Bachmann Trains - Spirit Of Christmas Ready To Run Electric Train Set - N Scale 0.5 Liters

I have put this little train up at work on a much expanded figure 8 track, as seen in the picture every year between Halloween and Thanksgiving 4 years in a row. It runs 9 hours every day, at a slow prototypical speed (faster would run better) 5 days a week for at least 5 weeks. That's over 1000 hours of smooth running. Putting up the track, I run the train at various speeds for testing puposes, and invariably I find some uncupling or derailing problems. Every time it is because when connecting a section of track, I've not set the track correctly into the little crimp connector on one rail or the other. Usually, i've slipped the rail on top of the connector, and that leaves a little bump, or heigth difference that causes the derailment. It's so slight that casual observance doesn't show it, but running my finger over the joint, lets me feel the problem. I make the correct connection and look for the next problem area. Once it runs smoothly for 15 minutes at speed, we're good for the rest of the season. The students (High School) love it, as most haven't seen a "toy" train set, especially not one so small. The only problems I've had, is sometimes the kids bump it, or because I've got it running so slowly, it may stop at the track cross over, as there are some unpowered parts of the track there, necessary to keep the track from shorting out. A small bump with my finger to get it going, and adjusting the speed a little higher (so that it will coast through the crossing) and we're good for the reat of the day. I feel this is not the fault of the set, but rather design constraints for running the system. At night we "park" it near the back and turn it off. Our running speed is with the dail at about the 11:00 position. There is only one connection to the track from the power pack, even with all that extra track. I've ordered an extra set, in case this one goes out and I think I will use it this year so I can take the "old" engine apart to clean and lube it for another 1000 hours of use.Again, I can't emphasize enough, with cars so small and light, you need a well laid out and maintained roadbed, with out any bumps and good electrical connection. Also, yes the cars don't auto couple when they come together, but they do look and hold together better than the older "Rapido" style couplers. As I just leave it running all day, I appreciate the look and reliability of the newer "knuckle" connetors, even though they are harder to connect and rerail.As for engines that don't work, it gets it's power from the tender, which doesn't weigh much; mayby adding a little weight would help. I know I clean our track every year, and that seems to help with the power issues that might arise. We also live in Colorado, so the dry air may be a factor.

Full disclosure... I'm NOT a model train expert, but that may actually be why I love this set. It is easy for me to set up and take down, it runs nicely unattended around a small Christmas tree, overall is a great little addition to our Christmas decorations. Originally purchased this set in 2015 and for Christmas 2018 it will be making it's fourth annual appearance.I've taken care to gently clean the tracks and contact points on the train before storing. Thankfully, no problems whatsoever.

Track went together OK. Like trying to build a Swiss watch, especially me coming from Lionel O gauge. (Really big trains.) Rest of setup went well. Engine started right up. Went fine from to slow to fast.However... the couplers are total JUNK!!! None of them will work, in ANY combination. I did get one car to attach to the engine for a bit, but nothing after that. Makes me wonder WHY they included a bag of replacement couplers. Am I supposed to replace bad couplers for THEM??? These trains are SO tiny that no standard screwdriver, even jeweler's ones that I have would fit the screws. I can't even see the screws without a magnifying glass...Manual said go to the website for help. Website said call... They said don't take their defective stuff back to dealer. I'd send it back to Amazon. But the likelihood of them sending me a replacement that would work is negligible.I guess I'll wait till the day after New Year's and call Bachman to see if they have a fix.Pity... The engine is really cute...UPDATE: Train had had complaints for coupling problems since at least 2019! Why are they STILL shipping defective units and spoiling Christmas for so many people???

For the uninitiated, the locomotive used in this train set is Bachmann's 0-6-0, it has many variations. It is not a bad model for what it is (holiday and regular variations cost around $80 as a single unit at the time of writing this). Bachmann EZ track isn't amazing stuff, I am not a fan of their power connector/rerailer combination as every one I've used becomes warped, which can't mean good things, as there is electricity flowing through from the wires to the track. Why is it getting hot enough to warp? The rerailer is also curved track which is just. Odd. The track gets dirty from oxidation quickly. You can just clean with a microfiber cloth. Don't use abrasive on the track. The passenger cars in the set are cute, but very lightweight, which leads to derail and decoupling issues. The couplers are janky and of inconsistent height, I had to swap a few trucks around to get couplers together that were same-ish height so they would stay coupled. The locomotive needs lubrication occasionally (sold seperately) and has many small parts that can jam up with pet hair, be careful if you have pets or are running the track on carpet (just don't ) of fibers. This set is not supposed to have a caboose. It is a passenger train. Passenger trains don't need a caboose because the caboose was the car on the end of a freight train where the switch and signal crew people would stay. And passenger trains included crew quarters among the passenger cars.It is a nice set, but the overall quality does not match the price tag.

The media could not be loaded. The couplers on the stock cars and coal car do not work. I tried different combinations of coupling stock cars (to each other) and to the coal car, and no such luck. The only way I connect the cars was to lift each car and then manually couple them. It took some time but eventually got all them connected and had no issues running them around the track. Other than that coupler issue, I did like the Christmas scheme and it made a good decoration around our tabletop Christmas tree in the office.

Bought for a Christmas Train display. Quality and detail are very nice.