BACHMANN 'OO' GAUGE 31-902A  CLASS 57xx
BACHMANN '00' GAUGE 31-453 IVATT TANK BR BLACK 41247 LATE CREST
I have the chance of buying the above secondhand can anyone advise as to their running qualities.
Thanks.

Hi Roy,
The Bachman 57xx's are great runners however all mine are new not second hand. You have to be careful when buying second hand because you don't know how old the loco is and how it's been run and in what condition it's in unless you've seen it eye to eye.
I personally don't know how the Ivatts run.
Hope this helps.

Cheers Connor

I have an Ivatt - only a couple of years old -  and it's fine but you need to beware with older Bachmann locos.  They have "plastic" axles which can break with age (don't ask how I know :roll:).

There's a thread about replacing broken axles on a Bachmann V2 :  http://yourmodelrailway.net/view_topic.php?id=9854&forum_id=16&highlight=Bachmann+split+axles#top

Thanks both for your replies, very helpful.

Hard to know what the individual locos would be like when second-hand as they might have been loved or abused.  As Peter says some of the earlier models have plastic parts which wear earlier than metal ones would. I'm not sure whether thees models have the dreaded split frames which many modellers dislike.

As always buyer beware with "pre-owned" items.  I've been lucky with some while others have been disasters.

Hi Roy,

Avoid the old Bachmann 57xx's, split axles and a split chassis. Especially if you plan on having DCC (it's doable, but……). Save yourself some grief and get a new one.

Nigel

I'll second the new Bachmann 57XX, great model and great running!!



Cheers
Ron

While the motor characteristics of those older split chassis models are generally good (but not as good as the later style ones), those plastic axles can cause some waddling motion at lower speeds if they go out of round or aren't quite concentric with the wheel centres. They still usually run smoothly enough, but I would advise waiting for the new re-chassised Ivatts to appear (they are on the way), and also buy later 57XX versions in preference to earlier ones.