I have Lionel FM Trainmasters from the Postwar, MPC and Lionel PWC era with Railsounds. I also have a couple of Williams Trainmasters along with one K-Line. Its obvious I like these engines. For my money I think the postwar Lionel's are the best runners/pullers. They are smooth and powerful and there is something about that postwar mystique which make them irresistible even with the bicycle horns. Some purists complain about the wire handrails not being prototypical but that never has bothered me in the least. In terms of running capabilities the Williams FM's are my next best bet. They have two can motors and are tremendous pullers and seem like they are rocket propelled. As has been posted if you want to slow down those jackrabbit starts it is necessary to rewire the motors in series. Also, I am not crazy about their horn and bell sounds. The bell sounds like someone is banging a pipe with a wrench. The K-Line FM I have is in the Lackawanna livery and for sheer looks it can't be beat and for the purists it possesses prototypical handrails. It too is a great puller with two can motors. I have a couple of the MPC era Trainmasters and even though they too are good pullers they are not as smooth running as the postwar FMs. Additionally, they run with the plastic worm gears which are prone to cracking. I've had two go down with that problem and I needed Chuck Sartor, a long time member of this forum, to replace those gears with brass gears. Last but certainly not least come the PWC Trainmasters with Railsounds. They look great and run great and have great engine sounds. I would put these ahead of the MPC era FMs in preference. I don't have any of the most recent Trainmasters so I can't comment on them. Hope this helps.
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