I started my original N-scale layout using the Anyrail free-trial version. The program contains a great library of Bachmann EZ-Track as well as quite a few others (Kato and Atlas come to mind). Anyrail will let you print out a list of all the track sections used in your layout, including turnouts. After a while I found the 50 track section limit too confining, so I purchased the software and have never looked back. That was about 2008-2010 and I still use it today for my On30 layout. Hope this helps.

Old Pilot,

I forgot to mention that I also run passenger service on my railroad, using the small steamers. I own three of the Bachmann full-size (36-foot) cars and one wood-sided side-door caboose which has a small passenger compartment. My passenger trains usually consist of one full-size car and an "express" freight car for produce transport (my railroad, as per prototype, runs right through the heart of the fertile farmland here in Central Florida). I also run a daily "Milk Express" using a single reefer and a surplus trench locomotive, as there are several large dairy operations in the area that require milk pickup. So, quite a few of my trains also trend toward only one or two cars long. Best of luck.

Old Pilot, I'm not sure I understand your question correctly, so forgive me if this reply goes off on a wrong tangent. I think what you are asking is how long (or short) of a train was typically run on prototype roads.

I would say that a lot of that depends on you and what your vision of your railroad is. Keep in mind, that logging railroads typically were shoestring outfits and usually had only a few locomotives available. Therefore these locomotives were used in whatever service was necessary, even if it meant exceeding the specs of a given locomotive at times. If one locomotive couldn't pull a load up a certain grade, then either a second locomotive was employed (if available) or the load was broken up into smaller sections and transported one section at a time.

Since this is your railroad, I would say that you could pull whatever load (read number of cars) your engines could handle over the steepest grade on your layout. As for being prototypical, I think that if you were to delve into the subject, you would find that there is a prototype available for just about every scenario. Although I don't run any logging operations, per se, I do transport lumber on my trains. I like small locomotives, so a lot of my steam power is 0-4-2 Porters. I don't have a Shay but I do have a Heisler. Most of my freight trains run to about 3 or 4 cars, not counting the caboose. On the Heisler I run 5 to 6 cars, again not counting the caboose. Keep in mind however that many of my cars are scratchbuilt/kitbashed by me and are only about 15 feet long, thus keeping my trains relatively short.

Anyway, this was a long-around answer to this: If your locomotive(s) can handle it and you like the looks of it, run it. Don't forget: It's your railroad! Hope this helps.
 

Scottmac, undoing unnecessary things, dropping parts and breaking wires - sounds like just a normal day in my life as a model railroader. Hey, it happens to all of us and I guess it just adds to the fun and frustration of working with model railroads. Anyway, I'm glad things are looking up for you - remember, if frustration has you at your wits end, put everything away, take a break, have a cup of coffee or tea (or something stronger if you prefer but in that case, wait until the next day to resume your project or you'll drop more stuff and really get mad - don't ask how I know) and then resume the work. BTW, sometimes my breaks run into several weeks, maybe even months. Best of luck. 

FYI, I have built a couple of On30 passenger cars plus one or two freight cars, but never locomotives, by utilizing parts from the On30 kitbash section. Bachmann was selling passenger car bodies, frames and roofs for reasonable prices. I was able to put together two passenger cars - minus trucks and couplers - for less than $30 dollars each. After I added Bachmann cast trucks and Kadee couplers, my cost was still less than $50 each. At the time, I had posted on this forum but its been a while now. Right now, I think they only have a couple of car bodies listed in the kitbash section. Hope this helps.

One thing I forgot to mention in my previous post is that you will also need to clean the locomotive wheels periodically. I usually use a cotton swab dipped in IPA or mineral spirits. Hope this helps.

DCC will run on any type of metal track as long as there are no shorts. So if your figure 8 track works OK on DC, it should work just fine with the NCE PowerCab. That said, steel track is probably the least conductive of the three major metals that have been used in track manufacturing (i.e. steel, brass and nickel silver) with nickel silver track being the best. As you start using your set with one or two locomotives, after some use, you may notice that a locomotive may run jerkily or even stall at different areas on the track. This indicates a build-up of dirt and carbon on the rails which needs to be cleaned off. A piece of lint-free cloth (old t-shirt) with a little isopropyl alcohol or mineral spirits with usually be enough to get rid of the dirt. All track eventually needs to be cleaned but steel track needs to be cleaned more often than the others. Most beginners, as they progress in the hobby, find that it is advantageous to switch to nickel silver track. Since you already have steel EZ track, it will be easy to replace a few pieces at a time with nickel silver EZ track, which has a beige roadbed instead of black. Hope this helps. 

I don't have a center cupola caboose but I have 2 logging cabooses and they basically come apart like the passenger cars. Just be sure to disconnect the ladders from the roof first - usually the ladder will just pop out of the bracket. Hope this helps.

Jim, you're welcome.

Fred

Jim, do not try to spread the cast trucks. The trucks are held together with small screws, two at each side frame on the top of the truck. To change axels, you only need to remove one side frame, insert the new axle into the stationary frame (the one you didn't remove) and then replace the removed frame. When you look at the axle, please note that one of the wheels is insulated from the axle so that it doesn't create a short. I find I get best performance if I place both of the insulated wheels on one side of the truck. Hope this helps.

As someone who has nothing but 15" radius curves on his layout, I can say that all of the Bachmann passenger cars run without any problems at any speed that I've run them at. I have a total of three full-size cars, one combine and two coaches, some with the Bachmann couplers, some with Kadee #148 whisker couplers, and they all behave very well, whether single or in multiples. Just to clarify, due to the space available for my layout, I have two "S" curves by necessity. I mainly run Porters (0-4-0 and 0-4-2) locomotives but I have one 50-ton diesel and a Heisler. I also have two trench locomotives. All of these engines negotiate all of the curves without any problems whatsoever. However, I have one 0-6-0 and that will not negotiate the "S" curves - so it sits in the yard and looks pretty. Anyway, I hope this information will help.

Mark, you might try calling the Bachmann Service Department for part numbers or you may be able to purchase the screws directly from them. Hope this helps.

Hi Holly. The short answer to your question is Yes. I started out with a Märklin HO train set many years ago (late 1950s - I still have the set) and have sort of kept up with their product line over the years. To the best of my knowledge, Märklin has always tried to maintain compatiblity amongst their product line, so a current Märklin Christmas car should work with some of their more vintage equipment. The only thing I don't know is whether they still use the same couplers as they did back then, but they usually offer a means keep their products compatible. However, nothing is guaranteed. Hope this helps.

P51, I had never thought of modeling anything here in Florida because most, if not all of it, was in standard gauge and I really had gotten the On30 bug. What to do? And then along came an article in one of the On30 Annuals (2018 I think, but not sure) talking about an alternate reality/history for a model railroad and I went full steam ahead (pun intended). So its all your fault . The Kissimmee Valley Extension of the FEC started in New Smyrna Beach and ended in Okeechobee. The plan was for this to be a mainly agricultural railroad with light passenger service. In my reality, around the time the line was abandoned in 1947, a group of the ranchers and farmers got together and purchased a portion of the right of way (from Holopaw to Okeechobee) and formed their own railroad to get their goods to market. Although trucks were making inroads into the freight-hauling business, road infrastructure was still lacking and unreliable.

The group got a good deal on the right of way except that all of the rolling stock had been re-assigned to the FEC mainline along the coast. As it turned out though, around that time many narrow gauge short lines were being abandoned and the ranchers and farmers group got a lot of equipment for very little money. The only thing they had to do was to shift one rail over a few inches, which is what they did. And the rest, as they say is history.

This is just a quick overview of my alternate reality but it all began with an article from you. Thank you very much.

Old Pilot,

I have both 18ft and the longer (26ft?) rolling stock on my layout and have noticed no problems as far as coupler alignment. Depending on the car, long or short, the couplers may not be perfectly aligned across the top but are definitely within accepted tolerances. That is to say, so far I haven't experienced any spurious uncoupling. FYI, I use a mix of Bachmann and Kadee couplers interchangeably without any apparent issues. Hope this helps.