Best running OO9 Baldwin, Bachmann or Minitrains?

[james nichols]

Wondering which is the better running loco.  I will be using it on a short shunting style layout so slow speed and smooth start/stop are main considerations.  No DCC, planning PWM DC power.  

 

My only other reference for OO9 is actually HOe Liliput loco of some older vintage.  Under PWM it is almost acceptable in performance.  Other experience is in ON30 and N scale (US).  Many smooth runners in N scale so high hopes for the little OO9 steamers.

 

James

[Goldford]

You may also want to bear in mind that the Minitrains loco is 3.5mm scale while the Bachmann loco is 4mm scale.

[mjcampbell]

I've a Bachmann Baldwin, not had it long but it's a good runner and you won't be disappointed. Note that they have coreless motors so beware of basic traditional controllers which may cause heating.

 

I don't have a Minitrains Baldwin though I have other Minitrains locos, and they all share similar motor/chassis arrangements which gives good smooth running. The motor is small and modern but I think cored, though I'd still beware of older style controllers. Minitrains sell their own high frequency PWM controller which works well with them, but not with many other motors. 

 

So both should run well. As said above the Bachmann is a 009 loco (4mm/ft), whereas Minitrains locos vary in scale depending on model and the Baldwin is HOe (3.5mm ft) - may not be a big deal on it's own, but next to a Bachmann - or other 009 stock - the Minitrains will be visibly under-size. I also think the Bachmann model is more detailed, and doesn't have the motor visible in the cab as the Minitrains does, so given some Bachmann models are little more than the price of the Minitrains models I'd say they are better value.

[D9020 Nimbus]

A PWM controller may be problematic for the Bachmann Baldwin. I can confirm it is an excellent runner on a Gaugemaster Combi, generally a bit better than Minitrains. Also the motor doesn't take up any space in the cab.

 

It is definitely a better runner than older Liliput steam engine models, though their 2095 ÖBB diesel is a good runner, albeit noisy.

[didcot]

I had a Minitrain Baldwin and it ran well. It disintegrated when it fell from lap height onto the carpet. I know they are not made to be dropped but I was surprised as they are very light and the carpet soft. 

[009 micro modeller]

On 26/07/2019 at 20:48, Goldford said:

You may also want to bear in mind that the Minitrains loco is 3.5mm scale while the Bachmann loco is 4mm scale.

They’re also different prototypes - the Bachmann is the 4-6-0 as now running at Leighton Buzzard or like WHR 590. The 2-6-2 design the Minitrains loco is based on was less commonly used in the UK but the Penrhyn railway did use some at one stage.

 

In terms of running I haven’t actually had any Bachmann locos yet, or the larger Minitrains locos. I do have a Gmeinder with the same basic motor and flywheel as all the Minitrains locos currently in production, which is so smooth and reliable that I tend to operate it in preference to everything else. I have heard about the valve gear issues on some of the larger Minitrains steam locos though. I think the flywheel helps a lot with these.

Edited July 31, 2019 by 009 micro modeller

[JZ]

2 hours ago, 009 micro modeller said:

The 2-6-2 design the Minitrains loco is based on was less commonly used in the UK but the Penrhyn railway did use some at one stage.

Isn't the Ffestiniog Mountaineer one of them?

[009 micro modeller]

6 minutes ago, JZ said:

Isn't the Ffestiniog Mountaineer one of them?

It’s an Alco, and was a preservation-era import after working in France (in the sugar beet industry if I remember rightly). I don’t know whether these were similar to the Baldwin 2-6-2 locos though. A quick check earlier suggests that the 2-6-2 was the US army design, the British used the 4-6-0, which explains why there were more of the latter in the UK after WW1. As was pointed out in an article about Mountaineer, the different wheel arrangement would overcome some of the rough riding that WDLR Baldwins were criticised for in their later service.

[009 micro modeller]

Here is a little bit of information about the 2-6-2 Baldwin locos, including one of the Penrhyn ones, now preserved in France: https://www.internationalsteam.co.uk/trains/france11.htm

 

I’d still be interested to learn if there was a particular reason for the UK and US going for different wheel arrangements on an otherwise similar loco built by the same company for exactly the same job.

Edited July 31, 2019 by 009 micro modeller

[PaulRhB]

 

Bachmann 4-6-0 & Minitrains 2-6-2

 

They both run well but the Minitrains is very light, I added liquid lead to the side tanks by drilling holes to fill them. As noted above the Minitrains one is noticeably smaller as 3.5mm scale. 

( Mountaineer is indeed the Alco version and outside framed ).

Edited July 31, 2019 by PaulRhB

[BernardTPM]

2 hours ago, JZ said:

Isn't the Ffestiniog Mountaineer one of them?

No. the Alco is quite a bit different to the Baldwin design - outside bar frames for a start.

[009 micro modeller]

1 hour ago, BernardTPM said:

No. the Alco is quite a bit different to the Baldwin design - outside bar frames for a start.

 

Yes, although in original condition it does appear outwardly, superficially similar - see the grey one in the second photo down on this page: https://www.16mm.org.uk/2012/10/01/mom2012-10/

 

I think the most Baldwinesque feature is the cab and cab windows, obviously lost on Mountaineer as its cab has been rebuilt once in France, and then again more recently to fit the Ffestiniog loading gauge.

Edited July 31, 2019 by 009 micro modeller

[BernardTPM]

As far as I remember, initially the FR removed most of the cab, then rebuilt it with slope sides (like the GEM kit) and rebuilt it again to the currentt pattern in the 1980s.

Edited July 31, 2019 by BernardTPM

[009 micro modeller]

55 minutes ago, BernardTPM said:

As far as I remember, initially the FR removed most of the cab, then rebuilt it with slope sides (like the GEM kit) and rebuilt it again to the currentt pattern in the 1980s.

 

Yes. There’s also a mention of it being rebuilt with a more spacious than original cab while working in France. 

[pete_mcfarlane]

5 hours ago, 009 micro modeller said:

I’d still be interested to learn if there was a particular reason for the UK and US going for different wheel arrangements on an otherwise similar loco built by the same company for exactly the same job.

The UK had some 2' gauge 4-6-0T locos from Hunslet, so it might just be a case of Baldwin being asked to produce something to an existing specification.

 

4-6-0T tanks were pretty unusual though - the only other examples I can think of were these: http://www.studio-scale-models.com/B4.shtml

[009 micro modeller]

1 minute ago, pete_mcfarlane said:

The UK had some 2' gauge 4-6-0T locos from Hunslet, so it might just be a case of Baldwin being asked to produce something to an existing specification.

 

4-6-0T tanks were pretty unusual though - the only other examples I can think of were these: http://www.studio-scale-models.com/B4.shtml

 

I knew about the Hunslet ones but hadn’t considered that they might have ordered the Baldwins to be the same as them. Unsurprisingly almost all the Baldwins in the UK went to public railways for further service (Glyn Valley, WHR etc) but there was one in industry, I think at a cement works in Kent.

[otty]

On 31/07/2019 at 19:38, 009 micro modeller said:

I think at a cement works in Kent.

 

Said loco is mentioned in 'OVER HERE!, Baldwin Military Locomotives In The UK' by Lawson Little (an interesting little book)

 

ex-Wd 560 (BLW 45142/17) British Standard Cement Ltd, Rainham, Kent.

 

Baz

Edited August 2, 2019 by otty

[009 micro modeller]

19 minutes ago, otty said:

 

Said loco is mentioned in 'OVER HERE!, Baldwin Military Locomotives In The UK' by Lawson Little (an interesting little book)

 

ex-Wd 560 (BLW 45142/17) British Standard Cement Ltd, Rainham, Kent.

 

Baz

Yes, that’s the one. I think I saw it in the Middleton Press ‘Industrial Railways of the South-East’ book. I’m not sure why they felt there was a need for such a large loco though.

[otty]

Agree, it does make you wonder. The book notes that the Baldwin wasn't popular at the works (was not re-painted or numbered), & seems was just laid up after the works purchased other locos.

 

Back on-topic, I have both a Minitrains Baldwin & 2 Bachmann Baldwins. They all run very well & smoothly. To be honest I prefer the Bachmann models but mostly because the Minitrains one is HOe & looks small although this is due to change as I am currently building a replacement 4mm scale body for it.

 

Baz

Edited August 2, 2019 by otty