Traction tire

[rogertra]

On a 3% grade the 2-6-0 with sound can only handle 3-4 pieces of free rolling (generally intermountain wheels) rolling stock. If the rolling stock is heavy or not free rolling it can only manage 1 or 2.

If I can find a long enough piece of plywood, I'll check this out.  

I usually keep my grades down around the 1% mark, especially on the visible part of the railway.  I went to around 3% in staging on my old GER but all locos could haul a 16 car plus caboose up the grade but I never had the 2-6-0s back then so will need to conduct some tests.  My current staging is only temporary until I get around to building the permanent hidden staging, in another room and that will require at least 2% grades, maybe slightly steeper.  However, current plans will not require the 2-6-0s to enter that part of staging, they will have their own staging for the branch line, which will be a level return loop on the lowest level of the stacked staging.

Cheers

Roger T.

[Doneldon]

Jim-

No, there's nothing the matter with Athearn kits other than that their detail isn't great. I've sure built a bunch of them over the
years but now I try to score old Silver Streak, Central Valley and LaBelle's kits. I find them more fun to build, due to their
complexity compared to shake-the-box plastic kits, and I have a better looking model when I'm finished. As Roger
mentioned, it's hard to appreciate, or even see, the difference in a moving train but I do enjoy seeing them lined up on the
railroad.
                 -- D