Quote from: jbrock27 on December 30, 2014, 08:23:54 AM
I would stay away from steel.

Definitely.  You also have a much larger variety of available pieces in nickel silver.

@jward I have rarely had a problem with my trains jumping off the track going downhill, even when I come flying into the helix at the top, and must slow down to enter the yard at the bottom.  In fact, I can't recall ever having my cars pop off from all the slack bunching up.  The outside track on the helix is a 30" radius, the inside is about a 27", and the grade varies from 2-4% (well, 0-4% technically, they put flat sections every quarter turn).  But it's an open helix, so we can keep an eye on what's going on inside it.  And then again, there's a couple of cars that go in the tail end of the train that aren't quite as free-rolling as the rest, so that probably helps a bit.

@jbrock27  I like my steamers to be able to haul like their prototypes.  That means traction tires and BFS, since most companies don't make their steamers anywhere near heavy enough to do the job without them.  In fact it annoys me that some of my engines can't do that, namely my Bachmann 2-8-4s, even with extra weight and BFS.  A Nickel Plate Berkshire on level track could manage over 120 cars unassisted, but my Bachmanns don't even come close, even with extra weight and BFS.  I doubt even my MTH Alleghenies or my BLI Y6Bs (both types feature full die-cast metal construction) could handle prototype-sized trains without traction tires.  My other engines, which have plastic boilers, certainly can't.  And these are top of the line engines, or at least as top as you can get without going brass.  

I like running heavy trains using steam power.  That's not about to change.  Occasionally I use diesels for variety, but mostly I use heavy steam.

@rogertra I haven't had any of those problems on my traction-tire-equipped engines, although I haven't had any of my engines long enough to worry about them rotting.  They all run smoothly (the BFS can get lumpy during application, but I'm getting better at avoiding that), and they all have motors powerful enough to  spin the drivers when the engine stalls regardless of whether it has traction tires or not.  And when you have anywhere from 7-12 axles wired for electrical pick-up on the engine and tender, losing one or two axles to traction tires or BFS isn't a huge deal.  As far as weighing down the engines, there's only so much space under those boiler shells, and it's often not enough for my needs.  And besides, even my die-cast metal Alleghenies and Y6Bs have traction tires, even though they each weigh over two pounds without their tenders.  If that isn't heavy enough for you...

As for banning traction tires entirely, you're perfectly welcome to not use them on your layout, but others, myself included, don't share your opinion.

Quote from: Doneldon on December 20, 2014, 04:19:24 PM
wol-

You will do much better in the long run if you run your trains within NMRA standards. That means careful attention to track and wheel gauge, rolling stock clearances, transition curves, moderate grades, electrical integrity, precise coupler adjustments and adherence to correct weight for your rolling stock. I believe that you can get more light cars up grades than you can weighted cars but I'm guessing you have to be very careful with your speed to do so. You can run your trains a little faster, maybe closer to prototype speeds, if you double head your locos or make the excessive four percent a little more shallow.
                                                                      -- D

Adhering to NMRA recommended weights for cars isn't as important as the other stuff (I basically just ignore that particular recommendation).  Good RP-25 metal wheels and metal couplers at the correct height are more important in my experience.  I have a coal drag that currently stands at 65 cars.  It's a mix of Bachmann, Athearn, Accurail, and other stuff.  All the cars have metal wheels (mix of Walthers, Bachmann, and occasional Kadee wheels as well), and Kadee couplers (all Standard head, as I have found these to be less prone to uncouple on uneven track).  Even though virtually all are underweight, they roll and track very well, and the train performs almost perfectly on my club's Helix track, even though the train extends almost two full turns around the outside track of that Helix, and despite the uneven grade and mediocre track work.

Another thing that can help is to run engines that use traction tires, or if your engine doesn't have these, there is something called Bullfrog Snot which can be very effective.  It is a liquid rubber compound that can be applied to an engine's drive wheels.  Once it has cured, it will improve your traction by quite a bit.  It will eventually wear off, however, and will need periodic reapplication.  It also by necessity prevents electrical contact in the treated wheel, so you should only treat one or two sets of wheels.  As an example, I added 2.5 oz of weight in the firebox and applied Bullfrog Snot to the rear driver pair of the front and rear engines of my two EM-1s, and now either one of them can take fifty of my coal cars up the Helix that I mentioned, unassisted.  Two other members of my club also have EM-1s, and they were rather impressed with the extra power that my engines have.

As far as the Bachmann 14-piece graduated pylon set is concerned, if you space each pylon at the joint of a 9" track segment, I think it makes something like a 6% grade.  That's Shay country right there.  Even if you do what I did and use two sets of pylons to ease the grade, it's still in the neighborhood of 4%.

Does the F40PH have body-mounted or truck-mounted couplers?  I also suggest EZ Mate Mk II couplers.  Bachmann sometimes makes their coupler pockets a bit on the shallow side.  This can make Kadee couplers bind if you tighten the screw too much.

Another option would be to make a transition car, with a horn/hook on one end, and a knuckle coupler on the other.

I was wondering how long it would take for this thread to get mod-hammered.  That's why I held off on bouncing all of them with a P-47M.

But back on topic, I have this loco (UP #39), and I like it a lot, but is there any way to resynch the chuff sounds to the wheel movement?

I'm asking because I'm looking to set up parallel tracks and parallel train station platforms using turnouts, for at least four tracks and a main line, and I'm trying to figure out which kind of curved track to use for the last track.  I may avoid the problem entirely by just having the last turnout lead to a turn table and round house, or something.

For the EZ-track #4, #5, #6, and wye turnouts, how many degrees do the tracks diverge, and what radius are they?

Call me an idiot, but suppose I wanted to use Tidmouth sheds and turntable as part of a non-Thomas EZ-Track layout.  How long is the turntable bridge, and how long are the tracks inside the stalls?  Could the turntable and round house accomodate, say, a Spectrum 4-6-2, or a Berkshire like the Nickel Plate 765?  Certainly it could handle a Mogul or Consolidation, it looks like.

Hi, Jerry, thanks for the reply.  I was referring to the ones that have the built-in DCC decoder (of which there are several).  So, to operate one, I would have to assign it to, say, address 7 on the controller, and then operate it using one of the buttons on the controller?  The forward and reverse buttons, perhaps?

I have a couple questions.  How are these controlled?  Do they take up DCC addresses on the EZ Command?  Do they even work with the original EZ Command, or are they for the Dynamis?  If they work with the legacy EZ Command, where do they plug in/connect to the power pack?

Basically, tell me everything about them.