# My low-down on Bachmann's SD40-2, DC (8 wheel drive)



## jzrouterman (Nov 27, 2010)

Today my new Bachmann SD40-2 engine arrived. I had heard a lot of good things about it, but be that as it may, I put it through a bunch of tests and the following is the result of my tests. I first ran it alone. Very smooth but not quite as smooth as an Atlas or an Athearn RTR, but very smooth just the same. This engine also ran very well with other engines. I ran it with two Atlas GP38s. I then ran it with an Athearn RTR GP35, an Atlas RS36, and an Athearn blue box GP38. All four at the same time.

It did very well. I then ran it with an Athearn RTR SW1500, and again, it did very well. Very smooth, no jerking. I then tried it with a Proto GP20, but the proto put a tremendous drag on it, so I stopped. These tests were done on 22 inch radius track. I then used it in switching. I found that during uncoupling operations, that it would sometimes derail the car it was pushing while the couplers were offset. However, once I put another car between it and whatever car I was pushing to drop off, it worked great.

I then repeated all of the above on 18 inch radius track. Regardless of speed or direction, as it would round the curves, I could hear the wheel flanges rubbing against the track, even though it still did very well. Like when pushing cars on the 22 inch radius track, when pushing cars on the 18 radius track, it worked best if I put at least a 40' car between it and the rest of the cars. It worked even better with a 50' car between it and the rest of the train. 36' cars next to the engine would derail in the curves. When pulling them, if the 36' cars were next to the engine, they would sometimes derail in the curves also.

On my layout I have a combination of Atlas snap switches, Atlas turnouts, and peco insulated switches. My engine did very well going through the turnouts and the Pecos, both while pulling and pushing alike. Going through the snap switches went well with the exception of one. I had to spend a little time on the switch doing some filing work, but eventially my engine made it through it okay as well. 

There were a few places on my layout where it would suddenly shut down. These same places had no effect on any of my other engines at all. But I went ahead and spent an hour cleaning the track anyway, so I guess that was the problem, as it never lost power anymore. All of the switching and coupling/uncoupling operations on both radius tracks were done with just the SD40 doing it alone and then done again along with two helper engines, an Athearn RTR GP35 and a blue box Athearn GP38. I then had all three pulling a twenty five car freight. 

These operations went very well on both radius tracks, but went far superior on the 22 inch radius track. My entire layout's wiring method is common rail with Atlas controlers and selectors governing it. The power source I used is from four different sources. An MRC Power Command 1500, an MRC Sound and Power 7000, and an MRC Tech 4 Dual Power. My engine worked well with all of these, both alone and with other engines alike. There was even about five minutes that I ran all seven engines together, and this new engine ran like a clock with no jerking and was completely in sinc with the other six. 

The body detail and paint job on this particular engine is comparable to an Athearn RTR, an Atlas Trainman and some Protos. Though really nice, it is not in any way prototypically exact, but then neither is the price. In the final annalises, this is a good, smooth running, engine, though not as smooth as some Athearn, Athearn Genises, Atlas or Kato engines, but it's really nice nevertheless. 

I'm real happy with it. It's going to make a real nice addition to my railroad. This week my wife is going to put it's new name on it's sides. Though I'm not a model railroading expert by any means, if I had to rate this engine, (1) being the worse and (10) being the best, I would rate it a (9).

Routerman


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## gc53dfgc (Apr 13, 2010)

very good reveiw. I had a Bachmann sd40-2 but i burnt the decoder up while trying to get the motor to run quieter by cleaning it. So I decided to just replace the motor (just to be sure that was not what freid the decoder) and to buy a brand new Soundtraxx Tsunami TSU-1000 sound decoder for it. It is nearing its final stages of reassembly and I have been able to test it with the motor running and the sound and both run nice and smooth and the sound is superb. I had to get rid of a lot of the body weight to make room for the new decoder and the speaker so am not sure of how well it will pull cars after this. worst comes to worst I can just buy another sd40-2 from them and use them as a pair.


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## tankist (Jun 11, 2009)

nice write up.

i had one in conrail colors. not a bad runner at all, but its lateral sway during direction of travel reversal was somewhat annoying. detail was also not bad, but still leaving bit more to desire. what was immediately a jusnk is the decoder, cheap peiece of ... required immidiate replacement. i don't like EZ couplers either.
but then again i paid only 42$ for NIB one shipped to my door and the engine easily worth that money.


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## gc53dfgc (Apr 13, 2010)

tankist said:


> nice write up.
> 
> i had one in conrail colors. not a bad runner at all, but its lateral sway during direction of travel reversal was somewhat annoying. detail was also not bad, but still leaving bit more to desire. what was immediately a jusnk is the decoder, cheap peiece of ... required immidiate replacement. i don't like EZ couplers either.
> but then again i paid only 42$ for NIB one shipped to my door and the engine easily worth that money.


I know what you mean. The decoders have got to be the most limited out there or very close to it. I dislike the EZ-couplers as well as they tend to fall apart and stop working after a while of running. I got a silver series covered hooper from them and it has nice couplers probably some new version of the ez couplers they look nice. not plastic spring thing and they have a nice color to them as well.


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## jzrouterman (Nov 27, 2010)

From what I've been able to determine, there are two different models of the SD40-2 that Bachmann offers. One with DCC and one with DC. The one I purchased is DC. But then again, I've noticed that not all roadnames in this model are available in DC. It seems that most of what is offered is DCC.

Routerman


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