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Bachmann Model Railway Locomotive Reviews -
Class 166 DMU
Author
"rmg1919"
(forum member)
 Bachmann
Class 166 3-Car DMU - Thames Trains
(31-026)
Rating
8/10
A brilliant model of the
Class 166 that can be found up
and down the
First Great Western Link franchise
from Paddington to Reading and Oxford and beyond. Also
comes in the older Thames Trains livery.
Details:
Model Number: 31-026
Running Number: 166 209
Price Range: £69-£77 inc
VAT
Other Liveries: First
Great Western Link (31-027)
Firstly, the detail is
very good. There are all the warning stickers you'd expect, and
the exhausts and detail beneath the coach is pretty good. The
two end cars feature directional lights (yellow/red) with the
power being picked up off the nearest set of wheels.
The centre car is the power car, and is much heavier than the
two 'dummy' cars. There are no traction tyres, but the car has
no problem with getting going, and the noise made by the motor
is (in my humble opinion) quite similar to that made by a real
166.
The set can be upgraded to DCC, but with 3 cars the use of
function-only decoders (or some form of cable interlink) would
be necessary in order to retain the directional light
functionality. As the 3 cars form something of a permanent set
it doesn't seem unreasonable to consider joining the cars rather
than going to the expense of function-only decoders. Though this
would obviously involve some modifications to the body shells.
The livery is very good too - the only thing missing is some
dirt and grime on the roof from the exhausts. With such a white
roof, it takes quite a bit of bottle to smear some grime on --
so am waiting until I have built up the courage.
Handling is very good - with no real problems, though super
elevated sections do pose a potential problem for the 166, with
the centre car being so much heavier than the others the risk of
derailment does seem higher, based on my experiments.
Speed is good too - not sure if it's too scale, but doesn't seem
ridiculous like some. Plus (based on DC) seems as comfortable at
slow speed as at full speed.
Overall, a great DMU - with plenty of detail, and a good
presence. The lighter livery (plenty of white) makes a nice
contrast to the darker coloured stock currently available. The
only 'issues' are the yellow directional LEDs and the slight
inconvenience that will be a DCC conversion.
At a Glance
Good Points
-
Good detail
-
Directional lights
-
Good power
Bad Points
Overall
Highly Recommended - an
absolute must for those modelling a 166 era and geography. In
fact, will hopefully get myself the FGWL livery one too...
Resources
Related Links
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