Model Train Whistles and Horns

[@michaelholycross8898]

Nickel plate road 765 whistle will always be my favorite

[@RBPTrains]

Iconic!

[@PlanetXGames_YT]

Definitely my favorite whistle has got to be any of the 2-8-4 Berkshire locomotives. Ones like the Nickel Plate Road 765 are just so iconic

[@jamessneed8789]

I love the steamer whistle. Each one is different. 👍

[@RBPTrains]

Each has its own personality for sure!

[@SteveRenon]

I have two postwar tenders. Love the Lionel sound.

[@RBPTrains]

Me too!

[@sericsmith5770]

It's not everyday that your videos are recommended to me one minute after it is released. Haven't watched in a while, so I might as well do it!

[@RBPTrains]

Haha, thanks and hope you enjoy!

[@sericsmith5770]

@@RBPTrains Thanks. BTW, I actually was busy doing other things, but I'll definitely take the time to enjoy it! Thanks for commenting.

[@angeloavanti2538]

Great Sunday afternoon! Tough choices.

[@letsplays1222]

I LOVE the sound of whistles, they just bring the nostalgia and feeling of the past to life

[@Davids_Hobbies]

The debate between horns and whistles is super interesting to me. In my opinion whistles are usually higher pitched which are more grating on my ears. However there's something about a screaming whistle. Although with that being said, Big Boy has an awesome deep whistle that I really like. Strasburg 90 is another super cool one. I like the NYCS whistles too, although that might be a bit biased because I own a 1940's NYCS lantern and the NYCS is one of my favorite older railroads. I've recently started railfanning NJ Transit at my local station and I've been uploading the videos on my channel and I've started appreciating the different horns that NJ Transit has. I've made friends with a NJ Transit engineer who gives me some pretty sweet hornshows almost every weekday. I didn't realize how different train horns really are. Even on similar locomotives, a lot of the horns have their unique quirks. Just last week I experienced one of the loudest unrestricted transit horns I've ever heard. It was NJT 4530, a Bombardier ALP-45DP. I got some super long and fully open blasts which I could feel throughout my entire body. It was pretty nuts. Coincidentally my birthday is the last three numbers of that loco (May 30th). The NJ Transit unrestricted K5LA, as well as from other railroads the RS3L and some of the Leslie horns are some of my favorites.

[@Davids_Hobbies]

I forgot to add for the sake of the video, the Pennsy S1, is super unique. and another favorite model horn is another Pennsy at 17:56.

[@DisneyWish2023]

5:44 love that locomotive and i like the swinging bell to :)

[@DFLTrains]

Love that Hudson 773 whistle! Sounds like my K-Line Hudson 5335 (semi-scale)

[@lakenhines2237]

I absolutely love the ALCO 5-chime whistle (irl). My absolute favorite!

[@dynotunemotorsports9156]

Welcome back sir

[@RBPTrains]

Thanks!

[@spencerfesing4145]

Fun fact the Milwaukee Road A class Atlantics had a horn instead of a steam whistle too. Personally I like steam whistles over horns but thats mostly because I prefer steam locomotives. I just resently got to run one of my Lionel legacy locomotives with a Cab-2 remote and I couldn't stop playing with the quilling whistle. That might just be my favorite part of modern Lionel models now.

[@jd8690]

Steam whistle is my favorite. The Norfolk and Western is one of my favorites.

[@railchief74]

The commander Vanderbilt whistle for the win. Also can’t forget to mention the classic air whistle sounds that started it all.🚂

[@tarustrader]

My favorite is the post-war, all-mechanical, whistle tenders all day, every day.

[@ThunderboltSirenStudios]

As an air raid siren LOVER, i can tell a siren model by sound. That siren on that army GETL was a Federal Sign & Signal Model 5A or Model 7A from the 1950's-1970's.

[@ticearpey3235]

Did the turbines have sirens on them? I know a couple centennials and a few other diesels had flattened FS thunderbolts on them, but not the turbines. I don’t care if it’s not prototypical, it’s still cool and I’m just curious.

[@ThunderboltSirenStudios]

@@ticearpey3235 no. Sirens were only out on trains one time during the union Pacific with that flattened Federal Signal Thunderbolt 1003 you mentioned. But that would only be in the 1970's not only on the DDA40X, but also experimented with other Union Pacific locomotives. With the large housing and siren mechanism on the Model 5 & 7, it would be difficult to hide one of those on a GETL.

[@LIAMBROS_YouTube]

765, big boy, strasburg 90, 4449, up 9095, CN 8002, bnsf 9838, nyc dryfess, and the lion cheif polar express from 2004 are my fav Lionel whistles/horns

[@Superb_0wl]

wish i can afford Lionel Trains 😔

[@rubenmartinez5407]

You could get some postwar Lionel

[@yellowrailproductions]

I feel you buddy

[@transfigur]

How can you not afford Lionel trains they are so CHEAP

[@colestrains1]

Postwar and mpc is VERYY available!!!

[@imlovingtrains]

The daylight for me is the best whistle to me

[@johnmacey7193]

This is Jack Macey’s grandson Michael Foster speaking. Lionel brought back the Milwaukee Road’s gorgeous Hiawatha! I bet you’re ready to upgrade to the vision line triplex!

[@Zman_1123]

I always been fond of 4449 daylight express GS4. I hope one day will have the engine in my collection. Only time will tell 🛐

[@asteroidrules]

Gotta love that classic postwar whistle, for a long time those were the sound system on model trains, and them being common was a big part of why my family got into o-gauge, other scales tend to be completely silent unless you go for a full command control system which was too rich for my family when I was a kid and didn't exist when my father was. Since you gave honorable mention to the Pennsylvania S1 horn, I wanna give a similar mention to the Hancock 4700, a whistle specifically designed for diesel and electric locomotives. In the early days of dieselization/electrification, people were even more disappointed about steam whistles being replaced by air horns than they are now, and a couple railroads looked into mounting whistles on their new locomotives to keep the old sound. The Hancock air whistles were used in small numbers by the New York Central and the Seaboard Air Line, and in large numbers by the New Haven who outfitted most of their diesel fleet with whistles, some of which stuck around to this side of the millennium.

[@deweyhall712]

The hobo union, and mini me approves of this video.....❤❤❤❤❤😊😊😊😊😊

[@ZacharyPrimeStarGamerYT2005]

N&W Y6B Hooter is my favorite because how haunting it sounds

[@jameslanders4819]

Chris, you're right. The whistle or horn does personalize the engine.

[@EngineerEd-xt2qu]

Yes I love steam too. I’m just starting out with o scale again during to size but the sounds in O scale are the best

[@kevinteig8693]

I like that 1393 Crescent Limited- neat different pitches. We were up in Strasburg over the weekend. #90 is still in repair but #89 was out pulling cars in reverse.

[@trainzville9237]

Greetings from England, a magnificent video, mate. I really love the steam whistles on the steam engines, especially the Union Pacific Big Boy No.4014, it always has the best steam whistle ever & wins every steam whistle battle. The Union Pacific Big Boys are in my opinion, the best American Steam Locomotives ever, alongside the American 4-4-0s & Ten Wheeler 4-6-0s.

[@user-we4ju2rz2s]

My favorite steam whistle will always be the Lionel Union Pacific Big Boy, hands down. But other honorable mentions would be the N&W y6b and the gs2 whistle. Great content RBP!

[@Chessiefan2101]

Thanks Chris. What a great video. My favorite steam whistle is the blue comet. And favorite horn the heritage Rio Grande unit.

[@tomrogers5516]

Hi, Chris. Thanks for this fascinating dive into horns and whistles. I really have no favourites for horns. Being born in the 1940's, I prefer whistles. Of course, for me the most powerful whistle belongs to the Big Boy. But the iconic favourite will always be the sound of the NYC Hudson. It'll always be my choice!

[@nssrrailfan6443]

Whistles! I love the original DM&IR Yellowstone whistles.

[@bluesentaiproductions]

Yess!!! Glad you brought out the yellow belly! I loved the CV as well, but it did sound like a PRR k4 chime. Mid 2000s MTH drove me nuts, they basicall were trying to get you to buy DCS so you can use the quillable whistle feature to escape the default tone. But yes, buying a scale engine, I wouldn't sit there and admire the detail, I popped that sucker on the tracks to hear the whistle 😅😅

[@firelynx1108]

The 90s NKP 765 whistle is hands down my favorite closely followed by 2102's Reading 6 chime

[@trainsbignsmall]

I have both a favorite whistle and horn. For the whistle it is the six long chime used on the 844, while my favorite horn is the Nathan K3LA used on BNSF dash 9s, and SD70MACs.

[@gregorysmith7952]

I agree with you Chris usually the first thing that I do when starting an engine is whistle/horn and bell. Enjoyed this very much

[@Ranhert]

As Bubb Rubb famously said "the whistles go whoo whooooooo"

[@Zodiac3107]

Sierra No. 3 baby! That whistle is magic.

[@johnandrus3901]

Excellent. The whistle battle was fun and I enjoyed the different sounds from each era. I can't imagine how all of the whistle and horn sound filled the room. The new locomotives have excellent sound, but I'm partial to the post-war engines that I grew up with. Not better, just classic. The newest engine that I have is the MTH Rail King Ps-4 Pacific. It has a very nice electronic horn. The only other electronic horns that I have are on my 1983 NYC F3 and my FARR 8900. The F3 sounds good. The 8900, not so much. Anemic, really. The 1950 773 came with the pre-war 2426W tender, which also was the tender for the 726. Die cast with 6 axle trucks. It is an excellent model. I'm not sure why they used a Pennsy tender on the '64 model The later 2466WX and 6466WX tenders, which are smaller versions of the 2426, are probably the best that Lionel ever made after the 2426. Either way, enough of me rambling, this is a great video, as yours always are. I'm anticipating your next one.

[@mindyolson-pizzey4940]

Oh both I like whistles and train horns and the bell😊

[@briandefazio6536]

Favorites for me are the nkp berks, Pennsy 3 chime, class J, and UP big boy whistles.

[@bbooth2113]

Fantastic video! Big Boy = Chills 😊

[@AndrewTNT]

The sleigh bell limited is one of my favorite trains, and the horn is perfect

[@F40M07]

Sweet!!

[@artiefufkin1705]

Love the black bonnet engines and passenger cars. So hard to choose between horn and whistle but laning toward whistle as my favorite. Fun video, thanks for sharing.

[@JimboW-iv7zw]

Loved it, a great video, and got to see a lot of the engines again. 🚂🚂🚂

[@johnmartino4750]

Nothing sounds quite like a Reading Six Chime! MTH has it nailed with their 425!

[@ozarkmidlandsouthernrailway]

Fun video, RBP! I know this video must have been quite a bit of work, but you did a wonderful job. I’m pretty much a diesel man, but I do love the sound of a steam whistle. Just something about it. My favorite whistle in this video was that of the Big Boy! Thanks Chris! Bill B.

[@SteamKing2160]

for my favorite whistles mine would be the Milwaukee Road 261 original 3 chime whistle, N&W J Hancocks, N&W hooters, the IC 3 chime whistle, and the C&O 614 reading 6 chime whistle and the Southern PS-4 whistle

[@DH2906PRODUCTIONS]

In real life, my favorite whistle is the one that's equipped on the Dreyfuss Hudson. My favorite horn is the Nathen k5lla. Mostly found on EMD's sd70ace

[@ericwilliams2619]

J611 streamlined steam whistle 👍🏻💫💫💫💫💫

[@rogerstrate5727]

I have to agree with you Chris, the BigBoy has the best whistle but I really loved hearing all the steam whistles and I am a big fan of diesel horns as well and prefer the E8 horns.

[@scottjackson3009]

My favorites whistles are both Norfolk and Western: the passenger steamboat and the freight single-chime hooter

[@JetEngine37]

Great vid!

[@gustavovasile428]

GREAT!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!

[@GodzillaQueen101]

All I'm gonna say is, I do like me a good, deep 6-chime whistle (SP & ATSF 6-chimes are probably my faves)

[@MattyCtrains]

Congrats on 50k subscribers buddy!! Great video as always. Legacy Berkshire and Hudson whistles are always my favorite!

[@Nicholas.A]

I love the classic 4014 steam whistle

[@tomschlitter1594]

While each have their fans, that Big Boy is the King of the Rails, at least in my opinion. Thanks for all the comparisons. I think it's your best video to date.

[@DRCRailroard]

Thanks, Chris, for another interesting topic. I like all whistles sounds to be on a steam engine, and all horn sounds to be on a diesel. My head tilts to one side like a confused dog when the SP Daylights air horn blows, instead of the whistle. I run everything conventionally, but I have to admit I love the modern sound systems. Whether they be steam or diesel. It's the only electronic gadgetry I care to tolerate. While the postwar whistles will always be the icon, I must admit I seek the modern railsounds systems for all my engines. The MPC era sounds can't be described as anything other than embarrassing. I'm not even going to apologize. You have some really great sounding steam whistles, which is why the whistle sounds are my favorite over diesel. There were just so many unique sounding whistles, and we don't get to hear them anymore otherwise. Pretty much any steam whistle works for me, but I'm always drawn to the sound of the big articulated Bigboy.

[@Thetvremotefromyourbasement]

Yessss on other video!

[@charliecurry8872]

My favorite is the Big Boy 4014 the Lionel sounds just like the actual engine.😊

[@SouRwy4501Productions]

I personally prefer whistles, mainly 3 and 5 chimes, but I also like certain long-bell 6 chimes. I personally prefer long bell 3 chimes, but a good short bell 3 or 5 chime does make its way onto my list. My current list of favorite whistles: 1. Southern Railway short-bell 3-chime 2. Southern Railway long bell 3-chime 3. Central Of Georgia 6 chime 4. Crosby 6” and 5” 3 chime 5. Hancock 3 chime

[@GageTucker-of2wd]

I was at goodwill yesterday and I found a vintage Lionel lines no.2018 FOR $7.49 it came with of course a coal car for the locomotive but there was a Pennsylvania railroad baby Ruth box car and the red Lionel no.6257 caboose 😄and they were all $4.49

[@therosejewelrailroad489]

As long as it’s got a horn or a whistle I’m happy. I enjoyed the video. Ken

[@jimsutter149]

I always loved the American Flyer steam whistle billboard.

[@stevenmiller5696]

Great fun presentation! Thank you

[@ronaldclemons1206]

Such a great video to watch and listen too, thanks for sharing!👍🚂

[@bobconrad5632]

I agree, Whistles rock!

[@wolf_among_sheep7875]

You mist the wonderful horn sound from the Original Veranda, sounds great with the dual speakers! Great Vid RBP!!!

[@ajmayowskijr]

I am impressed at the size of your train budget 👍

[@christophercddelrosariocoish]

I love diesel locomotives with the P3 airchime

[@markgoetz8616]

Love the Daylight

[@dang5166]

I like the Train Whistle sound nice video

[@garygreene578]

Hey Chris, great idea to feature the bells and whistles! My favorite thing too!

[@ericwilliams2619]

Extraordinary sounding whistles and horns 👍🏻💫💫💫💫💫 awesome KZbin channel and Extraordinary comical guy

[@jamesmelchin2873]

This video was thoroughly enjoyable. Let's see more ! Thanks Chris

[@RBPTrains]

Thanks for watching!

[@Isamium777]

The N&W Hooter whistle has got to be my favorite. Or for the Horn's the Nathen P5 (Cause I live near NS trackage (1 hour Drive) even if I do HO scale I do really like O scale cause some of my early times with model trains is O scale and I still have some left (Even got one nearly a year ago) Keep up the good work RBP.

[@user-ye4ux1hl2u]

So so glad to have you back and making videos brother. Missed your channel.

[@drewharman1690]

I’m so glad I went with ho scale getting back into this hobby! I like the O scale steamers and love the detail but when it comes to modern diesels nothing is prototypically accurate in O scale! Even the bells and horns don’t match the prototype!

[@davidcole333]

It's all about the Big Boy for me, all others are fighting for 2nd place.

[@Coreyt1976]

Great video Chris

[@northpennvalleysteamrailroad]

Awesome 😊

[@DisneyWish2023]

I love the K5LA

[@alevans51]

Sweet!

[@LITOWB]

My favorites have got to be steam whistles from UP Big Boy n 844 n NW611. Especially the Big Boy cuz I’ve heard it in person

[@jimsutter149]

I had a MTH pacific steam engine that had a great whistle.

[@Mr300bowler]

I like the steam whistles

[@MarkRobertson-zh5yz]

Pennsylvania railroad my home railroad, and even though it was not in this, The Polar Express because its my favorite Christmas movie.

[@krtrains123]

The king of noise

[@christsogaugetrains]

I have the 1950 version since I was a kid that was many years ago

[@seanhobbs3624]

Wow! I need to go back and count all the different trains and shots. Did you do it all and a week? Great video! Thank you for sharing.

[@carlmiles8655]

Chris long time HOPE you and the family are doing well love the video those whistles are AWESOME GOD BLESS AND THANKS FOR SHARING ;-)

[@Ace_6.7]

PRR three chime superiority 🗣️

[@lynnkay6982]

GREAT video, I agree, horns and whistles, awesome. Love the tunnel, did you make that.

[@ArtsModelTrains]

Awesome video, must have taken forever to film with having to switch all the locomotives on / off the layout! Besides the big boy I think my favorite is the Class A, just so distinct.

[@arthurleino]

Like the Steam whistle on my LionChief Alaska Pacific.

[@TrainBrain-yg8tl]

Fun fact I live in Pennsylvania and Strasburg is only about an hour away from me!

[@railfanningjay]

Good to know none of these locomotives hit the ground this time

[@RBPTrains]

Yup. I think the Big Boy was the type of thing that happens once and the lesson is learned!