The prototype CNJ 1523 was built in 1952 and used in mostly in passenger service. In the mid 70s when CNJ was absorbed by Conrail, it was renumbered to 5681 and transfered to NJDOT. NJDOT used it in commuter service until 1993. It was then donated to United RR Historical Society of NJ. It has been restored and is still operable.

The “uncoupling doohickey” is a “coupler cut lever”. The bent part sticking out over the couplers - in real life - has a chain, bar, or strap that lifts a locking pin on the knuckle couplers. These (coupler cut levers) extend out to the sides of the rolling stock so the conductor or brakeman can swing the lever up to uncouple the cars. This way, he/she doesn’t have to risk stepping between the cars when flat switching (shunting) the cars in a yard, or industry siding.

The first loco i ever 'Explored" as a kid was a Pennsylvania Rail Road GEEP sitting outside the former PRR Juniata Shops in Altoona PA. On Sundays the shops were closed at that time (1974), and a few of us kids had found an easy way to get through the security fence and we would spend hours playing in a bunch of different assorted Loco's. It was heaven.

Feels like Sam is slowly, but steadily is getting more and more into American loco's

As an American who is quite familiar with GP7s, this loco has nice detail, particularly the scale handrails (You shouldn't have dinged this model for them) and it sounds like a GP7. I wish I modeled in HO, this would be on my shopping list. All in all a decent model of an early phase GP7.

Wow! £73/$89 for DCC! Great find Sam! Can't wait to see more American diesels join your roster.

Those catalog ads are a good way to date a bachmann model, I'd recommend looking at the year before throwing it out to see how long the model has been sitting

Yes! I was hoping you'd pick this one up! Growing up in the state of New Jersey, I've seen this exact loco many times. It's still around and preserved, too. The coal train was a good choice since the Jersey Central ran lots of coal trains from Eastern Pennsylvania to the ports in New York City for export. It's definitely a 5/5 from me. Cheers from the East Coast USA. Also the odd one out has to be the GG1- it's the only electric engine out on the layout today.

Sam one of the main reasons I switched to US modelling back in 1993 was cost and quality. Back then I was buying models from Lima and Hornby which to be frank were terrible models and ran like a bag of nails. I was able to get an Athearn blue box model for about £19 with 5 pole motor and flywheels, UK models had ring fields and were about £40-50.

When I had to go to New York City I used to take the Jersey Central. Interesting line, it was the railroad that introduced the blue passenger conductor uniform, the first to use automatic signaling and bought the first diesel-electric locomotive. Their main passenger terminal in Jersey City was featured in the opening of the movie Funny Girl (with Barbara Streisand). As an aside, the GP7 and GP9 were designed with the intention of being dull and uninteresting. The E series were supposed to be the bathing beauties of the GM-EMD locomotive line up.

The odd man out is the GG-1 electric. Although it's probably the mechanism, the high speed is actually near prototype, for that particular railroad. The Central of New Jersey geared their GP-7/9s and other similar locos for higher speed operations for commuter passenger services, which explains the detail appliances on the short hood. A good review of a (for the US) medium priced DCC sound loco. The motor is s probably a three pole based on the cogging on the initial test. Unfortunately you can't tell without taking it apart. They are generally good motors, and performance is generally better on DCC, than straight DC. Enjoy your new first generation American diesel.

The GP7 was the four axle counterpart to the six axle SD7 (GP for General Purpose, SD for Special Duty). The two continued to evolve together as pretty much parallel lines through the 1980s, when new four axle main line power fell out of favor. It was with the 3,000 hp SD40-2 and 2,000 hp GP38-2 that EMD finally reached the end of the pioneering era. (Dash 2 added to the designation means modular electronics) When it came out, the SD40-2 hit a perfect balance of power, traction, and reliability that made it incredibly popular. It was also exported widely. How widely? Well, the Class 59 is basically an SD40-2 squeezed into the British loading gauge and with Class 58-style cabs slapped on. And, of course, the Class 59 led to the Class 66.

I have a few of these Bachmann diesels and yeah they're pretty good for the money. When I looked up the drawbar pull of these I think it figured out to be at least 25-30 free rolling 40ft boxcars so those 34ft hoppers aren't even going to cause a real strain on that diesel. Awesome review as always and I love seeing when you take a look at some of our baragain deals herenin the states.

An ideal locomotive for anyone wanting to get into the hobby. When you apply the 3 meter rule you are not looking at the loco with a magnifying glass as it runs around a layout, so any small imperfections are minimal. Great value. Cheers Greg

5:15 🤣 love it! This thing is a beast (model and prototype)! It's amazing how some of the locos from this era have lasted so long - I was really impressed to find out that Portugal's Série 1500 loco was introduced in 1948 and is still going strong. There are probably similar examples all over the world of locos this age and older still in active mainline use. I can't see many of today's newer locos doing the same, but who knows, maybe I'll be proved wrong. It'll probably be those dog ugly Class 70s, won't it?

Fun fact about the early geep engines, they could be ordered in short hood forward or long hood forward versions. the main difference being the way the controls face and what side the horns and bells are on. Some railroads prefered the long hood forward versions as it resembled the steam locomotives they were used to. Eventually however, people saw the advantages in having better visibility and locomotives built to run long hood forward became a thing of the past.

That is the same locomotive I purchased five years ago! I bought it because of the Central of New Jersey livery. Was really impressed with the paint job and the sound. A joy to switch with or run a short commuter train as the prototype did.

Cracking deal there Sam! Many details can easily be enhanced with a brush if so wished. And should the motor need replacement, you know where to look and how hahah. Hopefully, the integrated electronics won't fail early since it can't receive a decoder on its own. But hey, for that money, it's quite the clever thought out package. Lovely to see that you can now run and review on DCC as well. Cheerio.

Great review Sammy always a pleasure to hear U keep them coming!

If you’re looking for a GP7 that does have more separately fitted parts and cab detail, I recommend Athearn’s GP7s. I got myself one in Western Pacific colors and it does prove itself pretty well. One thing I will say though is that it seems just a little faster than it should be, even probably starting off faster than this, but we’ll have to see depending if you get one or not. Can’t wait to see more!

First things first Sam. You have to drive a DCC sound loco to get the sound right. The EMD locos were designed with 8 power notches in their cab controllers so as you apply power you hear the engine spool up to its next notch setting. Similarly when reducing power when the engine rpm reduces per notch. This is quite different to many if our indigenous diesels in the UK which used control air pressure to increase RPM. Locos such such as Sulzer type 2s type 3s and type 4s had an infinitely variable power controller on the drivers desk, the only notch being the move from "off" (idle) to "on" where you wont discern an engine rpm change. The loco on your middle track was an E unit - basically two of the same 567 engines as in your GP7 each turning a generator to provide effectively double the power of your geep. Roughly GP = General purpose (known as geep) riding on four wheel.trucks E = express unit a faster passenger unit running in three axle trucks (A1A or Co) SD = special duty in other words six wheel trucks. EMD often offered their designs as GP or SD so your Jersey Central GP7 might also have been offered as an SD7 with the same engine but six wheel bogies and six traction motors. This policy went pretty much up to the GP50 / SD50 and i believe one RR had some four axle GP60s.

I have definitely enjoyed the Spectrum series steam locomotives. They are not up to brass import quality in mechanisms or bodies but they run well and are well detailed. The logging locomotives are particularly nice, and the On30 line is a fun way to use HO/OO track that might otherwise look exaggerated in rail height.

Super video Sam. The American diesels are really good looking and multiple units together are awesome. Enjoyed your review. Have fun . 🎉🎉🎉

Thanks for the review Sam.👍 That hopper rake looked great, especially the effect of the Nickel Plate Road coal treatment. Do believe I saw a shooting "Bull" go by !😄

Great video as always Sam. The Bachmann GP7 is a nice diesel locomotive. It looks nice 👍

Nice to see you still going strong!

Sam, thank you so much for reviewing another US loco. The rail line closest to my childhood home ran GP7s. Unfortunately, Bachmann built-in decoders have a poor reputation here in the US, and I have personal experience of this. I purchased a Bachman GE 70 Tonner with DCC a couple of years ago, but its performance was so poor (and noisy) at low speeds that I set it aside. However, several months ago I got the courage to modify its printed circuit board and installed a decent decoder and KeepAlive (from TCS). It runs much better now. Please don't let your experience with this particular loco put you off DCC. Even though I have a very small shunting layout, I've gone from DC to DCC because of the superior motor control with decent decoders. Cheers from Wisconsin!

I don't know how much you would be interested in but look into getting a bachmann rolling stock with flashing eot device or just the eot to put on on of your bachmann rolling stock. Eot is a device for that says how much air pressure you have and flashing. If your loco has a head of train device in the cab it makes doing brake test so much easier. But you should look into it if you are interested.

Hi Sam, a great review of a great well priced locomotive. I have a small collection of American locomotives myself, yes, Bachmann is at the lower end of the spectrum, but ok as an introduction model. The decoders are limited but ok for the price you pay. Most American locos I have, even from the high end manufacturers have the same gear train and mechanism, just maybe a better motor in the higher quality ranges. My collection is mostly Jersey Central and Pennsylvania, so I am a little jealous of yours as Jersey Central models aren't so common here in the UK. All the best and llok forward to more soon, Dave.

Hi Sam Recent Bachmann and Dapol DCC sound fitted locos have been stated to work on DC. The Sonic release also does so and Rapido day theirs do too. The top speed is lower than a DC ready version of the same model. Used on a DC layout, as one increases the dial one gets the sound of the engine starting and then gets into chuffing, changing to the beat of a faster speed. Rails tell me that, on the Sonic one, if you put the speed on too quickly you get wheel slip sounds! Sounds amazing. I am waiting for mine to check it out. KR still use the old style chips which do not select DC. Love your reviews.

The odd locomotive out is the GG1, which is an electric and not a diesel. The GP7 and GP9 are some amazing locomotives as nearly every diesel made afterward was based on them. That locomotive on the middle line is an EMD E7. I'm surprised you had trouble with those Rivarossi passenger cars as I have a few and they rarely derail. They might need the axles and couplers adjusted.

Sam: no no, no no no. Me: Laughs hysterically when he find the 220-page full-Color combined Bachmann & Williams Catalog 6.5” ✖️8.50” Digest size.

Middle loco is an E8 for the Southern Railway. It hauled around passenger service and two were preserved in running order, IIRC.

Love me some American first-generation diesels! The Jersey Central ran through my area back in the day, and there's a decent amount of their equipment still in preservation. Now if you thought this was impressive, I'd give ScaleTrains a look. They're a great manufacturer with ridiculously detailed products.

I understand there are people out there who wouldn't use a soldering iron, to remove and replace the decoder, but that is easily done. In America, Bachmann is looked down upon by many, as an owner of most MFGs in North American locomotives, I believe they are "quite alright", and perform very well. Bachmann finally started installing Soundtraxx decoders in some of their units, I hope that continues. As always, I enjoy your content , thank you for sharing.

I saw what looked like an FP45 in AT&SF livery there near the S-curve. 😍

The GG1 is the odd one out, being an electric loco!

25:02 That locomotive is an EMD E unit.. possibly an E7a . It is a contemporary your General Purpose 7 (GP7). It was primarily built for Express passenger Trains. The E stands for its power class of Eighteen Hundred horsepower, it has a smaller similar looking sibling called an F unit ( for Fifteen hundred HP, and has 4 axles). What you have there is an A unit, which has a drivers cab; if you wanted more power, you would simply lash up more B units (cab-less units) and control them from the A unit's cab.

The odd one out is the GG1. As for printed catalogs, I love them. In fact I collect them. 😀

Awesome video today Sam beautiful locomotive the sound sounded really nice

I have one of these in the black Pennsylvania color scheme, nice models for the price. Sound Value is a budget range so realy shouldn't expect much in terms of sound features, as long as it vrooms and honks. :) More expensive sound decoders have a neat motor feedback feature that automatically revs the engine up as load increases, for example when climbing a hill, and same with revving down descending a hill. Adds to the realism as you could imagine the driver notching up the power a bit without you touching the controller.

The Green Bachmann is an E8 or E9 I bought one for myself in the PRR livery because of your review on it. still haven't run it though I don't have a layout yet

The GP7 is the only US diesel that I like but in HO scale it is very hard to get a good detailed engine. Not like you get with UK engines. You get them at a good price but that is it . This is a good looking engine and with the dcc sound that’s what makes it a good deal . Great video keep them coming. Those catalog order forms tell you exactly when the engine was introduced for sale just look at the date of the catalog.

Hey Sam - great video as always! Would love to see you review an Australian Loco on day :)

I have one of those in a Pennsylvania Railroad livery it's one of my two whole diesel locomotives the other is a G scale 44 ton center cab switcher

I see some people here are calling the southern locomotive an EMD E8, it’s actually an E7 due to the windows being square and not circular.

EMD E7. I put your review of it on one of my many playlists on my channel.

I've bought a few switchers I repaint into USATC livery. The sound is always ok.

Great review Sam. Brilliant on the price too :D Am I mistaken or is the Sonic Models model missing from the logbook? Seems great for the price; not for me though.

Looks good for the price you paid. The Bachmann DDA-40X and 4449 daylight look great as well.

Hi Sam, looks like you were lucky there with a cheap loco including decoder! On a different topic just wanted to let you know about a slight loophole with Hornby Hobby Rewards. The company said all pre-orders on 22/11/22 would have their points included in the current total. However to do this they automatically analysed all orders which were in pre-order state on that exact day and included points for those. This then did not include any orders which arrived in the warehouse on that day as their order status changed from pre-order to preparing for despatch sometime during the day. Luckily when I raised this, Hornby manually updated my rewards total to include them as they were between pre-order and despatched in their system but clearly not actually delivered to the customer (still pre-order at 00:01 on the 22nd).

Knocking em out of the park ! Thanks Sam 😎

Always a good day when sams train uploads a American diesel video lol

I forgot to mention that the loco you couldn't remember is either a F-7/9, (4 axel), or a E-8/9, (6 axel). F- units were generally freight locos although many were dual purpose, while the E-units were just the opposite being mainly passenger engines. While many of the 4 axel loco's, both GPs and F-units have survived into the modern era, both in preservation,and in active use, there are only a handful of E-units left, mostly preserved for excursion service, or as power for a railroad's executive trains.

Sam, Unfortunely trainworld doesn't have this one any more. I have a few bachman locos, all with dcc and sound. As for start speed,this can be adjusted by changing the cv( configuration variables). You can also change the horn, bells, and engine sounds. It looks like a soundtraxx decoder in it and they can easily be changed out with a newer version with much more options. I really enjoyed your take on it and looking forward to more videos. Randy

I'd recommend checking out the Bachmann SC-44 Charger, it's mind blowing. The n scale version (which I have) is by far the most advanced model I've ever come across (working roof strobes out of the box is unheard of in N). It looks great pulling a Surfliner along my California coastline

I love an old high hood GP7. Don't own a Bachmann one myself, but I may have to look into getting one.

I actually have one of those that I custom-painted to look like a CSX GP-7 locomotive. I didn’t buy it with sound, and I had to remove the factory decoders, as bachmann non-sound decoders are just trash. The crazy thing is that I got mine for $52. It lasted about two years before its decoder just gave out. I bought it in 2021, and its decoder cut out in early 2023. I just bought a new Soundtraxx decoder. GP-7s are generally basic locomotives, but they are very reliable, and very popular.

Morning Sam, great review! As to which Bachman loco to be looked at next, Bachman made a Rail Diesel Car/RDC which was DCC with sound fitted as well. Perhaps they are still available on line? David

I would recommend to you Sam is to get a Rapido Train Via Rail F40PH-2D. It is a good look engine and think you would like the livery.

I once paid £45 for a DCC sound Class 67. It’s an older Lima/Hornby 67 with a Loksound V3.5 in it as well as lights fitted.

ah the good ol gp9 with that big ol 567 emd gotta love it

I suppose the GG1 was out of place. The car bodied unit is either an E (A1A) or an F (Bo Bo) most roads ran GPs or SDs with the long hood first for safety. Excellent value for money, I like running trains and I'm prepared to put up with a shortage of detail, and since I've never heard the real thing...

The Bachmann DCC decoders are under £10/$12. Cheaper in bulk. And that catalogue (or better still Walthers) you hate is well worth getting if you can, it's like an old Argos catalogue but just for model railways, accessories, parts, electronics etc. Truly a catalogue of dreams :P

Keep in mind it's Bachman, it won't last long. The engine on the middle line is an E8 or 7, but any e unit after the E6 had the Bulldog knose. The oddball out is the GG1 due to it being electric

Reading the comments your US subscribers seem 'over the moon'. Stars and stripes... But Bachmann stuff aint my piece of cake anymore. Cheap and not reliable in the long run that's my experience. If you want this one to run smooth on all speed steps you'll have some CV settings to tweak. Using JMRI - Decoder Pro is 'The' way to do this. And since you're into DCC now it's a must to check it out. Happy model railroading Sam. Cheers.

This model Bachmann is very nice and it is a perfect budget model for anyone who wants to buy a simple model Sam.

I have two of these little beasts in the Pennsylvania livery and they are powerful little engines. I need to add a replacement motherboard to them as Soundtraxx makes a full drop in decoder to replace the sound value decoder and DCC ready motherboard. The main issue is the speaker as it looks like they need a 28mm but might need a 25mm instead.

I can't wait till you get a Broadway limited engine. Especially with paragon 2 or 3. They are expensive but they are worth every dime. I got the K4 and I love it

If you can get a Jersey Central Fairbanks-Morse Trainmaster, that might make for a good review. They were impressive in real life, using diesels designed for the U.S. Navy submarines. They has a deep penetrating throb while idling that you would feel in your chest. There was a baby Trainmaster, a smaller version but the one you want is Trainmaster.

Sam, if you ever want to experience the high end of American models, I highly recommend Athearn Genesis and Scaletrains. Both of them are on par or better than Accurascale as far as detail is concerned.

Hi Sam, where did you buy that from, can't find it anywhere and want to get one, keep up the good work

Fun fact Locomotives like the GP7 and GP9 have lavatories in the front, and that’s why you have the High Hood instead of a standard Low Hood.

Come on Sam, get some model German steam locos on review. They are fantastic to look at in real life.

It comes down to Bachmann paying attention. The model is a standard GP7. The CNJ units had very distinctive train lighting boxes and other details. Two had these removed after a rebuild, and had Bachmann chosen those numbers the model would have been a bit more realistic. And what’s with the “CMJ” under the road number. Bachmann comes so close to getting it right but craps out. There are exceptions: the N scale PRR K4s are great.

The GP7 here in the U.S. is a fair equivalent to the Class 08 shunter. Small shunting locomotive with vast utility, dirt cheap to mass produce and sell so nearly EVERY big railroad in the United States had these and a fair amount still in service today.

That is a damn good price. If one allocates $25 for a decoder with minimum features, it is like $63 for a DCC ready, new loco. Even old stuff on eBay goes for very much higher prices here! Those are not DCC ready at all. Also, the conditions are not reliable anyway. Great buy, Sam.

I saw the GG1 which is an electric locomotive built for the Pennsylvania railroad

Cool review video Sam’s trains I got a video idea for you can you do a race between two locos on your layout one for team LNER and one for team LMS after the shunting video and the odd one out is the diesel with the pantographs with lms coaches

The Loco on the middle line is an E8 Also, the odd loco out is the GG1, because it’s an electric

At that sort of price for a DCC sound model, that is more than worth it in my eyes. Also, that green southern passenger diesel is an E7 and the odd one out is the GG1

The Southern locomotive on the middle line is an EMD EA7 or E7A. The E8 is a later model.

Wow, you somehow managed to get two loco's that are almost exactly what were used in the 1985 Movie "Runaway Train" with the ARR F7 #1500 (rather than E7) and a pair of ARR GP7's being ARR GP7 #1801 and ARR GP7 #1810 respectively.

We found how trainworld sold it cheap, the catalog paper had 2015 on it. It has been in inventory for a while.

5:00 Sam... 2015 catalog... calm down. It'd be considered an antique and a "Collector's" guide/reference these days. 7:52 Kamloops has one of the "rebuilds" GP10 working for CANDO Rail Service... 8:17 Detail... remember, this model was built in 2015 19:13 Performance... that grease needs servicing (changing) because it's been there eight years without running. Speed... There are "Eight Notches" and levels of engine rev' sound, which, for 2015, was a great deal for a 'bare bones' dcc/sound locomotive. I am grimacing at the slow speed "cogging"... that hardened oil/grease is a big factor, they've since used silicone lubricant. The "Southern" is an E7... Odd loco is the GG1 electric. Mainly used for passenger but eventually for express and fast freight. Please, Sam... service the lubricant issue. Over 10 years will decrease the viscosity. BC, Canada

Dear Sam, Awesome video. What is your 3D design software. ( FOR 3D PRINTING)

Nice train for the price good review 👍

Does this engine pull color coaches?

I like that engine, Sam!

Love these ho train reviews

I almost thought this was one of the locos involved in the Newark bay bridge disaster they were numbered 1526 and 1632

For the money part, you have a VAT rate of 20% in the UK (same rate as France, Republic of Ireland = 23%, Germany = 19%), add it to the US indicated price to have your final retail price, depending of your country. Back to the model. If you are modelling US railroads from 1950 to 1980, a GP7 is a must-have. For the price, it's a nice model overall. Some naff parts, but acceptable as a tradeoff for the price. The drivetrain is basic, but does the job. Not impressive, but it works. If you get it at GBP 73 (or equivalent), jump on it if you want the DCC part. I'm not on DCC on my US models (N scale), so, this one is not for me. By the way, Sam, are you in for the new LNER A3 Flying Scotsman by Trix ? Preorder in the UK at Rails of Sheffield for, uh... GBP 527. That would be nice to compare her to the OO models by Hornby et al, isn't it ?

Sam, if you really want to try some quality American locos for cheap, you should look into Proto 2000. I bought a proto 2000 pa for $80 and it’s the best locomotive I’ve ever run.

Did all goods still come at reasonable cost after all import delivery charges.

I don’t know if it’s just me but I would love to see Sam review a somewhat modern American diesel locomotive like an sd70Ace or an ac4400cw order something like that

Hi sam, on my hornby merchant navy the tender wheels/maybe the pickups make a loud scraping sound and i think i need to clean them. what do i use to oil it?

The Southern cab locomotive is an E8. It's nowhere near as cheap cost wise, but I was blown: away by their Siemens "Charger" for Amtrak.

Was the odd one out that PRR GG1 in the background at 26:05? That's an electric.

Sam I think you would like an emd sd40-2

when will be the next range launch from Martin Mart-Martinson Models?