Two identical engines from the same manufacturer should run close enough together to be double-headed on DC power. First try running them with no train and not connected together. If one runs slightly faster than the other, put the faster one in front and you should have no problems.
A lot has to do with how fast each locomotive runs no matter the manufacturer.
I have an IHC 4-6-2 & it runs great with an Athearn BB GP40-2.
I had a BB Super F7 running with a BB SD40-2 today with no problems.
I've run 3 BB SD40-2 together with no problems.
I usually sandwich a dummy inbetween them just to absorb some of the push & pull.
I haven't tried Proto with Athearn as I know I'll have problems so I'm not going to bother.
One thing I might suggest, use a decent power pack.
Gordon
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My test for checking whether locos can be successfully doubleheaded:
On a level loop of track, place both locos with the number of cars you want them to pull, with half the cars behind each loco. Bring them up to speed.
One will probably be faster than the other. Take one or a few cars from the slower loco's train and couple them to the faster one. Run again. Repeat until either both locos run at approximately equal speed or the slower loco runs out of cars. If they end up with approximately equal speed, they can be doubleheaded over your entire route. If the faster loco can pull the entire train away from the slower loco running light, they won't be happy together.
If the doubleheader is going to be run primarily upgrade (helper district) the equation changes. The faster locomotive will almost certainly lug down, so the slower loco will still be carrying a fair share of the load. Having both locos on the front end should not bring up any problems. If a pusher operation is planned, the designated pusher should be faster than the lead loco, but incapable of pushing the entire train without slipping. Ideally, somewhere in the train, one car will be pulled from the front and pushed from the rear, both at the same time. If that car is the tender of the lead locomotive, you may have a problem!
Chuck (who runs a pusher district, routinely doubleheads and sometimes tripleheads steam on DC)
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tomikawaTT wrote: My test for checking whether locos can be successfully doubleheaded: On a level loop of track, place both locos with the number of cars you want them to pull, with half the cars behind each loco. Bring them up to speed. One will probably be faster than the other. Take one or a few cars from the slower loco's train and couple them to the faster one. Run again. Repeat until either both locos run at approximately equal speed or the slower loco runs out of cars. If they end up with approximately equal speed, they can be doubleheaded over your entire route. If the faster loco can pull the entire train away from the slower loco running light, they won't be happy together. If the doubleheader is going to be run primarily upgrade (helper district) the equation changes. The faster locomotive will almost certainly lug down, so the slower loco will still be carrying a fair share of the load. Having both locos on the front end should not bring up any problems. If a pusher operation is planned, the designated pusher should be faster than the lead loco, but incapable of pushing the entire train without slipping. Ideally, somewhere in the train, one car will be pulled from the front and pushed from the rear, both at the same time. If that car is the tender of the lead locomotive, you may have a problem! Chuck (who runs a pusher district, routinely doubleheads and sometimes tripleheads steam on DC)
You do not need to go to all that trouble. It really isn't that critical. Just run 2 locos about a foot apart and if they stay within about 10% plus or minus of each other's speed, they'll be fine. The only other thing is to put the faster loco in front, (if the faster loco is pushing the slower one it can cause derailments).
If you're running really long trains (50 to 100 cars) and there's a large difference in the speeds of the locos, you could cause motor overheating and/or excessive gear wear.
I have run 2,3 and 4 units (of mixed manufacturers) together (on my old DC system) pulling 50 to 75 cars with no problems. I have never stripped any gears or burnt out any motors in 20 years of running, (the last powerpacks I used were MRC Tech II 2500s before I switched to DCC).
Jay
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First off, welcome to the Forum.
The replies given here suggest that adding engines will not overload the power pack. This may not be the case if you are using a power pack that might have come with a train set or want to double head older locomotives equipped with open frame motors. Modern can motors draw so little current that two of them would be hard pressed to overwhelm all but the weakest power packs. Not so with the older style open frame motors. A DC-70 Pittman can draw up to .70 amps (hence the model designation). I also recall Walhers once offereing a Fairbanks Morse switcher that MR said drew 1.0 amps of power.
If you have no means of measureing the power draw of your equipment in operation, check the casing of your power pack every few minutes. If it feels warm, you may be overloading it. If it feels hot, shut it down immmediately. You may have already fried the power pack.
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