Has anyone have any reviews of the new 4-4-0 American,i think Bachmann did a nice upgrade on the loco,i would like to hear how others think of the improvements.
did you buy one?
I was interested in that loco also. how is it?
Thanks
Bill
To billgiannelli :Yes i received one from Mrs Santa,a American 4-4-0 #51003"Jupiter" dc ready.I had a extra TSU-750 Micro-Tsunami #826001 decoder and a soundtraxx 15mm x 4mm round speaker #810089 I installed it as a test.The loco has a 8 pin plug, so it was a plug and play install,the loco runs very well, it just has a little wobble but i think that it gives it a little character for a 1800's loco.as of now i think i'll keep this decoder in the loco.I went on Google and the only thing i can find was mostly other types of 4-4-0's,It's a new loco so it will take some time for info and reviews.
Has anyone seen any of the retooled HO American 4-4-0 locomotives run without a wobble?
If it wobbles what seems to be the problem???This is a indication of a not so straight wheel axle mesh,or a loose or uneven drive axle bearing ,out of round drive wheel,or the side rods binding, being to tight. or a little out of quarter ,Or if it has a traction tire.It is out of round or not properly seated in it's groove.I was interested in these ,but after hearing this, it reminds me of a few old Tyco's that come to mind .If you do not find the problem most times it will find itself when a wheel falls off the drive axle or something like that.A true sign .It is not right at all.Has it been dropped?
Johnny
I found out why the loco had a slight wobble,because it picked up a very small granule of ballast from the roadbed of the track, most likely from my finger, and it stuck to the rear driver wheel of the loco, no more wobble.the loco is running as good as it should.
Perfect.That will do it.Glad it is all good for you.Does it have any weight to it ? Die cast boiler or something that will make it pull a few ,or traction tires?
Johnny
Will we be able to buy a W&ARR General in the new tooling? That Texas just screams for it's counterpart locomotive. :)
Quote from: vaderdentist on January 10, 2016, 11:04:14 PM
Will we be able to buy a W&ARR General in the new tooling? That Texas just screams for it's counterpart locomotive. :)
What's really ironic in the "Texas" model is that it is a VERY accurate rendition of a Virginia & Truckee engine (which is the real prototype for the Bachman engine) as it was lettered for use in the film "The Great Locomotive Chase," a Disney film from about 1955 or so!
I wonder if Bachmann might eventually offer these 4-4-0s as the V&T engines they are really based on?
Maybe undercoated would make a great release with some tender and detail options for this one .Then you can make what you want.
Quote from: brokenrail on January 11, 2016, 11:10:25 AM
Maybe undercoated would make a great release with some tender and detail options for this one .Then you can make what you want.
The undecorated option would be great (and I would appreciate painting an engine in the colors of the 19th century), but where would you get decals? Champ's been gone for years, Walthers quit even sooner, and I'm not entirely impressed with Microscale.
And nobody, not any large firm I know of anyway (and not the classic firms mentioned above), makes or made19th century stuff, at least not for locomotives.
Local model trains store ran on their test track and observed wobble in six out of six sound value equipped new retooled American 4-4-0. Today, I was in the store and one randomly picked locomotive was run and I observed wobble. No attempt was made to determine reason for the wobble.
I bought the Golden Spike set from Micro-Mark and the Jupiter runs very good although with a slight wobble. I can live with it as it otherwise runs great. I only run it at low speeds in which the wobble isn't so noticable.
The other loco the No119 does run good but not great but with excessive gear noise and a pronounced wobble. At speed the front moves up and down excessively. I have contacted Micro-Mark to see if I can return and change this particular loco.
If it wasn't for the wobble I would love these new models. My Jupiter creeps along at low speeds and runs very smoothly.
Humm, May be time to hire a mechanic for these .I doubt if that wobble would be acceptable to that mechanics boss that put his name on those wobbling locos in the shop when they were made.They dont last long built broken, and do not fix themselves.How is that wobble at 25 mph .That would be wide open throttle for one of those. Wouldn't it? ;D
Johnny
Several at the local club house, (http://www.suncoastmrrc.com/), have this lokie.
All are wobblers somewhere throughout their speed range.
In N scale we call them ducks (waddlers).
I did not have the opportunity to examine any of them to determine if it's a quartering issue, or excessive slop in the drive, or something else (something on one or more drivers, gear mesh, backlash, and etc.etc.).
Quite possibly, it could be the lokie is "hunting" for the center between the rails, due to under gauged wheels, and "bouncing" back and forth, from one rail to the other, to find it.
I would opine, once the root cause is established, a solution can be implemented.
Anyone examined one enough to establish the root cause of the waddle?
Troubleshooting 101.
We can be reactive or proactive, choose which side of the fence you are on.
If one truly seeks help with this, some will offer advice.
If one just wants to ***ch about it, the thread will die, or Yardy will delete it.
I would just ask Bachmann .If so many have this wobble problem.Is this the old version with the drive shaft that is in the tender powered or the new release?I cannot comprehend how this could happen with Quality Control at it's finest with all the automation involved in production these days.My old Tycos are starting to look better now.
Check the play in the drivers to see if there is movement for and aft .If there is then stop looking.You need a non slop even fit between the driver axles and the frame casting with some kind of bearing or shim spacer to hold all that true without any movement ,but the axles to spin free like they would with no gears on them in a bearing of some kind.If there is a bearing, and they have that much movement.See where it is.In the axle to the bearing ,or the bearing to its retainer weather it be the frame or something else and make it slop free and even with the other drivers.This should not have to be done on a new mechanism.This area should be correct unless again you support Tyco standards. Worn out mechs usually get this way over a long time.Maybe too just a bad traction tire or piece of dirt.
Johnny Adam
Here are links to videos of the Jupiter and Union Pacific 119 straight out of the box. They seem fine to us.
If anyone out there has any problems with one of these locomotives they can contact our service department who will be happy to take care of any problems.
https://youtu.be/Mkl-tUmXmZY
https://youtu.be/nx9a142iigY
Quote from: brokenrail on January 11, 2016, 09:46:28 PM
My old Tycos are starting to look better now.
Johnny Adam
I can not comprehend any scenario in which that would happen...
Both my Jupiter and 119 run perfectly right out of the package. No issues. Run very well at super low speeds. No complaints. :)
Does anyone know if the on board sound system can be modified with different whistle sounds etc??? If so how do I go about doing that?
Dave
Whistle selection would be CV 115.
And which Soundtraxx whistles are they?
Not sure exactly which types but you can use values 1-3 to check them out.
Quote from: Yardmaster on January 17, 2016, 11:09:44 AM
Not sure exactly which types but you can use values 1-3 to check them out.
The Sound Value decoder valid values for CV 115 Whistle Selection are 0, 1, and 2. The default value is 0.
It comes set to "1"
Quote from: Yardmaster on January 17, 2016, 11:43:25 AM
It comes set to "1"
Yardmaster verify and clarify –
Out of the box CV 115 = 1; however, the decoder default for CV 115 = 0?
Or is the decoder default CV 115 = 1? Which would be the first for a Bachmann Sound Value decoder.
Default value is 1(as stated)....
CV default sheets will be posted to the website early this week.
Bachmann HO Scale 4-4-0 Sound Value™ Equipped
Whistle Selections:
Tweetsie 0
Southern Single Chime 1
Lunkenheimer 3 Chime 2
Exhaust Chuff: Light Steam
Air Compressor: Single Phase (muted per prototype)
Configuration Variable Defaults
CV # Description Default value
1 Primary Address 3
2 V Start 0
3 Baseline Acceleration Rate 6
4 Baseline Deceleration Rate 5
5 V Max 0
6 V Mid 0
7 Manufacturer Version ID Read Only (82)
8 Manufacturer ID 141
10 BEMF Cutout 0
11 Packet Time-Out Value 0
12 Power Source Conversion 1
13 Analog Mode Function (F1-F8) 0
14 Analog Mode Function (F0, F9-F12) 3
15 CV Unlock Code 0
16 CV Lock Code 0
17 Extended Address 192
18 Extended Address 3
19 Consist Address 0
21 Consist Function (F1-F8) 0
22 Consist Function (F0, F9-F12) 0
23 Consist Acceleration Rate 0
24 Consist Deceleration Rate 0
25 Speed Table Selection 0
29 Configuration Register 1 6
30 Alternate Mode Selection 0
33 F0(f) Output Location 1
34 F0(r) Output Location 1
35 F1 Output Location 8
36 F2 Output Location 4
37 F3 Output Location 16
38 F4 Output Location 32
39 F5 Output Location 0
40 F6 Output Location 0
41 F7 Output Location 16
42 F8 Output Location 32
49 Hyperlight Effects 129
50 Hyperlight Effects 0
59 Flash Rate 4
60 Grade-Crossing Hold Time 4
63 Analog Mode Motor Start Voltage 25
64 Analog Mode Max. Motor Voltage 180
66 Forward Trim 128
67-94 Speed Table Varies
95 Reverse Trim 128
105 User Identifier #1 ---
106 User Identifier #2 ---
114 Bell Ring Rate 7
115 Whistle Selection 1
116 BEMF Auto Chuff Rate 92
128 Master Volume Control 125
129 Whistle Volume Control 150
130 Bell Volume Control 125
131 Exhaust Volume Control 96
132 Air Compressor Volume 0
193 Automatic Bell ON Set Point 5
194 Automatic Bell OFF Set Point 12
195 Grade-Crossing Whistle Sensitivity 4
197 Analog Mode Auto. Sound Config. 6
198 DCC Mode Auto. Sound Config. 0
209 Kp Coefficient 20
210 Ki Coefficient 40
212 Motor Control Intensity 255
213 Motor Control Sample Period 8
214 Motor Control Aperture Time 8
216 BEMF Reference Voltage 140
Thumbs up for the list.Admire the effort.A friend of mine had a store with a diorama with the 2 locomotives displayed during the golden spike ceremony in Painted brass.They looked like they had to be G scale.It was under a clear acrylic dome style display hood. They were pieces of art with sync sound and yes smoke.Did not know there make ,but when he was closing his doors for good there was a 5K price tag on them .His store was small ,but only sold trains of all scales and had a coffee bar set up where you could read your newspaper and or any old model railroad magazine /catalogs dated back to the 50's and run trains,buy and sell also.Sad day when he closed his doors.
Johnny Adam
First, "Maybe undecorated would make a great release with some tender and detail options for this one .Then you can make what you want."
Amen!
Second, I have new "Texas," and while it does not wobble, it does have a definite repetitive gear noise and jerky motion, but only in forward. As I was running it to break it in this seems to be getting worse, so I am about ready to return it and try a second chance. Can the Bach Man (or anyone with a similar experience) tell me if lubrication would be helpful?
Thanks!
I recently purchased the UP DCC version and it doesn't seem to go very fast. I have a Digitrax DCS51 and other engines increase power with no problem. The 4-4-0 won't increase speed above 3. I've contacted Bachmann to see if I need to change a CV, but they were really no help. Is this normal for this engine, or should I send it back? By the way, I too am experiencing a little wobble.
Thanks for your help!
Except for the improvement of the drive and the wheels, Bachmann missed a good opportunity to have a more accurate model of the UP 119. The cab is much too light, what looks to be a Russian Iron boiler jacket should be gloss black, and the tender load should be coal.
Jupiter- a repaint of the jacket from silver to black would have been great and the tender trucks should be blue. The tender trucks for both could have been improved as well.
Joshua
I had a chance to see these new engines in person over the weekend and I am really impressed!!
Are there plans to release this locomotive with EZ App controls? Or is it possible that you can make EZ App retrofit kits available? (Please consider these for G scale, too.)
Dear Mark,
We do plan to offer EZ App boards in the future.
Glad you're impressed!
Thanks
the Bach-man
I bought a Texas version. I am very pleased with it. The cosmetic upgrade is very nice. Mine runs very well and smooth. No wobbles, no hitches. It is fast on straight DC but does fine on pulse power. I think (OK hope)it will run better after I have ran it a while. Several of my friends have the DCC version and they report that theirs will craw along fine. I could fine faults with the cosmetics details but these things can be easily changed by the modeler and have a fine running gem of an engine. I thank Bachmann for making the huge investment needed to retool these models. I have one and will buy at least two more.
Bob Harris
If they made a run of these lettered for the Virginia and Truckee, I'd buy a bunch and convert the layout to a model of Virginia City. It wouldn't be too hard as one of my towns I modeled after Gold Hill anyway. Since these are V&T prototypes it certainly isn't a stretch to see some lettered for the V&T in the future.
how do you physically change the whistle designation using the EZ control and a piece of track and the EZ 4-4-0????
Dave
You will need a DCC controller that is capable of changing Configuration Variables in the decoder - EZ Command does not do this.
Once again folks, download and install JMRI.
No more messing around with CVs as JMRI already knows them all.
http://jmri.sourceforge.net/download/index.shtml (http://jmri.sourceforge.net/download/index.shtml)
Cheers
Roger T.
Quote from: rogertra on February 16, 2016, 04:03:00 PM
Once again folks, download and install JMRI.
No more messing around with CVs as JMRI already knows them all.
http://jmri.sourceforge.net/download/index.shtml (http://jmri.sourceforge.net/download/index.shtml)
Cheers
Roger T.
The
JMRI Decoder Pro cannot be used with the Bachmann E-Z Command Control Center.
Quote from: Hunt on February 16, 2016, 05:07:59 PM
Quote from: rogertra on February 16, 2016, 04:03:00 PM
Once again folks, download and install JMRI.
No more messing around with CVs as JMRI already knows them all.
http://jmri.sourceforge.net/download/index.shtml (http://jmri.sourceforge.net/download/index.shtml)
Cheers
Roger T.
The JMRI Decoder Pro cannot be used with the Bachmann E-Z Command Control Center.
That's a pain. I'd say buy a better DCC throttle.
Cheers
Roger T.
Cannot be used with Bachmann Dynamis either, even if you get the big money pro box unless there is going to be a updated version that I am not aware of.
Johnny
NYSW 3614,
It is a standard line.If you require a Spectrum voice your opinion on this .Spectrum seems to be disappearing.If you think they should still have this line and you wish to spend more for this then let them know . I am pretty sure if the demand is high enough to do it .It will be done .Then if it is .There should be no complaints over the price for all that detail. There was quite a bit of work done on these getting rid of the motor in the tender and actually shoe horning it all in that boiler. ;D
Johnny Adam
Will the new retooled American 4-4-0 operate on code 55 flex track? I assume that would be the appropriate size for a prototype of this vintage.
It is good to see a new model of a nineteenth century locomotive. particularly with DCC and sound installed. This period has been neglected by manufacturers and magazines lately. A generic black model would be most welcome.
I am not familiar with HO code 55 that seems like N scale to me, but I have tried mine on code 100, code 83 and code 70 with no problems.
ACY - Thank you for your prompt reply. Code 70 is probably more practical, and should look realistic enough for all but the best-calibrated eyes.
Micro-Engineering makes code 40 HOn3 flex track, as well as a track gauge and rail for laying your own HO standard gauge code 55 track. My wishful thinking must have filled in the blank with an imaginary code 55 flex track.