Model Railroading > Any Opinions on Broadway Limited steam locomotive model

Is there anyone out there who can comment on the performance and quality of the HO steam locomotives being distributed by Broadway Limited Imports?

I\'ve visited their website, and I\'m interested in several of their future offerings, namely the N&W Class A 2-6-6-4, the Pennsy M1a and M1b, and the SP AC-5 and AC-6 Cab Forwards. The photos and descriptions of these projects look great! The prices are steep, but the locos will include DCC and sound. But at this price, it\'s hard to be sure of the performance when sight unseen.

Does anyone know how well these locos will pull on a grade? I remember how disappointing the handsome P2K Y3b locomotives were when trying to pull a coal drag on any kind of a grade.

Can\'t really answer your questions, but can readily agree with the P2000 2-8-8-2 they claimed would pull 60 cars. My PFM D&RGW L-131 will pull twice the number of cars upgrade on my layout that the P2. P2 pulled 21, L-131 pulled 44. No way to add extra weight to P2 and drivers not being sprung does not help either. Makes me very cautious about buying any other plastic engines. If they would spring the drivers and egineer weight into them, I might be interested. The latest add for Broadway says N&W 2-6-6-4 pulled over 100 hopper cars on a layout. Hmmmmmmmmmmm.

Tom:

I doubt if sprung drivers make any difference but I agree on the weight issue. HO steam locomotives have the potential. Though Bowser\'s steam is 1950\'s technology, they can sure pull. I\'ve seen some technical reviews and those weighted locos can pull 100 cars!

Had their Hudsons pull 15 car passenger trains (some w/brass sides) quite easily over our layout (site below). You can AT LEAST double that number for 40-50\' hoppers at the proper NMRA weight. And that\'s just a Hudson.

Corey Lynch
http://railroad.union.rpi.edu

My friend has one of the hudsons and cannot stop singing it\'s praises. I have one of the ACs on order, I am really looking forwards to it.

I have a friend with the J1e. He has been thrilled
with it. I have been thrilled watching it.
So has everyone else who has seen and heard it.
I even get a charge watching him watch it.
Like a kid with a fabulous new toy.
I saw the preproduction Class A at the last Timonium show. Absolutely state-of-the-art stuff.

IMHO, this is where the hobby needs to be headed.
Works on DC and DCC and comes with sound! No fiddling with decoders and speakers and such.
And quite frankly, the price is reasonable when you consider the costs of adding these features to a model without them, without the installation hassle.

If someone is not satisfied with Broadway Ltd models, they must be married to brass and perhaps no sound as well.

Do yourself and everyone else a favor. BUY IT!

Bill
Unabashed supporter of Broadway Ltd.


OK. Now let the bashing begin. Thanks.

I just purchased a J1e NYC Hudson from Trainworld, Brooklyn, NY and very pleased with the locomotive($225.00)
This is the only non-brass model of the J1e which was the last of the original J1 series in the 1920\'s.
The model runs great and has outstanding sound(hard to believe coming from the tender).
The price is high but much lower than brass which has no sound. The detail is equivalent to brass.
The only thing I don\'t care for is the bluish headlight.
The engine is heavy with sintered drivers which should enable it to have excellent traction.
Broadway Ltd will also standby their product. My model came with a missing classification light. I e-mailed Broadway Ltd and it was replaced free of charge 5 days later.
I highly recommend this model and plan on purchasing future models.

Hal

Alaska

While I will second everyones comments about pulling power and sound quality, I have a few issues with these models. First and foremost, there is a very visible casting line atop the boiler. Then, there is the power pickup system on the drivers, there is a reason that steam manufacturers stopped using wipers several years ago, they get unsprung and problematic. Also, the detail as a whole seems rather Rivarossi like, rather than the extensive detail from P2K, or my less favored but admitadly very nice Athearn. Finally, while I understand why so many people are happy with the sound, I don\'t like it, don\'t want it, and don\'t appreciate being forced to pay for it if I want one of their models. It is a difference to me between buying one instead of two, or two instead of three, I am spending the same $ amount, just getting "less" for my money. Sorry for the extended gripe, Greg

alexandercasset wrote:

Also, the detail as a whole seems rather
> Rivarossi like, rather than the extensive detail from P2K, or
> my less favored but admitadly very nice Athearn. Finally,
> while I understand why so many people are happy with the sound,
> I don\'t like it, don\'t want it, and don\'t appreciate being
> forced to pay for it if I want one of their models

Greg: I have to agree with you on the detail and the sound. The detail is not Proto2000 or Brass and I\'d rather go without the sound at a lower price and add sound if I really want it. You and I are not the only ones that have this opinion. But if Broadway is coming out with models not available at less than brass prices, more power to them.

I really don\'t see how anyone can compare a Rivarossi Hudson to the BLI Hudson. The BLI has a lot more separate piping detail and much finer lines. As for the Athearn Mikado, the headlight on it looks like the headlight on my IHC Mikado. While not up to the level of the Proto 2000 steam, it is closer to that level than either the Rivarossi steam or the Athearn. On another note, Oriental has been authorized to sell the BLI hudson without sound, so if that is your complaint, then you have a choice.
Eric

On most steamers, there should be a seam on the top of the boiler. This is where the sheet metal around the boiler insulation is joined. The seam shouldn\'t go over the domes though.

The detail on the Hudsons that I\'ve seen is on the nicer side of non-brass steam. The A should be nice, but the heavy mike\'s appear to have cast on piping.

Also, the Broadway Hudson (and possibly the later locos) is available without sound from Oriental Limited. The difference in price suggests the sound system doens\'t add as much as you might think.

Chris Johnson

We had a J1e at our club last night. I spent an hour running her on DC and just fell in love. I gotta get.

If they dump the damn blue LED, I would say this is as near to perfect as you can get off the shelf. The sound is great (though the volume was too loud on the one I played with, needs to be turned down - which you can do).

This is the future of the hobby: DCC and sound installed.

And for under $300 it is a bargain. P2K charges more for less on thier steam.

Go BL!

Rob

I was looking for information on the Oriental/BWL Hudson minus sound, and could not find any. If anyone has a url, plese let me know. I still feel that, though BWL may give you more in the decoder department, P2K does more in detail than BWL. Thanks, Greg