Love those Bachmann trucks with magnetic EZ Mates!  (I know I say that a lot, but it's true.  I love them  )

Can't remember if you need a couple straight sections before and after (be they regular 5" or short pieces), but assuming you do not, you would need a 4.5" straight on the opposite side (available in a Bachmann pack of different short sections).

If you do, you would need the 4.5" and the same straights you used before and after.

While you are at it, why not put a bunch of straights on both sides and make the layout bigger ?

Yes, Drawbar. Thanks.     

OK, I realize (now) that those two things are whisker wipers, not wires. 

I will solder.  Thanks for the heads up

Gonna help a local kid, who's 0-6-0 had an accident.  The tender came off the loco.  Looks like the plastic sway bar (it is called a sway bar, right?) broke off.

I assume I order a replacement sway bar. 

What about those two wires from the tender?  Do I solder them (not an easy task, lots of plastic about)

Thanks

Sounds great.  Would enjoy a diagram or something, if possible.

Now I'm having fun!     I love it.  Runs around 11" radius curves with no problem, powerful and smooth.

It will be a mainline loco, on fat 19" curves and long straightaways.  (just got to finsh the mainline  )

I once bought the Reading RR for $200. (ended up taking a mortgage on it and never paid it off)

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Still running the break in, and all is well

Switched out all Rapido coupler Model Power and Bachmann stock, with those Bachmann trucks -w- EZ Mate magnetic couplers installed, and love 'em.



(Those Bachmann couplers are  easy (slip in wheels and screw in) so I will not hesitate to buy older Rapido equipped stuff if I like the particluar car)

Is running two locos on the same DC track a risk to the engines or power pack?  (I mean on the same block at the same time)

Quote from: NarrowMinded on February 13, 2012, 05:55:55 PM
if there s no decoder there are jumpers where the decoder plugs in, check those jumpers,

But for the life of me I can't think of a reason why jumping the track with another loco sort of acting like a resistor on the track would make a DC loco run, EXCEPT for maybe the vibration from the other loco making the poor connection on the faulty  loco make contact....

NM.Jeff

Weird, isn't it? 

Thanks James.

Absolutely no problem with the track, so I will do that test on the wheels.  

Dang! Love that dash, and want it working!

Update.  Test to wheels failed, no power, no nada, yesterday.

This AM, Took shell off loco, looked at it very closely, put shell back on (didn't do anything else).  Put loco on track.  Nothing.  Put  2nd loco on track, the dash lit up and ran perfectly, and for once, still ran ewhen I took the other loco off.  Actually broke the engine in !

It runs beautifully.  Turned everything off, then on, and this time, it didn't need a second loco to run!   


Yesssssss!

I'm quite sure that taking the shell off and inspecting the loco with a serious look on my face did it!  The loco must have said:  "  If I don't recover quickly, he's gonna operate!"



How did I fix it?  I don't know.  Damn it, I'm a doctor, not an engineer!   

Quote from: poliss on February 12, 2012, 09:21:56 PM
DCC Ready means it doesn't have a decoder. It's a standard DC powered locomotive that is ready to be converted to DCC by buying and fitting a decoder.

Well, that eliminates a problem with the DCC components. (I had assumed there was some added wiring or something in the DCC Ready locos)

Never seen this sorta thing before.

Nothing mechanical that I notice.  Has to be some sorta short? 

It is  not the track, nor any external factors.    Still learning about DCC, so I don't know if it being DCC ready is the source of the problem.

The power leads to the wheels didn't have any effect either

Probably going to send this one in.  When it runs, it runs great.  Weird.

Hi,

I have  a DCC ready Spectrum Diesel Dash 40.

It quit running during break in (it's DCC ready but I'm running it on analog/DC), no headlight, no movement, no nada.

A few days later, I had it on my layout to re test, it still wouldn't power up, until another loco accidently crossed over the blocked section of the spur it was on, and it suddenly powered up, and ran perfectly AS LONG AS ANOTHER LOCO WAS ON THE SAME BLOCK.

So, absolutely no power and no light, no working at all, when on a track alone, but if another DC loco is on with it, it powers up and runs smoothly.

This seems very strange.  Why would another DC loco cause it to work?

I am not going to try that again until I get a better picture of what is happening, as I don't6 want to damage things (I run DC, with blocked sections and never run two locos on one section at the same time)