What you've got there, mate, has been a staple of American starter layouts for over 70 years. Alongside the 0-4-0 Docksider saddletank, it is probably the most common first locomotive bought for children just getting into the hobby. There's been a few versions and makes through the years; Athearn, Model Power, Tyco. It's cheap, it's nasty, but it's how 99% of us got started. Edit: 80 bloody quid for that?! Were you drunk? Did you lose a bet?

@chugwaterjack4458

29 күн бұрын

My Varney Docksider "Little Joe" could pull about eight streamline cars around my layout. The addition of some of Walthers' lost-wax castings really dressed it up (in my imagination).

@bobjohnston9154

29 күн бұрын

My first loco back around 1960. It was yellow, an Athearn I think

@Skasaha_

29 күн бұрын

The majority of the cost was probably shipping, given the list price he found was 37.

@anthonymiller8979

23 күн бұрын

I wonder how many also got totally dismayed with model railroading after trying one of these and never went any further in the hobby

@paulstubbs7678

23 күн бұрын

@@anthonymiller8979 That brings back memory's from my childhood of trains that would not start, and when finally coaxed, just flat out, then guaranteed to derail.

I’ve got one of these in a Pennsylvania Railroad livery. After 20+ years of use it still runs like a champ

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

Blimey that's good to hear - what brand was that under?? Thanks for watching - Sam :)

@dannagy546

29 күн бұрын

​@SamsTrains back in the day, the original model was a rubber band drive all wheel drive. Originally came out in the 60s I believe. They were cheap models but the original band drive models were insanely fast, often derailing at full speed and flinging themselves across the basement

@alexanderstrubeck6253

29 күн бұрын

@@SamsTrains It’s under the Model Power brand like the one in your review. I’d say it’s from the 80’s and was handed down to me from my brother. Apart from the rear coupler being broken it’s in very good condition. It does stink up the room after I run it for a while

@batmangamer3122

29 күн бұрын

​@@dannagy546the Athearn Hustlers were amazing, I turned mine into a Railroad drag racer!

@nimbus7727

29 күн бұрын

@@batmangamer3122 oh that sounds hysterical! Did you add any flame decals?

Hey! I have an idea. Instead of destroying the locomotive, you can use it as a scrap scene and set it up in a boneyard. Superglue the axles and make it look all rusty and abandoned, maybe with scrappers cutting away at it.

Hornby says," Thank you, AliExpress!"

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

hahahaha!!

@Alpha-oo8

29 күн бұрын

@@SamsTrains oh this is funny, for some reason Sam’s laughter gave me a google prompt to translate it to English, and clicking on it simply capitalised the “H” in hahahahaha!

@Gatherleymodeller.

29 күн бұрын

@@Alpha-oo8hahahaha!!

@Gatherleymodeller.

29 күн бұрын

很好！

@hazmiscool

29 күн бұрын

@@SamsTrains make the motor fail!

The reason for the odd 'bulb+LED' combo is that white LEDs are quite a recent development electronically. Red were the earliest to exist.

You sure did get hustled.

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

haha sure did!!

@sarahboettcher3266

27 күн бұрын

​​@@SamsTrainsI wanted to say this is a vintage American model train also you got scamed by the guy who's selling it

I was appalled that the box omitted the unique feature of " creates a smell like burning scalextric and urine" and went with "extra duty" instead

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

I know... that's a feature they could've marketed! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

The original Hustlers were produced by Athearn with a metal chassis with an outside frame and rubber band drive on both axles. The frame was easily split to install new rubber bands. At a then USD price of 4.99 or less, these speed demons could launch themselves off the layout in any curve. When Lionel got into HO scale in the early sixties they had a gear driven version. Both featured single trumpet horns on each side of the hood., the body was a tension fit. The later cloned MP versions were / are ideed rubbish.😢😂

@chugwaterjack4458

29 күн бұрын

I remember my Hustler and the speeds! I'd put it up against Sam's Speed trials any day. Regrettably, Athearn put the same awful drive in their F7's and GP-9's, with the resulting pulling power of a mouse.

@KBY30

28 күн бұрын

Five bucks is about as much as this thing is worth lmao

Oh, this is a fascinating one. The tooling is from the 1960s (at the latest) and was originally sold by Marx. Marx was an American toy company that traditionally catered to the very bottom of the toy train market. The Marx switcher bore a striking resemblance to the even older Athearn Hustler, introduced in 1957. The Marx version has the full side skirts you see in this example. I don't remember if Model Power ever actually sold this model but they probably did. Model Power was a clearing house brand that sold rebranded merchandise from other, usually foreign manufacturers. Their very best locomotives in the 1980s were made by Mehanno, who do reasonably good work at a low price point.

@itsconnorstime

29 күн бұрын

Sam did another video on a Aliexpress steam loco that was originally a Piko model.

@TomPrickVixen

29 күн бұрын

@@itsconnorstime You ment 2!

@_molls

29 күн бұрын

I got one of those!!! I got one of the OG Marx engines in a Santa Fe livery, and despite its age, still runs like a champ all these years later haha

@SamsTrains

28 күн бұрын

Thanks a lot for sharing some background - it's a very interesting situation! I am wondering what the story behind this knock-off was! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

@jballew2239

21 күн бұрын

Somewhere I have the very same "Marx" made switcher you mean, and have had it since the 70's. Yes, this looks like a very poor copy of the Marx original.

These are for sale at our train shows for about $5 CAD (2.88GBP)

The dark opening... lol.

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

haha!! xD

🤣🤣This has all the hallmarks of a post-bottle of red wine on a Saturday night purchase.

I will say one, tiny thing in its defense: the horn-hook coupler is supposed to spring to one side, not return to the center. That's how they stay locked together. I'm pretty sure that this is the latest incarnation in a long line of similarly cheap and nasty Hustler "models". You reviewed a rubber band drive switcher some time back which might be related to it - or maybe not, I'm not going to bother tracking that information down right now.

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

Thanks for sharing - it did seem to work okay to be fair! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

I'm glad this loco has 'opened your eyes' because, did you even look at the picture on the website? It was so clearly a piece of cheap tat; no added detail, unpainted wheels and a less than convincing appearance. I thought you were going to say that it turned out to be clockwork!

wonder if Sam knew this literally is the tooling of the first ever ready to run HO scale train. You can find these in the US usually for $2. Shell is pre WWII. And slight correction. Most model train wheels are nickel plated brass.

Here’s an idea: take a long segment of straight track, set it up to go out a window, then send that piece of junk out said window at full power

These are at least 30 years old.

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

Oh yeah at least - probably much more - you can tell by the look of the molding! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

@karlyoung3275

28 күн бұрын

Think mid 60s originally

@MrWolfSnack

19 күн бұрын

30? Try 60.

@darkwood777

14 күн бұрын

The design is reproduced from a Marx toy train set from about 1952 when Marx trains began using plastic shells. Southern Pacific was one of their railroads offered. Lots of other companies used the molds over the years. Model Power, Tyco, Athearn, etc. Kind of nice to see these still being made, but obviously they are toys. To compare them to a modern model locomotive is unfair.

The 'EXTRA DUTY LOCO" line, rather than 'Heavy Duty' on the box made me laugh pretty hard

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

hahaha I know!! ;D

@porcelainthunder2213

28 күн бұрын

Should be spelled “doody”

@kiwitrainguy

2 күн бұрын

EXTRA DUTY LOCO and only one axle is powered.

Sam I have a box of left handed screwdrivers for sale. They are yours for the bargain price of 89.99 plus 10.99 postage and packing. A bargain!

@chugwaterjack4458

29 күн бұрын

Do they come with the attractive odor?

@rivergladesgardenrailroad8834

22 күн бұрын

love it

@kiwitrainguy

2 күн бұрын

Don't for get to throw in the dehydrated water.

When mum says: "We already have model trains at home"

As others have mentioned, the body was developed by toy company Marx in the 50’s. After they went out of business, the tooling went to Mehano, and they made a cheaper chassis to sell these as cheap starter models through AHM, Model Power and Bachmann. The chassis has continued getting cheaper through the years, swapping metal axles for plastic, a 5-pole motor for a 3-pole and then an even cheaper 3-pole, dropping the nickel plating, and then swapping the lead weights for zinc. Model Power was the last company who dared to sell these along with the much worse Playart 2-6-0 and other very cheap models with old tooling.

As the only real down to earth model railway reviewer who will go out of the way to bring us videos of extreme products I can wholeheartedly say I feel for you, this is a proper pants down promotion! I kind of know how you feel because I felt the same way when Hornby tucked me up a while back, what doesn’t destroy you makes you stronger, you will be rewarded in the future and look back and laugh, thanks for sharing.

Looks absolutely ancient. I would imagine Ali Express purchased some new, old stock from some forgotten warehouse. Model Power has a pretty dismal reputation here in the U.S. known for producing poor quality, unreliable (i.e. junk) rolling stock and locos

IIRC Model Power went out of business in 2014. They sold some decent N scale stuff, but their HO range was mostly junk that had been in production since the 1960s.

Not right after the Broadway Limited Blue Goose 😭

@paulcaswell2813

29 күн бұрын

Can't see much difference. They're both US cr*p.

@SamsTrains

28 күн бұрын

haha yeah - quite a contrast!! ;D

I don’t own any trains, I’ve never had an interest in ever having a model railway but your videos are some of my favourite on KZread. I consider myself a collector by proxy through your account. I really enjoyed this review, made me laugh a lot

From the Blue Goose to… this. Whatever ‘this’ is. Gosh. This channel’s a rollercoaster, Sam 😂

It is a model power shunter. They used to be about 25$.

@michael32A

29 күн бұрын

Was thinking the same - I bought the steam outline equivalent, very akin to the USATC S100 switcher/shunter from WW2 but as an 0-4-0T, brand-new for roughly £15 in about 2005. The diesel outline Sam has, and the 'Plymouth' version with a lower bonnet, were listed at the same price. Aha! An old Railway Modeller magazine I have to hand shows me the UK distributor I bought that from would've been Shrewsbury Model Centre, showing "Li'l Tugger" (the steam loco), Plymouth DDT, and this Porter Hustler all listed at £9.99 plus £2 postage in August 1999.

@chasesrailwaylinesrr6447

29 күн бұрын

the tooling was actually owned by MARX Louis toys, A company that produced budget toy trains compared to Lionel in O and HO scale

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

Yeah that's what I found too - I really got done with this one! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

It's great of you to review a "cheap an nasty" from time to time, it shows your lighter side and gives us a chuckle or two.

That title says that i have a cozy new video to enjoy this evening! Thank you sam for providing me with such!

Hi Sam! Model power went bust in 2014, much of its stock got sold off to 3rd parties before the company was bought by MRC then Lionel. That said, this locomotive, which came from Marx who were bought out by model power and was never updated, was clearly built many years before, as noted by the horn hook couplers that it came with, these went out with the early 90's and were the one exception, as well as the wear and tear on the packaging and the smell, old dried out brushes. Also, in case you were wondering when I said Lionel bought model power, remember that derailing Lionel army hospital trainset you reviewed? Yes that's right, its coaches came right from model power's catalog, with the exception of metal wheels.

Those wasp stripes look like the results of the double slit experiment if the unobserved photons were on steroids 💀💀💀

One of the most amusing reviews I've seen for anything. I'm half wanting a video on seeking out and comparing the worst possible "models", a sort of what is the worst that money can buy series. Thanks Sam, obviously you're not happy about being fouled but it was a great video

I use your reviews for buying choices mainly, Sam. This one however was merely splendidly funny 😂 I love the way you can’t help giggling!

Wow! From the Blue Goose to this. A world of extremes indeed.

Good video Sam it’s a bit sad you got scammed. But for future reference I believe those couplings are known as horn hook couplings which are meant to point towards the right hand side.

@chugwaterjack4458

29 күн бұрын

We actually called them NMRA couplers, but the Association always disowned them.

The cab houses the traction motor 😂😂😂😂😂

Sam, its okay to admit you bought this after a night of way too much drinking at the pub😂

this was worth watching to the end, it was like so bad i had to keep going! well done and glad you did it so noone else has too.

What might be interesting would be a side by side comparison of that loco with the Triang Docklands shunter. From some of the other comments it would appear the designs hark from a similar period.

That looks like a Chinese knockoff of the Athern Hustler, which had all wheel drive powered by rubber bands. The motor is mounted longitudinally with extended output shafts where the flywheels would be mounted. The rubber bands were wrapped around the shafts to drive the axles which were almost as large as the wheels in diameter.

That Model Power loco likely dates back to the early 1990s which is why the box was so beaten up. The design with modifications dates back to the 1970s, perhaps 1960s by PMI.

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

Yeah it does look like it was made years ago! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

Sam, most of us from America grew up with these horrid all plastic toys. You can buy them for less than five dollars in the U.S. Sorry you paid so much for such a lowly product!

@SamsTrains

28 күн бұрын

haha I know - once I found that it was Model Power I was able to look it up... and I saw how cheap they were!! ;D

Not a really prototypical model of a Porter industrial switcher (Shunter). We call them “critters” here in the States. You would have been better off buying a Bachman 44-tonner or 45-tonner.

I got a lot of laughs out of this video, and yes I watched all the way to the end. I particularly enjoyed your use of the word 'foul', as in 'It looked foul.', 'It smelled foul.', etc. I'm just sorry it cost you so much. But I did enjoy the video, it was very funny. 😂

That's an ancient locomotive. We haven't used those type of couplers since I was a kid. Kadee couplers have been the default for many years, even on the cheapest models. And since we don't use NEM pockets in America, they can't be replaced easily.

Model Power was a starter for kids that want to start the model train hobby

@ROBERTNABORNEY

19 күн бұрын

And you have to wonder how many were turned off by the experience

@XBOXShawn12thman

19 күн бұрын

@@ROBERTNABORNEY RIGHT!!!!

I really wish you wouldnt give away how the loco is in the title. One of my favourite aspects of your videos is going on the journey, making the discoveries with you.

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

Sorry! Got to use engaging titles in order to make the channel work! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

@blinard1

29 күн бұрын

@@SamsTrains i understand the reason behind it. Titles can be engaging without giving away the outcome.

@caw25sha

29 күн бұрын

The thing is a lot of people are going to search KZread for reviews of a particular product and if the name isn't in the title it won't show up.

@blinard1

28 күн бұрын

@@caw25sha i dont mean the name of the product. I mean the outcome of the review. "Brilliant", "terrible" ect

@rivergladesgardenrailroad8834

22 күн бұрын

​@SamsTrains are you sure?

this is the next april fools loco , called " the lemon express "

great work another great video keep them coming

This is definitely going on the 'Top 5 Worst Locomotives' list at the end of the year.

We just to have those all the way up to the 90s

Made it to the end like usual Sam, this review was to amusing not to watch to the end after all!

I wish I had enough room to setup my model railroad again. My neighbor actually built an entire building just for his setup.

I look forward to seeing this loco feature in your Christmas special this year, "The Little Train that Couldn't, Wouldn't, Shouldn't" 😊

If it makes you feel any better, I've bought a medium-sized Sam's Trains T-shirt from the Bullman Emporium. I've chosen the sapphire blue colour. I've been wanting one for some time. Also, I've taken my first step into the N Gauge Railway world. I'm a tad nervous about handling the tiddly-fiddly track and Guard's Van I've bought from two different places. I'm afraid of causing damage by mistake. Uh, is it too much to ask if I could have a modeller's guide to N Gauge track, engines and rolling stock?

@grrfy

25 күн бұрын

easy, Buy Kato or Tomix track

@kellyashfordtrains2642

25 күн бұрын

@@grrfy I've already bought Graham Farish track. That's cheaper yet still 100% good quality.

As soon as I heard the start music I new it would be a dramatic start of the video I love you content by the way Sam’s trains

I've done stupid drunk purchases without realising what I was buying before, so I can see why you went for it 😂

I always enjoy the dramatic intros. Lol

I bought one in the noughties, it was £10 new. The model was regularly advertised in the UK modelling press as Bachmann USA. It's a very good runner, and great basis for customisation.

@SamsTrains

29 күн бұрын

Blimey - I'm hearing that this has appeared under all kinds of brands!! Thanks for watching - Sam :)

@borderlands6606

29 күн бұрын

@@SamsTrains On second thoughts it may have been Model Power. Bachmann USA sold a similar range of American outline diesels in the UK, that were a fraction of the price of similar British locos. The price is correct however.

As others have said, this is a very old design. I had one in the 60s, as a young teenager. Why did I have it, because I did not have much money, and it was very cheep, both in price and quality. It did run though for many years. The mechanism is the same, as well as the ozone smell. At some point they added the LED, after my time. I later found out that in addition to all the above, the body is actually closer to S scale, than HO. It always loomed over my other locomotives. Mine was the skirtless version with slide in frames/bearing sides.

Back in the mid 90's my grandma surprised me with one of these we weren't very close so I was happy to get anything from her and most of my trains at the time were cheap Bachmann, Life Like, & old Tyco so it fit right in...

Wow that's dreadul! I've never seen something so bad - I'm shocked that you actually kept this!

Sam, don’t forget to salvage the metal knuckle coupler out of this thing before you toss it; the coupler is worth more than the entire locomotive! 😅

@caw25sha

29 күн бұрын

And the brass of course . . .

@kiwitrainguy

2 күн бұрын

He could break it down for parts: the light bulb, the red LED, the motor, even the brass wheels could be used on non-powered rolling stock.

Take a shot every time Sam mentions Aliexpress lol 😂

Great video as always, Sam! I have actually got some quite nice stuff from model power but this really is terrible!

It's like old Mehanotehnika (AHM for Yugoslav market) locomotive. If you have one of these 40 years old "models" like me, burning smell and loud noise of a motor is such a common thing.😂

Ali Express, used, 80 pounds for a thing worth no more than $20, why!

Ah yes. The athearn hustler. A 1950s loco that is still going strong even if it was under new names

And they say Ebay scams people. No cap, that diesel looks like an average toy train set engine but the least detail applied. Also it has been so long since I left a comment in your videos

I played with 2 or 3 of these as a kid from my dad's collection. His were rubber band driven, went super fast, and couldn't pull but 3 or 4 cars... when they worked.

Hey! And if I want this just because I want it in my collection? Extra duty refers to an engine built specifically for double headers in shunting yards. Primarily is used to push mining trains down a branch line

Awesome video Sam's trains 😊

Better than that Dapol Class 121 which lasted 10 seconds before the drive shaft snapped.

That was my first new locomotive back in the 1990s. Horrible by today's standard but it was our 0-4-0 here in North America. I would be pretty sad to see it just destroyed. Mind you, they were 15.99$CAD back then.

Drunk impulse purchase maybe? 😂

That runs better than either of the two rapido 15XX panniers i had!! 😂

I have the same model but in CN version. Run great but can barely pull 3 boxcars. It will be part of a future project. Converting it to dcc,Add weight on it and make it capable to pull 7 hoppers. Simulating a little mining company shunter

My first model train locomotive as a child in the mid-1990s was very similar - A Hustler, albeit a red one by Athearn. All-wheel drive with the dreaded rubber-band drive system. Split chassis design, with pickup via the ends of the axles. Had plenty of enjoyment with it, though. Still remember visiting bookshops to find the smallest rubber bands available - we didn't (and still dont) have any official model train shops in Sri Lanka. Still got the loco in storage - it needs some TLC (and of course, new rubber bands), but the motor runs.

I just realized...don't leave this in a room with your other locos at night. It's a CIA plant, and will convert them to 240 direct power, then start an insurrection. Then one fine morning when you walk in the train room, they'll attack you, drag you down, check your mechanism, and rate you at abut a 2.1 before eating you. We've seen this with toy soldiers in a Twilight Zone show about sixty years ago (don't bash my shaky memory).

Good for a chuckle Sam.

So….. the loco was used in small switch yards and yards attached to companies. Coal power plants, lumber yards, chemical plants, grain elevators, etc. it was in used in the mid 20th century and there are a few still in use. I saw one around St. Louis lumber delivering lumber.

That industrial switcher resembles a Plymouth to be honest. Porter DE35 is the closest 'Porter' locomotive I could find. SP 6708 should be a GE U25B or GE U25BE ( depending on time period ).

I love these videos where Sam makes bitter remarks the whole time

Sam love the use of the Kings English to express you dislike of this product by the end of the video I was fairly sure that you weren’t impressed 😂😂😂

Omg i am shocked you spent £80 on a very bad train. I loved the start of the video well done 👍

"Extra Duty" is a spares loco, mostly for light branch traffic

This is the type of model that you give to kids to get them started in the hobby (the horn-hook couplers also denote that). We ordered and imported these in our own custom livery from Trainworld. At the time (2005/2006) we sold it for R95 (about R260 in today's value) in Pounds that is around 7 pounds sterling at the time.

can't wait to watch the worst trains of 2024 video! now if you don't end up brutally murdering it in that video (which is highly unlikely given your thoughts on this) it would be fun to see you try to 3D print new parts for this or improve its mechanism to attempt to make it a presentable model. that would make for a fun video.

These were always advertised in Railway and Continental modeller for 10 pounds about 25 years ago. I always wondered how good they were for something that cheap.

You'll have to turn it into a Steam Punk loco! Thanks for uploading.

My first loco was a 0-6-0 steam TT thingie made in 1966 by Tillig. Still running.

I actually enjoyed this review - I found your indignation very entertaining!

What a piece of tat! This makes the hornby beatles train pack look like a premium train set! Awesome video sam, I always look forward to your amazing videos!🎉🎉

After careful consideration Sam, I think what you reviewed here was a "MUTT" (AKA) "Frankenstein" because it don't look like any particular locomotive manufacture's bodywork unless it was made with spare-parts from all manufactures like EMD "the hood", GE "grill work", ALCO chassis, Fairbanks "Operators Cab".

Been completely fouled by a shoddy ripoff of plastic junk!

@ComengProductions

28 күн бұрын

To put it nicely! 😂

I used to have one that was in the Chessie System livery that gave me nothing but many years of service but when I made the switch to o scale a friend of mine kit-bashed it into an on30 scale gas mechanical boxcab. Maybe you could make some improvements by making it your own locomotive via the 3D printers and fixing the wiring.

Rather than being wired backwards, is the loco intended to be operated cab first, like a British Class 08?

Is that a 3D-printed adapter coupler on the end of the accursed train?

Well, Sam, to be fair - one thing I find really admirable about this review (and I have to admit to binge-watching your content from time to time, outstanding work, mate!) is your ability to keep a straight face looking at this model railway equivalent of a bad case of herpes, in immortal words of Glenn Fricker. That's what I call a professional attitude. :D