I do have other Mikado's and like them very much also. However I like the looks of the Backmann's for it's stocky fat boy looks. The tenders on those need pickups which is no big deal to make. The main thing is to make sure you quarter them corectly to get a smooth running machine. The big problem being the gears that crack, there is a fix but I believe Bachmann should make replacement gears for these locos as thousands were produced and then dropped.
Jim
Jim