Has anyone got one yet? I see confusing info - Walthers has some in stock and Atlas says ETA is June 2007.
Hope these run better than Genesis - those things derail on my layout.
They are in stock at my LHS. June 2007 is a due date for the second run.
Jack W.
First off, [#welcome] to the forum! I’ve been waiting for some of the Atlas cars to show up at my LHS. Regarding your statement about your Genesis Autoracks - what radius are you operating on? If it is too tight, then yes, they will derail everytime the cars encounter that curve. If other cars are also derailing, you might want to take a close look at your track, looking for slight kinks at track joints or for a changing radius in your curves ( not a constant smooth curve line).
I own 2 of the Genesis articulated autoracks and they perform flawlessly on my layout. I do have restrictions on where they are allowed because I do have 2 tracks that do not meet their minimum radius requirement.
Don Z.
Hey Don,
My radius is 24", no other car I have derails. And I have wide variety. My trains I run are up to 60 cars long and they all run OK. In fact I often leave train runnig, come back a few hours later and it is still running - I use KD sprung trucks so cars stay on track very well.
With Genesis racks I find that the diaphragm is a culprit, but even removing it doesn’t help. And I made sure I use longer drawbar. This is what makes it confusing.
Where in the 60 car string are you placing the autoracks? The Genesis autoracks do not meet the NMRA specs for weight - perhaps yours are string-lining and derailing…what happens if you run them as the last car? Since you have removed the diaphragm and are using the longer drawbar, they should take a curve as tight as 18". Do they derail in the same location on the layout or do they derail in random locations?
Don Z.
I’d place them in the end usually. They derail when they exit curve into straight. Weight may be an issue, you are right. I’ll try to add some extra in one and see if it helps.
On the subject of Atlas’s racks. How do you guys like them? How’s appearence, tracking? What’s the minimum radius you run them?
Isn’t the minimum radius 26" for the Genesis cars? I have about 10 of them and they run well on my 30" minimum.
As others have suggested - make sure your coupler heights, wheel guage etc are in order. Between the Genesis, new Atlas and Walthers Auto racks. Ive found that all three seem to have different coupler heights so tweaking is needed for them to play well together.