Dear Sir, I have an old Mantua Booster that I bought at a train show, and it runs well, now that I have replaced its motor with another PM-1 from a worthless 70's Tyco engine. (The Tyco got the growly motor). They are still plentiful on E bay and at train shows, but that supply isn't exactly reliable.
Bowser has an 0-4-0T 'Dockside' in their 'English' line. ready to run and with a can motor. It looks interesting, and some day I intend to order one. It looks like a good base chassis for a kitbashed 1880-era O-4-0T plant switcher. See it here:
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The problem with all short-wheelbase engines in switching is that they like to stall on unpowered switch frogs. I would definitely wire a switch to power the frogs. I fully intend to do that to my own some day, but at the moment I just pick up a little speed and coast over.
You should avoid the Life-like Dockside and Tea Kettle. They don't run slow at all, and their unconventional drives don't let you regear easily. I have a Tea Kettle that I remotored with a tape-recorder motor, but I still haven't gotten it to run well.
Cordially yours, Gerard Pawlowski