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Old 02-04-2017, 03:58 PM   #1
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Default Large scale model trains

There always seems to be a thread like this pop up from time to time. A few forum members have model railroad equipment and many others seems to enjoy the scale details of fine scale locomotives.

Although I don't participate in the hobby anymore, I still go to the fine scale model train show when it shows up in Baltimore twice a year. There has been a club that has a modular layout that it based on 'O' scale in the narrow gauge. They use commercial 45mm width flex track that represents 3' gauge ( distance between the inside faces of the rails) and hand laid turnouts. The scale works out to 20.3:1, which is know as 'Fn3' scale.

Here's a few pics from today. These are all set up with 3s Lipos in the tenders and handheld throttles. There is a charging station on a siding where the tender stops over top of a specific area and the Lipo recharges wirelessly. I chatted with one of the guys who was telling me that they have drag brakes setup with a lot of "coast" to make a realistic slowdown but sometimes they have to do emergency "full reverses" to avoid hitting another train sharing the same rails.










I got a 30 second video that I'll upload to Vimeo then link back to this thread. The sound systems in these steam locomotives are nothing short of incredible.
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Old 02-04-2017, 04:28 PM   #2
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Default Re: Large scale model trains


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Old 02-05-2017, 01:02 PM   #3
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

Large scale, just about anything ( you listening in Axial ) is the way to go.

So i run 1:20.3 Bachmann gear, battery powered but with 5S batteries.

My friend said he might clean his tracks this year so we can do a little wheeling in the garden, and i will do my best to make sure he follow up on that promise.
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Old 02-05-2017, 04:14 PM   #4
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

I don't know that I've even seen a large scale Shay... beautiful! Would have loved to see that in action
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Old 02-06-2017, 06:42 PM   #5
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

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I don't know that I've even seen a large scale Shay... beautiful! Would have loved to see that in action
99% sure it's a Bachmann unit. This one was a 3 truck shay. The mechanisms were detailed to the point of the cylinder rods moving the crank shaft. Really cool model to watch move around at 15 scale MPH.
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Old 02-06-2017, 07:02 PM   #6
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

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I don't know that I've even seen a large scale Shay... beautiful! Would have loved to see that in action
Go to YouTube and do a search for "Live Steam Shay", you think the Bachmann electric/battery Shays are cool, the live steamers are much more realistic. On the Bachmann's, there are electric motors in the front and rear trucks.

However, the Bachmann Shay can be had for around $300 - 400, the live steamers, brand new, will set you back between $2500 - $4000, depending on the model.

Last edited by Mike Flea; 02-06-2017 at 07:05 PM.
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Old 02-07-2017, 05:27 AM   #7
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

O yeah.

This is not a cheap hobby thats for damn sure, just have a look at what accucraft have on sale.

https://www.accucraftestore.com/

Im not that big on live steam, sure its damn cool and all, but really its not what i would be running.

Note to self, win big in lotto,,,, need to buy a lot of stuff and travel a lot.
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Old 02-07-2017, 06:01 AM   #8
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O yeah.

This is not a cheap hobby thats for damn sure, just have a look at what accucraft have on sale.

https://www.accucraftestore.com/
That Pennsy E6 got my attention...Very cool, and very expensive.

The only 1:1 Shay I've seen is in the PA museum, they've got a Shay, Heisler and a Climax... I'll have to check out some vids.
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Old 02-07-2017, 09:09 AM   #9
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

Man, that's cool! My daughter would love to see somethi g like that. We have a small model train track setup at the train station here that we can see but thats about it.You guys have all the cool exhibits on the east coast. Large scale trains, R/C semi truck and heavy equipment, R/C truck pulls, etc. Around here, seems like all we have are tech conventions and computer museums. Now a days, everything old/cool gets torn down and replaced with tech related businesses or high density housing.

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Old 02-07-2017, 09:37 AM   #10
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Just for the hell of it, i dug out a little American steam for you guys.

This is my 2-6-6-2 Baldwin, a train you can even go take a ride on if you are "over there"
Needless to say its on my grand US tour bucket list



The anal guys of you will probably notice its not the correct sound i have programmed into my Phoenix sound PB 11 sound card, but i have the programming cable so its just a matter of a few seconds on the computer then thats changed.
The 3 watt PB 11 will run you 265 dollars if you pick it up at the phoenix sound home page.
The train i cant remember the prize on, got it via ebay and a American dealer, and at a okay prize compared to the list prize of them
But this is 4 years ago.

And off course its all RC Thats just the way we roll

Transmitter can handle 50 trains, not at once off course you have to change in between the trains, but thats just a flick of a switch.
I do think the transmitter support STOP ALL, and thats a good thing if you dont have your trains on separate tracks.
And i cant stress how good a idea that is to do, even if your loop is large, it is pretty hard to keep 2 trains running on the same loop, one of the trains always go a little faster or slower some places on the layout, so dialing in the speed is hard.
And these crash almost as spectacular as the 1:1 counterparts, so you dont really want to go there.

The little one in the background is a little porter, i have yet to fit it with RC, but good thing is the speed controllers now come with diesel or steam sound build in, and this is good cuz while it is a big train much of the inside is taken up by weights so it dont just spin its wheels.
I am sure i can work something out for the "little" porter one way or the other.
Stumbling block as always is lack of funds

O yeah and i made the video 4K for your guys viewing pleasure
Maybe the microphone sensitivity is a bit on the tall end, it is a new little action camera ( SJ7 Star ) that i am testing on and digging out flaws for the firmware team to fix.

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Old 02-07-2017, 06:30 PM   #11
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

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That Pennsy E6 got my attention...Very cool, and very expensive.

The only 1:1 Shay I've seen is in the PA museum, they've got a Shay, Heisler and a Climax... I'll have to check out some vids.
Check YouTube for Cass, W.Va, they have a scenic mountain railway that runs a bunch of Shays, a Climax, and a Heisler.
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Old 02-07-2017, 07:11 PM   #12
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

All of the rail lines mentioned above would be a blast to witness first hand. My high ticket item on the wish list is an weekend excursion on the Durango & Silverton. I've been promising myself for the past 5 summers that I'm going to Colorado at the end of summer and I still haven't done it. Maybe this year.
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Old 02-08-2017, 11:22 AM   #13
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

We even got a few veteran rail lines going over here in little old Denmark, but they are running the small steam engines and not the larger cool ones we once had here.

Here is a link to some silhouette of whats been run over here over time.

https://translate.google.dk/translat...3D1&edit-text=
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Old 02-08-2017, 08:45 PM   #14
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All of the rail lines mentioned above would be a blast to witness first hand. My high ticket item on the wish list is an weekend excursion on the Durango & Silverton. I've been promising myself for the past 5 summers that I'm going to Colorado at the end of summer and I still haven't done it. Maybe this year.
My buddy and I were there in Oct of '89 during a road trip. We drove up from New Mexico and we're too late in the day to get the round trip to Durango and back to Silverton. Such a bummer. I've wanted to go back ever since. Some day I'll get the chance to go back. If you can do it, go. So much to see in this great country we live in.
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Old 02-08-2017, 11:02 PM   #15
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Default Re: Large scale model trains

There a is guy a few streets over from me, We all have 2 1/2 acres lots or larger properties, that has train tracks that are about 2 feet wide, all the way around the house and yard, so there is a lot of track

Years ago he used to run his Grand kids on the train, around the yard and had filling station and a couple stops made a big deal out of, I don't think the train or the cars are still there anymore, I seen the tracks, one day

When I was out walking my Jack Russell's, more like them walking me, a few years ago, and the grass has grown over some sections, so you can see its not been used in years

Last edited by kgb424; 02-08-2017 at 11:16 PM.
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Old 02-09-2017, 01:16 PM   #16
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The ride ones are extremely sweet, there is the perfect place to go live steam.
But thats also for the extremely well off, even if you have lathe and whatever and order your pulling unit as a kit.



Or if you hit the lotto big time, and ditched the wife the next day.

19" gauge, and i must say i am hard pressed to think of a more cool and impressing way to survey your extended property
Sure you can have a amped up ATV or maybe a cool rock bouncer but while cool and all, they dont score as high on the man O meter as a big ass steam train.



Just imagine that big train with a DIY rail cannon for chucking pumkins :-)

Last edited by Peaker; 02-09-2017 at 01:30 PM.
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Old 02-09-2017, 07:23 PM   #17
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Out here by me, 30 miles SW of Chicago, is the Illinois Live Steamers, check out their website: illinoislivesteamers.com, and click on the Photo Album, they are not open to the public, but if you have scale trains in 7.5 inch gauge, 4.75 inch gauge, or 3.5 inch gauge, and want to run them, you can join their club.
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Old 08-17-2020, 02:11 PM   #18
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Ends of rail finally met in my friends field, so on unsecured just about all of it the Aristocraft diesel go around and around for the first time in 7 years or so.


And i am already on the #2 track, and then after that come moving a lot of dirt and what not to make up some hills.
We are talking shovel + wheelbarrow and tonnes of dirt, and acing already poor backs and old arms not really meant for stuff like that.



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Old 08-17-2020, 06:21 PM   #19
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That's a lot of rail you guys have laid down there, and I see there's more for another line to the right of the track that was being run on.

Approximately how many feet/meters of track will the finished railroad have?
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Old 08-18-2020, 05:34 AM   #20
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Using the Anytrack program to initially make plans ( that was all dropped due to the big pile of dirt in the area ) the program say there is around 120 M / 400 feet of track.
Just the 120 CM / 4 foot strait tracks we have 70 of those, and the LGB R5 turns if put together to a circle will give you 14.5 M / 45 feet or so circumference to drive around and around on.
This outer line are made up of R5 turns ( 7 foot radius i think it is ), and the straits are made up of 12 X 120 Cm / 4 feet and 6 X 120 CM / 4 feet.

There is also a little surplus of 2 X 120 CM rails - a bunch of 30 CM and the smallest LGB R1 turns - and a few R2 turns, after i dropped rails on the ground and then building the #2 line.
So far i have mainly build with the 120 Cm and 60 CM strait rails.

For starters the 2 lines will not be connected, but we have the stuff to do that too, and we have accounted for where to do that.
The switch you see now will probably have to be relocated, but it would have been convenient there as putting down the first line, the pegs holding up the rails was crooked as hell so had to be redone so the R5 turns are more 90 degree.

We also have more rail coming, my friend will get more, and i will get some too now we have room for it, so by the end of this year i estimate there will be a total of 180 M / 590 feet.


I also need a receiver/ speed controller for my little porter, but it can wait, the little line made with all the small stuff a 0 - 4 - 0 have no problem traversing will not be build anytime soon.
And i need running stock too, and 1:20.3 are a pain to find now if it have to say Bachmann, so only the expensive Accucraft left if i cant find something used.
The flat bed cars i have are not even 1:20.3, and the 4 box cars i had that was 1:20.3 well they got stolen,,,,,,,
Also need more of the little ore cars for the porter to pull around, need 3 - 4 of those.

The price for all this rail would make up for a few really nice decked out scale cars, and thats just the track part of the equation

Where you see the masonry there will be tunnels over both the low and high track, and we have sourced a mutual buddy to build a bridge or two for us, just dont know where or how large yet.
The area encompassed by the outer line you see running now will also have a lake in it ( with a cable ferry for scale cars )
And we have even talked about a zip line ( also for scale cars ) across the whole setup.

In the background the green container with a stair and wooden railings, thats the driver tower for the 200 M long 1:5 / 1/8 dirt track.
Here there are also a lot of work to be done but i keep out of that as i have no interest in fast RC off road, but they also have some tonnes of dirt to move that the big diggers did not have time to do ( expensive to have a digger and a dozer running all day )

It is not room we are lacking, so in that way, the railway will never be done.


One of many scrapped layout plans. ( do note the 3D part of the program are not that good, just give a very rough feeling for my plans )



This is what i have going ATM ( inner line might not be 100 % as it will go up, but overall thats the shape i am going for.


Last edited by Peaker; 08-18-2020 at 06:04 PM.
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