# ok i'am ready to buy a shay



## pete (Jan 2, 2008)

Ok i am ready to buy a shay.We run lgb track and 4ft radius turns with track power. Here is the question who makes the best, most reliable and detailed shay in 1/29 or a little larger.I think the 1/20 SCALE will look to large on our layout because our other engins are lgb and aristo craft. Thanks for any suggestions/DesktopModules/NTForums/themes/mls/emoticons/hehe.gif


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

pete, 
I may be mistaken, but I believe most Shays sold, to run on 45mm track, are 1/20.3. With my limited knowledge I would say that Bachmann(little "bucks") and Accucraft(BIG "BUCKS") are the only manufacturers of these engines.


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## Guest (May 28, 2008)

not sure if you'll find what you are looking for...although a visit to the MTH site shows a 3 and 4 truck, but not sure what scale (?) they are..look like std gauge to me?..or if they are 2 or 3 rail.....sry, but at least it's a start....the MSRP of the units show near $1100...ouch!


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## Dennis Paulson (Jan 2, 2008)

Accucraft sells an electric version of the little Mich-Cal shay that maybe the best size for what you want . 

http://www.accucraft.com/index.php?show_aux_page=37


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

The Bachman line up of Shays have to be the most popular, I would say because of pricing. Accucraft makes some fine modeles but the price tag goes up. I just got in a 13 Ton Open Cab from Accucraft, but like anything its for sale. I would like to have one of these for myself. However I don't think any of them are recomended fot 4 foot curves.


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

I just read your question again, 8' dia. any of them will be OK.


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## cabforward (Feb 18, 2008)

I like the accucraft 2 and three truck models both great runners under battery or track power. 
The only shay that i now of that is not 1/20.3 narrow gauge is the lgb/aster model which is going for around 4k on ebay which is 1/22.5 
matt


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

I have the Accucraft 3-truck Shay and it is a beast, as in what it can haul. As others pointed out the Shays are not as big as other locos in 1:20, and the Mich-Cal and Open Cab are even smaller than the 3-truck. The detail, weight and motor in the Accucraft was worth the extra $ for me. Be warned that these are geared really low, just like the prototypes, but the can really haul a load.


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## Big65Dude (Jan 2, 2008)

Pete -
Just to give you a basis for comparison, here's a couple of shots of Roger Cutter's West Side Lumber Co. 3-truck Shay by Bachmann. Rog "Air Wired" it, put in a Phoenix sound card and super-detailed it - then I painted and weathered it for him. Admittedly, it's scaled to 1:20.3 but it's a heckuva good engine for the money.





















Hope this give you some ideas. Good luck on your search.


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## DKRickman (Mar 25, 2008)

Has anybody tried "downsizing" the B'mann shay? It looks to me like it could be re-worked into a large standard gauge 1:29 model.


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## pete (Jan 2, 2008)

Jack that is one awsome looking engine! Does antone know what is the tigthest curve the bachmann shy like the west side will run on. We have r1 curves on our lay out. Thanks for all the replys.


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

MTH Shay = 0 scale, 3 rail. 

tac


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

Pete - in your first post you wrote that you had four foot radius curves - that's eight foot diameter, now you are writing that you have R1 curves, they are about four foot diamter. Which is is? 

My two-truck Shays and Climaxi run on R1, but it is a real strain on the articulation, and was only done to prove that it is feasible, but NOT recommended. 

tac


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

I haven't seen the Accucraft one, just the Bachmann, and they're beautiful. I've seen other Accucraft equipment and can just imagine their shay. On 4ft radius, either should run fine.


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## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

Not sure I'd worry about the scale of the shay so much. Downsizing it would be about impossible, be easier to just build a 1:29 shay from scratch. It's doubtful you would run it with 1:29 stuff anyway. I never do with mine. I have 1:20, 1:29 and 1:32 trains, but never run the different scales together. WIll soon have two loops though, so if you have that, keep the larger stuff to the inside and the smaller on the outer loop. Jerry


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## thekollector (Jan 2, 2008)

Hi Jerry, 

I guess if you are posting, you came through the storm OK? 

Jack B.


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## pete (Jan 2, 2008)

Ok ok i ment to say we have 4 ft dia curves we have a small area that our layout is set up in and using r1 curves was the only way to get our track design layed out. We have two loops and each loop has about seventy ft of track. We have only been in gscale for about two years and before i make another BIG mistake i want to be sure the engine i purchase will run on r1 curves. I have a bachmann connie with sound and cannot run it .It looks great but i didn,t buy it to look at it. So it has been sitting in it,s box for a year and a half.But anyway thanks for all the help and sorry about the curve mixup.


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## toddalin (Jan 4, 2008)

At one time there was a 1:24 scale Shay made, I believe in brass maybe by Precision Scale. I delivered one from Don Herzog (of Miniature Plant Kingdom) in Nor Cal to So. Cal for repair about 10 years ago and have been looking for one since. 

When I was at the NGRC in Phoenix, one of the vendors had one. He sells vintage stuff and was asking $2,500 for it. It is the cutest little Shay I've seen.


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## Guest (May 30, 2008)

Hey TAC, not to argue your point, but found this? 
http://www.westerndepot.com/product_info.php/cPath/21_36_280/products_id/10083 
says 2 rail and DC....? 
and this says the same...and it's a pretty good price? 

http://www.justrains.com/2raillocos.htm 

cale


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## Spule 4 (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By toddalin on 05/30/2008 7:37 PM
At one time there was a 1:24 scale Shay made, I believe in brass maybe by Precision Scale. I delivered one from Don Herzog (of Miniature Plant Kingdom) in Nor Cal to So. Cal for repair about 10 years ago and have been looking for one since. 
When I was at the NGRC in Phoenix, one of the vendors had one. He sells vintage stuff and was asking $2,500 for it. It is the cutest little Shay I've seen. " border=0>







True! 

PSC was the importer, the maker was Samhongsa, PSC numbers were 98011 and 98021 for the finescale version (correct to 3" gauge as the model was 1/2" scale. They came out about 20 years ago, but do turn up at the brass dealers and on eBay from time to time.


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## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

Here's my one cylinder shay that I made for fun. SO, it is a downsized shay, I guess!


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

That, Sir, is a truly wondrous artefact./DesktopModules/NTForums/themes/mls/emoticons/w00t.gif 

I would be VERY proud to have one like that to run on MY layout anytime! 

Trouble is, to build one here in UK would require cannibalizing an $850 Bachmann model... 

tac


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## Tom Leaton (Apr 26, 2008)

I believe that the Heartland Big John was designed to run on R1 curved track ( -----but it resembles a Heisler more than a Shay! ) 

...cheers


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## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks TAC, 
Actually, the only Bachman Shay parts used were one cylinder of a 3cylinder motor(was cutting it down for a two cylinder shay-still need to do that!) and one gutted Shay truck(cut it in half) and the gears. Most I picked up used. Fun project, but much BIGGER job than I anticipated. You can see more on my web site of it, including a youTube video of it running. Jerry


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

Cale - you beat me - I've only seen the three-rail MTH stuff here in UK - never knew they did two-rail stuff as well. 

Thanks for putting me right. 

tac


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