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Consist - Which Goes First, the Fastest or the Slowest Loco?

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  • Member since
    December 2004
  • From: Bedford, MA, USA
  • 21,483 posts
Posted by MisterBeasley on Monday, November 11, 2013 10:14 AM

 If you're using DCC and can speed-match your engines relatively well, then do that and you're probably not going to have a problem.

But, it's not an ideal world, is it?  Put the fastest engine in front.  What you want is to have the front engine's coupler pulling on the second engine's coupler, and so on, so that the string of couplers remains under tension.  What you don't want is to have any of the couplers under compression, because that makes them more likely to pop apart.

Most of the time, it will not matter.  The last engine will be slowed by the weight of the train.  So, even if it's faster than the lead engine in a no-load test, it will be slowed down enough that the lead engine will still be pulling against the coupler link.

It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse. 

  • Member since
    September 2004
  • From: Dearborn Station
  • 24,281 posts
Consist - Which Goes First, the Fastest or the Slowest Loco?
Posted by richhotrain on Monday, November 11, 2013 9:47 AM

That is the question.

Does it matter?

Should the fastest loco go first, or should the slowest loco go first.

What if your consist is ABBA or ABA and one or both of the B units is faster?

Looking for opinions to the point of debate.

Rich 

Alton Junction

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