Bachmann Trains - USRA 0-6-0 w/Smoke & Vanderbilt Tender - Erie #116 - HO Scale

This was not my first choice as a Christmas gift for my Grandson. My son has my original set that was handed to him by me. He requested this engine after his son had picked it out of a photo. My son showed my grandson this engine along with the high-end choices. Of course, thinking long-term ownership. He chose this one. When he opened it he was all eyes and wanted to do nothing more than get it on the track and have fun. This engine has a lot of pluses. It holds the track well at various speeds. It has a headlight and smoke. The colors and numbers are period matching. With model railroads that's important. This engine falls way down the list as far as high-end engines. It would not be considered high-end by any stretch. Yet even so it is good quality. There are many much better more expensive choices available here on Amazon. For me, this is a local company. They do make reliable products. I used Bachmann trains, my son used them and now my grandson uses them. The main thing for my grandson is not the quality level but the enjoyment factor. This engine gives him just that. I can see his imagination at work when he plays with his trains If you want a reliable, strong, long-lasting lower cost choice then this would be it. Making great memories with children can begin with model trains. I would recommend this engine to all who might be thinking about starting or adding to an existing set. Bachmann also has an entire line of accessories to compliment this engine.

Its a Bachman. Bachman tends to suffer gear issues. Having written that, I love this little engine. It runs along side two 'Big Boy' engines and just looks perfect. A little evergreen, or chocolate chip cookie smoke fluid and Christmas is made!

Found this locomotive to be well made, but on the small side compared to other HO scale locomotives, with less detail than the more expensive locomotive from Bachmann. Easily pulls a six car train, so still a good choice for an entry level train layout.

The item looks great and came on time. But two of the main features was that it smoked and had a front light. The front light worked well but it does not smoke as advertised. We used the smoke fluid that came with the engine. But the smoke feature does not work.

Poor product. locomotive coal car constantly derailed. It has a design problem. I won't recommend it.