Retro 1970s & 1980s N locomotives

[Doug G.]

You can see all the Treble-O-Lectric versions on my site in the Treble-O-Lectric section.

There are: UP, NH, C&O, KCS, CP, and CN.

Doug

[nkalanaga]

Mine was originally UP, but has long since been repainted NP green - using bits and pieces of Walthers HO decals.  Yes, it was that long ago.

[randgust]

On the topic of 'magic' needed to make a Mehano anything work... another one of the breed was the Mehano / MRC / then Model Power Alco RSD15.  Unlike the C420, GP40, and RSC2, at least this one had dual-truck drive and a double-ended motor.  But other than that, you had pretty much the same issues.   Spookshow gives them either a "D" or "B" depending on run:   http://www.spookshow.net/loco/mehanorsd15.html

So step one was the ditch that underpowered and hot-running motor and replace it with a Con Cor (Kato) five-pole - same as in the PA1 of the 70's-80's era.  High torque, slow running, dead quiet.   Then you banish all traction tire axles to the inner idler axle so they can't rock the unit, swapping wheels around.  Then rebend the contacts so that the middle axle has electrical pickup rather than the idler axle.   Gauge, tune, set the contacts for proper pressure, roll-test the trucks and adjust until you get the axles running cocentric....

With all that weight and 8-wheel drive and two inner idlers it's pretty much like a Trix U28 with a five-pole it it, and they pull like mules and run at relatively low speed and don't overheat.  And the motors are good enough to run a 4-unit set in MU without fighting each other.

On the body, all the handrails go and get replaced by wire, repaint and redecal, close in the pilots.   For the YK, weather them heavily.

Twice I've attempted to replace these with 'newer' power, or even swap chassis out, and nothing comes even close to the ability to pull.  This is really a pretty heavy train and it's coming up a 2.5% so wimps need not apply.   Testing of Atlas chassis resulted in a 50% loss of tractive effort.  So yeah, I know it could be done, I'm saying it just doesn't work for me.   So these old girls still soldier on.  It's absolutely astounding to me how well they run...and run...and run.   They're now...wow., over 30 years in service since rebuild.   And, they continue to be one of the reason's I'll stay in Peco C55 so I don't have to turn and reprofile 48 wheels for the set.

I'd always hoped that BLI or Atlas or somebody would come out with a better body, but I'm convinced now that by the time you add all the 'stuff' with sound, decoders, light frame alloy... I'll end up with a locomotive I can't afford for four of them and can't pull a train, either.   I'm not particularly sentimental about these, if something does show up, they'll be retired, just like every Trix caboose got replaced by those beautiful Centralia/Intermountain Ce-series cabooses.

Originally I wanted a four-unit powered set; 20 cars, two dummies, and another 10 as this train was legendary for mid-train helpers.   The dummies, even with EVERYTHING removed, just created too much drag.   You might get away with that in a DCC world, or have the most expensive catastrophic derailment ever, your choice.

On my epic 1972 trip across the Santa Fe we passed a parked YK somewhere east of Needles and I got a glimpse of the mid-train helpers and all that power.   As a 15-year old I didn't even know what I was seeing at the time.

[CRL]

Nice video... but shouldn’t the rotary couplers typically be facing forward towards the locomotives? Unless, of course, the first car has double rotary couplers.

[randgust]

OK, now that got me to my library of ATSF books, as well as my digital photo collection, and it was kind of frustrating on how few shots conclusively showed it one way or the other.

But.... I think you're right.   The couple of shots I did find do show the rotary end toward the locomotive on the front:
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/71/f5/17/71f5173b625d0b59ac78ba28f44b525d.jpg

And that's easy enough to fix, too!   Congrats, only took me 30+ years to spot that glitch.   

I guess I never thought how they'd do the hard-coupled end, because the mid-train helpers are coupled to the non-rotary end, as well as the caboose, so one way or the other, something has to be uncoupled.   The only place I've ever seen rotary dumping was handling the cars individually with a switcher on a single car dump.

[Missaberoad]

I always liked that train, here's a shot of the "other" end.

[nkalanaga]

Some companies had dual-rotary coupler cars, just a few, specifically for the "other end" of the train, to couple to either the engine or caboose, so both ends could rotate. 

I have also heard that coupling two rotary-equipped ends together doesn't work well!

[Missaberoad]

I have also heard that coupling two rotary-equipped ends together doesn't work well!

It depends... Burlington Northern's ore dumper at Allouez could dump 2 cars at a time so it didn't matter which way the rotary end was...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeff_lemke/28495185464

[wm3798]

Back to the original topic... Although this might go back too far.  I'm cleaning up a 1968 vintage Trix 0-6-0 switcher.  I swapped out the tender for an Atlas/Rivarossi tender from an 0-8-0, utilizing the one-sided pick up axles to help out a little with delivering the juice.  I bent the drawbar to get it a little closer, and to better meet the post of the engine frame.

Admittedly, it's a bit of a foob.  The WM rostered quite a few 0-6-0 B class switchers, most with a slope back tender, and of course, no Belpaire firebox.  None of the photos I've found reveal much more than plain jane lettering, and maybe a whimsically applied fireball, but no striping or red trim.  My back story is that this was built by the Hammond Locomotive Works, located somewhere between Eddystone and Altoona, and is classified as a B-3.  It's whistle, when properly pulled, will play Ray Charles' "One Mint Julep" when approaching a grade crossing.

This particular drive was sold as a wreck... one of the pins for the drive rods was shorn off.  I swapped the running gear from another one I had (it suffered from a slightly warped frame, so it ran, but was noisy as all get out).  The surgery was a success, so I can feel good about finishing the paint job.  I still have to do the fireman's side, and then dullcoat the whole thing.  It runs remarkably smoothly, and puts plenty of torque down on the rail.  More progress as it happens.

Lee

[nkalanaga]

Ryan:  The reason I head for not coupling two rotary couplers together wasn't dumping problems.  The issue was that, with both couplers free to rotated, there's no telling what position they'd be in by the end of the run!

[Doug G.]

Well, Lee, your post was a heck of a lot closer to the original topic than a discussion about rotating couplers! I see the Atlas SOO LINE hopper back there, too.



Doug

[wm3798]

Yes, although you should enjoy it while you can...  It will shortly be getting coat of oxide red and a "Fast Freight" WM logo...  Another foob, but it will work nicely as a "conversion" car, with a Rapido at one end, and an MT at the other...  This will facilitate running some of the nicer WM rolling stock I have in mothballs at the moment.  I may just break down and put MTs on the engine...  But I'd have to find an old set to be true to the project!
 

For the record, the Soo Line hopper does NOT have rotary couplers!
Lee

[randgust]

Lee, at some point you'll have to find some of those old Con-Cor boxcars just for your retro layout.   Some of the schemes weren't bad, but who else other than me remembers those %%$#!! trucks with Rapido couplers on them?  They had the most annoying property of the coupler spring rubbing on the outer axle so that at just the right speed....screeeeeeeeeeeeech.   That's a sound that has 'retro' imprinted in me.   Right up there with the rhythmic grinding of a Rapido GP with the cup gears.

[wazzou]

I remember some Bachmann cars where you had to be mindful of the track spacing on your layout so you could avoid sideswipes. 

[Albert in N]

   Lee, your WM Trix 0-6-0 conversion looks great!  Question, did you brighten the headlight, and if so, how?  Memory tells me that the Trix 0-6-0 and 4-6-2 steamers I owned back in the 1970s had dim headlights like my current Trix 2-10-0.  That means you have to run them at 9 to 10 volt warp speed if you want to see a headlight.  Ideally, there would be a compatible 6 volt small incandescent bulb to replace the small Trix 12-volt bulb.  Maybe you or another N retro rail fan could share a bulb source.