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3% grade question?
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[quote]QUOTE: <i>Originally posted by tomikawaTT</i> <br /><br />...I don't see a 30/1000 (3%) grade as any big thing,.....and the cars are metal. (So are the wheels, and they are very free-rolling.)[/quote] <br /> <br /> That's true. A 3% grade is steep but not too extreme in model railroading as it is with the prototype. Pulling 20 -30 cars will tax the couplers and motors though. <br /> <br /> Also free wheeling wheel sets are a must. If you can afford it, you can replace the whole truck with a free rolling set or replace just the axle/wheel set. Measure the length of the axle you are replacing before buying replacement metal wheel sets. Whether you are replacing the axle/wheel sets or keeping the originals, a [url="http://www.ares-server.com/Ares/Ares.asp?MerchantID=RET01229&Action=Catalog&Type=Product&ID=82838"]<b>TRUCK TUNER</b>[/url] tool is handy to have or use a #11Xacto blade to remove any casting flash from the journals. Plastic trucks are self lubricating, but on metal trucks I give the journals a drop of [url="http://doityourself.com/store/6909329.htm"]<b>Lock Ease</b>[/url] graphite lubricant and allow it to dry before installing the wheel sets . <br /> Be sure the wheels are in gauge, using an [url="http://www.ares-server.com/Ares/Ares.asp?MerchantID=RET01229&Action=Catalog&Type=Product&ID=80752"]<b>NMRA standards gauge</b>[/url]. <br /> Attention to the couplers is important too. Make sure that they are secure in the draft box, the correct height, including the uncoupler pin, and that the coupler doesn't droop. <br /> <br /> <br />[quote]QUOTE: The only way (short of building the actual trackage) to find out if your rolling stock will handle that, or any other, grade is to build a test fixture and try it...[/quote] <br /> <br /> Great idea. A [url="http://cgi.ebay.com/RCBS-Trigger-Pull-Gauge-NEW-Model-9450_W0QQitemZ7172055202QQcategoryZ36258QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"]<b>pull gauge</b>[/url] is a part of that. <br /> <br />[quote]QUOTE: Incidentally, if operating a scheduled train in two or more pieces, all of them are called sections and recorded on the train sheet as "first-xxx," "second-xxx," and so forth. ......[/quote] <br /> <br /> [D)][oops] That's correct! They're called sections. An extra is a train that's not regularly scheduled. I stand corrected, thanks. <br />
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