SteamPower4ever

Any news from Cleveland? I was kinda hoping MTH would announce something there ... Jens

Interoperable is the correct word - not interchangeable.

As far I can see anywhere on the web, most European Gauge 1 track - including Märklin - is code 200 (= 5mm rail profile height). The largest I've found is actually Hegob, which seems to be code 205, but we're talking 2/10 millimeter difference here, so in practice they're interchangeable, which is indeed what we're seeing on layouts. Jens

It was discussed recently, and the conclusion was that newer MTH equipment should be able to run fine on Märklin track, but older equipment need new wheel or milling due to the flanges being too large. Don't know about the GG1, though. Speaking of the GG1, please allow me to draw your attention to this thread ... Welcome to the forum, Henrik. Jens

Dates are all over the place. ATSF A and B units are scheduled for July, AA sets for November. NS A units are scheduled for July, AA sets and B units for November. Guess we'll just wait and see ... Jens

oooohh ... nice

I guess it would burn everything to cinders, yes Do you think you could reverse the airflow on one of those battery-powered handheld vacuum cleaners and mount it on a flatbed car like the jet engine above. Same method, but slightly more benign.

You could build one of these. It's for snow clearing, but I bet one of the small jet engines used by R/C planes will clear leaves as well Jens

Oh, absolutely, but I am good with model steamers for now. I was just admiring the loco in your video. I appreciate a balanced, harmonic design, and the Strasburg #90 is one such design. (Heh, I can almost smell the burning coal ) Jens

Nice videos, Mark. Beautiful steamer. Steamer: Anything. Diesel: UP gas turbine, third generation, A+B+tender. I could pounce on that one And since we are dropping hints to MTH, let me take the opportunity to recommend modern European freight cars, especially German and Swiss. These are the two countries driving the European gauge market right now (as I see it), and most manufacturers focus on older rolling stock. We are slowly seeing more modern rolling stock, but I believe there is an opportunity to fill a gap in the market. I know it doesn't help you guys from the US much, but if MTH could get some revenue, that can't be all bad. Jens

Two more type E freight cars are ready for service. These are the last of the first one I bought. They were a very old type with molded couplers and buffers, but now they are up to standard. The picture below shows the cars with the buffer boards replaced with brass profiles in preparation for the new sprung buffers and the hook and screw chain coupler. And the finished cars nos. 52070 and 52204 with the first rebuild no. 52048 in the background. I can tell I need a break from bashing freight cars. I made some stupid mistakes along the way, but they probably don't show much except if you know where they are. Jens

Thanks, guys. I try to make it very easy to use. Many of my users are 50+, and many do not have networking and computers 'in the blood' like the new generation does, so ease of use is paramount in the development. Making the app control a train is not exactly rocket science, but making it all easily accessible is sometimes more challenging than you'd think. Jens

Rounding this one off: I had my eyes on the coaches on Ray's site, but after seeing them, I have decided that - even though they are indeed great looking - they deviate too much from the prototype. I have too many projects in the pipeline already, so I would not be happy with those coaches, knowing up front that I need to do a lot of work with each one. I'm still over the moon in anticipation of the F7s, though, so maybe some time in the future ... Thanks for the help and replies everyone. Best regards Jens

Just once, I'd like to find some 1:32 rolling stock that I didn't immediately feel the need to modify. You know - so I know what it's like. I suppose that's my way of model railroading Guess I need to save pennies for some coaches ... You can tell I had a hair trigger, there, can't you? Jens

Oh man, here I thought I had made my decision. Just stretch, huh? I haven't tried stretching a car like that. What would you do? Scrap one and cut it in 2-inch slices to use for the others? There's a lot of 2-inch pieces in one coach. Or would you mold the extra pieces of the sides using the coaches as the master? Beautiful work, by the way. Jens

Actually it makes sense to me if the coaches are shorter than scale. The F7s seem like reprints with upgraded electronics. Fine, they have the correct dimensions. The coaches also seem like reprints, but this time from a 2004 (?) model, and I would not be surprised if they back then opted for a shorter than scale length to avoid problems in tight curves. Happened all the time in Europe also, but the trend is towards scale size coaches in all gauges. Anyway, I bet that MTH decided simply to reprint the coaches, since a new mold would be too expensive. Those coaches will do nicely for many modelers, but not for me. Renumbering the coaches won't do, because the window arrangement would be wrong, and they would only be good for El Capitan up to 1946, and the first F7s were built in 1949 ... Yeah, yeah, I know, there's just no pleasing some people, but I like to have a "this could have been" feeling about my rolling stock (... he said while planning to use an ATSF F7 consist on a layout with a European theme) Sigh! No, what I would like to do is build a train that in itself is so close to the prototype that I'm happy with it. It's not an exact science, but I know I won't be happy with the MTH coaches. Yes, I saw the Accucraft coaches, and they are gorgeous. They look much better length-wise, but ATSF is not mentioned, and there are no dome cars. They're kinda pricey too, if you need the entire El Capitan, so I haven't researched whether they can be used or not. For now, I'll calm down and have fun with the F7s when they arrive. And maybe get the N-scale El Capitan. It's a beautiful set, and it could be a cool payload on a string of flatbeds after the F7s Jens

Exactly - they are all over the place. You need to cross-refer with this page (Passenger Equipment Roster - third item from below in the left nav pane) where you get info about when the coaches were built, and when they were added to the ATSF fleet. In the left nav pane, try also clicking El Capitan (or any of the others) for examples of train consist assignments through the years. Here it says that these series of coaches were indeed used for El Capitan in the years 1953-55. So maybe we need a second source to confirm the length of the coaches. Or to cause further confusion ... Geeks? Us? Naah

They are hard to tell from each other, and that's why I'm obsessing about it Here's what I have found out so far from the two sites. The info is scattered all over, so it's slightly difficult to dig out, but I finally found it: Coach #2816-2860, built 1953 for ATSF. 48 seats. Length 82'10" Coach #2861-2911, built 1947 for ATSF. 44 seats. Length 82'10" Coach #2912-2945, built 1950 for ATSF. 44 seats, Length 82'10" In the 2013 catalog, MTH is offering nos. 2861, 2900, 2930 and 2945. The earlier models are all in the 2800 range. So it seems the MTH coaches are in fact shorter than scale. Hmm ... Jens

The MTH models are 28 1/2", which scales to 76 feet. From what I can deduct on the web, these coaches were really 85 feet long. The models on the MTH site appear a bit shorter to scale than equivalent models in the minor scales, too, but that can be deceiving. Does anyone know if the MTH coaches are true to scale or shortened to handle tighter MR curves? Jens

Having scavenged the sites again, it looks a reasonable part of a mid-50s El Capitan (and other trains too) could be formed from the MTH models. Does anyone know if there are prototype pictures on the web of these 44/48 seater coaches (#2816 - 2945) ? Jens Edit: Found pictures on the atsfrr site too. Had to go via Google, but hey ... any which way. MTH models look OK.

Well done, Joe. I wouldn't worry too much about the SD70ACe ... Jens

Joe - what a goldmine of information I think I came across the atsfrr site on a search once, but never got in there. Well, it seems like the MTH coaches are from the 'Chief', but they're only part of the train, and only up until the mid 50's. Other than that, they've probably been shuffled around where they were needed, but it still leaves the dome and baggage cars out for a prototypical train. Hmm ... need to think that one over for a while. Thanks for the links Jens

For ballast, some people here use the rocks/stones you put in the bottom of fish tanks. It's available in bulk at reasonable prices. Jens

Yeah, it looks like some of the dates have changed. ATSF is still listed for May, though, but some NS units are still listed for March, so I guess we can't trust that list very much. That's okay. My impatience is just getting the better of me. I'll grab a cold one and go fight the ants in the garden while I wait. Dates slipping is certainly common here in Europe too. My BR50 was just recently bumped from Q2 to Q3. I fully expect it to slip to Q4 eventually. Oh well ... Jens

Hi all. Now that I have ordered an F7 ABBA set, I find myself looking for a suitable train for it. What to haul? One option is of course some 100+ reefers, but somehow I keep flying in circles around the Super Chief or El Capitan ... Where do I get suitable 1:32 coaches for a Santa Fe ABBA F7 consist? MTH seems like the obvious choice, but to me it seems like the coaches they are offering were not used in the named trains. I'd really love (except maybe for the price tag) a set of streamliners like Kato has made in N scale, but I realize I'm stretching my imagination, here. I am thinking maybe I should just settle for what is there, and get myself some MTH coaches for a no-name ATSF passenger train, and then get the Kato set and assemble a correct El Capitan in N-scale for the shelf. You know, for no other reason than ... well ... umm ... because I can?? Have El Cap/Chief coaches ever been made in 1:32 scale? The coaches that MTH is offering in the 2013 catalog (and the previous batch too, for that matter) - where were they used? Best regards, Jens