athearn Challenger smoke?

[countershot]

I have the athearn challenger on order and I just have a couple?

The smoke does it come with smoke or do I have to buy the generator.
if so How much?

When you get the challenger do you have to put anything together or is it ready to run?

and when I get it should I...
Grab it and put it on the track and run it as soon as i get it or what should i do before running it?

thank you
BEN

[Anonymous]

Ben,

The Challenger is RTR. All you have to do is connect the locomotive to the tender. It does NOT come with a smoke generator. You have to buy one seperate. In my opinion, I wouldn't put a smoke generator in. Ho scale smoke tends to smell and looks more like steam coming off warm food than locomotive smoke.

"Just My 2 Cents"

Jon

[Anonymous]

Not to mention makes the track filthy.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Stuckarmchairing

Not to mention makes the track filthy.

Not to mention the engine gets filthy also, sort of an oil covering on the top of the engine. Wait a minute, maybe that is prototype.

[countershot]

tank you all...[bow][bow][bow][bow][bow][:)][:)]
I am new at the realy expensive locomotives
this is my first over 60 dollers

[countershot]

QUOTE: Originally posted by bangert1

QUOTE: Originally posted by Stuckarmchairing

Not to mention makes the track filthy.

Not to mention the engine gets filthy also, sort of an oil covering on the top of the engine. Wait a minute, maybe that is prototype.

I know what you mean. I have personal experience with smoke.
a freind of mine run O scale and he has a challenger that looks real nice and so does the smoke. but it made the hole top of the loco dirty with oil that does not come off.
and if there is a way tell me so i can relay it the my freind.
thank you
Ben

[cacole]

All smoke fluids are oil-based, and will leave a sticky film on surrounding scenery and your track. Most HO scale smoke generators in locomotives or buildings put out a very wimpy, white wisp that doesn't look like smoke at all.

There was an extensive discussion on a G-scale forum a few months ago about cheaper substitutes for commercial smoke fluid. The gist of the discussion boiled down to the fact that most smoke fluids are nothing more than mineral oil, which can be purchased at most drug stores in quart bottles that cost less than a tiny vial of smoke fluid sold at hobby shops.

Another item used by a lot of G-scalers is scented Tiki lamp oil, although some said it posed a fire danger in some types of smoke generators.

At the Cochise & Western Model Railroad Club's HO-scale layout, we have a fan-driven smoke generator that was purchased from Micro-Mark (Catalog Number 82602) that is supposed to produce more smoke than the tiny ones in locomotives. It is mounted inside an Internal Revenue Service building on fire, with a push button on the fascia board for visitors to press and see smoke coming out of the building.

Even this one does not produce enough smoke to be anywhere near realistic, and the smoke doesn't even show up on pictures I took for a Web site.

You can see this at http://members.cox.net/cacole2

[Anonymous]

You want smoke? Try being at a model railroad show where the Lionel/MTH guys run their latest engines with fans that spew out smoke for 8 hours straight! Ask them to please tone it down a bit and they have a hissy fit, saying visitors come to see the "latest technlogy" in their smoking diesels! No compromise at all, our engines will continue to smoke and irritate those with breathing problems or whose eyes get irritated no matter what. Or we take our toys and stay home! This is happening right now.

A search on this synthetic smoke that those who use it say "scientific studies state it is not harmful" finds the info below, somewhere on the Trains.com toy train site:

"Is this toy train pseudo-smoke harmful to your health?

Well, a jar of pure meta-terphenyl is labeled an “irritant,” meaning that chronic exposure can irritate the eyes, skin, and mucous membranes. Some chemical substances in smoke fluid can also be moderate eye irritants and slight irritants to mucous membranes.

Common sense suggests that hobbyists provide themselves with at least some ventilation in their train rooms and that they find some fresh air if they experience headaches, sore throats, eye irritation, or itching skin after standing in a cloud of toy train “smoke.” "

So you may want to reconsider adding any smoke unit!

Bob Boudreau

[ben10ben]

If you get smoke fluid on the top of your engines, it will usually just wipe off with a paper towel, or can at least be spread around so that it blends in pretty well. It's an old trick with postwar trains to wipe them down with smoke fluid to clean them up and get them looking like the shiney trains they should be.

With regard to using smoke fluid substitutes, most experienced O-gaugers will agree that it's best not to. There has been numerous discussion on this subject in the past. One of the big arguments is that most smoke units are designed to work with a specific viscosity of fluid, and using the incorrect viscosity can, over time, clog smoke the smoke unit and reduce smoke output. What's worse is that some fluids even have a low enough viscosity that, under the right conditions, can even ignite and cause big problems, especially around flammable scenery material or live Christmas trees. Trust me when I say that you're better off paying the price for smoke fluid. When you consider the cost of our trains and the cost of getting them repaired if something goes wrong, a $5 bottle of smoke fluid is hardly worth worrying about.

Bob,
All I can say is that that is an embarasement to most other O gaugers, and I'm sorry that you have had to deal with people like that. If I were in that situation, I know that I would either turn down or turn off the smoke, and most others that I know of would do the same thing. Most of the engines that you see belching out huge clouds of smoke are MTHs, which can easily have their smoke output turned down very low, or turned off completely. Lionels can also be pretty easily turned off, as can most other engines.

[Anonymous]

Although I own only 1 4-8-4 that smokes, its lots of fun to watch, even though its
"REALLY" unrealistic. Its also easy to clean.

[Anonymous]

Mth just came out with an HO by the way!