Originally Posted by Bob Bubeck:
If at first you don't succeed,......
My 'rebuilt' greyhound Challenger is back from Ohio and has been here for a few days with several hours of run time. Three circuit boards were replaced. It has been excellent so far. It does look real sharp with my UP heavyweights. I can get my sample of the Challenger to pace over a reasonable smph range using a combination of momentum (fairly high, 5-7) and train brake settings on my Legacy Cab-2. Thanks to Lionel service for the rapid and effective two week turn around time (including the time for shipping).
Final verdict:
The Challenger is the better model and a much better match proportionally with S scale rolling stock and the Lionel-AF heavyweights. The Big Boy is the better operator (w/TMCC or Legacy). I prefer the official train speed settings of Odyssey II over 'AF speed control'. Although the quality of sounds in the Challenger is quite good, I enjoy the Big Boy's sounds more. They're "deeper" and the brake squeal is present.
Bob Bubeck
Living with my greyhound Challenger has been and continues to be very enjoyable and (now) trouble-free. Operations are generally satisfying with Legacy. It is more sensitive to dirt on track than previous Lionel-AF and Gilbert AF engines and the occasional 'vagueries' encountered using Gilbert sectional track. The solution to these problems is to keep the track clean, to swap out any offending sections, and to pay some renewed attention to one's trackwork. My sample will negotiate any Gilbert turnout (or combination thereof) on my layout.
Other than that, I firmly stand behind my bottom line summary from before (see above). Under Legacy control the Big Boy (with Odyssey II) has smoother response to train speed selections and transitions using Cab-2 and smoother very slow speed control. The Big Boy's sounds are obviously and unquestionably of higher quality, too. Equally obvious - the Challenger is the much better model.
Glad I own one, but still some room for improvement.
Bob Bubeck
