# Bachmann 4-4-0



## markoles (Jan 2, 2008)

Ok,

So I have this old Spectrum 4-4-0 that I bought from TOC in March of 2008. It originally was a painted unlettered version which I have now repainted twice. Initially, I had some trouble with a wobbly wheel that worked loose early, also the pilot truck worked itself loose and fell off once. But without any real free time, I did not run this engine very much. Engines with sound tended to have preference for running. Mostly, this engine has been sitting on the mantle as a shelf queen. When I was laid off and had to make an office in my basement, most of the narrow gauge 1:22.5 equipment was packed up, so it didn't really have a train to pull either. 

Luke is now 2. He wants to run choo choos all the time (like his old man) and he also just got a new bobber caboose for his birthday (last monday). I pulled out the kid's railroad (a circle of 8' diamter curves and two 8' staight sections) and set it up inside. It runs down the hallway, and back through the living room in front of the TV, where the rest of his toys are. For fun, we used the Bachmann 4-4-0 this weekend. The usual locomotives: Eggliner and Toytrain 0-4-0 didn't seem as intereting to me on Saturday. 

After only a few days of running this beautiful 4-4-0, I have some rambling thoughts regarding the engine in general and some specific performance items:

1. This locomotive is not really a toy. I do not let him just run it unsupervised. There are a lot of small parts that could break off easily and lots of moving parts that could be pinch points. 

2. Accidents will happen! I was there when he opened the door on the entertainment center right in to an oncoming train. The smokestack fell off (falls off readily) and bent the headlight bracket a little. Given the force of impact of a train running full speed in to a 1" thick wood door hinged the wrong way (meaning the loco was working to push the open door further, but the hinges stopped it), this loco has more robustness to it than I expected.

3. Even though not encouraged, the locomotive seemed to handle full forward to full reverse without much problem. No skipping gear teeth like might be found with cheaper toy trains. 

4. Because of my normal position on the floor (have to be!), I was able to watch all the motion of the stephenson valve gear. It is very fun to watch! 

5. The lines of this little Baldwin steam engine are great!! The more I ran the engine (I mean, the more LUKE ran the engine), the more I liked it. 

6. This is probably the smoothest running engine I own. While lubricating the many moving parts, I put the loco up on a couple of blocks so I could run the loco to lubricate all the moving surfaces. The wheels were turning when the transformer was at position 0.5 (out of 4). In spots where the eggliner and Lil Critter would have trouble, this loco just breezed right over them. I added a little gear lube through the open port on the bottom. That seemed to help as well.

7. The kids railroad is not the best built track ever. It is LGB 1600 series curves mounted to 1 x 6's and aristo 2' straights mounted to a 1 x4. The LGB 1600's have been part of many many layouts starting in 1993, both indoor and out. This track has seen better days, and as such it does not fit perfectly together anymore. There are some slight kinks in the curves where the track sections join. Despite these slight misalignments, this 4-4-0 handles them no problem, full speed forward or reverse. 

8. The smoke unit is not that great. Just OK, as has been pointed out many times before on this and other forums. 

9. The yellow headlight is a nice touch and different from the white headlights of the other locomotives we have. 

10. The firebox flicker is pretty cool, although it seems to only work at higher speeds (must be voltage regulated). 

11. The wires that connect the engine to the tender are a bit cumbersome to insert when the locomotive is on the track. I don't know that it could be done with the engine and tender coupled together.

12. I still have a slight wobble in the engineer's side rear driver. I know I put red loctite on the screw holding the wheel in place, but perhaps I need to push it in a little further. Part of me says to let it go, but I have a feeling it will start to work the wheel, and then I will never be able to get it tightened up. 

Luke and I had fun and we were using the train to show FAST and SLOW. He is learning new words all the time and some concepts. He has learned to wait for the train (or he likes to watch the train, so he stops crossing the tracks so he can watch it go past). We also used the two 20' gondola cars (one was also a present for his birthday) to haul his Lil People, blocks, and even his cup of Milk (but he didn't like that too much). 

Overall, I would say that this engine is a great model and mechanically very robust. I am happy that there was not too much damage when the locomotive crashed! 

Not sure if anyone out there even cares about these little 4-4-0s but if someone is looking for a smooth running, well detailed locomotive, these are great little engines. 

Later,

Mark

PS. the second repaint occured within the last two weeks, so I need to get some pictures uploaded here.


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

Mark, 

I have a bachmann 4-6-0 with sound and r/c sitting on the shelf which is not at all delicate. Wanna swap?


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## markoles (Jan 2, 2008)

Pete,

Tempting, but I think I'll keep the 4-4-0 for now!! Especially since I had so much fun running it this past weekend!


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## rreiffer (Jan 14, 2009)

Mark, 

Please feel free to contact me at [email protected] and let me know how much you want for it. Thanks 

Rich


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