Locomotive working on test track but not on layout?

[mlehman]

Haven't used BFS, but have heard what others have done. One of the issues is that it needs to be thin. Too thick and it may be lifting the other drivers without it -- which need contact to feed power up -- clear of the rails. See if you can slip the edge of a piece of paper under the tire. If there's clearance there, instead of good contact with the rail, that may be the problem.

[tbdanny]

Hi all,

I've got a Roundhouse Ready-to-Run Old-Time 2-8-0 (one of these: http://www.pacificcoastairlinerr.com/1905/roundhouse_2-8-0/image/fireman_side.jpg), which I have rebuilt into an On30 locomotive.  Now, when I was programming it on my SPROG DCC test track, the mechanism was working smoothly in both directions.  There was no binding (I made sure to run wires to clear the motor and flywheel), and all of the wheels are correctly aligned and in gauge.

However, when I put it on my layout to test run it, the locomotive barely moved.  Running along a straight section of the track, it struggled going forward, and didn't move at all going in reverse unless I gave it a bit of a push.  Yet on the test track it runs fine.

The only change I've made to the wheels has been to replace the original traction tyres with bullfrog snot.

Given that the mechanism is not binding and the wheels are alright, I'm a bit lost fow what to do.  I'd like to get this loco running, given the time I've put into building it.