I’ve been running 6 frieght cars and a caboose behind my Lionel NYC Flyer 4-4-2 starter loco and tender and it seems to have no problem pulling them at the 60 power setting on my CW80 transformer. Any more power and the train moves too fast. It did momentarily slow down somewhat last night for the first time, but after pulling off 3 cars and a brief rest, it ran fine for over a half hour.
What is the maximum number of cars I can possibly hope to pull with this engine and what are the longest trains you’ve pulled with an inexpensive, starter type loco?
Just to shine a little info your way regarding your question. The biggest factor in pulling model trains, is not the power of the engine or traction, its the quality of the cars your pulling. If you have plastic wheels and cheap axles with trucks, you might say pull 6 cars. if they are better quality, with good rolling wheels and axles, you could get 10 or 12. Example: I have a GP-60 Atrhen RTR engine. Previously, ti would only pull 8 cars before it would stall in a turn at the far end of my lay out. Since, then, I have ynaked out of service the old Bachman and TYCO cars and replaced them with Athern BB’s , Roundhouse and Accurail kits (most with metal wheels now) and I pulled 15 car train last nite and it did not slow at all.
Its all in the rolling restinance of the cars. So wht does all this mean? Depending on car quality, your and everyone’s elses resluts, may vary. [:)] Hope this gives you a bit of info.
I’ve pulled 27 behind one of my starter set 4-4-2s. This was a mixture of about 8 postwar cars, and the rest modern era cars with Delrin trucks, needlepoint axles, and fast angle wheels. I would not do this everday, though, because the engine really was not happy about doing this, even though it did pull them. The Delrin trucked cars have so little rolling resistance that you can pull a whole lot more of them than with just about anything else. I would estimate that 5 have about the same drawbar weight as a single postwar car when on a flat surface.
Well here are some engines pulling a MTH Dash 8 Dummy [very heavy as it has power trucks with gears but not motors nor electronics], 15 laoded hopper cars and one lighted caboose. Thought I would test it out and see how they did.
Old 2056
Pensy turbine
Polar Express [pulled them but had a time getting them started]
These old MPC CN UBoats [strapped together] use to pull 25 cars and a caboose on my old basement layout. Even up a steep grade.
27 cars! Ben, I’ve got to find out where to by some Delrin trucks! I had no idea those starter 4-4-2s could pull that many! That’s a bit of a mind blower.
John, as a beginner, I appreciate the info. All my rolling stock (Lionel, MTH Rail King, IR) have metal wheels. The MTH and IR cars have metal trucks and needle point axles, but none are expensive, so they all probably have a fairly high rolling resistance.
You say your Polar Express isn’t that good of a puller? I watched one of those small Berkshires pull 23 cars on CTTs web site in the review section. I was impressed enough to want one! Link below:
Full of coal [not plastic coal]??? and that dummy weighs about as much as the powered unit [heavy]. Now you want to see a puller, this K-Line is over powered. You have to weight it down to get the voltage up enough to make it smoke good. I think it would pull my house.
Would love to get it on a big long track with lots of cars to see just how many it would pull.
I’ve pulled about 20 cars on a 4x8 042 oval with a single MPC U-boat (couldn’t fit too many more on the loop!). My son’s NYC 4-4-2 will pull at least a dozen (with some postwar roll-like-bricks) cars on and 027 oval. I haven’t got enough track to stall either my Frisco Geep (one Pullmor w/ Magnetraction) or my MPC Berkshire on the 042 loop. I have an MPC single-motored Alco that will pull at least a dozen without complaint, and my son’s dual-DC-motored Warbonnet set Alco will walk away with it’s dummy and 5 passenger cars like nothing is behind it at all.
No, just box cars and gondolas. If your Berkshire is pulling 15 cars full of coal (real coal?) AND that heavy dummy engine, I’d say it’s doing alright for itself.
I’ve never really put my Lionel NYC Flyer locos to any kind of pulling test. I find with normal running they’ll pull 8-12 cars pretty comfortably. I’m sure since these are beginner locos, that’s what Lionel figures this is how they will be used since a young kid will not likely have as many train cars as a seasoned adult operator. And that a kid’s rolling stock will probably be lower end types of cars with plastic trucks.
I have found that having some heavier cars behind these NYC Flyer type steamers will help them to put out more smoke, but that’s because you are putting more current to the track. I’ve run mine with a string of 6-8 short 2-bay hoppers with a load of rubber coal (from my self-built coal loader) and it pulls them just fine and puts out a nice plume of smoke too. Smoke out put can also be affected by the type of fluid too. Super Smoke works very nice, as does the Bachmann Smoke Fluid whic is also a better bargain price-wise than the Lionel. As is also the Crest Smoke Fluid which I also use in my Lionel locos.
Many falsely assume having die-cast trucks versus plastic trucks on rolling stock means less derailments because the cars are heavier due to the trucks. I’ve found this just isn’t true. What makes the real difference on derailments is how the truck is mounted to the body. Many of the plastic truck type cars have trucks mounted with a solid or hollow rivel that leaves the truck loose to some degree with a lot of wobble. It’s this wobble of the truck that causes derailments (along with the opening in the space of the knuckle coupler). The die-cast trucks tend to be a tighter fit as they are mounted with a screw.
I regularly pull trains with cheapie 8 inch MPC type cars at the lead followed by cars with die cast trucks with zero derailments. The KEY is remounting the plastic trucks to eliminate the wobble. Or filing/grinding out the opening space of couplers that need it.
There are some other points to be considered in addition to the ones othe
I still own my first Lionel loco and I’ll admit it has recieved a (badly needed) overhaul, but when I first got it, I could pull up to 15-20 cars, depending on the grade, speed, and how clean the tracks were.
BTW the only really valid way to determine a locos true pulling ability is a drawbar test using either a fishermans spring scale or a pulley wheel cord and weights.
Since I have nothing better to do today and a workshop table covered in various Lego models and test equipment from fixing the Atlantic yesterday, I think I’ll build a test rig to determine the locos pulling power and the rolling resistance of my three coaches. Both before and after the lube job.
I’ve been playing around with syringes and cams trying to get a convincing sounding mechanically generated ‘chuff!’ Can’t help wondering if this loco has other features built in that I simply can’t activate with its cheesy controller, the two circuit boards inside the loco and tender look to be a bit more complicated than a simple bridge rectifier.
