I need a good HO scale puller....

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
1

Ok, I am trying to replicate NS lines in the midewest and need a good engine that will pull 12-18 cars around 18" turns. Any suggestions?

Right now I have a high-nose U23B, I put some weight in the gas tank, but obviously the space was limited. Just tired of the poor thing spinning out with 6+/- cars in and out of turns. thanks! :slight_smile:

2

Hi there,

I have possibly sharper than 18" radius in parts of my layout (www.xdford.digitalzones.com) but all my locos from LL 0-8-0’s and SW’s up pull at least 10 cars, the only “poor performer” is my LL 0-6-0 so do you have grades or reverse curves on your layout? Are your rails worn/polished and therefore slippery? Are your freight car trucks free rolling? THink you may have a few checks to do here…

THere is a product called Bullfrog Snot but I have not used it at all that is supposed to help situations such as yours. Maybe there is more experience now that others can share here,

Regards from Australia

Trevor

3

Hi!

Welcome to the Forum.

Assuming you don’t have any significant grades on your layout, a single 4 axled diesel should be able to easily pull at least a dozen cars around 18 inch curves.

When you say the loco is “spinning out”, is that because it is too light, or could it be because the wheels and track are dirty/oily? Take a small rag with a bit of alcohol on it and wipe the rails. If the rag comes up black, that may be a good part of the problem.

On my HO layout, when I want max pulling power, I do like the real RRs do and add units to the train. Two 4 axle diesel locos can pull anything I can get together on flat terrain, and 4 can pull “anything” anywhere on the layout.

4

I am not familiar with the locomotive in question. But I would start in the following order:

  1. Does the locomotive have all wheels geared and driven? Without a functional 8 wheel drive, you are not going to get where you want to go. An easy check - do all 8 wheels spin when it starts pulling, or just 4 wheels?
  2. Is there a groove on any of the drive wheels for a traction tire/O-ring? Are the traction tires still present (the O-ring in the groove)? If the locomotive was designed for traction tires, it will not pull well if the tires are missing.
  3. Do the trucks and wheels on the cars roll freely? Mount a 3 ft piece of flex track on a 3ft length of 2x (or even 1x). Set the track/board level, then raise one end of the 3ft board 3/4". Every car should roll down the incline without being pushed. If it doesn’t the trucks and wheels need adjustment or replacement. If you want even better rolling, set the incline test at 1/2" in 3ft. Metal wheels seem to be better made and cause fewer problems than plastic, but decent plastic wheels will work, too. Check the wheels with the NMRA gauge, and use a Truck Tuner tool to get wheels to roll better. Occasionally, you just have to replace the trucks rather than the wheels. Both tools are in the $10 range, and will last forever.
  4. Is the track oily or greasy? If so, clean the track with alcohol or other solvent to remove the oil and grease.

With a reasonable quality locomotive, and free rolling cars, you s

5

Pretty much covered. What manufacturer is the U23B?

push the rolling stock and check for any that are binding. If you don’t have metal wheels on the rolling stock I’d suggest investing in metal wheelsets and a truck tuner.

6

Lets see in Norfolk Southern paint scheme:

Atlas makes a U23B, 8-40B, and made a GP40.
Athearn made or makes a GP38-2, GP60, SW1500 and a Genesis GP15-1.
Walthers Proto-1000 also has a GP15.
Kato made a GP35.

If you want to get into the big stuff there is also Athearn SD38, SD45-2, SD50, SD60M, and C44-9W and an Kato SD80MAC.

Any of those should be able to pull that many cars around an 18" curve. I would be less inclined to think that the larger locomotives would perform well on an 18" curve.