N Scale 4-brand Locomotive showdown! Modern F3/F7 comparison & buyers' guide!

Here's an in-depth guide of the top 4 brands producing the venerable F-unit locomotives in recent years. Covers differences in quality, detail, paint, mechanicals and extra features such as lighting and DCC!
Grab a hot cocoa and sit back, we're gonna go wheels-to-wheels on these beauties and see what's REALLY under those shiny plastic shells!
Like & subscribe to catch more RnR content! Happy holidays, everyone!

[@Tipman2OOO]

Thank you for sharing I don't know why nobody else has so plainly broken down the differences on the brands

[@monarchco]

Would be cool to see scaletrains do locomotives that aren't just new ones. I don't think they should venture into steam yet, but I'd love to see stuff like E8s and GG1s and prototypes like a sharknose, or centipede.

[@lyndonfoster1090]

Thank you. Much appreciated the differences between brands and within brands. I hope you do many more.

[@ronhart4166]

I would love to see your layouts and MORE videos from your channel !!!! Your attention to detailed instruction and audio is the best I have found anywhere !!! IMOP Merry Christmas to you and yours also. Thanks for sharing 🚂

[@rustnrivets]

Ron, I've got two more vids to upload just this week! It's winter up here and with my fingers finally working again after that snowblower tried to take them, I'm darn excited to be rolling back into the yard with plenty of entertainment boxcars in tow. Thank you so much for watching!

[@djl9154]

Nice practical review, much appreciated. Thank You.

[@rustnrivets]

Glad it was helpful, I do my best! Thank YOU for watching!

[@rustnrivets]

Hey folks! KZbin is slow to process HD, but it'll be available today and you can see detail better on all these locos! Thank you all, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

[@JBG1968]

Just got a latest run of the Intermountain F7 in Pennsy green . The detail is even a little better and the number boards light up very nice now

[@hobbyking5364]

You answered my questions, good video.

[@davidbarr9343]

Great video! I live in UK but love North American Locomotives.👏😊

[@mistered1397]

Thank you for sharing your tutorials. I really do enjoy them. I have some locomotives that I need to clean, and lube. This gives me a more informed process to follow. Keep up the good work. 🚂🚃🚃🚃

[@Wolfie6020]

Thank you for a very detailed review. Most of my N-Scale locos are KATO with self installed Digitrax decoders. They have been running as smooth as silk for over a decade. I like the sound on the BLI too. Maybe time to update

[@tonyromano6220]

BLM has sound and details, Kato is a rock, good but not BLM. Also 1/2 to 1/3 the price.

[@graceanddiscovery5612]

Great stuff unique look at details.

[@bernardc2553]

Just ran across your channel Good review Great Job ..yah Its STILL that Christmas spirit Season so Merry Post Christmas lol

[@rustnrivets]

Happy holidays! All of them! And thank you :)

[@Eleven10]

Really appreciate this video- lots of great, clear info. I only have a couple Kato locomotives for now but absolutely love them for the reasons you’ve stated. Have you tried any of the scale trains offerings? I’m curious how you would rank them in this mix

[@N-Scale]

Nice Comparison !!!

[@oohwhop716]

Very pretty trains

[@paulmcmahon1129]

Nice reviews: thanks for taking the time to show how they all differ. Horses for courses?

[@Steve_Larson]

Great video. I see you are running Atlas C65 True Track, how do you like it? I would have went with C65, but number 5 turnouts were not available when I built my layout, so I went with Atlas C55.

[@praprotnikphilippe6640]

thank you very much. have you been able to switch the shells of kato and bli f units?

[@mdavid1955]

Very informative. What kind of DCC system are you using?

[@TheyCallHimDietSeth]

Really enjoyed watching this video- you've got a new sub! Thanks for sharing all of your knowledge on these models! You mentioned correct lubrication of the Intermountain locomotive at one point... could you make a video on the proper way to lubricate N scale locomotives?

[@rustnrivets]

I'll be doing strip & lube vids on some of the major steam & diesel locos on the market! There's no universal formula, and there's no one single correct way. Buckle up, I'll be dropping the first two strip & lube vids over the next couple days; one for Atlas GP7/9 units, one for Intermountain!

[@TheyCallHimDietSeth]

@@rustnrivets sounds great, looking forward to seeing them! And understood- I’ve been in model railroading long enough to know that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all for any aspect of the hobby!

[@rustnrivets]

@@TheyCallHimDietSeth Amen to that. Which is why these 101 videos are the most fun to make! Sure I could do a 5 minute lube video, but then you'd be left to figure out all the breaking points and weird mechanical quirks on your own! The strip-down and lube videos are like half an hour each haha

[@Stanf954]

Kato for reliability and BLI for detail level. Intermountain is a runner up. Need to show the Atlas Silver or Golg Series

[@rustnrivets]

The Atlas Silver & Gold are just a slight upgrade to Atlas Classic (getting the slow speed motor), but they sure did step up detail paint quality with those lines too! Will be great for a later video on differences between runs :)

[@CentralJerseyRailfan]

@@rustnrivetsAtlas Master. Both the Master and Classic lines have Gold and Silver variants

[@MP-oh5eo]

ins't that a gorgeous NP passenger set in the background at the end of your video ? 😎

[@mollycaz1]

What is a good starter set

[@elleryparsons2433]

If I had A Choice I would Get them All. But in Bn Soo Line Santa Fe And Great Northern.

[@bernardmueller5676]

Thanks. I wish you had shown how to open them, i.e. take the shell off.

[@g.w.7893]

Throw Rapido into the mix next time;)

[@davebnsfnscale4433]

Who makes Micro Trains F units?

[@mysticrailroad]

I'm going with BLI ABA set. :)

[@rustnrivets]

Would love to see them! Share them on the Facebook page? FB.me/RustNRivets

[@tommythomason6187]

What does BLi stand for? Never heard of it. The other brands, I'm familiar with.

[@OwenBudd1]

Broadway Limited Imports

[@tommythomason6187]

@@OwenBudd1 Thanks, I appreciate it.

[@petert9749]

Thoroughly enjoyed that - at 20 past 2 in the morning. Spending too much time watching Utube. Not sure of the current situation with spares, but historically Kato's spare parts service stood them out wonderfully. Most importantly brushes were obtainable (see Dave Ramirez kzbin.info/www/bejne/e2a6YauvZ7iAr68 Why didn't that go blue?). It means a loco lasts longer than its first set of brushes. Also, replacement motors can be obtained when magnets weaken. I have no experience with the very latest productions of N scale, but the Kato/Atlas pick-up system has historically been a winner. The weight of the loco kept the contacts between the trucks and the chassis touching, and the spring system did not crush or weaken. Hopefully the other three locos are as good as historical Kato and Atlas, and hopefully Kato and Atlas are not slipping. Long my spares be obtainable. Many of the folk who rely on these models to brighten up their lives are unable to service them. Trouble-free running and serviceability matter; and mostly they matter because of the challenging circumstances of many of the owners. Shall keep an eye on your channel and occasionally bore the fur off you. We who read have a responsibility to contribute at least something. Be encouraged: Peter

[@elleryparsons2433]

I’m Not too Heavy In Dcc Dc Yes.

[@bcsferromodelismo3822]

🇧🇷🚂👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@bobkohl6779]

Want great detailing go HO! 😉

[@Bnsfmodler]

Bachmann and bli are The same brand

[@jasonsharpe6505]

Which loco is most likely to melt?..... Broadway limited 😂

[@rustnrivets]

I've personally had failures from every brand above... I had a Kato motor seize after 30 mins out of box, and melt the motor saddle. Bad bearing. I agree/understand it hurts more when the price tag is so high, but BLI has been making regular runs and honoring warranties from what I hear, and they've grown their market share significantly in a time that Intermoutain's production has stagnated and Bachmann seems to be sleeping. I'm not averse to running them all into the ground in a grudge match, maybe that would make an interesting video!

[@tonyromano6220]

Broadway limited end of video.

[@Supernover1000]

Sry but the best are clearly minitrix Fleischmann and kato.. Fleischmann is piko minitrix is märklin the details are the best of the best .. kato has the best tram (in n scale)

[@owenlaprath4135]

Fleischmann is NOT to be confused with Piko, but actually made by Roco, and they were bought out by Roco many years ago. Roco has been making good long lasting N-gear gear since the 90s, but I cannot vouch for their earlier production. The always safe bet until the 90s was Arnold! Old Arnold was not always the prettiest or truest looking, but they ran flawlessly, which I cannot say some of my older Minitrix locomotives, which often stuttered along and needed full power to run. Arnold is now a Hornby brand, nothing to do with the old German models, but they are nice! Piko is a former East Germany (i.e. GDR) company that was privatised. They make very nice gear on the mid and upper end, but also have simplified entry level trains in G, H0, and N-scales at amazing prices nobody else offers. I have N and H0 Piko locomotives and am quite happy with them. Bachmann cannot hold a candle to anybody else, especially since their price advantage is gone. Bachmann costs as much or more than Kato as of maybe 10 years ago, so I know where my money is going (NOT to Bachmann).

[@robertrussell2166]

It’s Kato versus junk. BLIs F units are complete junk from horrible drives to incorrect dimensions.

[@JBG1968]

I have a few intermountains and they have been / are running very well for me . One of them for almost 20 years now

[@RR-or5ip]

The sound o this video is terrible and nearly impossible to hear

[@OwenBudd1]

No problem with the sound at all, maybe check your speakers/volume.