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N Scale Bachmann Thomas

Started by Cheeky_ULP, July 18, 2018, 03:10:45 AM

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Chaz

Quote from: and_salv on November 11, 2020, 04:49:34 PM
Does anybody know if a decoder can be installed on the Bachmann Thomas and Percy? Since I'm about to start my layout, it would be nice if I could start out with DCC. I feel like it just going to be easier in the long run, than making my layout with a bunch of blocks and a lot of wiring. Just wondering.

I may stop by one of my hobby shops to figure that out sometime this weekend since I've been wanting to figure that out as well.  I can do a post on the installation progress when that happens since a lot of people have asked me about the DCC conversions in the Facebook posts I've made.

Anyway, thanks everyone for the strong feedback on my earlier post!  Glad to see that everyone else is excited for the new range, I've been seeing posts and reviews outside of the forum and it seems like the range is off to a really great start so far.  Admittedly I'm not wild about Bachmann using Graham Farish toolings for recolors but I'm hoping this will only apply to certain pieces of rolling stock and not others, but I'll save that discussion for another day.  For now I hope we get some other decent rolling stock choices in the future as well.  Toby still seems to be the most popular request (besides Gordon and Henry).  I thought about mentioning Edward too but I kinda wanted to keep the last part of my post to a "top 3" engine suggestions, but Edward would probably get an "honorable mention" in that case.  I wouldn't feel the same way about Emily, but I wouldn't rule her out from happening at some point in the future.  If they do, I wouldn't rule out Bachmann jumping on making Emily's coaches before Emily even gets announced like how they did with the large scale range.
Modeler of HO/OO, OO9 and N scale.  Hoping for N scale Henry, Edward and Duck.

and_salv

Quote from: Chaz on November 14, 2020, 03:31:08 AM
Quote from: and_salv on November 11, 2020, 04:49:34 PM
Does anybody know if a decoder can be installed on the Bachmann Thomas and Percy? Since I'm about to start my layout, it would be nice if I could start out with DCC. I feel like it just going to be easier in the long run, than making my layout with a bunch of blocks and a lot of wiring. Just wondering.

I may stop by one of my hobby shops to figure that out sometime this weekend since I've been wanting to figure that out as well.  I can do a post on the installation progress when that happens since a lot of people have asked me about the DCC conversions in the Facebook posts I've made.

Anyway, thanks everyone for the strong feedback on my earlier post!  Glad to see that everyone else is excited for the new range, I've been seeing posts and reviews outside of the forum and it seems like the range is off to a really great start so far.  Admittedly I'm not wild about Bachmann using Graham Farish toolings for recolors but I'm hoping this will only apply to certain pieces of rolling stock and not others, but I'll save that discussion for another day.  For now I hope we get some other decent rolling stock choices in the future as well.  Toby still seems to be the most popular request (besides Gordon and Henry).  I thought about mentioning Edward too but I kinda wanted to keep the last part of my post to a "top 3" engine suggestions, but Edward would probably get an "honorable mention" in that case.  I wouldn't feel the same way about Emily, but I wouldn't rule her out from happening at some point in the future.  If they do, I wouldn't rule out Bachmann jumping on making Emily's coaches before Emily even gets announced like how they did with the large scale range.

That would be awesome! Thanks! I can't wait to see what's next for this N scale range of Thomas and Friends ;D

NotSoGrandNow

Do you all think the upcoming James model will have the same scaling issues he has in the CGI series? Personally that would be a dealbreaker for me if or when the time came to buy him. I can only hope he isn't outlandishly large.  :/

Angelob6660

I don't believe that James will be as large, since he and Edward are almost the same length. Hopefully they get their proportions right.

I enjoyed your review of Thomas and Percy. Are the Tomix and Bachmann cars different in sizes or both the same?

The tank cars looked alright but their missing the cris cross straps around the body and dome.
"...but I don't go to the movies much. If you've seen one you've seen them all."
-Kathy Selden

TTL

The Bachmann rolling stock and, as has been said before, the entire range is in UK N scale, the Tomix stuff...isn't. Tomix's range was made to a much larger scale standard and it's pretty much in its own scale as a result.
Need me some Sir Handel and more Talyllyn stock.

TrainFan97

I just got the entire first wave of N Scale products a few days ago, and I enjoyed them. Thomas seems a little undersized compared to Annie and Clarabel, and might look a tad smaller than Percy, but he still looks better than his HO Scale model, especially the face. I never got Percy's HO Scale model because it had many glaring problems, but his N Scale model is a huge improvement, and his face actually looks like Percy.

Did they botch the tankers by using Graham Farish toolings, or was it okay they went with this more efficient route?

I got high hopes for the future of the N Scale range. I'm looking forward to seeing James get revealed soon, and I'll plan to pick him up next year when he becomes available. Hopefully this February, they will announce N Scale Toby, or even better, Gordon and Henry. If they're not ready to announce big engines like the latter two just yet, I'm perfectly okay with Toby being the fourth N Scale engine; a simple box shape, and a popular character. He sold very well in both HO and Large Scales. They should also make Henrietta to go with Toby, as I feel Henrietta is much more likely in N Scale, and she seems a little complicated to be made in Large Scale. Unlike her HO Scale model, Henrietta's N Scale model would actually have a face, and they could even make Hannah with the same tooling. Though, Emily ended up being the fourth Large Scale engine.
My wishlist for HO Scale: Stepney, BoCo, Sidney, Fernando, Mainland Diesels, Norman, Porter, Samson, Timothy, Whiff, Hiro, Winston, and Green Salty.
My wishlist for N Scale: Henry, Edward, Spencer, Flying Scotsman, Duck, Oliver, Mavis, Sidney, 'Arry and Bert.

TrainCollector

I just got Percy and the troublesome trucks and my local train store just ordered Annie and Clarabel. Thomas isn't in the warehouse because the demand is too high I guess and they have to wait for more Thomas models to arrive. I will be getting Thomas as soon as he gets in the warehouse. I'm very hopeful that in February we get Gordon and the express coaches. I'm really hoping we get those. Any questions about this comment are greatly appreciated.

Kemptown Branch

Hey everyone, it as been a while since I've posted, but I was recently able to get Thomas, Troublesome Truck #2, and the Water Tanker. I'll try to offer my thoughts in a little review.


First Impressions/Detailing
My first thoughts on the tanker and Troublesome Truck were pretty good. They are both quite free-rolling, and the paint finish, although glossy, is pretty nice! I think the colors of the troublesome truck look better on the N Scale model than they do on the HO one. Not sure why that is, it just seems to be the case. The tanker wasn't my first choice, but since the oil tanker wasn't available at the time of purchase (although now it is?!), I got it, and I'm honestly really glad I gave it a chance! The classic-style lettering is a nice touch, and the dark blue color isn't bad, either. Another nice thing is the separately applied brake lever, which I think sets it a bit above the troublesome truck.




My first impression of Thomas is a bit of a different matter. When I first took him out of the box, the model appeared to be significantly warped, which I thought wasn't a good sign. Upon closer inspection, there had been a screw put on top of the metal weight in one of his tanks, and that was pushing the body up. I removed the screw, and luckily, there's no body damage, and the model fits together perfectly now. I think mine might have been a one off on that regard, because that screw didn't seem to be a design feature, so I'm not sure what happened there.

    Otherwise, I am very impressed with the model's looks. The lamp irons and brake pipes are very fine, so much that they fit in with the general finesse of the Graham Farish C Class. The number and lining are very crisp and nicely done. The buffers are also something I want to mention. They are accurate to how they appear throughout Season 1 (and frankly, everywhere else until Series 23) which is a first for any merchandise of Thomas, including Bachmann's. Large Scale was extremely close, but the shanks look just a bit short. His face is also a pretty accurate representation of the CGI era. His coupling rods are overscale. Comparing that to the C Class, his rods are slightly thicker, but his hex screws are actually smaller, interestingly enough, which, in itself, is nice. The whistle is probably the most disappointing thing on the model. I'm not sure why it's molded on when there's already so much separately fitted detail.


One last thing before moving on that I wanted to talk about was Thomas' scaling in particular. A lot of people say he's too small, but he's actually scaled to his Model Series counterpart. In the classic series, 7-plank wagons are the same height as the tops of his tanks. The troublesome truck does go half a plank over, but, from comparisons photos I've seen, the troublesome trucks are also half a plank taller than standard N Gauge 7-plank wagons, which can be chalked up to the troublesome trucks' CGI scaling. Another comparison is with the GWR vans. In the model series, they go the same height as Thomas' roof, which, from what I've seen, appears to be the case on the N Gauge model. The HO and large scale Thomas models are too tall in that area, due to their overscale wheels. Annie and Clarabel are simply too large in the N scale range; again, CGI scaling. Percy also appears to be model series scaled like Thomas, from every photo I've seen of the two together.








Mechanism/Performance
I found Thomas to be a very smooth runner straight out of the box, and subsequently, a better runner than even my Narrow Gauge locos, which I wasn't expecting. There is a large metal weight in Thomas, as well as brass gears, bearings, and a flywheel, which is why it's more expensive than the HO model. It can also pull 20 wagons (source: pedanticmongrel's Thomas and Percy review on YouTube). It's also capable of smooth slow starts and running.








Conclusion
Overall, I find Thomas to be an excellent model, and not worth all the naysaying it appears to get by Thomas fans on Twitter and YouTube. It's the most show-accurate readily available model of Thomas out there (Yes, I know CoolProps is out there, but it's not readily available). I'll give it an 8/10, considering the issues that I mentioned. I can't wait to see the future of the range, especially with how Toby turns out!

P.S. Here's a game. A few unfinished buildings from the show are in some of the pictures. Which ones are they?
Bachmann trains are awesome. I hope they come out with Stepney one day.

Rodimus Supreme

So how easy or hard would it be to source new side rods that are scaled correctly?

Kemptown Branch

#114
That is something I don't know, but I was planning on looking into it eventually. People who scratchbuild their locomotive's have to get rods from somewhere. I'd figure they're probably etched into metal, which I'm not sure how easy it is to have an etch done. You could probably get into contact with someone at RMweb for that, though.

EDIT: A quick search for nickel silver etching brings up https://fotofab.com/metals-we-etch/nickel-silver-etching/
for example. No idea how expensive it is, though.
Bachmann trains are awesome. I hope they come out with Stepney one day.

Chaz

I'd be very curious to see how the models would turn out with smaller rods too. 

On the whole though, I really enjoyed reading your thoughts too Kemptown, and looking back it made me realize that some of the earlier criticism I had with the Thomas model itself may have been a little harsh and I like how you took the time to show that there's more to it as far as scaling and accuracy goes. 

I never got around to getting any of the tankers, might wait for Bachmann to release milk and possibly tar tankers.  The water tanker does look nice though, I'm probably just gonna stick with seasons 1 and 2 for N scale as far as engines and stock go.  Once you get Percy and other stock from this range I'd love to read your thoughts on these as well.  It's nice seeing other people sharing in-depth reviews on here besides me, and I think it should be encouraged since it allows Bachmann some solid feedback on their products. 

Great review, and loved the pictures.  Can't wait to see progress on the buildings too!
Modeler of HO/OO, OO9 and N scale.  Hoping for N scale Henry, Edward and Duck.

Kemptown Branch

Bachmann trains are awesome. I hope they come out with Stepney one day.

Kemptown Branch

So, not exactly a "progress" report, but a few photos from earlier in the process of Ffarquhar Sheds. I made them from 0.75mm thick plasticard and am currently cutting out pieces of the roof from 1.5mm thick plasticard (it's actually really hard to cut!).






And here is the beginning of Annie and Clarabel, who are going to be done like their original RWS appearance, but with some added real-life detail as well. Thomas will eventually have details added to him too, once I work up the confidence.



3D Concept



Bachmann trains are awesome. I hope they come out with Stepney one day.

TerencetheTractor525

Great thoughts on the Bachmann N Scale Thomas models, Kemptown Branch! I completely concur with them. The scaling of the N Scale Thomas model is particularly impressive with the thick side rods as the only factor that bugged me. Thus, if I were to purchase the model in the future, I would try to get the current rods replaced with thinner ones too.

Terrific work on Ffarquhar Sheds and the RWS Annie & Clarabel as well! Cannot wait to see how they will turn out once they are completed!
Dreaming of a Bachmann Stepney.

Kemptown Branch

Thanks Terence! Here's my progress for today on Clarabel. There are so many windows that I didn't want to do it all in one sitting!
Bachmann trains are awesome. I hope they come out with Stepney one day.