The Hobbytown of Boston kit is not exactly 'easy' to assemble; many parts required filing. I mainly did what I did because I wanted a 'smooth running' Tyco to run on a DCC layout. Personally, I'd only upgrade iconic locomotives from Tyco (Silver Streak, Midnight Express, Canadiana, Rocky Mountain Line).. I don't think the other releases are 'worth it' because modern day manufacturers do a better job than Tyco. If your power torque motor is bad, it may just need cleaning; throwing $200+ at a Tyco is wasteful... however, I had 'fun' putting it together and I'm 'okay' with taking a $$ loss when it comes time to sell. (I probably made the locomotive worth even less on the collector market after I 'upgraded' it, lol) Good luck with whatever you decide to do with your Chessie.

eBay?

Correct, you need a Porters account to purchase. However, they're not as limited as the Porters Club Lounge Exclusive cars redeemable through Porter points only.

@@chrisdaniell2990 have you seen PWRS NARC cars before at train shows? Recently

You might find an old release at a show. I found the CN Circus Car at George's Trains... so, they're out there. Truly, the only people getting these exclusive cars are 'collectors' (they're Intermountain cars boxed under the NARC label). They worked out to about $95 CAD each after tax/shipping (not cheap).

What brand is it? Altas? There could be clips holding the shell to the sill? They could be broken? Why would the shell be destroyed if you take it off? If you're in the Toronto area, I'll do the DCC install for free (you buy the parts of course). First things first, take off the handrails, stanchion by stanchion, next, remove the couplers, coupler pockets, look for screws along the underside of the locomotive, they could be in between the wheels and the gear assembly (use a high intensity light to look everywhere). You need to remove all the screws from the bottom to release the chassis from the shell. There are exploded parts diagrams online if you Google the model/brand of your locomotive. The plastic clips on this model hold the shell to the sill. Remove the shell by releasing it from the sill. Pull off the shell, isolate the motor from the chassis, follow NMRA wire standards for DCC installation, program, you're done.

@@chrisdaniell2990 it's the same Atlas that you have in the video I'm pretty sure. My big hands are just not suited to pulling this thing apart gently. I can't maintain a decent grip without breaking something. 🙄😩 This has the original "dual mode" Atlas Master 4 function decoder in it with the jumper apparently set for DC. I'm from "down south" from you in Pennsylvania, but I could ship it to you if you're interested.

I'm not all familiar with the Atlas 4 function decoder... what's the SKU number on the box? I put $200+ towards the model... just in electronics. The ESU decoder is $180, the Decoder Buddy is another $25, the speaker is another $20, add the LED's (Canadian dollars) I then downloaded the sounds from the ESU website to the decoder. The whole thing has been gutted. I'll do another video on this locomotive for you... step-by-step. Stay tuned. Even if you have 'big hands' you can take it apart with toothpicks (that's what I do). The 'hardest' part of the installation, of ANY installation is the lights because you have to stop light 'bleed through' and position them exactly. It's also a 'pain' downloading sounds to the decoder because it takes so long. Anyways, I'll post another video about it for you. You can do this.

@@chrisdaniell2990 I hope you're right. I haven't so much as held a pinvice in 27 years! Couldn't solder for spit then either! 🤣😩

I'll make another video for ya. No worries about not knowing... I taught myself how to do DCC installations because I got tired of paying $200 in labour for it (stupid). These hobby shops are not interested in the hobby, they just want your money. Well, I got tired of paying and did the labour myself. I'm more than pleased to help someone out.

Kadee. (You can probably get one at any auto parts store)

@@chrisdaniell2990 Thank you.

no, i wish.

@@chrisdaniell2990 Still a very cool locomotive set. Thanks for sharing it.

Thanks Roger. I want to add a few clips from Star Trek and Battestar Galactica as sound functions, maybe even a cheesy line from Jason Shron in there. I then need to track down some MV lenses to really 'finish' it.

I'm going to Kitchener today. Other than that, not really. Most shows in Ontario have decreased in size while admission prices jumped up by a dollar or two. I skipped the Barrie show for this very reason. To top it off, fewer dealers are willing to bargain even though they're asking eBay prices. I hope the Double Headers Layout Tour in April leads to some inspiration as these shows [lately] offer nothing better than a loop of track with some grass

Nice conversation, Chris. You're right, putting DCC sound in this particular Canadian loco in brass was a no brainer 😊

True enough..I just wish the Rapido had more pulling power.

Jason only speaks up when his models come damaged in the box and begins to explain away the problems while telling you to pre-order the latest release.

Thanks! It's probably more of a 'discussion piece' than the most expensive brass/plastic locomotive on the layout, lol.

High-end cabooses are easily $100 CAD right now. Adding a smoke unit, sound decoder pushes the limit on what's reasonable for a piece of rolling stock. The hobby is killing itself with these high prices. Hobbyists are going to start turning to the $5 bin under the used sales table and upgrade the junk. My Golden Eagle loco is DCC'd, dual fly-wheel, LED's, completely modernized. Likewise, the caboose has Kadees and metal wheel sets. What more could I ask for? It will be a rare day when I throw over $400 towards a locomotive. Ain't happening.

@@chrisdaniell2990I think you could add a lighted base and a cheap add on smoke unit pretty cheap to a less desirable tyco car. The gold is in pretty good shape to to modify it too much. I do the same thing with old lionel o gauge trains after searching a few junk boxes I can usually piece together an engine or car for about a 1/3 of a nice original....I dont even consider buying the new stuff. The Tyco stuff is pretty fun to collect they had a lot of nice operating accessories....I always wanted to do an HO layout with their trains and trucking USA slot car track....it gets expensive for those old slot car trucks.

My dad and I walked through it while it sat parked at Union Station/Toronto one time (he was a Via/CN conductor). It was a rare treat to see any ONR stuff. Sadly, there's nothing smooth about any of Canada's passenger train services today.

Completely agree... it's just a 'fun' project to bring some Tyco junk back to life. I've already DCC'd a couple of Tyco Canadiana locomotives, this goes with the locos and caboose.

Didn’t the Kadee screws came separate with the couplers? Aren’t those trucks intermountain?

I had to go through my screws to find something that fit (I don't have any Kadee screws) and the trucks are Athearn Genesis trucks.

Then perhaps companies should add a disclaimer sticker on the box that says "locomotive parts may have broke off model in transit"... of course, they don't want to do that because that would effect sales. So, customers get angry each and every time they get a broken model, which [likely] burns future sales with said company. At this price point, you can't accept imperfection and shouldn't have to fix it yourself. You're giving Rapido and others a 'free pass' on something they could have engineered/fixed at the factory and agreeing to fix the model doesn't fix the problem. Truly, if you magnify all those 1/87th scale problems, that's a BIG problem over at Rapido... a problem they didn't acknowledge and a problem you fixed yourself. (I bet you they're happy... real happy, we all got out our glue)

The glass, the water bottle, the ornament, the candy bar, the lanyard, all the other promotional items.... all made with Rapido profits. Just lower your prices and get rid of the frills. No one wants this crap except the landfill. Green living, my ass... this company needs to seriously consider getting lean. Screw the 'holiday cheer'... I just want trains at a reasonable price. I'd love to see the balance sheet on all this extra junk WE paid for.

It really is "hit and miss" as to whether you get a "good one".. shame when you paid so much to begin with. I normally don't do pre-orders for this reason; I want to see the model before I buy it even if it means spending more $$$ at the hobby shop. Quality issues are more of an issue the more detail parts they throw on a locomotive. Hopefully you got it sorted out. (the casual observer won't notice anything is missing so I wouldn't worry about it)

@@chrisdaniell2990an update, both cab mirrors are in the box after I found the other one

Clerk at George's Trains told me a lot of the models had the hood sitting in the box. At the end of the day, it's fixed, I'm happy with it.

The clam shell has a few mm of space which allows the model to rattle in the box ! 2/3 of my F59's came damaged .

Rapido better be careful... Bachmann has a reputation from the 80's it never really shook because of quality. You simply can't cut corners or allow any % of defects when you're charging this much money and billing yourself as 'museum quality'. I hope you were able to repair your models or at least get 'warranty service' for them.

@@chrisdaniell2990 Bachmann has reprised their starring role with their latest Via Venture car release. What an over priced chunk of crap that is.

Bachmann is one of the most expensive manufacturers out there. They have to really prove themselves in the community before they can compete with the likes of ScaleTrains, Broadway, Rapido. I won't be purchasing anything from an untested manufacturer regardless of price.

I believe the only RM you can still buy is the double-decker sightseeing coach by Rapido Trains. They're available direct from Rocky Mountaineer through their souvenir catalog. They're priced at $190 CDN, each (last time I checked). You might be able to get the locomotives through the catalog as well, although they could be sold out. This is probably the most difficult to get HO Scale models out there. (standard RM coaches show up on eBay about 1-3 times a year and routinely sell for $300+ each)

@@chrisdaniell2990 Thanks for your response, I did purchase the engine and Gold Class carriage while on the train but would like to add the carriages, it’s a great looking combination

@@davidbaldie5401 I threw a LokSound decoder + iPod speaker in my engines (additional cost of about $200 CDN each). The straight DC engine (not DCC) on eBay is worth around $300 each. The double decker passenger car (with all the windows) routinely sells for $400 each on eBay. That's IF you can find them. The single-level coaches were released years ago and are no longer available. One popped on eBay earlier this year and went for around $400. Like I said, this is probably the MOST difficult-to-get HO scale piece out there. I'd like to add another coach but the cars are too difficult to find (I've had 'Rocky Mountaineer' as a 'saved search' in eBay for years now)