Intermountain EMD FT A/B Set

[Herc Driver]

Still being new to all this, again I have a quick opinion question...

I ran across an Intermountain EMD FT A/B set in classic Santa Fe warbonnet colors of silver and red at my LHS...the price is considerably less than on-line so it might be a good deal, but for those of you that have Intermountain loco's...how good are they? I have Bachmann, LifeLike, Kato...how does an Intermountain compare? The detail on the engines are really great...fine screen details for example...but I'm just curious to find out some info about a company I don't have any experience with. I don't believe they are DCC capable...which is fine since I'm not running a DCC operation yet. They are just too good looking to pass up I'm thinking.

 

[Dick Elmore]

:thumb: I don't know about the FT's exactly, but the F3's and F7's look and pull GREAT!!! Of coarse I'm a little biased since I was working at Intermountain when we made the decision to design and build the EMD F units. I own 3 A-B-B-A sets
and 1 A-B-A set. They are DCC ready by the way. You just unplug the dummy
jumper plug and plug in the decoder. They even have a circular area notched
in the frame to mount a speaker if you want DCC with sound.

Dick
Texas Chief

 

[Herc Driver]

Thank you for the info...

I'm checking into the just how good a "deal" my local hobby store is pricing this A & B unit at. At $99 for both, it seems like a pretty good deal since most internet places have them for somewhere between $125 and $164 or so.

 

[Clerk]

Are both units powered. Quite often the B unit is a dummy.

 

[Herc Driver]

Good point...

I don't know if both units are powered, but I'll check into that. My LHS usually has some good prices on things but little knowledge about the items. They cater to the car/plane rc crowd more. But thanks for bringing that up...I'm going to check that out.

Just checked the website for InterMountain and Brooklyn Loco Works, seems they are advertised as "A/B dual powered sets" with Accu-Mate couplers and DCC ready. (Taken from BLW website)

• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Locos will be packaged as A-B sets display boxes.[/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Five-pole motor with flywheel for reliable operation, silky smooth Regal-Line drive.[/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Installed [/font][font=ARIAL,DEFAULT]Accu-Mate®[/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] Couplers [/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Photo etched see-through metal side grill details[/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]See-through, blackened metal roof fans (similar to Atlas FM Train Masters). [/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Three "A" unit distinct body styles.[/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Two "B" unit distince body styles.[/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Phase I, Phase II, Phase III DB's, Non-dynamic versions - match prototype![/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Free standing hand rails which will be prototype specific!.[/font]
• [font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Multiple road #'s available for each roadname. (4 sets of road #'s)[/font]
• [font=ARIAL,DEFAULT]DCC Ready[/font][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif], simple screwdriver installation--no need to disassemble the frame![/font]

What else should I know???

 

[Clerk]

Wow! That looks like a real good deal. See through grills?? That is unusual for any make or model engine. If i had the $$ I would get a set right now.

 

[Herc Driver]

At what point exactly does one have to admit he has a problem passing up good deals on engines? Is there a recovery process for this? Some support group that will talk you out of buying an engine that you really don't need - but want - just because the price is right? Am I the only one with this sickness? Are there others out there?

 

[Dick Elmore]

:thumb: Herc, $99 for an A-B set is a good price for IM F units regardless if the B unit is powered or not. One thing puzzles me though, when I worked for IM, BLW
carried exclusive IM runs in "N" scale only. Have they started dealing in HO now?
Also, Dick, All of IM's locomotives have see through etched metal grills. Always have. Happy trains to you.

Dick
Texas Chief

 

[Herc Driver]

These are in N scale...and they look sharp. Decisions, decisions.