Weaver brass steam engine-need an education

Weaver was pretty good about putting engine details on the end of its boxes.  Checking those out for each engine you desire to purchase will give you a pretty good idea about the questions you ask, except for disassembly.  However, I am not aware of any major disassembly issues.  Once you do purchase an engine, or are just leaning toward a specific engine, many here are willing to answer your specific questions.

Chuck

I had 2 Weaver brass engines.   One was a mikado which I have since sold, and the other an 0-4-0 which I still have.   I can't speak to the electronics since mine are 2 rail and I put my own electronics in them.    They were straight DC when I got them.

Disassembly on my two is very straight forward typical brass.    There is one long screw that goes through the cylinder saddle and attaches the boiler to the frame.   There are two small screws at the back and bottom of the cab that attach the rear of the superstructure to the frame.     most of the time the front screw is hidden above the lead truck which then must be removed first.     Some brass locos have removable ash pan bottoms  under the fire box which also must be removed, 2 screws each.

Mechanically again these are traditional scale loco drives.    The motor is mounted toward the rear in the firebox with a drive shaft going forward into an Enclosed gearbox attached to an axle, generally one of the middle axles.    The gearbox contains reduction gearing to allow higher motor RPM at slower speeds.    This type of drive is in most Brass steamers.     There is no gearing between axles.    the side rods (connecting the wheels) transfer the power from the geared axle to the other axles.     

They are probably different from what you see on Lionel, but I would guess not any harder to work on.

Weaver evolved over time with what was available. Early engines featured just a reverse unit. Some early models have QSI sound and eventually they went to TMCC. Started with TA Studios SAW boards and the last ones had EOB. The final runs came with ERR boards. Sounds were pretty basic and generic. The smoke units varied. Check the end flap on the box. What’s inside as far as components is usually listed.

As far as working on. Not bad. Well made. Like anything brass. Careful handling is a must. But I wouldn’t consider them overly fragile. The engine shells generally remove easily and almost all the electronics as far as boards reside in the tender. I own a couple of New Havens. I5 Hudson and I4 Pacific. The Pacific is a beauty with a lot of added detail and has ERR. Sounds are basic. The Hudson came with a TA board. I added EOB and a better sounding Rail Sounds board. Both are good runners.

Dave pretty much summed it up. If they had a smoke unit most were Suethe non puffing types. Maybe a few at the end had fan units. Gearing can be all over the map. My Hiawatha Baltic 4-6-4 has 44-1 gearing so runs very slow, especially for a passenger engine. Gearboxes can be swapped out though. Also realize not all steam engines are brass. Some like their 2-8-0s are diecast.

Pete

Pete, made a good point. Often times in searching for Weaver on the auction sites. Their die cast ones come up also. The mentioned Consolidation is one and they also did a run of Pacific’s. Originally built for K-Line and follow their building practices. They did a Pennsy 0-8-0 that maybe die cast as well.

Yes, the Pennsy C1 0-8-0 is a die cast model.

I love my Weaver Brass B&M Pacific.  Came with a fan smoke unit, and I can't remember if it came with EOB cruise or not.  Has ERR in it now.  Runs good but I'm not a fan of the Weaver gear box, hasn't given me trouble but it's a little sloppy.

I can't thank you guys enough for the education! I've seen the Dreyfuss Hudson and the Baltimore ohio Cincinnation that really caught my attention,among others. I just didn't want to get something and not have any education or research on it. Those look to be pretty pricey and I'd hate to ruin one. I think the most difficult engine I've every tackled was my 1-700e Hudson. Maybe more nerves than anything. Its the most expensive engine I've bought. But, I did accomplish taking her apart and putting her back together. In my opinion brass is probably the next step in evolving in the hobby. The looks and quality look amazing.  Again,thank you everyone! Have a lot to think about for sure.

Prices are all over the map theses days. In the past year the same engine sold for 400 bucks at one site and 1800 at another. Patience is the key. You may get lucky at an auction site but train shows or here are your best bets.

Pete

Weaver did in diecast USRA (sort of) pacific, the generic 2-8-0 and the PRR C1 0-8-0

They many more different ones in brass including a PRR 2-8-0 (H10) and a slew of other PRR engines.

They also did a bunch of different passenger engines.  

There is a lot to choose from.

@Donnie Kennedy posted:

I can't thank you guys enough for the education! I've seen the Dreyfuss Hudson and the Baltimore ohio Cincinnation that really caught my attention,among others. I just didn't want to get something and not have any education or research on it. Those look to be pretty pricey and I'd hate to ruin one. I think the most difficult engine I've every tackled was my 1-700e Hudson. Maybe more nerves than anything. Its the most expensive engine I've bought. But, I did accomplish taking her apart and putting her back together. In my opinion brass is probably the next step in evolving in the hobby. The looks and quality look amazing.  Again,thank you everyone! Have a lot to think about for sure.

Weaver/Williams Brass are the "backbone" of my fleet, purchased over the last 1.5 years.  The Weavers generally sell for more than the Williams but in most cases they offer more feature and details.  All of the above is great advice.  As noted above some Weavers were Die-Cast but most were Brass.

What I want to add is the price for "similar" Weavers can vary greatly.  It is a supply and demand situation at work.  The Dreyfuss Hudson is moderately priced in terms of Weaver.  The Cincinnatian is at the High End with some recent transactions over $1000.  Also as noted depending when it was produced determines features and hence price.  Many of them were available without sound, so look at that carefully before you purchase.

One of the more expensive Weaver I have purchased is a Hiawatha Hudson.  I will use this as an example.  The one I purchased was the first run without sound.  It is based on the as built version (model # 1080-LP).  The second run added features and has the Mars light and a revised paint scheme which represents 1942 and later (model # 1094-LP).

If you are getting into Scale 3R there is one other thing to consider, please see this post I put up a few days ago.

https://ogrforum.com/...8#170922644602499318

I believe this is a "somewhat typical" Brass/Die Cast Comparison.

Hope this helps!