Code 55 Blues

[Walkercolt]

I know that's the general impression of N-TRAK, but it's not neccesarily accurate. There's guys who have switching modules, and I've seen some outstanding secenery done...floor to 8 feet high. If there's venues and enough bodies to move and set-up stuff, you can put up a display as often as you want. BTW, Jim FitzGerald had sent e-mails to every N-TRAK club known about switching to Atlas code 55, and then the problem was discovered. We had planned on ripping up 18 cases of Atlas code 80 and relaying everything with code 55. "Hammers and chisels at the ready, boys!"

[John]

You mean the problem about MT not meeting standards

[wcfn100]

No question that N trak has been good for the hobby, and for the scale in general.  But at the end of the day, unless you have a home layout that you can plug your module into, it's not much use to someone who wants to run trains more than three or four times a year.

For the operator, it's of little or no use, since you can't predictably know what destinations are available, or who's bringing what equipment.  A scale mile or more of track is impressive, but it's really just a big roundy roundy with a lot high volume of traffic.

And yes, there are standards, but they were written back when the best you could hope for was pizza cutter wheels and Trix drives, and anything less than code 80 was a high priced boutique item.  It also has a certain "lowest common denominator" factor, geared more toward crowd pleasing (lots of trains running and cutesy scenes) than actual model railroading.  That's not to say there aren't exceptions, nor to say that the cutesy scenes aren't brilliantly executed.  But that's my general impression of N trak, and I suspect the impression held by many others here.
Lee

Maybe if you were to think more about what the public wants to see rather than what you want to do, you'll 'get' what N-trak has to offer everybody. 


Jason

[wm3798]

No question that N trak has been good for the hobby, and for the scale in general...

Maybe if you were to think more about what the public wants to see rather than what you want to do, you'll 'get' what N-trak has to offer everybody. 


Jason

I think I acknowledged that... I just don't include myself in "everybody."
Lee

[TiVoPrince]

NTRAK
has done a lot for the hobby and Nscale:
1. public exposure (specifically when members duckunder the layout)
2. celebrating history (about the only place anyone ever runs some 'classic' products)
3. promoting standards (keeping pizza cutters alive forever)
4. informing the public (who now believe that model railroading is far too costly when they ask the price of a 'train' and get the price of that 'states series' complete with percieved collectable value)
Probably some other stuff its too early in the morning to think of...

[Dave V]

I don't think Atlas did a bad thing by going Code 55.  This has to be the first time I've ever heard someone suggest that a company shouldn't "wrap itself with the cloak of 'meets NMRA standards.'"  Meeting standards=bad?

If Atlas had produced turnouts for 25 years that didn't meet NMRA standards, should they really continue to not meet NMRA standards so that they're compatable with other products that don't meet NMRA standards?  If so, then it seems the NMRA was wasting its time by setting RPs for N scale.

Continual process improvement.  That's a term we use in the military.  It means that no matter how well we do soemthing, we should always look for ways to do it even better.  I think the same applies to model railroading.  As technology improves, so can the fidelity of the models.  If this means finer track and lower flanges, great!

See, nobody's stopping anyone from running code 80 and pizza cutters.  Heck, I still do (although I'm gradually going low-pro in anticipation of an eventual switch to c55).  But the code 80/pc folks shouldn't be telling the folks that want to go more prototype that they're wrong, or that the products that support them (like NMRA-compliant Atlas track and low-pro wheels) are bad business decisions.

To me, shutting the door on progress toward better prototype fidelity (such as MTL's about-face on the low-pros in favor of pizza cutters) is the bad business decision.  But that's just my opinion.

Of course, as I said in the other thread on MTL, I have to assume MTL has done the research and knows what the market wants.  All I can do is view the hobby through the lens of my own personal objectives, which may not match 1) where the rest of the hobby is or is going or 2) where the money is.

[cv_acr]

NTRAK
has done a lot for the hobby and Nscale:
1. public exposure (specifically when members duckunder the layout)

Agh!

/gouges out own eyes

[John]

In the software world .. there is a point where "backward compatability" no longer is cost effective .. we may be reaching that point with NScale wheels ..

[Walkercolt]

Oh, that explains why Micro Snot invented "Vista". To provide a new market for new printers, scanners, computers, and lots of new software that will work with it, because most of the old won't, including MicroSnot "Train Simulator". Same progess as using E-85 ethanol fuel. Takes more energy to make it than it contains, takes special engines to run it in, gets terrible fuel economy(6-10MPG), and makes the price of food rise 30% in one year, so far. Yeah, real progress. Much more progess like this and we'll have a full-blown depression on our hands.

[Norm P]

For me getting back into model railroading was basically starting all over again--I went to a new scale (from HO to N), I'm 20 years older (if not 20 years more mature), and alot has changed in 20 years, especially on the N scale side of the house.  When I ordered my track a few weeks ago I didn't even think twice about ordering code 55.  It looks ten times better when compared to the single strand of code 80 I bought at Slobbytown for DCC programming, and I know there is going to be plenty of other stuff that probably won't even be close to prototypical, so why not at least get the track right, since it's a fairly important part of running trains. 
There are obviously others who are perfectly happy with code 80 and don't think code 55 is necessary--and good for them, but is that any different than any other hobby or business?  There were probably people who were happy with their Apple IIc or Commodore 64, but does that mean they should poo-poo the guy with the newest dual-core processor computer just because it isn't compatible with the 5 1/4 floppy disk that they use?  Should we hold back on new developments because the floppy disk is older and therefore somehow more deserving of our attentions?
My opinion is that at some point you have to "get with the times."  There's always going to be something newer coming along, it's just a matter of dragging some people kicking and screaming into the inevitable.

[Chulvis]

Two things I think we can all be sure of:

1. Code 80 track is not going away anytime soon.

2. Code 55 track is here to stay.