I am a new HO rail guy but have just purchased an On30 Baldwin 2-8-0 Consolidation w/DCC. I run on a NCE Power Cab rated at 2 amps. My question is: can I test the On30 on my layout or will the big loco pull more than 2 amps and hurt my Power Cab?
BTW, this new Baldwin makes my HO loco's look like toys. I wonder now that the kids are gone, if my wife really needs the spare bedroom!!!
It'll be fine with that amount of power, the only thing to worry about will be clearence, ie: bridges, close tracks, tunnels since the ON30 is bigger then HO standards.
Bachmann uses the same controllers etc. for ON30 and HO, there shouldn't be a problem with other brands HO stuff.
I have seen a convertible ON30/HO layout. It had two sets of buildings with the same footprints (but different heights) - one to O scale (small prototypes) and one HO (larger prototypes. They were swapped over. Scenery was genric with little to suggest size, fields and low hills that worked in either scale. Track was HO but heavily ballasted so that the ties could not be seen.
Hamish
Thank You for the help. If it wasn't for 'Ask the Bachmann' I would not be into model railroading.