pennsy484 posted:It is too long compared to the prototype but by how much? I am curious to hear from those with an eye for this (perhaps due to owning other models of H10s) whether the extra length is noticeable. So by how many scale feet is the Legacy h10 too long?
Its noticably too much Jeff.
Melgar gives a measurement of 9.25" from pilot beam to the rear cab wall. The Lionel has a measurement of 9.25 from the front of the smokebox to the rear cab wall. This translates into too long of a wheel base as well.
Simply looking at pictures and videos of each model shows the differences quite clear without the need for a ruler.
In addition, the angle of the belpaire firebox is also too steep on the Legacy model.
This locomotive fits in the ranks of other early 2000's Lionels that were stretched beyond the prototype. The recent Legacy ( formerly TMCC) pacifics have a firebox that rivals that of a bigboy as well as the old TMCC K4.....& 1/2 that fortunately, Lionel was able to replace with the more correct K Line tooling for Legacy.
If your counting rivets ,the MTH is by far the way to go. I chose to back off on the rivet counting for the reasons I mentioned above. For the money, the legacy version is feature rich and runs superb, Low speed performance is as good as it gets.
