Though I prefer the BLi product while it's still running , my three BLi big boys all have gearbox failures and the two Athearns are still running fine. The Athearns have about four to five time the mileage too. All the locos have the Non-Traction-tyre drivers fitted so have never been overloaded.
Broadway Limited knocks this out the park on every aspect of this comparison. Just being made of brass alone rather than plastic already destroys the competition. It's a no-brainer.
Adam Zaidi I’m not sure about HO but I can speak for O scale. Lionel has been doing a good job at brass hybrids. Diecast frames mixed with brass shells so that the detail can be top notch but the engine still has a lot of weight and tractive effort. They also have managed to make a couple lines of premium rolling stock with plastic that actually out perform their traditional aluminums. Interesting.
Man speed is everything but I think it's the other way around, you want your loco to be able to go as slow as you can go for realism and BL kills Atherns locos in that department
Broadway Limited is the winner for me, an engine like that should be made of diecast metal. I have the diecast metal TRIX BigBoy but not their Challenger (became way too expensive) so I sometimes imagine it is a Challenger with two driving axles extra.
If you haven't figure out how to do the pull test, get a small length of braided spider wire fishing line. It's basically miniature plastic cable. Tie one end to the scale and the other to the shank of a spare kadee coupler. Lay the scale down flat so it pulls in a straight line, hook up the coupler and homd enough tension on it to keep it connected. Alternatively get one free rolling small car, like an ore genny or something and tie the scale to one end and couple to the unit under test on the other.
I just found this video, so you might know this already but if you hit f8 twice it lowers the volume, hit it repeatedly and it will get more lower, you just can't hit it once or the sound turns off
Only negative feedback back for you Dave, is never ever never do that again with the stacking like that. I am sure Ron is going to flug you with a water tower next time your over at his house after he sees this lol. overall great comparison of the two, Athearn might have a bit better detailing, but overall construction, look and feel has to go to Broadway. But in my opinion next to brass steam, Broadway makes the best steam locos out there for sound,detail and perofrmance. Well done.
They’re both good. But keep in mind the BLI Big Boy is more expensive. Like what Ericstrains said, it’s like comparing a Honda to a Lamborghini. That being said I do agree the BLI version is probably one of the best HO scale Big Boys on the market. It really does appear that Broadway Limited took some notes out of Lionel’s playbook and attempted to do what Lionel did with their VL Big Boy. BLI did a great job but Athearn did a good job on theirs too.
TrainfanJackson4014 I agree. Also, bob gruba worked at Lionel for many years. I collect both and can see a lot of Lionel in bli. The BLI Milwaukee road s3 is a miniature version of Lionel’s. So bob knows what’s going to sell and what works on a model train.
Trainfreak 1218 and there’s no problem with that. Lionel has no presence in HO. So for them to inspire a company and bring a lot of their attention to detail and superior operating qualities is great for the hobby as a whole.
The Athearn Big Boy is like a PC, you can upgrade to it's full potential until there is no more room to upgrade. The Broadway Limited is like a Mac, it's already equipped with the standard operating system for all models.
I had a super hard time finding a Big Boy but I got one today from Western Depot! I got the Athearn with DCC/DC/SOUND! Cannot wait for Christmas! LOLThanks for sharing Sparky!
Great comparison video Sparky! With the price of quality steam these days a person really has to do their homework before making a purchase and videos like your's sure help, very entertaining as well. Thank you!
Came here via the guy you gave the genesis to and i must say, i like your style, with the lines of text while narrating, it is fun to watch. Greetings from a new sub from the Netherlands. Really like U.S. trains, like lot of american stuff it's no nonsense badass. Function over form like the Germans do also. (Or did 70 years ago) ghehe
Speed step 5 should be slow. You can turn down the volume of the sounds. Check the documents that come with the loco. Not sure if the settings are the same on the Paragon 3 as Paragon 2. Everytime you double click the f8 button on your controller the volume will decrease 1 step until the lowest level is reached. then it will reverse.
I like the Broadway Limited model better. I have one. It has whistle steam, and a depleting coal load. Its like an HO scale version of a Lionel Vision Line Big Boy.
only thing i don´t like about the aethern is that the double steamer is is a bit too high pitched in my opinion. The broadway is a bit loud but thankfully you can adjust that. so. despite me being in Nscale. i like the Broadway limited better ^^
If both locomotives are set to 28 steps, the Broadway Limited is dead on and the Athearn is way to fast. The Athearn would fly off the track at speed step 28.Remember these were built to go only 70MPH.
I was trying to decide if I should get the athearn or the Broadway limited big boy and this video really helps clear things up because the smoke unit I was wondering how the athearn one would work over the Broadway and your video explains it very well so thank you.
Hey Sparky, can't you take a 1x4 and cut it just a little longer than the locomotives and zero your scale out to get an Accurate weight? Instead of the way you had it setup.
From a Modeler's stand point the Athearn is a better choice all around. It already has excellent detail and you can take it to another level and add brass detail parts and model any Prototype Big Boy you want. Those additional Smoke, weight, sound and features you liked on the BLI. can be easily added to the Athearn model because it is plastic and easy to work with. I have seen some Athearn models with added details look as good as the highest quality of brass models out there. I have a couple of Athearn Big Boy models I have been working on myself. As for the BLI model it is not so easy to upgrade the details on it because it is metal and some of the molded on detail will be a challenge to remove. My vote is for the Athearn because I am a Union Pacific Prototype Modeler.
Bryian sones just a thought: I rather spend two hundred more dollars for BLI, then add the after market parts when you add them to Athern which is about the same or even more
@ Steven Barshinger Then you really aren't looking at it from a Modeler's prospective and that's ok. Many people like out of the box stuff. My comment is from a modeler's point of view as I mentioned. The detail on the Athearn is superior to the BLI out of the box. It already has a lot of details that the BLI model is missing. The Athearn chassis is molded in a much more modeler friendly material if you like to detail locomotives like I do. Modelers don't generally concern themselves with cost when adding extra details to match prototypes or to improve the looks of a model. They do it for the pleasure and the satisfaction of having a unique model that is close to the real thing.
Don't get wrong, Genesis are good engines, but I think BLI are better to me. My challenger is a genesis and it runs good, but for the money, it just makes sense to get all the bells and whistles rather then adding on.
As for the money aspect. I pay attention to money for a few reasons. What is the best locomotives for the money. What does the loco do. What details do I want for my loco. Genesis you have to add smoke generators and still take the chance of them working. I have added several smoke generators to my challenger, had it checked when generators didn't work, only to be told buy more generators. I spent more on my challenger with generator then I did for my BLI big boy Then there's MTH locomotives I had gotten that I changed sound decoders because they weren't as good as I wanted. Again, as nice looking as they are, I rather spend the extra cash to get what I want, rather spending it on adding or changing anything because it doesn't meet my standards I do a lot of comparison shopping because I don't buy something just to get it. The modelers I know and work with, will buy locomotives just to get it. All they know is what the package tells them, they don't care who produced it.
I use Sleuth smoke Generators. They are a German company. Often used in Marklin and LGB models. Very are vey reliable but a little more expensive. I've never had one fail yet. Like all smoke generators you have to keep oil in them or they eventually burn up. Make sure they are programed on a dcc toggle port so you can remotely shut them off when oil is low or not in use.
They are both great steam engines. When you pay more you normally get more but always the case. Hard to say which is better. The both have their pros and cons.
I have the Athearn 4014 Excursion w/oil and I have the BLI 4014 Excursion model w/oil and it has only one wheel under the cab like your 4022. With oil you don't need the two other wheels that dump the ash. So I assume this BLI locomotive is a heads up on the coming Excursion oil burner. You sort of failed to mention the light Marker lights and boards on the BLI.
Thought you were gonna say people driving the locos are loco. I like them both. If I have two2 choose then I'll go with the Athearn Genesis even tho I like the smoke. Some one's gotta go four4 the under dog.
Nice review Dave! I like BLI for sure. They cost a bit more but I get irritated much less. The repair department can likely answer any CV questions. They are great at responding and trying to help. Try that with Bachmann, ha! Thanks. Cheers, Dan
As for sound, yeah, Broadways are LOUD. Even my "small" Mikado is loud enough that it rattles the tender shell and ruins the entire soubd quality. I also have a ln E6A and an E8B. Running those together can be heard above a room filled with people and the classicly loud Lionel post-war trains.
Hello Sparky! Lol! Very nice video buddy. I'm thinking about getting another Big Boy 4014 but the excursion prototype this time. I have the first run of the MTH 4014 Big Boy which is currently my favorite, I also have 4005 as well which I have experience a lot of drama with, see past videos on this. The Broadway model is very nice but I think I may go with the Athearn model. You may ask why the Athearn model? Well I planning to mod the Athearn with an ESU Loksound Decoder so it will have an ESU smoke unit instead of the Seuthe smoke units. This will be part of my new UP Heritage Excursion fleet that Martel and I are creating. The reason why you are having problems with the Seuthe smoke units is because the bottom of the Seuthe units are too short and will not reach the electrical contacts. I had the same issue with the 4019 I once had. How I fixed this was to solder a piece of copper or brass to act like a spring, (bend into a "C" shape) onto both Seuthe units. Once this was done the units were working fine. Oh BTW, the Broadway Big Boy is not brass, it's die cast. ;) Peace my friend.
did you do a video on how to fix them,, add the solder.. If not,, and if possible just pull out a suethe unit and show where you added the solder,,,, plz
Unfortunately I have not film the process. This was done before Martel and I started filming on RUclips sad to say... I may do a quick video showing how on some sort of drawing on the process of soldering the contact to the Seuthe smoke unit.
Being a HO steam fan and knowing that these big boys range from $500 to $800 no one except this guy would put a track, another big boy on top of the over especially how much it weighs, damaging the other steam locomotive when comparing them put them on a shelf or glass case. Are you crazy doing that?
I will never ever buy a MTH locomotive again! 3 out of 5 are junk and the 4th one is awful close. 5th one after the previous ones seems fine at this time, but I holding my breath anytime i run it. Veranda has been back to them twice and now no part [gear] to repair it. I have barely run it because of the previous issues. now I'm going to put it,along with the others on a display so visitors can see the "LEMONS"!!!!
I had the same issue with my locomotives. They said they ordered a part for one loco, that was 2 years ago. Run my BLI locomotives I had since 2005, and still run great. I do Service them about ever six months
I have never seen a review like that but theirs a first for everything right. In general Broadway limited is of a higher quality. I'm almost at two years of RUclips just one more month. How long have you Been doing the you tubes? Happy model railroading...Zane
I do like the smoke and all... and you didn't mention the lit marker and number boards which are really nice too. I also like the whistle on the BLI better. But there is the small issue that there is about $200 difference in street price for these two as well. For many, that is a huge issue. And the reality is that the Genesis unit has better detail in some areas than does the BLI. Is factory smoke worth $200.... I am sure for some it is. I am not sure if perhaps buying a DC version of the athearn and installing an ESU bigboy decoder wouldn't get you better speed control and sound, at a far cheaper price. Still no smoke though....
broadway has come a long way with this loco, but i am a strong one for a steamer has to have smoke, turning the smoke on and off with F7 is a plus. but the genesis does do a better job on the details. you can buy smoke units for it, but if you go this route i would suggest getting the store to add them for you, I can't seem to get mine to work. thanks for checking out the video.
a key ring like one from a garage when you got service some give you a little tag like this & then to a coupler ...just thought this one up ...lol keep it tight & it may work???
I don't know man, I like the Broadway Limited Bigboy because it has all these nice features, but because of my bad experience with the Broadway Limited Paragon 3 Milwaukee Road S-3, I'm kind of hesitant to get this locomotive now.
broadway has come a long way with this loco, but i am a strong one for a steamer has to have smoke, turning the smoke on and off with F7 is a plus. but the genesis does do a better job on the details. you can buy smoke units for it, but if you go this route i would suggest getting the store to add them for you, I can't seem to get mine to work. thanks for checking out the video.
That's true. But every Broadway Limited locomotive Paragon 2 to 3, there has been a quality control and performance issue. My Milwaukee Road S-3 came with a broken coupler, broken hand rail post on the engine. When I was running the locomotive , it has a "bind" like for every 1 rotation of the wheels, there is a 1/8 of a millisecond delay. So when it pulls freight or passenger cars it shakes them like the train is jerking back and forth. When I put the engine on mute, I hear a grinding noise from the engine. I have an Athearn Genesis Challenger with the Tsunami. I had never had one part broken off. And it's plastic, go figure, lol. The engine runs very smooth and responsive. When I put the engine on mute, it was dead silent, the only thing I heard were the wheels.
Being in Canada, they booth ran me about $900 each after taxes, mind you one of them I did get hit with a $100 border fee, which was to pay for the electricity that the border guards used when playing with it for a week
@@sparky107107 Is the NCE the control unit or something you have to add to the locomotive? Sorry, I'm just getting back into trains and really want to by the Broadway
@@philipvasquez5853 the NCE is a DCC control system. the other system that is common is the digatrax system. ask all the questions you need to. or just look them up on youtube. many great modellers out there .
I'm torn between the Athearn genesis ( which has got the better coal ) ,,,,,,,,, and the Broadway limited ( which has got the better everything else ) !!
love your videos sparky be glad when i can build another ho layout my family suffered a devastating house fire that burned up my entire ho scale collection and layout any donations are greatly greatly appreciated ho cars track locomotive you may have lying around thank you all very much
The BLI model of the "big boy" has better detail features compared to the Athearn Genesis model, the smoking steam whistle & decreasing coal load add a realistic appearance to a steam locomotive.
I have 18 big boys , bli/mth/rivarossi old & new /athearn/ I will collect all 25 #s but MTH BLI are the best but rivarossi with tcs wow sound is really good also
As far as looks is concerned, nobody has ever beaten Athearn Genesis! Genesis always looks like the real thing.
Though I prefer the BLi product while it's still running , my three BLi big boys all have gearbox failures and the two Athearns are still running fine. The Athearns have about four to five time the mileage too. All the locos have the Non-Traction-tyre drivers fitted so have never been overloaded.
Broadway Limited knocks this out the park on every aspect of this comparison. Just being made of brass alone rather than plastic already destroys the competition. It's a no-brainer.
Adam Zaidi I’m not sure about HO but I can speak for O scale. Lionel has been doing a good job at brass hybrids. Diecast frames mixed with brass shells so that the detail can be top notch but the engine still has a lot of weight and tractive effort. They also have managed to make a couple lines of premium rolling stock with plastic that actually out perform their traditional aluminums. Interesting.
Man speed is everything but I think it's the other way around, you want your loco to be able to go as slow as you can go for realism and BL kills Atherns locos in that department
Broadway Limited is the winner for me, an engine like that should be made of diecast metal.
I have the diecast metal TRIX BigBoy but not their Challenger (became way too expensive) so I sometimes imagine it is a Challenger with two driving axles extra.
The BLI engine would pull the athearn one around the track if it came down to a tug of war, broadway engines are notorious for being strong pullers.
If you haven't figure out how to do the pull test, get a small length of braided spider wire fishing line. It's basically miniature plastic cable. Tie one end to the scale and the other to the shank of a spare kadee coupler.
Lay the scale down flat so it pulls in a straight line, hook up the coupler and homd enough tension on it to keep it connected.
Alternatively get one free rolling small car, like an ore genny or something and tie the scale to one end and couple to the unit under test on the other.
I just found this video, so you might know this already but if you hit f8 twice it lowers the volume, hit it repeatedly and it will get more lower, you just can't hit it once or the sound turns off
Only negative feedback back for you Dave, is never ever never do that again with the stacking like that. I am sure Ron is going to flug you with a water tower next time your over at his house after he sees this lol.
overall great comparison of the two, Athearn might have a bit better detailing, but overall construction, look and feel has to go to Broadway. But in my opinion next to brass steam, Broadway makes the best steam locos out there for sound,detail and perofrmance. Well done.
They’re both good. But keep in mind the BLI Big Boy is more expensive. Like what Ericstrains said, it’s like comparing a Honda to a Lamborghini. That being said I do agree the BLI version is probably one of the best HO scale Big Boys on the market. It really does appear that Broadway Limited took some notes out of Lionel’s playbook and attempted to do what Lionel did with their VL Big Boy. BLI did a great job but Athearn did a good job on theirs too.
TrainfanJackson4014 I agree. Also, bob gruba worked at Lionel for many years. I collect both and can see a lot of Lionel in bli. The BLI Milwaukee road s3 is a miniature version of Lionel’s. So bob knows what’s going to sell and what works on a model train.
Trainfreak 1218 and there’s no problem with that. Lionel has no presence in HO. So for them to inspire a company and bring a lot of their attention to detail and superior operating qualities is great for the hobby as a whole.
The Athearn Big Boy is like a PC, you can upgrade to it's full potential until there is no more room to upgrade.
The Broadway Limited is like a Mac, it's already equipped with the standard operating system for all models.
I would be happy to have either version. Any Big Boy is a great Big Boy in my opinion!
they are both very nice
Broadway Limited takes the Gold on this one
Maybe next time put the “top” loco on top of an equally tall piece of wood behind the bottom instead of on top of the loco
no big boys where harmed in the making of this video
I have a Revell Big Boy, looks good but can't pull anything, static model
I had a super hard time finding a Big Boy but I got one today from Western Depot! I got the Athearn with DCC/DC/SOUND! Cannot wait for Christmas! LOLThanks for sharing Sparky!
Great comparison video Sparky! With the price of quality steam these days a person really has to do their homework before making a purchase and videos like your's sure help, very entertaining as well. Thank you!
I got a Broadway limited Big Boy and an Athearn Genesis Challenger
Came here via the guy you gave the genesis to and i must say, i like your style, with the lines of text while narrating, it is fun to watch.
Greetings from a new sub from the Netherlands.
Really like U.S. trains, like lot of american stuff it's no nonsense badass. Function over form like the Germans do also.
(Or did 70 years ago) ghehe
I did a pre order through Trainworld for the new release of the excursion model BLI excited to see it end of Feb
What will be the CV on Digitrax for smoking while stationary ? please advice. thanks
I love the Broadway Limited Big Boy I cannot wait until I am able to afford the BL's Challenger! Great Review!!
Speed step 5 should be slow. You can turn down the volume of the sounds. Check the documents that come with the loco. Not sure if the settings are the same on the Paragon 3 as Paragon 2. Everytime you double click the f8 button on your controller the volume will decrease 1 step until the lowest level is reached. then it will reverse.
Which one pulls more cars?
BLI big boy pulls more about 150 cars
I just picked up a Athearn
I like the Broadway Limited model better. I have one. It has whistle steam, and a depleting coal load. Its like an HO scale version of a Lionel Vision Line Big Boy.
My god I thought he stacked the two trains on top of each other, jesus
I prefer the athern one it's cheaper but I am have ing some problems with it
Still like both cheers Robert
they both have their good sides and bad for sure. I am a sucker for smoke, But genesis does look better to me
Man both of them look awesome, great video Sparky.
thank you, was a fun video to do. not very often someone has 2 of the same loco's but from differant companies
i have a 2-6-6-6 but one of the wires is snapped of between the loco and the tender HO/00
i wonder if they do a 2-6-6-6 broadway
jlwii2000 has an easier way to do pull test I would suggest asking him
this is his channel
jlwii2000
only thing i don´t like about the aethern is that the double steamer is is a bit too high pitched in my opinion. The broadway is a bit loud but thankfully you can adjust that. so. despite me being in Nscale. i like the Broadway limited better ^^
If both locomotives are set to 28 steps, the Broadway Limited is dead on and the Athearn is way to fast. The Athearn would fly off the track at speed step 28.Remember these were built to go only 70MPH.
choochoo3985 wasn't it 80?
Koby Burton I thought it was 100. who knew 🤷🏻♂️
Sparky,every cv and it's uses are on the BLI web site look under parra 3 steam tech ref manual pdf.Cheers Jon
thank you. will have to check that out. I do think the manual has them all listed as well
I was trying to decide if I should get the athearn or the Broadway limited big boy and this video really helps clear things up because the smoke unit I was wondering how the athearn one would work over the Broadway and your video explains it very well so thank you.
What did you end up going with?
@@TheHairyNord broadway limited
I love this train
My choice too. I did buy one and it is a beast!!!
Hey Sparky, can't you take a 1x4 and cut it just a little longer than the locomotives and zero your scale out to get an Accurate weight? Instead of the way you had it setup.
i do it on a piece of e z track now a days
Volume with the Broadway Limited Big Boy if you are using an NCE Pro cab just double click button #8 & you can adjust the volume of your engine!
i did not know that
@@sparky107107 I like that they gave you a coupler slack sound to let you know when you reached your max and when sound lowering starts
From a Modeler's stand point the Athearn is a better choice all around. It already has excellent detail and you can take it to another level and add brass detail parts and model any Prototype Big Boy you want. Those additional Smoke, weight, sound and features you liked on the BLI. can be easily added to the Athearn model because it is plastic and easy to work with. I have seen some Athearn models with added details look as good as the highest quality of brass models out there. I have a couple of Athearn Big Boy models I have been working on myself. As for the BLI model it is not so easy to upgrade the details on it because it is metal and some of the molded on detail will be a challenge to remove. My vote is for the Athearn because I am a Union Pacific Prototype Modeler.
Bryian sones just a thought: I rather spend two hundred more dollars for BLI, then add the after market parts when you add them to Athern which is about the same or even more
@ Steven Barshinger Then you really aren't looking at it from a Modeler's prospective and that's ok. Many people like out of the box stuff. My comment is from a modeler's point of view as I mentioned. The detail on the Athearn is superior to the BLI out of the box. It already has a lot of details that the BLI model is missing. The Athearn chassis is molded in a much more modeler friendly material if you like to detail locomotives like I do. Modelers don't generally concern themselves with cost when adding extra details to match prototypes or to improve the looks of a model. They do it for the pleasure and the satisfaction of having a unique model that is close to the real thing.
Don't get wrong, Genesis are good engines, but I think BLI are better to me. My challenger is a genesis and it runs good, but for the money, it just makes sense to get all the bells and whistles rather then adding on.
As for the money aspect. I pay attention to money for a few reasons. What is the best
locomotives for the money. What does the loco do. What details do I want for my loco. Genesis you have to add smoke generators and still take the chance of them working.
I have added several smoke generators to my challenger, had it checked when generators didn't work, only to be told buy more generators. I spent more on my challenger with generator then I did for my BLI big boy
Then there's MTH locomotives I had gotten that I changed sound decoders because they weren't as good as I wanted. Again, as nice looking as they are, I rather spend the extra cash to get what I want, rather spending it on adding or changing anything because it doesn't meet my standards
I do a lot of comparison shopping because I don't buy something just to get it. The modelers I know and work with, will buy locomotives just to get it. All they know is what the package tells them, they don't care who produced it.
I use Sleuth smoke Generators. They are a German company. Often used in Marklin and LGB models. Very are vey reliable but a little more expensive. I've never had one fail yet. Like all smoke generators you have to keep oil in them or they eventually burn up. Make sure they are programed on a dcc toggle port so you can remotely shut them off when oil is low or not in use.
They are both great steam engines. When you pay more you normally get more but always the case. Hard to say which is better. The both have their pros and cons.
I think I just you on my end screen, lastest video.. hope it works
I have the Athearn 4014 Excursion w/oil and I have the BLI 4014 Excursion model w/oil and it has only one wheel under the cab like your 4022. With oil you don't need the two other wheels that dump the ash. So I assume this BLI locomotive is a heads up on the coming Excursion oil burner. You sort of failed to mention the light Marker lights and boards on the BLI.
Please clarify on the whole one wheel thing please
I agree with you on that Sparky if you got a steamer it's got to smoke
and now that I can order scented smoke fluids. makes it even better
what is the tightest radius these can travel?
Genesis recomends 22 where as the Broadway says 18
Looking forward to the MTH video. I just got mine and comes up short in various areas using DCC.
Thought you were gonna say people driving the locos are loco.
I like them both. If I have two2 choose then I'll go with the Athearn Genesis even tho I like the smoke. Some one's gotta go four4 the under dog.
I just wish I could get the smoke units to work on that one, then it might have swayed me a little to the right,, lol
or left, at that point of the video,
You can easily add smoke. It's wired for it and you just push the smoke generator down the stack.
There are also Big Boys from Märklin/Trix, Rivarossi and Revell, so you can go on teting. Cheers Andy
well send them over. lol, there have been many bigboys made through the years. no way I could afford any more than the two I have.
Nice review Dave! I like BLI for sure. They cost a bit more but I get irritated much less. The repair department can likely answer any CV questions. They are great at responding and trying to help. Try that with Bachmann, ha! Thanks. Cheers, Dan
I have only had to call Athearn service dept once, they were very helpful and quick to help out and solve a sound problem
Danny Holt Agree! BLI tech department very helpful.
I really want the Broadway...but the price is...ouch.
You can find the Genesis engines brand new on EBay for as low as 200.
both mine where over 500 Canadian. but i got them when the first came out.. it is my most popular video of mine. 2
Yeah, retail on the Athearn is 500 something. Broadways haven't dropped in price at all.
As for sound, yeah, Broadways are LOUD. Even my "small" Mikado is loud enough that it rattles the tender shell and ruins the entire soubd quality. I also have a ln E6A and an E8B. Running those together can be heard above a room filled with people and the classicly loud Lionel post-war trains.
my Trix big boy weights 1464grams !
I'll stick with my genesis smoke generators are easy and cheap and it gets with it with a long train like the real thing I'll shut up now
stop the bell driving me crazy
Brass is always Better Quality and Athearn is generaly not so great
Does Broadway Limited has metal gears on this loco?
i don't know. i have never opened it and the paper work was lost in the flood.
Broadway limited for me too 👍
I read the comments first before watching and thought, surely he didn't stack his big boys. You did! Lol. -Mark
You know me, always have to do things just a little differant than the next guy
Use an extra coupler and run safety wire through the hole to your fish hook. 👍
Hello Sparky! Lol! Very nice video buddy. I'm thinking about getting another Big Boy 4014 but the excursion prototype this time. I have the first run of the MTH 4014 Big Boy which is currently my favorite, I also have 4005 as well which I have experience a lot of drama with, see past videos on this. The Broadway model is very nice but I think I may go with the Athearn model. You may ask why the Athearn model? Well I planning to mod the Athearn with an ESU Loksound Decoder so it will have an ESU smoke unit instead of the Seuthe smoke units. This will be part of my new UP Heritage Excursion fleet that Martel and I are creating.
The reason why you are having problems with the Seuthe smoke units is because the bottom of the Seuthe units are too short and will not reach the electrical contacts. I had the same issue with the 4019 I once had. How I fixed this was to solder a piece of copper or brass to act like a spring, (bend into a "C" shape) onto both Seuthe units. Once this was done the units were working fine.
Oh BTW, the Broadway Big Boy is not brass, it's die cast. ;) Peace my friend.
did you do a video on how to fix them,, add the solder.. If not,, and if possible just pull out a suethe unit and show where you added the solder,,,, plz
Unfortunately I have not film the process. This was done before Martel and I started filming on RUclips sad to say... I may do a quick video showing how on some sort of drawing on the process of soldering the contact to the Seuthe smoke unit.
that would be nice, I think I know what you mean and where to solder, but a visual aid would be nice. do you still have them,,, to show?
Being a HO steam fan and knowing that these big boys range from $500 to $800 no one except this guy would put a track, another big boy on top of the over especially how much it weighs, damaging the other steam locomotive when comparing them put them on a shelf or glass case. Are you crazy doing that?
sparky I saw an nice Atlas dcc and sound MP15 switcher Conrail at a hobby shop Panthers hobbies in Mississauga looked nice
I have never been to this store, only one in Mississaga I know is credit valley and they are pricey
I will never ever buy a MTH locomotive again! 3 out of 5 are junk and the 4th one is awful close. 5th one after the previous ones seems fine at this time, but I holding my breath anytime i run it. Veranda has been back to them twice and now no part [gear] to repair it. I have barely run it because of the previous issues. now I'm going to put it,along with the others on a display so visitors can see the "LEMONS"!!!!
I had the same issue with my locomotives. They said they ordered a part for one loco, that was 2 years ago. Run my BLI locomotives I had since 2005, and still run great. I do Service them about ever six months
I have never seen a review like that but theirs a first for everything right. In general Broadway limited is of a higher quality. I'm almost at two years of RUclips just one more month. How long have you Been doing the you tubes? Happy model railroading...Zane
may of 2015 I started you tube videos, and I do try to be different. for sure
sparky107107 you succeeding
I do like the smoke and all... and you didn't mention the lit marker and number boards which are really nice too. I also like the whistle on the BLI better. But there is the small issue that there is about $200 difference in street price for these two as well. For many, that is a huge issue. And the reality is that the Genesis unit has better detail in some areas than does the BLI. Is factory smoke worth $200.... I am sure for some it is. I am not sure if perhaps buying a DC version of the athearn and installing an ESU bigboy decoder wouldn't get you better speed control and sound, at a far cheaper price. Still no smoke though....
broadway has come a long way with this loco, but i am a strong one for a steamer has to have smoke, turning the smoke on and off with F7 is a plus. but the genesis does do a better job on the details. you can buy smoke units for it, but if you go this route i would suggest getting the store to add them for you, I can't seem to get mine to work. thanks for checking out the video.
Welldone. As usual!!
a key ring like one from a garage when you got service some give you a little tag like this & then to a coupler ...just thought this one up ...lol keep it tight & it may work???
sorry was going to send a pic but I'm not finding one in my house right now but the ring is small and should fit in the hole on the coupler
I like the athern one even though I had a problem with it it's fixed now
Broadway Is Much Better But More Expensive
1:28 bruh there is literally a meme exactly like that
The user manual and tech manuals are totaly diferent,cheers Jon.
k ty
But the smoke doesn't look realistic at all.
BLI uses scale speed sets compared to Genesis
sparky107107 I would suggest to try using fishing line with the next pull test
Use a paper clip to connect that scale to the couplers
I don't know man, I like the Broadway Limited Bigboy because it has all these nice features, but because of my bad experience with the Broadway Limited Paragon 3 Milwaukee Road S-3, I'm kind of hesitant to get this locomotive now.
broadway has come a long way with this loco, but i am a strong one for a steamer has to have smoke, turning the smoke on and off with F7 is a plus. but the genesis does do a better job on the details. you can buy smoke units for it, but if you go this route i would suggest getting the store to add them for you, I can't seem to get mine to work. thanks for checking out the video.
That's true. But every Broadway Limited locomotive Paragon 2 to 3, there has been a quality control and performance issue. My Milwaukee Road S-3 came with a broken coupler, broken hand rail post on the engine. When I was running the locomotive , it has a "bind" like for every 1 rotation of the wheels, there is a 1/8 of a millisecond delay. So when it pulls freight or passenger cars it shakes them like the train is jerking back and forth. When I put the engine on mute, I hear a grinding noise from the engine. I have an Athearn Genesis Challenger with the Tsunami. I had never had one part broken off. And it's plastic, go figure, lol. The engine runs very smooth and responsive. When I put the engine on mute, it was dead silent, the only thing I heard were the wheels.
Nice comparison. I dig the smoke.
me too, love the smoke, thanks for the comment
careful sparky with putting one locomotive on top of another you might break detail parts!
that's why I placed the lighter of the two on the top. lol, and very gingerly too I might add
Love Big boy Cleber Brasil
they are both great but I like the B Limited
has to have smoke for me
love it I have the athern one
and Marklin will be making the Union Pacific Challenger too :-)
that might be in the future. just have to wait and see
Broadway Limited. (If money out of the comparison.)
Being in Canada, they booth ran me about $900 each after taxes, mind you one of them I did get hit with a $100 border fee, which was to pay for the electricity that the border guards used when playing with it for a week
top one looks better
just wish it wasnt so expensive either one
that is such a true point
Will I be able to use my EZ Command Control Center with the Broadway?
i do not think you can. least i couldn't get regular DCC loco's to work with it, ( early system ) and that is what lead me to buy the NCE system.
@@sparky107107 Is the NCE the control unit or something you have to add to the locomotive? Sorry, I'm just getting back into trains and really want to by the Broadway
@@philipvasquez5853 the NCE is a DCC control system. the other system that is common is the digatrax system. ask all the questions you need to. or just look them up on youtube. many great modellers out there .
@@sparky107107 Thanks :)
@@sparky107107 So if I buy the NCE - Power Pro 5 Amp Starter Set - 1, can I use it for my Bachmann DCC/Sound engines?
You could just hook that fish scale thingy in a coal or wood chip gondola
I like that idea. Thank you
nice review !!
I'm torn between the Athearn genesis ( which has got the better coal ) ,,,,,,,,, and the Broadway limited ( which has got the better everything else ) !!
but then there is the smoke too!
Wow there massive
oy they have my name!
BLI hand down
i like athern better
love your videos sparky be glad when i can build another ho layout my family suffered a devastating house fire that burned up my entire ho scale collection and layout any donations are greatly greatly appreciated ho cars track locomotive you may have lying around thank you all very much
I'm sorry.
The BLI model of the "big boy" has better detail features compared to the Athearn Genesis model, the smoking steam whistle & decreasing coal load add a realistic appearance to a steam locomotive.
Broadway Ltd., BB the best , good demo!!!
broadway for me
I have 18 big boys , bli/mth/rivarossi old & new /athearn/ I will collect all 25 #s but MTH BLI are the best but rivarossi with tcs wow sound is really good also
wow.. now that is a cool collection.
i have heard MTH bigboys suck
they run nice , love the grade crossing sequence , the some of the sound files suck like barking dog & shoveling coal but they do run nice
Been looking at getting into HO, what would you say is the best HO big boy?
I wish to be rich like you so I can own 4 steam locomotive and 4 other trains