A nice boom. Quite different than it's cousin that's un-motorized.I'll wrap up by saying I am looking forward to more operating standard gauge freight from MTH.
While the controls could use some styling, their functionality is sound. The rest of the car does a very good job of approximating what an operating car would look like if this had been built 80 years ago.
I am anxious to see what standard gauge operators stick this behind on their pike. I am also anxious to see what this will look like in further incarnations from MTH. This isn't for everyone, especially for people on a budget that want to approximate Lionel standard gauge (from the classic period) exactly. Purists probably won't like this. I like it though, just because it is something different and because MTH had the guts to try a project that is unique.
It does have some serious imagination though, I am looking forward to hoisting some naughty flatcars out of ravines. Maybe a #6 will find its' way to the magnet if it keeps coming off the track.
If this is the kind of operating car we have to look forward to from MTH, I am really looking forward to Mike's catalog coming up in the next two weeks. Nice job to the TCA and MTH!
Marc
2 comments:
Finally opened mine for inspection. I don't get to play with it until solstice 05 :( I agree with your evaluation: a great car. A couple of nice touches: the little magnet that keeps the cab back door closed; two electrical roller pickups, one on each truck; the limit switches on the boom (did you get a little packet of extra copper contact strips that look like replacements for the limit switch levers?) It is certainly a good idea to read the manual. The mechanics must be lubricated well prior to use, particularly the gearing - with white lithium grease. I have a jar of it on my bench. Costs a few bucks at any automotive store. Track voltage will have to be set properly for prototypical action of the mechanicals as in the case of the Dorfan crane. All in all, I'm glad I made the purchase of my first piece of MTH standard gauge.
Jim Kelly
On the switches inside the cab, why did I think that all such controls were to be mounted on the rear toolbox? I think the picture of the prototype that I remember seeing had two or three toggle switch levers on the rear toolxox, or am I imagining things? I wonder if that picture is still around somewhere. Perhaps having all the switches mounted on the rear toolbox would have been less aesthetically pleasing. The mini slide switches will do the job, but it remains to be seen how they will hold up over time. Mini-toggles would have been hardier.
Jim Kelly
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