Traction tires or bullfrog snot?

[e-paw]

Rob, what engine are you having a traction problem with? Pics might help.

[RobertInOntario]

Basically, my loco is a small British tank engine in 00 scale (which is very similar to HO).

In real-life, I believe it would have only hauled 1 or 2 coaches. It's a bit quirky b/c of its 0-4-2 wheel arrangement. So I don't think it would look to good to have a helper engine! It looks like some combination of tires/snot or weights will work best.

[Green_Elite_Cab]

I stay clear of tires and snot. I found that stuff tends to give me more track to clean, I hate cleaning track. I must be old fashioned, because I stick with the idea of just cramming as much weight over the drivers as possible. That's what works in the real world of railroading, and it works for me in the HO world also ( I can't speak for smaller scales) . If that doesn't solve the problem,,, some work to the rolling stock may be in order to get them to roll more freely. If slipping trains are still a problem,, call in a helper. That's another real-world fix that works in the miniature world of model railroading. Think of how often do you see trains running with just one unit at the point. In GEC's example this isn't always a good fix, most commuter lines only use 1 loco per train. Remember trains loose traction and slip and stall in the real world all the time, especially steam power starting a heavy train, so you can always take the easy way out and just say it's prototypical .

I agree with E-paw.

Using my ALP44 example, that locomotive could only push and pull a 5 car train (and struggled doing it) if it ran unmodified with unmodified coaches.

The coaches I was using, Comet II types by walthers, rolled so poorly that they would stand still on a 4% grade, and would grind to hault even if you pushed them. While adding bullfrog snot (and an ounce of weight) to my ALP44 did improve performance dramatically, It was only after I made these cars roll smoothly that I got the train to run and prototypical lengths and on steep grades without fail (about 8-9 cars).

Your 0-4-2 certainly sounds like a commuter engine, but I'm surprised it struggles with two coaches. Perhaps your coaches need a tune-up as well.

[RobertInOntario]

Thanks. So it sounds like the Bullfrog Snot is well worth it.

BTW, without any tires, the 0-4-2 could barely pull one coach. But with the caulking added, it can easily pull 2 or 3.

I'll try adding some weight too.

Cheers,

[BR60103]

Rob: Can I assume it's the GWR Autotank?
I took the tyres off mine years ago. It works OK. I think the prototype could take 2 autocoaches.

One problem is that the wheels have a groove for the tyres and this can grab the railhead if you have narrow rails. If the new goop has set enough, you might trim it round with a knife.

[RobertInOntario]

Rob: Can I assume it's the GWR Autotank?
I took the tyres off mine years ago. It works OK. I think the prototype could take 2 autocoaches.

One problem is that the wheels have a groove for the tyres and this can grab the railhead if you have narrow rails. If the new goop has set enough, you might trim it round with a knife.

David, yes it is the GWR auto tank. I did trim a bit around the wheels and that's helped a lot but I think I could trim them even more. I use code 100 track, so no problems there with thin rails getting stuck in the grooves.

Without tires, it ran smoothly and well but couldn't even haul one coach! Now it can easily pull 2-3.

I'll try to post some pix in due course.

[RobertInOntario]

Rob, what engine are you having a traction problem with? Pics might help.

Sorry, just saw this! Here's a pic. This one isn't mine but mine is identical except maybe a little nicer? :-). The traction tires normally go around the driving wheels under the middle part of the loco (the second set).

   

[RobertInOntario]

Here's a pic of my own green GWR tank engine, en situ on my small 4x6' layout.

It seems to be running REALLY well now, since I've removed a lot of the "burrs" and extra clumps of caulking. So, if this continues to work so well, silicon caulking may be the perfect solution and alternative to Bullfrog Snot. This caulking only cost less than $4.00 while BFS costs around $25!

[attachment=0]14xxAutocoach_IMG_3125.jpg