are Life Like locomotives expensive?
what brand makes the cheapest Loco?
or would it be cheaper to scratch build a Loco?
what brand makes the cheapest Loco?
or would it be cheaper to scratch build a Loco?
Life-Like Locos
- Thread starter gerbs4me
- Start date
I am sure that someone will correct me on this, but P2K and Kato are probably the most expensive out there, followed by Atlas and Athearn.
Of course, if you are willing to pay the bucks, you do get a great product that out of the box is pretty darned good!!!
Of course, if you are willing to pay the bucks, you do get a great product that out of the box is pretty darned good!!!
Atlas around here are alot more expensive than P2K's (lifelike) I can get P2ks on Ebay for about $30-$40. Atlas almost always bring $80 or more. Athearn blue boxes are a nice loco for a very reasonable.
I agree with Phil..The Atlas and Kato is the highest,then the P2k,then the Athearn.
gerbs,I suggest you go with the Athearn and stay away from the el cheapos..The Athearn locomotives are excellant engines at very affordable prices...You will be glad you did. I will also mention they make a fine line of freight cars as well.
gerbs,I suggest you go with the Athearn and stay away from the el cheapos..The Athearn locomotives are excellant engines at very affordable prices...You will be glad you did. I will also mention they make a fine line of freight cars as well.
Translations:
P2K = LifeLike Proto2000 series (high end version from Life Like)
LHS = Local Hobby Shop
I buy small stuff from 1st Place on-line at very good prices.
I use The Walthers Web Site just to look stuff up for reference. It's usually cheaper elsewhere, or I have my LHS order it and I pay list, no shipping charges.
There are a lot of fantastic prices on locos at Trainworld , but you should know what you are buying (best to ask here or somewhere if someone has one and if it's good.
I buy a lot of good stuff and some junk, usually on purpose, at a reasonable price on e-bay. You have to know what you want, get good at searching, know what it's worth new, read the ads carefully, be patiently, and bid what you want and don't look back until it's over (i.e. don't get carried away!) Believe it or not, a lot of stuff gets sold there for over list. I have found people who sell toy trains are generally honest, but it's easy to get excited and read something in that's not there or bid too high. In the last week I have purchased 10 locos prices from $2.25 to $10.50 and the 2.25 one runs well and is in perfect condition.
I try to buy this kind of stuff at a price that I can junk it out o rtoss it and not worry about it.
Back to definitions, LL has the P2K series, they also have a Proto 1000 which I don't know about, but is presumably above their standard line. Other brands also have high end lines, like Bachmann has the spectrum line. Some folks say bachmann is junk, but the spectrums are good. I say buy the quality you need for your usage. It's like buying tools, a fool buys $1000's of dollars worth of mechanics hand tools and never uses them. Equally is a fool who is a machanic who buys cheap tools every week.
Think about:
What is it you are looking for? Anything specific? Diesel? Steam? Electric? Big? Small? (Small industrial switchers, called critters, are by far the coolest, no I'm not biased ).
What interests you (to model when you do a layout)? Industiral? Mining? Logging? Rural? Urban? Mountains? Cornfields?
What era? Prewar? Transition (50's has both diesel and steam and is by far the coolest era, no I'm not biased ), modern?
By all means, think out loud on this forum, and you will get wonderfull feedback and support, unbiased, of course
Ask anything, just use a lot of smilies 
P2K = LifeLike Proto2000 series (high end version from Life Like)
LHS = Local Hobby Shop
I buy small stuff from 1st Place on-line at very good prices.
I use The Walthers Web Site just to look stuff up for reference. It's usually cheaper elsewhere, or I have my LHS order it and I pay list, no shipping charges.
There are a lot of fantastic prices on locos at Trainworld , but you should know what you are buying (best to ask here or somewhere if someone has one and if it's good.
I buy a lot of good stuff and some junk, usually on purpose, at a reasonable price on e-bay. You have to know what you want, get good at searching, know what it's worth new, read the ads carefully, be patiently, and bid what you want and don't look back until it's over (i.e. don't get carried away!) Believe it or not, a lot of stuff gets sold there for over list. I have found people who sell toy trains are generally honest, but it's easy to get excited and read something in that's not there or bid too high. In the last week I have purchased 10 locos prices from $2.25 to $10.50 and the 2.25 one runs well and is in perfect condition.
I try to buy this kind of stuff at a price that I can junk it out o rtoss it and not worry about it.Back to definitions, LL has the P2K series, they also have a Proto 1000 which I don't know about, but is presumably above their standard line. Other brands also have high end lines, like Bachmann has the spectrum line. Some folks say bachmann is junk, but the spectrums are good. I say buy the quality you need for your usage. It's like buying tools, a fool buys $1000's of dollars worth of mechanics hand tools and never uses them. Equally is a fool who is a machanic who buys cheap tools every week.
Think about:
What is it you are looking for? Anything specific? Diesel? Steam? Electric? Big? Small? (Small industrial switchers, called critters, are by far the coolest, no I'm not biased
).What interests you (to model when you do a layout)? Industiral? Mining? Logging? Rural? Urban? Mountains? Cornfields?
What era? Prewar? Transition (50's has both diesel and steam and is by far the coolest era, no I'm not biased
), modern?By all means, think out loud on this forum, and you will get wonderfull feedback and support, unbiased, of course
Ask anything, just use a lot of smilies
I have a lot of Athern "Blue Box". Nice detail good runners and pretty reasonable in price. The one Kato I have was a little pricey, but the detail and the smooth running makes it worth it. The Athern"Genesis" F59PHI I have is in the paint shop, so I haven't been able to run it yet, but the innereds look to be the same as the "Blue Box", detail is nice.
Bang for your buck!!!!......Rivorossi Big Boy! I got one for Christmas last year......so I didn't pay for it(WHEW).But it does run nice.
Back to scenery work!
Bang for your buck!!!!......Rivorossi Big Boy! I got one for Christmas last year......so I didn't pay for it(WHEW).But it does run nice.
Back to scenery work!
Yep, can't go wrong with good ol' Uncle Irv lokies. They run and run and run. Best price out there for the money in my bood.
88, I had several "blue box specials", rollin' stock. Then the other day, this guy I been buggin to get his old stuff out to sell me, brings in a big box and guess wots in there? A bunch a blue boxes! He said I cen just have 'em. So I take 'em home (trying not to look too excited or pee my pants or anything like that) and there's a Monon F unit and 17 or 18 rollin' stocks. 14 have build dates from the 50's or earlier, and 3 or 4 are 60's. So I give the 60's built ones to another cowerker who does modernized modelin and I keep 13 or 14 kaydeed 50 or earlier rollin stocks! The gondos and flats all have loads, and the hoppers are all full of coal! Woohoo. Oops. Just peed my pants. 
Better go. I'm out for hte week end guys. Maybe back Sunday night. L8r.
Better go. I'm out for hte week end guys. Maybe back Sunday night. L8r.
Atlas Master i like Proto 2000 i like Kato i like Geneses ok The good ole Blue Box is great also.
If you saw how beautiful my wife is and how ugly I am (not to mention how stupid I am), you'd know a box a free rollin' stock was not my big break in life! 'course I got that bubbly personality goin fer me
<----- then there's my hair...
'course I got that bubbly personality goin fer me <----- then there's my hair...