Recent content by OgreMike

Yeah, that’s really all I want to do is have a bit more weight. As long as the wheels can be metal, plastic trucks would be ok. Does Athearn make a metal wheeled truck in their 90411 configuration?

Thanks Vince. I’ll take a look! Yes, the center mounting peg on the Athearn trucks is a very identifiable and central feature of their pax cars, it seems. Mike

Thanks for the input Iron. Yes, Athearn makes a truck mounted coupler draft box. But the entire truck seems to be plastic on their standard 90411 2axle trucks. I’d like to find the identical truck but heavier (ie metal). Mike

Hello all. I’m trying to find a dealer who sells the Athearn type 90410/411 2-axle passenger car trucks but rather than plastic, I’d like a totally metal truck. Does anyone have any info about this? Athearn stuff is plastic truck and wheels from what I can see. I’d prefer a heavier truck and...

More good news: while awaiting the long shank Kadees, I decided to experiment with some medium shank Kadees that I already had on hand. I changed out the rear couplers on both of the E7 units ( short shanks on both) and replaced them with the medium shank. Success! When I did a back to back...

Good news. I don’t have the new long shank couplers yet, but I tried the duo of E7s in an elephant consist, and there was no problem going thru the problem curve in either direction! Coupler length is sounding like it may indeed be the problem! 🙏👍✅

For now, I’ve just gone with the cheapie Athearn Burlington cars. Got a couple dome cars, 3 mail/baggage cars, and another 3 regular pax cars with the oval end observation car (for lack of a better term).

Exactly. I’m hoping that’s the case. New long shank Kadee couplers ordered! 👍✅

I’m thinking it might be the coupler restriction “box” on either side of the coupler. This box prevents the coupler from moving too far in one direction going around a curve and thus inhibiting the truck behind it from turning enough to go around the curve. Thus the truck has no choice but to...

Hi Trailrider - sorry it’s taken me so long to provide a reply to your nice post back in Feb. I’ve been wrestling with a few problems on the layout that have been a big distraction is my only weak excuse. I’ve always liked the Burlington engines and trains since I was a kid. My family on my...

Kind of a long shot but do you have any older rolling stock that uses the press fit pins they look really close I don't have a E unit so can't compare HI Mike GTW - slight tangent here . . . I’m having problems with my two E7As when set up in a back-to-back consist going around a particular...

Forgot to mention that my biggest locomotives are shown here. They are a pair of E7s in consist back to back. Both of them possess two 3-axle trucks which, when following each other thru a tight turn crossover such as this, make them ideal candidates for possible derailment. But because Peco...

Hey Wombat and Smudge! Thanks for chiming in! And thanks greatly for the superb photo of the PL-1000, Smudge 😃 A picture is worth a 1000 words, and the photo shows us exactly how the actuator throw rod/bar extends all the way thru the unit and has seeming “slack” on both the top and bottom ends...

Ok, so the learning curve continues for this relative newbie . . . I tried in vain to see if I could extend some of the lower end “slack” of the PL-1000 motor’s metal actuator rod up to the topside of the motor, since I had mistakenly cut a bit of the excess topside rod off. By cutting off too...

Ok, so I cut off the metal throw rod on the Peco PL1000 motor a little too much. But the rod extends all the way thru the machine and has a couple inches available on the under side. Question: how do you release some of the low end slack on the underside of the motor and use on the top side...