finally

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B

bristolman

Member
finally able to register to forum . old guy new to the hobby . dug out box of ho train stuff i had bought 25 years ago ( i thought for the kids but they werent interested ) so here i am looking for help from the knowledgable . now no-one laugh but i have code 100 atlas track , 2 tyco engines , some cars , 10 powered switches , no transformer , but all new still in the boxes or packaging . kind of excited to get started but still have to negociate with the wife for space .
mike
 
not yet

one of the things im working on is i have no power pack .(wanted one to be able to run more than one train as i have 2 engines ( dc / not ready for the big bucks ) so not ready for pictures yet . could take some of the things i have ( remember 25 years old ) and post them . have to figure out how you do that ( never done yet ) .
mike
 


You could go after a used DC power pack on Ebay pretty easily and there really isn't a lot to go wrong with a simple rectifier. MRC makes a wide variety of them and they all are pretty tough. Welcome to the board!
 
That could certainly get the job done. Keep in mind that just having two power packs doesn't allow you to run two trains. With DC you'll have to set up all the electrical blocks (zones) and toggle switches to manage the power. For some people the entry level DCC hardware could be preferable.
 
dc

keep in mind new and i dont want to spend a ton of money so sticking to dc . im hoping to post a layout i would like to do and get input as to how to approach running 2 trains .
mike
 
I realize you don't want to spend a lot of money, that's why I'm pointing out the necessity of creating electrical blocks and installing toggle switches for DC control of two trains. It's possible to do that very inexpensively as well, but the costs can also add up to quite a lot of money. In order for it to be done to a useful level there need to be quite a few blocks, which requires a lot of wiring and switches. All this can become quite frustrating and time consuming. It can also be loads of fun - I highly enjoyed it, but a good friend of mine (who went on to be, I kid you not, a rocket scientist) absolutely hated block control and ran his 4x8 layout as a single block.

Or, you could research a suitable starter kit for DCC, inexpensive decoders for your locomotives, and go from there. Yes, it costs more money. But probably not as much as you think and could easily provide you with considerably more enjoyable operations.

If cost is really an issue there are even less expensive throttles than the MRC Dual Power. Likely you could pick up used Tyco or Bachmann power packs for less than $10 for both. Heck there may be a model train club near by with members that would love to give you their old ones. I know our club gets donations periodically and we distribute the items as necessary.

Ebay Example

The MRC unit you found is far and away superior, and worth every penny, but it also helps to have higher quality locomotives to pair it with. I have two MRC Tech II single throttle units and some aging cheap Tyco and Bachmann throttles. I ran rather crummy locomotives on them for years and could certainly tell a difference. Then I got a Bachmann Spectrum locomotive and the difference from the throttles was night and day. At the club I'm a member of we can run DC or DCC on the layout. Not having to fight with DC block control on our DCC nights is a god send. Definitely worth the research.
 


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