND CORRECTED ! THANKS FOR SENDING THE ARTICLE INFO SO I COULD READ IT . I GUESS THAT I TOOK MY INFO FROM THE HYPE THAT MTH PUT OUT ! THAT'S ANOTHER REASON FOR ME TO BE UNHAPPY WITH THEM .


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

I dont think MTH was purposly being dishonest..they were simply passing along some of the "myths" that have existed about these locomotives for almost 100 years..It was well established that they were only intended to be pushers..but the myth about the "broken couplers" has probably been around a LONG time..here is an excerpt: 

It was said that the first triplex was capable of pulling 640 cars. However, the tractive effort that these locomotives generated was greater than the draft gear, couplers and frames of freight cars of that era could transmit. As a result, these locomotives were relegated to helper (pusher) service on the "Gulf Summit" or "Susquehanna Hill" grade near Deposit NY, and after 13 years were taken out of service in 1927 when the arrival of 2-8-4s on the Erie roster made 2-10-2s available for helper service. 5014 was scrapped in October 1929. 
source: http://www.steamlocomotive.com/triplex/ 

Perhaps the Erie and/or Baldwin put out a "capable of pulling 640 cars" blurb, just for publicity! and perhaps the Erie even tried out a triplex on a "regular" train, just to see what it could do, and its possible there were in fact broken couplers as a result..but even so, the fact remains these locos were always only intended to be pushers.. 

another myth: 

The triplexes were used with some success on the Erie Railroad but were not without problems. They were very large locomotives and certain major repairs had to be performed in the Lehigh Valley shops at Sayre, PA in addition to Erie's own Dunmore shops 

I was born in Sayre, PA..I have been an active "LV historian" since I was a teenager, and I was a member of the first LV museum in Sayre in the 80's..and this topic has been discussed on the LV railfan forums at length..there is NO evidence that an Erie triplex was ever worked on at the Sayre shops!..and if it was, you would think such a rare and unusual locomotive in Sayre would have drawn much attention! it seems likey at least *one* photo would survive..But no photos, and no documentation of any kind of a Triplex at the Sayre Shops has ever been seen..I think that one is also a complete myth.. 

Scot


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Festus, the opening in the tender is for a 3" speaker. You're going to run into a bit of trouble if you get a really tall one with a big magnet because the vertical clearance above the opening isn't all that great. I've modified all of mine, so I can't tell you what it is stock. The ones I've got in the three of mine are similar to the ones that come stock in the 10-wheeler; standing a bit over 1" tall. They don't sound too bad in their own right, but I'd imagine a taller one with a bigger magnet might be an improvement. My issue is that I put the batteries on top of the speaker, so I need something low. As I said, though, it's good enough in its own right. 

Later, 

K


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## HARRYB1949 (Jul 26, 2011)

HI SCOTT , 
I WAS BORN IN CALLICOON , NY JUST ACROSS THE RIVER FROM PA AND OF COURSE I WATCHED THE ERIE AND THEN THE EL'S TRAINS GO THROUGH . ACTUALLY , MY GRANDFATHER HAD THE JOB OF PICKING UP THE MAIL IN LONG EDDY , NY AND HANGING IT FOR THE TRAIN TO SNATCH AS IT CAME THROUGH . HE WAS CROSSING THE TRACKS IN A CAR AND WAS KILLED BY A TRAIN IN A SNOWSTORM RIGHT THERE . THE CAR ACTUALLY ENDED UP ON HIS LAND ! I HAVE BEEN SEARCHING FOR REPORTS OF 
THIS WITH NO LUCK . IT HAPPENED IN 58/59 , HIS NAME WAS BISHOP - VERY SPOTTY NEWSPAPER COVERAGE IN THOSE DAYS . 
OH , HOW I WISH THE STEAMERS HAD LASTED LONGER . IT WAS A GREAT THING WHEN THEY RAN A " SPECIAL " FOR US TO SEE , AND I RIDE ONE WHEN I FIND THEM . I RODE OUT OF HONESDALE , PA AND MANY OTHERS . I JUST STARTED WORKING AT THE " GULF COAST RAILROAD " IN PARRISH ,FL . 
HARRY


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## Pterosaur (May 6, 2008)

The original poster asked about speakers, mine came with a 3" low profile speaker and a "Soundtraxx" system (inoperable). This was not a stock system. One thing to keep in mind with these tenders...They are TINY! After replacing the long dead "Lead Rechargeable" battery it came with using a NiCad pack I was able to get the sound going but it sounded awful. I am looking into a Phoenix sound system but seriously considering a "sound car" to pull behind it allowing for a larger (taller) speaker in the tender.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

Harry, I know CALLICOON! 
im a Southern Tier native myself..born in Sayre, grew up in Waverly..
but I was only 7 years old in 1976, so I only have vague memories of the EL and the LV..
by the time I started taking train photos as a teenager, it was 1984 and Conrail was in full swing..

Scot


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