Quote...BUT DON'T WE DESERVE ...

"We" deserve nothing.

Most of us, modeling in N scale, are thankful for the offerings that manufacturers produce.

It's a "privilege" to enjoy a hobby, not a "right".

Why be an ingrate about it?

Because you may have read something on the internet somewhere, it doesn't necessarily make it the truth.
The internet is full of misinformation.

QuoteNickel silver without a doubt - better electrical conductivity,...

Not true, or to be PC, misinformation.

Quotenickle silver rail is better than brass or steel, it ocnducts electricity better,

Again not true. Actually it's just the opposite. Steel rails conduct electricity the best of the three, followed by Brass, and then Nickel Silver being rather poor in comparison.
The oxidation on Nickel Silver track is actually less resistive than that of both Steel and Brass. It is also slower to form.
These qualities make Nickel Silver a good choice for rail however, giving up electrical conductivity in exchange.

Do not take my word as gospel, research for yourself.

If you're using dissimilar rail type, I would caution soldering them together at the rail joints, but that is for another thread.
Again, do your own research.


So, in getting back to OP's question:

Quotewhat is the best type of HO track nickel or steel.

They both have pros and cons.

I personally prefer the Nickel Silver.

If the light is on and the motor is humming, it's trying to turn.
Something is in a bind.
You state the light is on, that means your getting power into the loco.

If you feel your mechanical skills are adequate, open the loco up buy removing the shell and applying low power and see if you can find the bind.
You will not be able to turn the wheels with your finger, and rotate the drive, without power applied.
If you can, you have problems.

First thing I would try is to clean the track and the wheels.

.

Don't fret about spelling or grammatical errors in your posts.
That is the resident "School Marm"s job.
Many of us come here just to see how tight his/ her panties can be wadded.
Too bad, so sad, he/she doesn't have bigger fish to fry in life.

Its entertainment.
It takes the edge off the day.

As long as someone can communicate in such a way as someone else can interpret, their post will generally receive a response.

No worries.

QuotePosted by: old drag racer  Posted on: January 11, 2009, 07:21:55 PM 
Insert Quote 
the Bachmann USRA 4-8-2 mountain says works best on a 19 in. radius.Will it work on 17.5 in?

Yes, it will.

QuotePosted by: taku  Posted on: March 08, 2009, 08:01:16 PM 
Insert Quote 
Does the N scale EZ track only come in the 2 radii?   I only see the 11.25 and 19".    In addition to an HO layout, I was considering a small N scale layout for an area that is 34"  One seems unneccessarily tight and the other just a bit too large to stay within the limit.
Do you just use lots of flex track & cork roadbed?   Does Bachmann make any or do I just go to Atlas?

Yes, B'mann just makes the two 11.25r and 19r.

It's possible you could use the 19r as an easement into the 11.25r thus opening it up bit.

Good luck

Bachmann only refers to their remote turnouts as "Standard", and for good reason. They're not #4, 5, nor 6 but rather the divergent route is an 11.25° radius.

The Wye is a #6.

The Single Crossover is a #6.


Hope that helps.

Good luck.

QuoteI SAY LETS VOTES ...

I "votes" nay.
I would much rather see Bachmann focus their next steam effort on a Pacific, either light or heavy versions.

Go to this thread and scroll down to a reply by username "Hunt"

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,6776.0.html

Follow his instructions for cleaning.
Clean your loco, tender, and all rolling stock wheels.

After you have finished with that, then run your finger over all your rail joints. You should not feel any "steps". If you do, then check to be sure the rail is inserted properly into the rail joiners and not riding on top of them.

Follow with a check of your wheel gauge, loco, tender, and all rolling stock.

Finally check your track gauge.

Good luck

A safe assumption would be that all roadbeds are not created equal in height. Different manufacturers have their own specifications as to the thickness and tolerances of their product.

AFAIK the MNRA has no standard for roadbed whether it is cork, foam, plastic, or other. Nor do they have a standard for ties.

I can only speak as to EZ track mated to Atlas code 80 utilizing Midwest cork roadbed. (EZ track is code 80)
Although the rail head will be at the same height, the Atlas/Midwest side will require about .040 - .045 shim at the joint.
Use a gradual vertical easement between the roadbed and bench leading to the EZ track.

Good luck.

Mitremark,

Always check for proper lubrication before running a new loco. I clean and re-lube them again after about 8 hours run time.

The purpose of running a motor at various speeds and in both directions is mainly to wear the brushes into a concave surface providing maximum contact between the brushes and the commutator.
That's it.
This current draw can be measured with a Multimeter when first new then again after a few hours run time to see how this works.
I am not sure what useful information, if any, could be gathered by measuring draw before this process has been completed.
During that same time, the mechanical components (gears, bushings, bearings, etc.) are beginning to wear, increasing tolerances between them. In effect causing "slop", or what some may perceive to "breaking- in". Over time, as wear continues, the drive mechanism becomes "loose" and naturally, there is less binding between parts causing a smoother running locomotive, thus reduced load on the motor.
The idea to "break-in" on DC rather than on DCC is that you can remove one variable from troubleshooting (the decoder from the mechanical).

I have no desire to control with DCC.
To me, "breaking in" a locomotive for hours at a time is pointless. Motor brushes have a limited life. Why waste some of that life when the loco can be utilized on the pike? It will wear out just as well on the mainline.

"Breaking in" is highly overrated and the term is a misnomer at best.

Although measuring current draw to determine when one "should" lubricate a locomotive may be helpful to a point, it is certainly not a necessity to do so. A higher draw does not necessarily mean it's related to insufficient lubrication. A loco that's squealing, getting hotter than normal, or slower running than usual, is an equally good indicator.

The hobby is not as complicated as some make it to be.
The "right" way is "your" way.

Good luck.

I've not had that problem with any of the Northern 4-8-4's that I own/owned.
I would check both wheel and track gauge first and correct as necessary.
After that, if the 'hang-up' continues, I'd get my eyes down close and try to see what it is, that is causing it.

Good luck.

Well after an overnight soak in the alcohol followed with yet another aggressive scrubbing, the paint has been removed from the smooth surfaces.
It still mostly remains in the vent and fan detail.

I have a few options.
I'll try and soak some sprue, of the same material, in brake fluid and test the effect on the plastic under timed conditions.
I'll try some sprue, sprayed with oven cleaner, in a "Ziplock".
I have access to stronger solvents mainly VM&P Naphtha, and mineral spirits. If I need to resort to these, I will certainly try with a "sprue test" first.
Last resort maybe to physically remove it with an exacto blade and/or a straight pin.
Hopefully it doesn't come to that.

As a side note:

Glennk28:

I did try Nigel's suggestion of soaking, scrubbing and drying repeatedly.
I too, assumed he was speaking of removing factory paint from "shells".
Obviously, his method works well for him and I will try it on my next stripping project (an early Atlas FA-1) I believe to be A1G.
However, this is not the same plastic and thought he might offer some insight to help, as to what I was/am trying to do.
Generally, my problem with this type plastic has to do with keeping the paint ON the "waxy type" plastic, rather than removing it.
Seems to me like whenever I am doing routine preventative maintenance, it includes touching up the places where the paint has fallen off the handrails.

Thanks for your input.
I kind of figured I might be on my own here, and I do realize all bets are off considering my situation and circumstance.
I still consider myself to be a "noob" with this part of the hobby, but this is how I learn through experience.
I am making progress albeit slow.

Thanks again for your reply.

Nigel,
In a previous reply you state that "drying is very important" between subsequent soakings, to effectively strip the paint from a loco.

I have only been stripping loco shells for about 2 years, always using 91% isopropyl alcohol, and had not heard about drying in between soakings.
My experience to date has been limited to Atlas shells with factory paint.

Could you elaborate a bit on this?

I have recently acquired a loco (Arnold) that I needed to scavenge a particular piece from to use on another project. This newly acquired loco has been painted, what appears to be, at least 3 times without stripping between colors. As you can imagine, the paint is "heavy" and fills in the detail on the loco and particularly heavy on the piece I need to remove, filling in the detail on vents and fans.
Soaking in the alcohol for 1 hour, and then followed with a vigorous scrub with a stiff toothbrush has still not exposed the base plastic, just the various colors in different small patches.
I have no way to tell what type or brand the individual coats may be, other than to label them "stubborn to remove".

This particular part is NOT made from the same type plastic the loco shell is made from, but rather the, for lack of better words, "waxy type", plastic that the handrails and sills are made from.
It is proving difficult, as it's now approaching an additional 4 hour soak, since the last scrubbing, with minimal effect.

Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated.

I found your reply here:

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,8348.0.html

Thank you for your time.

Any of you other guys have any hints, feel free to jump in.

QuoteOut of the box it ran but would stall.  When it did I moved it sideways on the track and it started up and run.

Did you check the wheel gauge?

There are calculators available by using "Google"

From your post I would assume you already have the basic understanding of the math.

Grade is "rise" (height change) divided by "run" (distance traveled) expressed as a percent (multiplied by 100).

Therefore if you have a 2" rise over 100" of track you have essentially a 2% "Grade"

A 3" rise over the same 100" inches of track would be a 3% grade.