Hello
I am working on the locomotive roster for my new layout in planning. I plan to use 2 dummy Athearn locomotives to make slugs. I was thinking about trying to make them "operating". Has anyone tried this, and if so how did you go about it? Thank you for any help.
Modeling whatever I can make out of that stash of kits that takes up half my apartment's spare bedroom.
A slug is a locomotive that has electric motors but no electrical source because it has no diesel engines, and no cab. A "normal" locomotive is coupled to it to provide the electrical power. Slugs are used in heavy drag service, typically at a humpyard, where tractive effort is more important than horsepower because speed is not required.
A slug looks very different from other locomotives. The body above the frame is low and simple. I suppose a regular locomotive could be a slug with the imagined removal of the engines leaving the body alone, but then it wouldn't look like a slug, would it?
The likely problem with powering the slug is that the power mechanism would take more space than the body would allow. One solution is to install self-powered trucks. I don't know if Northwest Shortline has something suitable or not. I do know there is a UK company providing a wide variety of such trucks (because I looked at its website a month ago), but I can't recall the name. Hopefully, someone else will know.
Mark
CSX has a number of 'Road' slugs. They took old GP30 or GP35 engines and removed the diesel and main generator. The radiator grills are 'blanked' and they are 'mated' to GP40 or GP40-2 engines. This provides a locomotive for mine locals with a cab on each end and 8 traction motors sharing a single 3000 hp 'mother'. These would be easy to do, rather than the usual 'cut down' road slugs that leave little room for a motor and fly wheels.
Jim
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
Hi Bundy74,
This is a slug for a local short line, The Winchester & Western.
Bob
Don't Ever Give Up
I should have clarified, I do understand what a slug is and the principles under which it operates. What I was leaning toward is using the slug for extra electrical pickup and traction, rather than simply mu-ing two full locomotives. Obviously, a model slug would not work the same as a prototype one in that the model operates solely on electrical power. I do remember reading somewhere about someone who used a slug for extra electrical pickup (like some steam engine tenders), but I would like to know how I would go about building something of that nature. It would require that the mother and slug set be permanently mated by drawbar, and actual electrical connections would have to be made between them. What I am asking then is if anyone has built something along these lines, I would like to know how you did it, and how I should go about it.
Hobbytown of Boston sold multi-drive kits that allowed the drive shaft to be extended between units so one motor powered both units. They used a drawbar to connect the units so the shaft did not interfere with the coupler pockets. Hobbytown is long gone but the idea may be worth looking into with NWSL parts.
TONY
"If we never take the time, how can we ever have the time." - Merovingian (Matrix Reloaded)
Athearn made working slugs, my LHS had them on his self last year. I only looked at them with a passing interest, I was into steam at that time. They where RTR Santa Fe War Bonnet in passenger colors if that might help.
Cuda Ken
I hate Rust
Here's a slug in the steam persuasion:
If I'm not mistaken - Con Cor ( or maybe Roco ) made a switcher with slug set in N scale. Canadian National uses these...
I crudely kitbashed mine from a Life-like and Roco shell (yard switchers). It has an Life-like drive and runs, usually with another yard switcher. IMO it passes the "1 foot" rule and gets the idea across. It's N Scale by the way.
My prototype Kansas City Southern made road slugs out of old F units, by removing the engines and weighting them down with cement to provide better traction. They did not cut the boidies down. The KCS also made yard slugs and cut the bodies down. The slug bodies looked like a coffin.
Jim, Modeling the Kansas City Southern Lines in HO scale.
jamnest My prototype Kansas City Southern made road slugs out of old F units, by removing the engines and weighting them down with cement to provide better traction. They did not cut the boidies down. ....
My prototype Kansas City Southern made road slugs out of old F units, by removing the engines and weighting them down with cement to provide better traction. They did not cut the boidies down. ....
But if the model doesn't shout out "I'm a slug," I'll repeat myself and say "what is the point." Now if you are one of those rivet-counters (God bless, I'm with you), that's a different matter.
1train1 I crudely kitbashed mine from a Life-like and Roco shell (yard switchers). It has an Life-like drive and runs, usually with another yard switcher. IMO it passes the "1 foot" rule and gets the idea across. It's N Scale by the way.
Your model could be mistaken for a road switcher's booster unit, or "calf," having motors, generator, and engines but no cab. But then, there's nothing wrong with modeling a calf, is there?
I don't take a lot of photos, not a "skill" for me, but I did bash a six axle slug to run with an Overland Santa Fe SD39. Santa fe had a few sets of these, mine is used in my Oklahoma area at a GM plant. The slug does pick up from the wheel sets and wires run to the mother unit to provide extra electrical pickup. I believe my website has a photo included that shows the set. The slug was kitbashed. I never have pickup problems with this set.
I'm planning to build a slug to help with electrical pick up only for my N scale Wester Maryland. I'm going to start with a "deceased" Atlas VO-1000, which will donate the trucks and frame. I'm going to see if I can power it, but due to the low profile of the prototype, I don't think that will be practical. But I will attach semi-permanent wires between the two units to allow the 8 slug wheels to pick up and feed the motor in the BL-2. I used a bunch of second hand turnouts in my yard (a decision I am beginning to regret) so this should effectively eliminate the stall problems.
Lee
Route of the Alpha Jets www.wmrywesternlines.net
Why not just cut down the shell and build a real working slug with a decoder in it. Its not that hard guys. MU it to your regular engines and away you go. NO need for a dummy or weird drive shafts. If you are going to put in the effort to build a dummy why not have one you can actually use.
Geeez guys build something......
I have an extra Atlas RS3. Cut off the stack and ground down the fan up front. Will fill in the grills on the hood and use it as a road slug. BNSF and CSX have similar units. Have seen the CSX units here in town. Too bad they let them look so bad (rusty, paint chipping off).
Bundy74What I was leaning toward is using the slug for extra electrical pickup and traction, rather than simply mu-ing two full locomotives.
What I was leaning toward is using the slug for extra electrical pickup and traction, rather than simply mu-ing two full locomotives.
To answer your question I have done this before in the old Keller Onboard command control days. This is when we had to use a dummy to hold the decoder for the unit lash up. The only problem is the flexibility that is needed between the units. The best thing that I have found is 30 gauge wire that is multi stranded ie.16 or more strands. The other thing is to make sure that when you run the wire between the units you have to make sure that they are spread out ie. like the actual mu hoses so that everything will move freely. your idea will work using the proper wire for flexability.
Now for the traction part of this I have made a few actual slugs that were powered (not full engines but Conrail MT-4 slugs), but I have not gone as far a wiring them together because I like to change engines that use the slug. But using the information listed above should work. When making the slug ie MT-4 you have to remember to choose the correct drive train with a low set motor, Atlas trainline RS-32 for example the motor is set low enough to hard wire a decoder into the unit with maintaining the correct height body of the slug.
I sort of have a slug set. It's two athearn BB SW1500s. One is powered and has a motor decoder, the other one is a dummy and has a sound decoder. When I first ran the set together; the powered one stalled and sound sound one cut out all over the place. I got the idea to wire both units together to improve electrical pickup. Haven't has problems with stalling or sound cutting out since. In the process, I ballasted the powered one up since it would have difficuly pulling the dummy and 6 cars up a small hill. Now I can pull well over 20 cars no sweat, it weighs about as much as a P2K GP9 now, and runs and pulls almost as well
IRL, BN used SD9s and early switchers as slugs
Vincent
Wants: 1. high-quality, sound equipped, SD40-2s, C636s, C30-7s, and F-units in BN. As for ones that don't cost an arm and a leg, that's out of the question....
2. An end to the limited-production and other crap that makes models harder to get and more expensive.