Has anyone seen the Bachmann 53' TOFCs yet?

[bbussey]

Got my four $8 cars today from Amazon.  I salvaged the trailers and will put the flats up for auction.  I did note that all of the decos have 1960s/1970s service dates, so they are inappropriate for 1950s settings even though the trailer dates back to then.

[up1950s]

Got my four $8 cars today from Amazon.  I salvaged the trailers and will put the flats up for auction.  I did note that all of the decos have 1960s/1970s service dates, so they are inappropriate for 1950s settings even though the trailer dates back to then.

TMI ignorance is bliss .

[peteski]

TMI ignorance is bliss .

I can picture Bryan with a high-powered illuminated magnifier verifying the tiny printed dates on all the cars he buys. 

[bbussey]

I'm very near-sighted — I can do it without peepers. 

[Kisatchie]

I can picture Bryan with a high-powered illuminated magnifier verifying the tiny printed dates on all the cars he buys. 

When I was living in New Orleans, one of my hobby friends carried a magnifier so he could check the build dates on the cars he bought.


Hmm... I had to quit. I
was setting the cars on
fire...

[nkalanaga]

Peteski:  Of COURSE he checks the dates!  He also puts accurate ACI labels on the models he sells.  Now all we need is a working ACI scanner.

And, of course, a source for correct labels for the hundreds of cars other companies have made...

And, no, I'm not making fun of Bryan,  I'm impressed by anyone who'd go to that much trouble to make an accurate model, knowing that few, if any, of his customers could tell if he got it right.

[peteski]

I'm very near-sighted — I can do it without peepers. 

I'm jealous! At least when it comes to modeling - other times - not so much. 

[bbussey]

Public Service Announcement:  The Western Maryland has dropped from $42 to $28.  So it seems there may be some price movement within the upcoming days.  It also appears the price fluctuations are based on age of stock as well as quantity on hand.

[Mark5]

Finally got a chance to take some pics ... apologies for the low quality, I need to fix the lighting ...

Here's the Bachmann trailer on a 85' flat:



The raised print on the tire sidewalls is heavily exaggerated, and I have no idea what its supposed to say:



Overall though, the trailer is pretty nice at $10.



The TOFC flat is a major disappointment though (shown next to an Athearn 53' TOFC flat):



The "stake pockets" or whatever they are called are ridiculously oversized in my silly opinion. Like Bryan, I'll be getting rid of the flat car. It's a shame, since I really would like to have a decent WM flat car, and as far as I know there are no decals for WM flats out there yet.

Mark

[bbussey]

I was watching a second Yale on Amazon for weeks. It dropped as low as $20, but then 2 pieces sold and it jumped back to $38. I found one Saturday at Springfield for $22, so I picked it up.

[peteski]

Giant raised lettering on N scale truck tires?!?!?  That must be the first in N scale!  Bachmann is such an innovative company!

I can just imagine this - must have been a slow day at the Bachmann's Asian design studio when one of the engineers said "let's do raised lettering on them plastic tires."  The other guys unanimously replied "Word!"

[sirenwerks]

Is the trailer the correct height?  (not ride height, thank you)

[bbussey]

They appear to be. They match up well height-wise with the CMW Aerovans.

[Dave V]

Giant raised lettering on N scale truck tires?!?!?  That must be the first in N scale!  Bachmann is such an innovative company!

I can just imagine this - must have been a slow day at the Bachmann's Asian design studio when one of the engineers said "let's do raised lettering on them plastic tires."  The other guys unanimously replied "Word!"

Ya know, I think it's kinda cool they tried.  Obviously the execution isn't there yet, but kudos to them for pushing the limit.  I'm not a Bachmann apologist--I agree the flat itself is rough and behind the times--but I also don't feel a compulsion to take a dump on every single new thing Bachmann does.

[Philip H]

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-KWuU7G79YF0/VMWYAfnOHTI/AAAAAAAAA7E/qnRxatkuFf8/s912/bachtofcflat.jpg

Ouch.  I can't run giant long TOFC flats on my switching layout (well I can but they look funny) so even though single cars like this are somewhat out of era I was hoping to pick up a few.  Not based on that photo, unless i suddenly develop way more free time to kitbash.