N Consolidation spins wheels on hills

[ToyMuseum]

My consolidation 2-8-0 spins the wheels on about a 3 degree  or 2 1/2 rise 36-38 in length with 3 pax cars or 6 freight. I want to use it on the pax. I put Bullfrog Snot on the wheels and it didn't help. Track is straight and smooth. one track connector but is smooth also.  Any suggestions?
I may replace it with another steamer. Does anyone have a good suggestion on one the will work with this load? The big diesels I have have no problem with the climb.

[bnoem1]

Assuming this is one of the recent 2-8-0s and not one from the 'White Box' era.  Take the boiler shell off and pack every little nook and cranny with some moldable lead.  Ideal product to use is from A Line, there are several online dealers that have this.  At about 10 bucks for the package it may seem a little steep, but it helps alot when you can't just slap a chunk of weight in the loco.  You'd be surprised that a little bit can really help.

[DaveGard]

3% is a pretty steep grade... so pulling 5-6 freight cars sounds about right based on my experience. My 2-8-0 can handle 10-11 on a 1.8% grade before it spins its wheels.

As bnoem said... pack in as much weight as you can.  You can even pack some into the stack, in the cab (if kept below the level of the windows, and in the forward part of the cab, it won't be visible). But, I'm guessing you will only be able to increase by maybe a freight car of two, at best...

Also, make sure all your rolling stock has good wheels/trucks...

I found that my two Bachmann 4-6-0s actually (slightly) outpulled my 2-8-0 when new, likely due to their cast metal superstructure. They would handle 12-14 freight cars on my 1.8% hill. They've lost a little tractive effort since then... one because I had to replace the traction tires, the other because it lost some of its weight in a "remodel."

Good luck...