Do I need Odyssey control?

[Anonymous]

I am looking at a Lionel engine that has Odyssey speed control and am not quite sure what this will do for me. I understand it regulates engine speed especially if you are going uphill on a layout, but I have a flat layout, and most of the time my trains move pretty smoothly. Can anyone shed some light on how this feature works for them?

[Big_Boy_4005]

My understanding is that Odyssey is like cruise control on a car. It is a system internal to the locomotive, and requires no interaction from the operator. The idea is to keep the wheels turning at a constant rate by automaticly adjusting the voltage going to the motor. If your layout is flat, it just won't do much.

[dougdagrump]

Wouldn't it be helpful on the curves, especially if you don't have the real wide radius afforded on a larger layout. [?]

[ben10ben]

Cruise control is great, even on a flat layout.

If you have sharp curves, it will maintain a constant speed through them.

If a coupler gives out somewhere in your consist, it will keep the engine from speeding up and crashing into the caboose. The engine will maintain the same speed.

It keeps the speed constant even through voltage drops across your layout.

Finally, it allows excellent slow speeds not normally possible.

[Big_Boy_4005]

Double edged sword guys, when it comes to sharp curves. What if you are going fast on the straightaways? [swg][:-,][oops][censored]