Ray,
You are pretty handy.
Maybe you can fit one of Barry’s drives under your Buddy L.
Or pick up a used Big Hauler and one of Barry’s drives.
The two Big Haulers I have cost me next to nothing. Bought the sets cheap on eBay and sold off what I didn’t need.
Ralph
Ray Dunakin said:Well, MY Annie only 'suddenly stops' if I 'suddenly' turn off the power.
...I'm a little concerned about the reports of the Annie suddenly stopping.
tac
Terry,
I must admit that you are simply unlucky not to have received one of Mr. B’s lemons. He should become a wholesale fruiterer as he sells so many lemons. Usually his lemons are only slightly blemished and are able to be fixed, but in many cases they arrive rotten to the core. Look to the many new old stock Connies arriving with either loose gearbox mount screws or split drive gears. I am sure the recipients of such delicious pieces of bitter fruit do not believe themselves to be lucky. The only locomotives that I have received that were relatively unblemished (apart from the very fragile suction hose mount brackets) were the two late model Shays, the Climax and my three Heislers. Everything else has received some measure of bruising or QC issue.
So enjoy your state of utopian bliss. I seem to recall that you had some terminal issues with your Accucraft Garratt, plus some issues with Aristo-Craft locomotive detail parts, or were you simply just lucky like the rest of us. You have responded with your experiences and I also feel that I have the experience to comment on mine, which generally run contra to your, indeed, very unlucky situation.
Once rebuilt, I have no issues with performance from the Anniversaries and find them very sensitive/responsive to sensible throttle settings, even down to a snail's pace crawl.Oh goody! 
It’s a brand new can o’ worms for the new year!
(http://images.dpchallenge.com/images_challenge/157/47063.jpg)
-Brian
Ray,
the Aristo C-16 has always had separate sanding and compressor plumbing. I cannot recall any moulded on piping detail on the boiler. Screws retaining the cab roof have been in use on every LGB mogul since inception around 1987 and are not particularly unattractive on the Aristo model. The Anniversary has numerous unattractive features, but the overall impression is a nice looking loco, although not prototypical for other than the ET&WNC model. Surprisingly, the Annie was never made in the Tweetsie roadname, which is the one most would be aware of. The Tweetsie was only available as a poorly detailed setbox loco with non-Annie detail parts and poorly cast drive wheels and plastic rods. If you purchase a Big Hauler, then only consider the Anniversary model as it is by far better value than the setbox models. The only common drive components are the lead truck, the motor and the gearbox. The chassis, cylinders, rods, wheels and axles are all specific for the model, whether Big Hauler or Anniversary.
Drat! Apparently this is the wrong time to buy a loco. Everyone’s out of stock on both brands, prices have shot up, and Bachmann’s doing inventory and won’t ship to dealers until the end of the month. 
Tim Brien said:Well, my Garratt didn't have any problems that either blew jets of flame out of the stack, or melted the rims off the wheels, like a couple of people did, in fact, it always ran rather well, in spite of the faults that were hidden until Rod Blakeman found out about them when he used it to formulate the design for the last batch built. THAT was when we found out that the front steam line could never have been admitting more than 50% of its capacity, due to it having a very serious kink...
Terry...you had some terminal issues with your Accucraft Garratt, plus some issues with Aristo-Craft locomotive detail partsl.
It now runs very well indeed, as you may have seen on the youtube movie - easily hauling 100 pound trains for about 3/4 hour or so.
The Aristo-Craft locos suffer from not being gibby-proof, something I prove a couple of times a year when my pal Broos and I do school demo’s up on base - the-air hoses are particularly susceptible to being pulled off. Luckily I seem to have established a direct line to Navin for resupply…but mechanically none have been a problem.
Let’s be honest, on my track they have an easy life - dead level [so I can run my Gauge 1 stuff] - no switches [not a good idea with an autistic visitor who LOVES to see wrecks of all kinds], and gentle running [hardly ever more than fifteen cars, and even that looks faintly ridiculous on a 75 foot circular track].
Still, I have no doubt that the problem-monster is saving it all up for me big-time, sometime, but I really wouldn’t be wishing bad vibes on anybody at my time of life.
There really isn’t that much time left to be grouchy, eh?
Best wishes from East Anglia
tac
Terry A de C Foley said:I think that says it all, combined with the fact that you have a large stable of locos, so one single loco does not get run to death.
[i][/i] Let's be honest, on my track they have an easy life - dead level [so I can run my Gauge 1 stuff] - no switches [not a good idea with an autistic visitor who LOVES to see wrecks of all kinds], and gentle running [hardly ever more than fifteen cars, and even that looks faintly ridiculous on a 75 foot circular track].
When I was starting out and exclusively indoors on level track I rarely had any problems other than shipping damage. Even with lots of R1 curves and switches my USA dieasel and Annie steamer performed well, even backing trains with truck mounted couplers through R-1 S-Curve switch configurations I rarely had any trouble that wasn’t caused by my own stupidity.
Outdoors with big grades and track on the ground in ballast is much more challenging.
Ray,
Take the advantage of “Nothing Available” as a time to reflect on what you really want. Then when the Large Scale train shows start you can look for the best deal of what you want. Putting ice in your pockets will prevent you from letting that money burn a hole in the pants pockets, however, light colored pants will cause people to look at you funny.
Jon Radder said:I have to agree with you, and noted as much in my post. The hardest my stuff gets run is on a train club open day - quadruple-heading Dash 9s and SD45s with fifteen cars IS a bit sad, I guess. But it looks impressive if you peek through your fingers.
Outdoors with big grades and track on the ground in ballast is much more challenging.
And oh to HAVE BIG grades and track on the ground in ballast…sigh.
tac
Ray Dunakin said:If you want one to paint, I do have a 2005 Christmas Annivesay 10 Wheeler with simple gear...Cheap....?
Drat! Apparently this is the wrong time to buy a loco. Everyone's out of stock on both brands, prices have shot up, and Bachmann's doing inventory and won't ship to dealers until the end of the month. :(
Am I wrong, or are people now calling the “cheap version” that comes in sets an Annie. I always thought that the Anniversary Edition indicated the compicated metal rods/valve gear and the extra piping / backhead detail. Everything else is just a Big Hauler.
Terry A de C Foley said:Jon Radder said:I have to agree with you, and noted as much in my post. The hardest my stuff gets run is on a train club open day - quadruple-heading Dash 9s and SD45s with fifteen cars IS a bit sad, I guess. But it looks impressive if you peek through your fingers.
Outdoors with big grades and track on the ground in ballast is much more challenging.And oh to HAVE BIG grades and track on the ground in ballast…sigh.
tac
www.ovgrs.org
There are days I’d gladly trade. I’m going to have to do a lot of maintenance next spring. I kind of neglected it this year.
Jon Radder said:That's the way I see it. Ralph
I always thought that the Anniversary Edition indicated the compicated metal rods/valve gear and the extra piping / backhead detail. Everything else is just a Big Hauler.
Jon,
several years ago, Bachmann ‘introduced’ the Christmas version of the Sam’s Club(2005?) as a basically Anniversary model. The Sam’s Club version had all the Anniversary details including Annie body/boiler moulding (it is very different to the basic Big Hauler version), Annie chassis, cylinders, drivetrain including upgraded wheels and metal valve gear and rods. For some time this was the only pseudo-Annie model available. The 2006 Sam’s Club reverted back to a botched up Big Hauler with coloured lights inset in the boiler moulding. About 12 months ago B’mann introduced the White Pass set box and a Christmas setbox, which have a locomotive which is an Annie, albeit with simplified metal rods. It is an Anniversary model packaged in a set box.
The original Annie model is now not contained to just a standalone Spectrum model. A White Pass 'Annie' or Christmas Annie from a set box will cost from $100 upwards, depending on eBay demand.This is an auction that Ray Cozza has at present (15 mins to run). He always breaks up White Pass sets.
Thanks Tim. I’m still not clear on exactly what “simplified metal rods” means. Looking at the eBya photos I think that means just the cross-head, but no valve gear. The pictures are not very clear, so I might be mistaken. If that’s the case, it’s not really an Annie in my book.
Jon,
Anniversary refers not just to metal rods but a complete body/chassis upgrade. Some Anniversary models were supplied with the simplified rods and some with the more complex Walschaerts type. It all depended on B’mann’s policy at the time. The Russian blue Denver & Rio Grande model came as a simplified rod setup, whereas the later Bunble Bee version had the more intricate rods and valve gear. Walschaerts valve gear alone does not imply that it is an Annie. One needs to place a Big Hauler next to an Annie to see that they share basically very little commonality in the way of spares. About the only common parts are motor, basic gearbox and tender drawbar hook. Everything else including even the smokestack, pilot and headlight mouldings are different.
"Simplified’ implies an inside Stephenson type valve gear as used on some prototype. I say ‘simplified’ in that B’mann did not even imply the external valve actuating rod and crank visible on many other models including LGB moguls and Aristo C-16. Not all models had outside valve gear arrangement.
This is a freelance 4-4-0 based on a Sam’s Club ‘Annie’ showing a freelance adaptation of necessary internal valve rodding not present on the B’mann model.
(http://www.lscdata.com/users/tim_brien/_forumfiles/aaDa.JPG)
Or it could have been as simple as this -
(http://www.lscdata.com/users/tim_brien/_forumfiles/aabBi.JPG)
