I did.

No news on it yet, but the grapevine is talking about a large shipment of MTH stuff being on its way to the major dealers soon, so there's a good chance that at least some of them will list out what they received, either here or on their e-mail lists.

---PCJ

I was just going to post the same question. I still have not heard anything about my big boy. I ordered at legacy station. Could they be stuck on those container ships in the ocean?

I spoke with Rich (MTH sales)  mid December. He said the Big Boys were done but there was trouble locating a shipping container. I got the impression they were hoping to get them in a container in January.  At this point they will get here when they get here. Jeff

Does anyone know of a dealer that still has the restoration version available for pre-order?

@ScoutingDad posted:

I spoke with Rich (MTH sales)  mid December. He said the Big Boys were done but there was trouble locating a shipping container. I got the impression they were hoping to get them in a container in January.  At this point they will get here when they get here. Jeff

I know this is a redundant question, but has anybody heard if MTH was ever able to find a shipping container for the Final Run Big Boys and whether they are on the water to the States yet?

I asked Jeff at Mr. Muffin’s earlier this week. Here’s what he said. “They're on the water right now. MTH says the oil burner will be here late March, and the coal burner late April.”

Other dealers have recently told me September or October.

@CyrilW posted:

I asked Jeff at Mr. Muffin’s earlier this week. Here’s what he said. “They're on the water right now. MTH says the oil burner will be here late March, and the coal burner late April.”

Other dealers have recently told me September or October.

Thanks for the update CyriW! We’ll see if they actually arrive late March/April with everything going on with the supply chain issues and port delays. September/ October might actually be the right time frame.

Thanks for the update! Ordered mine from Trainworld...now I have to start adding O-72 curves to the layout to accommodate it.

Got notification on the MTH Daily E-Newsletter a couple days ago that there's one version of the Final Premier Big Boy scheduled to arrive into MTH's facility by April 15. Lucky for me it's the version of the Big Boy that I ordered! We'll see how long it takes to get to Trainworld where I placed my preorder.

Just got an email from Mario's Trains saying the 4014 oil burner was in.  Dealers should be getting the Final Big Boys soon!!

Best,

Gino Fabbricante

I have one of the Big Boys on order. I am wondering about the warranty for this loco. I left a voicemail at MTH some time ago and didn't get a response. I just put it on the back burner and forgot about it. Probably will put in another call to get the warranty clarified. Here is what I think is the warranty. Anyone else out there see it differently? .............There is a 1 year warranty.......If an issue arises in that period, I send the loco back to the dealer I purchased  it from. If the dealer can't repair it or replace it, I am to receive a full refund. Is this correct?   I am not responsible to search out a MTH authorized service center and be told that since I did not purchase the loco from them they will not repair. If they would repair, I would probably have to wait forever.  I don't want that hassle.  Wouldn't my dealer that I purchased it from just send it back to MTH to get their money back?  The dealer is not really losing money????

@jini5 posted:

I have one of the Big Boys on order. I am wondering about the warranty for this loco. I left a voicemail at MTH some time ago and didn't get a response. I just put it on the back burner and forgot about it. Probably will put in another call to get the warranty clarified. Here is what I think is the warranty. Anyone else out there see it differently? .............There is a 1 year warranty.......If an issue arises in that period, I send the loco back to the dealer I purchased  it from. If the dealer can't repair it or replace it, I am to receive a full refund. Is this correct?   I am not responsible to search out a MTH authorized service center and be told that since I did not purchase the loco from them they will not repair. If they would repair, I would probably have to wait forever.  I don't want that hassle.  Wouldn't my dealer that I purchased it from just send it back to MTH to get their money back?  The dealer is not really losing money????

Below is the exact warranty info spelled out from the MTH website:

M.T.H. Limited Warranty Registration

Warranty Terms On Products Produced Before June 1, 2021

As of June 1, 2021 products purchased from an Authorized M.T.H. Retailer are covered by this warranty provided the product was manufactured within one year of the date of purchase. This warranty is for the original purchaser and is non-transferable.

M.T.H. products purchased within one year from the date of manufacture are warrantied against defects in material or workmanship, excluding wear items such as light bulbs, pick-up rollers, batteries, smoke unit wicks, and traction tires. M.T.H. Authorized Retailers will replace, refund, or credit the defective item if:

• The item was manufactured within the previous year
• It was purchased from an M.T.H. Authorized Retailer

IMPORTANT NOTE: Transportation costs incurred by the customer are not covered under this warranty.

This warranty gives you specific legal rights, and you may have other rights that vary from state to state. Specific questions regarding the warranty may be forwarded to M.T.H. Directly.

As of May 1, 2021, any item sporting a Shipping Date that reads: Delivered APR. 2020 or earlier will be considered an Out-of-Warranty repair. On each subsequent month after May 1, 2021, any item sporting a Shipping Date that reads earlier than the previous month and one year or earlier will be considered an Out-of-Warranty repair. For example, as of May 2021, if an item has a delivery date of: "Delivered: MAY. 2021", it has one year of warranty coverage remaining until MAY 31, 2022; if an item has a delivery date of: "Delivered: APR. 2021", it has 11 months of warranty coverage remaining until April 30, 2022; if an item has a delivery date of: "Delivered: MAR. 2021", it has 10 months of warranty coverage remaining until March 31, 2022; and so forth.

Purchases from eBay or other online auction or selling sites will NOT be covered under warranty unless the seller is an M.T.H. Authorized Retailer.

See our Website www.mthtrains.com to identify an M.T.H. Retailer near you.

M.T.H. products may be registered online in advance of warranty coverage by clicking the link below. The original sales receipt and the conditions below must be met regardless of whether the product is registered on the M.T.H. website in order to obtain warranty coverage.

To register your warranty, click HERE

Products manufactured after the one-year cutoff from the date of purchase are not covered under any warranty by M.T.H. Electric Trains. The manufacture date of an item can be verified on the item's detail page “Delivery Status" field on the M.T.H. website (www.mthtrains.com).

Warranty Terms On Products Produced After June 1, 2021

Items shipped after May 31, 2021, will carry a one-year warranty from the date of manufacture for the MTH Authorized Retailer who sold the product. Any defective items should be returned to the dealer where purchased.  If the dealer has trained service techs, they can offer to repair the locomotive (MTH will supply warranty parts as needed free of charge. If parts are not available a refund will be given to the dealer).  MTH will no longer provide repair service on any products at its corporate headquarters.  If an item is defective and cannot be repaired, it needs to be returned to the original purchasing dealer and the end-user can obtain a refund from the retailer. The original purchasing dealer will then return the item to MTH for credit.  Customers may want to request that their items are tested by the retailer prior to taking the item home. All items are tested by M.T.H. Electric Trains prior to shipment from our production facilities.

M.T.H. products purchased within one year from the date of manufacture are warrantied against defects in material or workmanship, excluding wear items such as light bulbs, pick-up rollers, batteries, smoke unit wicks, and traction tires. M.T.H. Authorized Retailers will replace, refund, or credit the defective item if:

• The item was manufactured within the previous year
• It was purchased from M.T.H. or an M.T.H. Distributor by an M.T.H. Authorized Retailer

IMPORTANT NOTE: Transportation costs incurred by the customer are not covered under this warranty.

Purchases from eBay or other online auction or selling sites will NOT be covered under warranty unless the seller is an M.T.H. Authorized Retailer.

Per Mike Wolf's retirement announcement letter sent June 9 of last year outlining the service policy for the prior year's sales, that policy still stands. Items can be repaired by MTH's Service Center Network and the new parts business will provide needed parts to the service centers free of charge.  The new warranty terms outlined above do not apply to products shipped prior to May 31, 2021.

Determining The Date Of Manufacture

All items will be considered an Out-of-Warranty repair if that item did not fail within one year from the month and year of manufacture. The Date of Manufacture can be determined by reviewing an item's detail page on the M.T.H. Website.

How To Obtain Warranty Service

Items qualifying for warranty service should be returned to the M.T.H. Authorized Retailer where purchased.

If the retailer has trained service techs, they can offer to repair the locomotive (M.T.H. will supply warranty parts as needed free of charge. If parts are not available a refund will be given to the dealer).

M.T.H. will no longer provide repair service on any products at its corporate headquarters.

If an item is defective and cannot be repaired, it needs to be returned to the original purchasing M.T.H. Authorized Retailer and the end-user can obtain a refund from the retailer. The original purchasing retailer will then return the item to M.T.H. for credit.

Customers may want to request that their items are tested by the retailer prior to taking the item home. All items are tested by M.T.H. Electric Trains prior to shipment from our production facilities.

Just got my invoice!  The are expected at dealers next week!

Returned home from work today to find my invoice waiting in my Inbox.

Good thing I have a spot reserved for parking that box when it comes

(I think )

---PCJ

Just got my order confirmation/invoice from TrainWorld!

Mine is on its way arriving Thursday - Thanks @Mario's Trains

Mine will be shipped from Trainworld tomorrow!

I just received an email from Mario that the original big boy is in stock. Those who ordered that version shouldn't have to wait much longer

Can someone please post a picture of the tether coming of of the engine.  There was movement in my packaging and it got rammed into the styrofoam.  It looks ok, but I'd like to have a point of reference to compare it to.  Thanks

@Jack Texas Special posted:

Mine will be shipped from Trainworld tomorrow!

Did it arrive? Do you like it? Pictures?

Can’t wait for my restoration version.  Ordered it from Legacy Station.

FYI - there is another topic about the Big Boys.   I posted a bit about mine having trouble over a curved switch - seemingly now resolved.

Just wanted to share an uplifting and positive first experience story about these engines.

FWIW, a local club member brought their brand spankng new just arrived Bigboy Thursday night to the club and wanted to check it out for problems (they had grown worried with seeing problem forum posts) and the great news, this one was perfect. Not a single cosmetic or running problem. Super slow speed operation out of the box was silky smooth and  no jerkiness. Also, we fired up whistle steam and had an absolute blast.

Sorry, no pictures or video but again, just wanted to say I saw first hand, checked it out with the new owner, and they had an absolute blast running this new beauty of an engine for a few hours at the club.

I received mine last week (original coal version, 2 rail).  This is my most expensive train purchase ever, and I don't even model the Union Pacific.  I could not be happier--it is truly a work of art.  It's on display now since I currently have no place to run it.  The signed Mike Wolf certificate is a nice touch.

Not yet mentioned is the way these locomotives came wrapped in the styrofoam. MTH usually wraps their locomotives in a foam sheet then plastic outer wrap before inserting them into the styrofoam cavities. Mine came with a paper inner wrap. Those who have handled their Big Boys know what happens to paper wrapping when unboxing such a heavy unit:

That's from gently unrolling the locomotive on a couch cushion. You can see that paper is not going to survive in any useful fashion when I re-box mine, which will be necessary since my bare-bones loop doesn't have room to store extra locomotives indefinitely once they've been test-run. If this peculiarity is universal across the production run, I suspect it's due to the glossy paint not interacting well with the standard foam sheeting. Not wanting to leave this finish in direct contact with the plastic wrap was its own head-scratcher till some experimental searches (on Amazon) revealed the potential of microfiber cleaning cloths as a suitable inner wrap:

This pack contains three thin, slippery 16" square microfiber cloths (and a smaller 6" one). I expect to use the first two overlapping inside the plastic sheet for the locomotive, and the third by itself should be big enough on its own for the tender. If these are good enough to clean your plastic-eyeglass lenses without scratching them, they should be good enough for the BB's paint job once it goes back into the box. Since it'll be some time before I'm able to test-run it (the room is rather cluttered right now, and safe-lifting practices are necessary to get it to the nearest track ) I have time to collect any input regarding this choice before it's actually put to use.

So, any consensus?

---PCJ

Any word on the 30-1840-1 Railking Imperial version delivery date and the 30-30001 Water tenders? All I can find is August 2022.

Brad

When i called legacy station, Brian said add 3 months. So maybe october.

Looks like the Railking version 30-1840 which was scheduled for August delivery is not going to be this year now. Trainworld just updated the estimated arrival to Dec 31.

Well crud

Thanks for the update B rad.

First loco I have ever pre-ordered. I did it through Trainworld as well, and I was wondering if the time was fast approaching to "hit the tin" with some coin.

Looks like my "saving time" has been extended to the end of the year, and I won't have to sell-off that kidney after all!!!

Peter......Buco Australia.

Looks like 30-1840 and the water tenders moved again. Trainworld now shows March 31.

Brad

😢

Thanks again for the update B rad........still have a guy standing in the wings waiting to buy one of my kidneys if the "Big Boy" arrives early. 😒😒

Peter.....Buco Australia

The Imperial Railking Big Boys should be at MTH by now according to the shipping schedule for items arriving through July 15. The schedule says after a quality control check they will be on the way to their respective train stores to fulfill their preorders. I pre-ordered mine from @mariostrains so hopefully we will here something soon. The auxiliary water tenders were not on the list so hopefully they will be on the next shipment.

Brad

I received a phone call a couple of days ago asking if i would still want mine if the chalk mark was not on the front of the boiler.  I said absolutely.  I can always pencil it in with a grease pencil. So with that question i think they are here state side.  Legacy Station is the best.  

@Southern4501 posted:

I received a phone call a couple of days ago asking if i would still want mine if the chalk mark was not on the front of the boiler.  I said absolutely.  I can always pencil it in with a grease pencil. So with that question i think they are here state side.  Legacy Station is the best.  

Someone created decals.  I can't remember who but they are out there.

@Southern4501 posted:

I received a phone call a couple of days ago asking if i would still want mine if the chalk mark was not on the front of the boiler.  I said absolutely.  I can always pencil it in with a grease pencil. So with that question i think they are here state side.  Legacy Station is the best.  

I did not know that but I am still all in as well. Thanks for the info.

Brad

@MartyE posted:

Someone created decals.  I can't remember who but they are out there.

That is good to know. Thanks Marty.

Brad

@MartyE posted:

Someone created decals.  I can't remember who but they are out there.

eBay: 202718729288 is an O-scale decal set with the chalk decals for $12.

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

eBay: 202718729288 is an O-scale decal set with the chalk decals for $12.

Thanks John. I Just checked that out and would be perfect if needed.

Brad