REVIEW: 10133 Burlington Northern Santa Fe

[WesternOutlaw]

Continuing my reviews of the most fantastic and "train-tacular" train sets among Lego's official line-up, this next review is that of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) GP-38 Locomotive.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) GP-38 Locomotive

Vitals:

Set #: 10133

Theme: Trains / 9V

Year Released: 2004

Piece Count: 407

Minifigs: 2

Track: none

List Price: $40 (USD)

So, what exactly is a GP-38?

A GP-38 is a United States diesel locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division (EMD). The engine was built between the years 1966 through 1971. Its 16-cylinder engine provided 2,000 horsepower. 706 of these locomotives were built, 700 for the U.S. and 6 for Mexico. Lego would offer one additional 9V model in 2004, designed in L-scale.

Let's take a look at the boxart during Lego "9V glory years":

Images on the back of the box sparked the fancy of many Lego Train fans:

The same picture as the front of the box appears on the instructions, but on the baskside, a construction image with motor is shared:

The set includes a small set of "see-through" stickers to decorate the completed model:

I always liked the fact that this set includes not one, but two minifigs, a Conductor and Engineer. Is that Max and Steve? (Murder on the Emerald Express characters)

The set also includes a set of grey walkie-talkies for communication, and a few extra parts:

Here's an image after building the main unit without the extra components. Notice the yellow baseplate:

The front control area has a single blue chair and printed 1x4 tile:

Looking at a side view of the same main build, it doesn't look too impressive:

Extra components include the back section, front cab, and the top of the front. The bright orange is a fantastic color for the small train windows:

Here's the front once the additional components have been attached. It's already starting to look better:

And the completed main build:

As with most Lego Trains, each wheel assembly is a separate build. These two are identical:

Also is the middle section/unit that is attached upside down to the bottom of the main build:

Attaching the wheels and middle section, the BNSF begins looking like an actual train:

Toward the back is the SNOT assembly with two red lights (unfortunately, these are not meant to light up):

The completed nose section. I love the colors:

An added bonus is the use of three 1x3 doors on each side of the unit:

And the completed locomotive two-tracks long:

NOTE: the stickers would really enhance the overall detail, but I never put them on.

The train does not include a 9V motor, but does have an addition two grey wheel sides to cover the motor wheels. Assembly is included within the instructions.

SUMMARY

The BNSF is a wonderful addition to the 9V line-up of Lego Trains. The colors are the most impressive feature including new dark green, orange, black, and light grey. What a fantastic color palette! Secondly, the fact that Lego offered an imposing U.S. diesel locomotive is outstanding, and I'm sure well appreciated among Lego train fans. The high level of details contained in this locomotive can be compared to the Santa Fe Super Chief, but unfortunately, the roof of the main motor unit does not detach like that of the Super Chief, decreasing playability. I like to think that the colors make up for this shortcoming. This set originally sold for $40 (USD), which at the time, I thought was pricey. Now, I would not hesitate to buy this set for the same price given Lego's 2009 mark-up.

I hope you have enjoyed this Lego Train Review. Please share your thoughts.

[BillytheKid]

The review is good and it's a good looking train. Don't understand me wrong. But after personal reasons, I have bad memories about this train....... To be honest I hate this train, cause of those bad memories.

That's why I pulled mine apart..............

[prateek]

this is my favourite Lego train, but i never had it... good review. BTW, how are the 1x1 cheese slopes connected at the front of the train?

[WesternOutlaw]

how are the 1x1 cheese slopes connected at the front of the train?

It's a SNOT assembly. The cheese slopes are attached to one standard orange and one green 1x2 brick.

[Darth_Legois]

I always liked the fact that this set includes not one, but two minifigs, a Conductor and Engineer. Is that Max and Steve? (Murder on the Emerald Express characters)

So I grew a creepy orange beard overnight?

Nice review, Looks like a cool set.

[MetroiD]

Well, you beat me to reviewing this one Very nice review, thanks for that.

On a sidenote: I think it's important to know that there's been rumours about a structural fault with the BNSF train, same like the one that one of the Super Chief's passenger cars has. The upside-down SNOT middle unit between the wheels of the engine makes contact with the 9V curved rails and so may harm your LEGO. The best solution would be to replace the black plates with tiles, which rectifies the problem.

I can't comment on the above rumour, since I haven't received my set of 9V tracks yet and my BNSF is not arriving until August. However, I'd be happy if it's of any help to you guys.

[Cavannus]

Nice train, I especially appreciate the fact that Lego explicitly used a real train as model. The funny thing is that there are both the Lego train logo and the BNSF company logo on the same train!

This set made me go back to Lego train, and I even bought a second one that is on my desk at my office.

P.S. - Good review that is not only a description of your nice pictures.

[legotrainfan]

On a sidenote: I think it's important to know that there's been rumours about a structural fault with the BNSF train, same like the one that one of the Super Chief's passenger cars has. The upside-down SNOT middle unit between the wheels of the engine makes contact with the 9V curved rails and so may harm your LEGO. The best solution would be to replace the black plates with tiles, which rectifies the problem.

I can't comment on the above rumour, since I haven't received my set of 9V tracks yet and my BNSF is not arriving until August. However, I'd be happy if it's of any help to you guys.

I was just going to inform TheBrickster about this problem here when I saw that you had already mentioned it. That's not a rumour. That's the truth. The plate of my BNSF has been substituted by tiles. There was once a thread about my slow Super Chief. There I was made aware of the constructional flaw of the upside down construction. I also checked my BNSF and found out that it had the same flaw. I mentioned that in the same thread.

Anyway, great review, TheBrickster! I would be too lazy to take so many pictures since I'd have to half-disassemble my engine for them.

For those who want to know what it looks like with stickers, here you are:

Edit: By the way, I voted "train-tacular."

Edited May 21, 2009 by legotrainfan

[AwesomeStar]

Bother! You beated me to reviewing this, I'd just finished rebuilding it!

Thanks for the review, it seems Asya & Bobby and I will be adding our own versions.

~A.S.

P.S. I love this set so much!

[WesternOutlaw]

On a sidenote: I think it's important to know that there's been rumours about a structural fault with the BNSF train, same like the one that one of the Super Chief's passenger cars has. The upside-down SNOT middle unit between the wheels of the engine makes contact with the 9V curved rails and so may harm your LEGO. The best solution would be to replace the black plates with tiles, which rectifies the problem.

I was just going to inform TheBrickster about this problem here when I saw that you had already mentioned it. That's not a rumour. That's the truth. The plate of my BNSF has been substituted by tiles. There was once a thread about my slow Super Chief. There I was made aware of the constructional flaw of the upside down construction. I also checked my BNSF and found out that it had the same flaw. I mentioned that in the same thread.

Okay - lets get down to the bottom of this rumor, shall we?

I built my set to the instructions and placed the train over the curved track section of my layout. This is what occurs:

1) When the train is over the curve, the mid section does go over the inner portion of the track.

2) There is clearance with the "studs on bottom" middle section. It isn't much, but it is enough to safely clear the inner track without any touching.

I've tried to photograph the clearance as best I can. You can see from the pictture that there is about 1/8 of an inch clearance between the middle section and track:

[Freddie]

It's because the track is uneven that causes the problem to surface. Replacing the plate with tiles is still a recommendation, since the clearance margin with the studs is so small even a baseplate can make the engine "run aground" in corners, crossovers and switches. Using tiles here would give the locomotive decent clearance and solve the problem.

[paintballman413]

The BNSF is one of my most favorite Lego trains. the BNSF is so cool looking. same with the santa fe

[malinblue]

Review of 10133 in english

Regards

Edited April 29, 2010 by malinblue