 Joined: 18/02/2008(UTC) Posts: 1,334
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Hello,
I would like to know your opinion about Brawa versus Märklin.
For me the advantages of Märklin are:
- more robust
- strong buffers
- great motors (Soft Sinus Drive)
- value for money
- good detailing
- very good painting
- very good current pick-up
- new steam locomotive building very good (since the first BR45)
- good service
Advantages Brawa:
- extremely detailed
- light inside the steam loks cockpit
- great look
- very good painting
- good current pick-up
- great steam era I loks (Marklin is almost not taking care of era I)
The disadvantages of Brawa:
- price, I think is extremely high compared to Märklin
- poor buffers in cars and locomotives. Easily damageable (for me this is really one of the bad points of Brawa)
- I have doubts about the Brawa locs value if one wants to sell it in second hand or as a collector item
- Does not have BR44, BR01 or BR50 (I like these locomotives a lot)
- Motors very good, but not as good as SDS. Also a little bit noisy
Disadvantages of Marklin:
- Does not have a color graphical Central Station with mfx, DCC and Motorola (Brawa does not have a Cetral Station, so this is not for comparison)
- wagons not as good as Brawa's (except for the buffers)
This is not a full listing, just an opinion.
What do you think?
One general comment on the current pick-up: When i used M track and analog or Motorola digital the tracks did not need to be cleaned so often as now with C track and mfx (esu decoders design?).
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Best regards,
Miguel
Mostly Märklin H0.
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 Joined: 01/02/2004(UTC) Posts: 7,453 Location: Scotland
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Hi Miguel. You are obviously a Marklin fan as we all are here. Having said that I think at present Brawa make better products mainy because they are reliable and the service you will get (or I have had anyway) from Brawa is far better than that from M.
Marklin for me is top overall because thay make not only locos
and coaches but also track and control equipment and therefore support their product with everything you need.
If you are looking for the best locos available then probably HAG Swiss models are top but with a very small range and hopeless customer relations.
With regard to selling secondhand I would not consider doing this as an investment.
C track does not need to be cleaned often but ESU decoders do not help and I think that the Brawa motor is almost as good as the SDS with Marklin just about winning the battle.
I own both Brawa and Marklin locos and like both. Extra cash for Brawa can give better detailing and a loco which should work straight out the box for many years but Marklin will always be my first choice when I know what I am buying has been tested and shown to be good.
David |
Take care I like Marklin and will defend the worlds greatest model rail manufacturer. |
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Joined: 18/02/2008(UTC) Posts: 1,334
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Hi David, yes I am a M fan as about 90% of my model train rolling staff is Marklin. I wish all the best to M.
I agree with you. For me Marklin is the overall leader in model trains and I hope M will also be the leader in the future.
Brands like Brawa are good to exist because they push M to improve.
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Best regards,
Miguel
Mostly Märklin H0.
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Joined: 22/11/2004(UTC)
Posts: 1,836
Location: Trumbull, CT
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Hello David
I have six Brawa engines, all steam. The detailing is great. The only real problem I find is a major amount of their models are plastic, and are much more delicate then Marklin. I can't let my grandson play with them. the small parts that Brawa has do add detail but at a cost.
I have found that my Marklin engines have better pulling power on steep grades which my layout has.
With Brawa at least in the USA they offer four variations for each model. |
Stephen(USA)
ETE,NMRA,MEA |
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 Joined: 15/03/2003(UTC) Posts: 9,593 Location: Australia
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Yep.. Brawa is fiddly and the bits come off easily not really suitable for younger people.... But the premium decoder is a very nice runner.. Interestingly Brawa is much cheaper down here than Marklin... |
Adrian Australia flag by abFlags.com |
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 Joined: 08/08/2003(UTC) Posts: 1,614 Location: Birmingham,Alabama
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I happen to like both.
Brawa for me gives greater emphasis on Era 1/2 locomotives.
I have to admit that you have to be very careful with Brawa because they are very detailed and have some parts that are fragile.
However Marklin is an Era III company, they have very limited offerings in early eras. For me this is the most significant choice in my new purchases.
I do like what they offer however, they are the leader in HO MRR.
This year I am ordering two Marklin Locomotives and ordering three Brawa locomotives.
So, My idea is to enjoy the best of both.
But in my Humble opinion for an Adult who treats his trains with care and Respect Brawa is better than Marklin.
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Train Collection Insured by "Croc's" with "Big Boys" as Backup"
CS/MS Digital Era 1/2
Apple Man iPhone / Macbook Pro / iPad - the end of the windows PC occurred on April 4, 2010.
Love those Era 1 Tank Locomotives - the more the merrier.
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Joined: 08/08/2003(UTC) Posts: 1,614 Location: Birmingham,Alabama
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Quote:[size=1" face="Verdana" id="quote]quote: Originally posted by Frostie<br />I happen to like both. Brawa for me gives greater emphasis on Era 1/2 locomotives. I have to admit that you have to be very careful with Brawa because they are very detailed and have some parts that are fragile. However Marklin is an Era III company, they have very limited offerings in early eras. For me this is the most significant choice in my new purchases. I do like what they offer however, they are the leader in HO MRR. This year I am ordering two Marklin Locomotives and ordering three Brawa locomotives. So, My idea is to enjoy the best of both. But in my Humble opinion for an Adult who treats his trains with care and Respect Brawa is better than Marklin. Here's a link to some of my pictures http://www.flickr.com/photos/22140776@N07/sets/72157603913916219/ I paid $370 for the EG1 and $480 for the Wurrtemburg Hh. Not a bad comparison in my opinion to prices of some Marklin items. |
Train Collection Insured by "Croc's" with "Big Boys" as Backup"
CS/MS Digital Era 1/2
Apple Man iPhone / Macbook Pro / iPad - the end of the windows PC occurred on April 4, 2010.
Love those Era 1 Tank Locomotives - the more the merrier.
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Joined: 08/08/2003(UTC) Posts: 1,614 Location: Birmingham,Alabama
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Quote:[size=1" face="Verdana" id="quote]quote: Originally posted by Frostie<br /> Quote:[size=1" face="Verdana" id="quote]quote: Originally posted by Frostie<br />I happen to like both. Brawa for me gives greater emphasis on Era 1/2 locomotives. I have to admit that you have to be very careful with Brawa because they are very detailed and have some parts that are fragile. However Marklin is an Era III company, they have very limited offerings in early eras. For me this is the most significant choice in my new purchases. I do like what they offer however, they are the leader in HO MRR. This year I am ordering two Marklin Locomotives and ordering three Brawa locomotives. So, My idea is to enjoy the best of both. But in my Humble opinion for an Adult who treats his trains with care and Respect Brawa is better than Marklin. Here's a link to some of my pictures http://www.flickr.com/photos/22140776@N07/sets/72157603913916219/ I paid $370 for the EG1 and $480 for the Wurrtemburg Hh. Not a bad comparison in my opinion to prices of some Marklin items. The Bavarian G 4/5H is one of the most beautiful HO locomotives that I have ever seen period. And as far as the sprung buffers, i really like that feature. |
Train Collection Insured by "Croc's" with "Big Boys" as Backup"
CS/MS Digital Era 1/2
Apple Man iPhone / Macbook Pro / iPad - the end of the windows PC occurred on April 4, 2010.
Love those Era 1 Tank Locomotives - the more the merrier.
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Joined: 01/02/2004(UTC) Posts: 7,453 Location: Scotland
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Hi Stephen (USA)
I agree with you regarding the plastic models and I only the buy their metal ones which are strong and the diesels are fine for kids. Extra detailing on the steamers and coaches does mean some care is required.
I like this firm and their website is good as is the information regarding new models. If they made track and controls they could easaily be number 1. but Marklin still have that position for me although the gap is closing.
David |
Take care I like Marklin and will defend the worlds greatest model rail manufacturer. |
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Joined: 25/09/2003(UTC)
Posts: 2,786
Location: ,
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I like Brawa models more for the theme or subject they use to choose ( ERA II)
IMHO mechanics sometimes looks poor , and above all quality of paint is not so good more precisely not very fine-grained pigments , however the choice of the colors is quite OK...
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Joined: 12/08/2006(UTC)
Posts: 9,277
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I find myself out that Brawa is much more enjoyment to watching them and also driving with theirs locomotiv. I have myself fullmetal Brawa steamlocomotiv with sound and they are just great...! No noise,pullingtractive is great too...! Goofy  |
H0
DCC = Digital Command Control
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Joined: 06/04/2008(UTC)
Posts: 1,573
Location: ,
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I do not own any Brawa. My 39355 OBB Taurus is missing a buffer. I don't know where it fell off. probably on the layout. I have looked forit.It maybe lost in lichen somewhere. I have a cheapie Piko and the buffers hold the bodyshell on. But it doesn't pull well.----No traction tires. We get what we pay for.
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 Joined: 17/07/2005(UTC) Posts: 260 Location: Viña del Mar, Chile
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As a DC collector and modeler I have the choice to compare specific models in several brands, and to my point of view brawa models are the best example of affordable metal models with almost brass like details.
When you compare brass models as lemaco, fulgurex, metropolitan etc. with mass production models the only brands that came close in detail are the best models from brawa, fleischmann, hag and some models from roco and marklin/trix.
In regard of running characteristic and only under DCC layouts roco is average the best (roco under AC layouts is not good at all, AC modifications mostly sacrifice running).
In regard of solid and robustness Hag is by far the most robust brand, marklin/trix is the second, brawa the third and fleischmann is the four.
Nevertheless we have to distinguish that not all models from any manufacturer are good, older models tend to be less detailed, not the best runners and more robust than new ones, this is almost valid for all.
In conclusion to my specific point of view and taking apart all brand fanatic considerations each brand has their pros and cons and nowadays it is very hard to award one as a winner.
Actually I own 120 locomotives from all popular european brands so I think it is a fair number to have an idea about their quality.
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 Joined: 28/11/2007(UTC) Posts: 8,226 Location: Montreal, QC
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Quote:[size=1" face="Verdana" id="quote]quote:Originally posted by Gustavo Villa
In regard of solid and robustness Hag is by far the most robust brand, marklin/trix is the second, brawa the third and fleischmann is the four(th). Interesting to note that Roco did not make the list. I would also tend to rate Fleischmann, Liliput and Hornby (Lima, Rivarossi and Jouef) above Brawa, not to mention the wonderful new items from RailTop, ACME, LS Models and other companies. I have found that all major companies have suffered decline in quality and reliability over the past few years. This has opened up the market for new companies like ACME, LSM and RT to name a few. Additionally, some of the classic companies have been experiencing issues with customer service, to the detriment of the hobby. In terms of collectability, I have been impressed with the value of some recent limited edition Hag models. Maerklin still seems to hold it's value best, but the best retained value is still limited to selected limited edition or hard to find items. Don't expect a mass produced model to bring in more than it's original value, and that, only if kept in "like mint" condition. Regards Mike C
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Joined: 17/07/2005(UTC) Posts: 260 Location: Viña del Mar, Chile
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Quote:[size=1" face="Verdana" id="quote]quote:Originally posted by mike c
Maerklin still seems to hold it's value best, but the best retained value is still limited to selected limited edition or hard to find items. Don't expect a mass produced model to bring in more than it's original value, and that, only if kept in "like mint" condition.
Regards
Mike C
That is true, but almost only limited edition prior 1980, most new limited editions are very easy to find with no collectible value. Nowadays bemo very limited metal editions are rare and true collective models, if you missed one metal bemo edition you better hurry for it, otherwise, "Dont cry for me Argentina". 
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