you complained about the tender not having any rivets and while tenders were welded. I am glad to have paid the price for an accurate tender than paying for an inaccurate tender with rivets.
Thanks for the excellent review of this locomotive. It was objective and very informative. It is most certainly worthy of the description "product review". Very well done.
Don't lose sight of the fact that this is a hand crafted brass model. The BLI Y6b is a fine diecast, mass produced locomotive and certainly a great model to own and run. The GN S-2 is handcrafted limited run art and it's price tag reflects that. You are trying to compare apples and oranges here.
I'm merely reflecting that I was happier with the cheaper, mass produced apple than I was with the limited run, brass orange. Nothing about the engine really blew my pants off for the price. I mean, it was nice, but the die-cast Y6B engine had a similar level of detailing. Just more bang for the buck.
After owning and running this model, there is definitely an issue with the sound in this video. The sound is in fact synchronized with the wheel rotation, and in the vid, there is a lot of background noise that isn't present when the locomotive itself is running. As far as detail, I'm definitely not a rivet counter, but I think its a spectacular looking model. The only complaint I have is that (perhaps only mine) it has TERRIBLE electrical pick up. In theory, their tender pick-up system should work, but at one point the locmotive wouldn't run. I ended up modifying the pick-ups and added a couple more to the tender. Also, in trying to find out why the locomotive itself wasn't getting good contact, I noticed of the 3 axles that should have contact springs, only one did, and that was the axle with the drive tires, so contact from that axle was non existent. I took it apart and move them to the lead drive axle. From that moment on, it has run flawlessly. One last problem, one that i haven't cured yet, is this locomotive won't run with a few select locomotives.
Considering the price tag of $550, I might have looked twice at this had I still been in HO, but seeing that the four square exhaust sound is not timed with the locomotive drivers, that is all I would have done--LOOK!Apparently they did not bother to put a cam on one axle. The smoke generator is for children, honestly a serious modeler would eventually have trouble in the train room with this stuff filling the air. Detailing is nice but it would have to be smooth and much better running than this appears to be. I appreciate the video.
A Märklin or Roco Loco is not cheaper and this are mass production, not brass. The sound should be synchronizised with the whell totation. There is a magnet on the flywhell. Maybe this unit is defect ( or a problem with the video). Yes, some detail could be finer, but all in all a fair reproduction of the real thing.
Absolutely! My criticism about this locomotive and many other BLI models is mainly to the Paragon 3 sounds. Basically, almost all steam engines of similar class (size) no matter is is PRR, NYC, ATSF,N&W, etc, have the same chuff and whistle sound. That is very lame of BLI. The Paragon 3 has all those extra sounds like station, city, industrial, farm animal and more. Honestly, I don't care about these crap. Just give us more selectable chuff options for chuffs and whistles. So, BLI engines don't sound the same on the layout. Another sound problem. The chuffs in this locomotive sounds very slow for the drivers speed. It should sound 4 chuff per one whole wheel revolution. It sounds more like 2 per revolution. I also can swear that These chuffs intervals sounds like of articulated locomotive when the chuffs intervals are "getting on and off of phase". Regarding price, considering that boiler and tender are made of brass is actually very good. However the quality of brass detail parts when compared to top notch brass model such Challenger and Glacier Parks can be disappointing. But you are paying only 30% to 40% of those premier models. I notice that BLI over the years is playing cheap on the non brass parts, mainly the engine mechanicals and tender chassis & floor. They are replacing the die cast metal parts for plastic. The PRR Q2 almost doesn't have plastic parts. By contrast, the PRR S2 has many plastic parts in the chassis. The bottom line is that BLI Brass Hybrid are worth despite their prices getting creeping up. The Dreyfus Hudson were about $400. The S2 turbine is now $750. Still a good value that you won't feel too expensive about running on layout.
Absolutely! My criticism about this locomotive and many other BLI models is mainly to the Paragon 3 sounds. Basically, almost all steam engines of similar class (size) no matter is is PRR, NYC, ATSF,N&W, etc, have the same chuff and whistle sound. That is very lame of BLI. The Paragon 3 has all those extra sounds like station, city, industrial, farm animal and more. Honestly, I don't care about these crap. Just give us more selectable chuff options for chuffs and whistles. So, BLI engines don't sound the same on the layout. Another sound problem. The chuffs in this locomotive sounds very slow for the drivers speed. It should sound 4 chuff per one whole wheel revolution. It sounds more like 2 per revolution. I also can swear that These chuffs intervals sounds like of articulated locomotive when the chuffs intervals are "getting on and off of phase". Regarding price, considering that boiler and tender are made of brass is actually very good. However the quality of brass detail parts when compared to top notch brass model such Challenger and Glacier Parks can be disappointing. But you are paying only 30% to 40% of those premier models. I notice that BLI over the years is playing cheap on the non brass parts, mainly the engine mechanicals and tender chassis & floor. They are replacing the die cast metal parts for plastic. The PRR Q2 almost doesn't have plastic parts. By contrast, the PRR S2 has many plastic parts in the chassis. The bottom line is that BLI Brass Hybrid are worth despite their prices getting creeping up. The Dreyfus Hudson were about $400. The S2 turbine is now $750. Still a good value that you won't feel too expensive about running on layout.
you complained about the tender not having any rivets and while tenders were welded. I am glad to have paid the price for an accurate tender than paying for an inaccurate tender with rivets.
Thanks for the excellent review of this locomotive. It was objective and very informative. It is most certainly worthy of the description "product review". Very well done.
$749.99 WOW And currently sold out for ever !!!!
Wasn’t $749 that’s just MSRP and they are rerunning them this summer.
Is that correct? haven't seen any notice of this. Will they do the vestibule cab version? Any idea which ones ran out of Spokane? thanks
Cleo check their website
I hope some day they will build a locomotive that like the real thing is belching smoke/ steam from all the right places.... that would be awesome...
Don't lose sight of the fact that this is a hand crafted brass model. The BLI Y6b is a fine diecast, mass produced locomotive and certainly a great model to own and run. The GN S-2 is handcrafted limited run art and it's price tag reflects that. You are trying to compare apples and oranges here.
I'm merely reflecting that I was happier with the cheaper, mass produced apple than I was with the limited run, brass orange. Nothing about the engine really blew my pants off for the price. I mean, it was nice, but the die-cast Y6B engine had a similar level of detailing. Just more bang for the buck.
After owning and running this model, there is definitely an issue with the sound in this video. The sound is in fact synchronized with the wheel rotation, and in the vid, there is a lot of background noise that isn't present when the locomotive itself is running.
As far as detail, I'm definitely not a rivet counter, but I think its a spectacular looking model. The only complaint I have is that (perhaps only mine) it has TERRIBLE electrical pick up. In theory, their tender pick-up system should work, but at one point the locmotive wouldn't run.
I ended up modifying the pick-ups and added a couple more to the tender. Also, in trying to find out why the locomotive itself wasn't getting good contact, I noticed of the 3 axles that should have contact springs, only one did, and that was the axle with the drive tires, so contact from that axle was non existent. I took it apart and move them to the lead drive axle. From that moment on, it has run flawlessly.
One last problem, one that i haven't cured yet, is this locomotive won't run with a few select locomotives.
Could there be a review on the Athearn SDP45?
Considering the price tag of $550, I might have looked twice at this had I still been in HO, but seeing that the four square exhaust sound is not timed with the locomotive drivers, that is all I would have done--LOOK!Apparently they did not bother to put a cam on one axle. The smoke generator is for children, honestly a serious modeler would eventually have trouble in the train room with this stuff filling the air. Detailing is nice but it would have to be smooth and much better running than this appears to be. I appreciate the video.
A Märklin or Roco Loco is not cheaper and this are mass production, not brass. The sound should be synchronizised with the whell totation. There is a magnet on the flywhell. Maybe this unit is defect ( or a problem with the video).
Yes, some detail could be finer, but all in all a fair reproduction of the real thing.
why does the whistle sound like a PRR Q2?
Sounds like the PRR K4 whistle on Dovetail's Train Simulator 2018
Absolutely! My criticism about this locomotive and many other BLI models is mainly to the Paragon 3 sounds. Basically, almost all steam engines of similar class (size) no matter is is PRR, NYC, ATSF,N&W, etc, have the same chuff and whistle sound. That is very lame of BLI.
The Paragon 3 has all those extra sounds like station, city, industrial, farm animal and more. Honestly, I don't care about these crap. Just give us more selectable chuff options for chuffs and whistles. So, BLI engines don't sound the same on the layout.
Another sound problem. The chuffs in this locomotive sounds very slow for the drivers speed. It should sound 4 chuff per one whole wheel revolution. It sounds more like 2 per revolution. I also can swear that These chuffs intervals sounds like of articulated locomotive when the chuffs intervals are "getting on and off of phase".
Regarding price, considering that boiler and tender are made of brass is actually very good. However the quality of brass detail parts when compared to top notch brass model such Challenger and Glacier Parks can be disappointing. But you are paying only 30% to 40% of those premier models.
I notice that BLI over the years is playing cheap on the non brass parts, mainly the engine mechanicals and tender chassis & floor. They are replacing the die cast metal parts for plastic. The PRR Q2 almost doesn't have plastic parts. By contrast, the PRR S2 has many plastic parts in the chassis.
The bottom line is that BLI Brass Hybrid are worth despite their prices getting creeping up. The Dreyfus Hudson were about $400. The S2 turbine is now $750. Still a good value that you won't feel too expensive about running on layout.
Absolutely! My criticism about this locomotive and many other BLI models is mainly to the Paragon 3 sounds. Basically, almost all steam engines of similar class (size) no matter is is PRR, NYC, ATSF,N&W, etc, have the same chuff and whistle sound. That is very lame of BLI.
The Paragon 3 has all those extra sounds like station, city, industrial, farm animal and more. Honestly, I don't care about these crap. Just give us more selectable chuff options for chuffs and whistles. So, BLI engines don't sound the same on the layout.
Another sound problem. The chuffs in this locomotive sounds very slow for the drivers speed. It should sound 4 chuff per one whole wheel revolution. It sounds more like 2 per revolution. I also can swear that These chuffs intervals sounds like of articulated locomotive when the chuffs intervals are "getting on and off of phase".
Regarding price, considering that boiler and tender are made of brass is actually very good. However the quality of brass detail parts when compared to top notch brass model such Challenger and Glacier Parks can be disappointing. But you are paying only 30% to 40% of those premier models.
I notice that BLI over the years is playing cheap on the non brass parts, mainly the engine mechanicals and tender chassis & floor. They are replacing the die cast metal parts for plastic. The PRR Q2 almost doesn't have plastic parts. By contrast, the PRR S2 has many plastic parts in the chassis.
The bottom line is that BLI Brass Hybrid are worth despite their prices getting creeping up. The Dreyfus Hudson were about $400. The S2 turbine is now $750. Still a good value that you won't feel too expensive about running on layout.
Yeah, it has a Pennsy 3 chime, while the real one has a GN 5 chime.