Has anyone had personal one on one experience with the NEW MinitrainS locos?
Do they run any better than the old AHM versions?
Larry
Larry,
No personal experience.
Have heard numerous reports that indicate a much improved user experience.
I’m kind of curious myself, thinking it MIGHT be possible to convert to HOn3. Not saying it could be done. Used to have several of the originals. I’ve heard they could be converted, but why bother?[:S]
Mike,
I’m thinking the MinitrainS line would be great for a coffee table layout.
Indeed, why bother converting a MinitrainS loco to HOn3 when Grant Line already has a small 4 wheel switcher kit ready to go.
Larry T.
Larry,
I’m actually stocked with the Grandt diesels, just haven’t built them yet. [zzz]
Based on what I know about the Grandt’s, the new version of the Minitrains could easily surpass them in performance. They are very light. I suspect the Minitrains is heftier than the Grandt, based on what I remember from the originals. Presuming the performance is much better, that could result in a 4-wheel HOn3 diesel with enough punch to be really useful.
And I tend to collect and narrow suitable diesels to HOn3. This sounds like it could be a fun project. The first steps is always figuring out if it’s physically possible. Sometimes, there is a showstopper in terms of how much trouble it will be. If it’s basically the old design with new motor and gears, then it’s probably feasible for me to widen something for a change.[:)]
Mike,
I bought several of the old AHM sets back when they were on clearance at $5 each.
So, 50 of the little 4 wheel cars have been sitting in a box for all these years. What to do with the old locos… rust them up and use them for scenery. I may decide to plunk down the $80 and take a chance on the diesel. It would be nice if I could finally build a layout for my little tram cars that actually runs.
Since my HO standard gauge urban layout has no logical place for a narrow gauge I’ll build a small stand alone layout for the MinitrainS. Maybe a free form coffee table of 3 to 4 sq. ft. OR a small layout under the standard gauge layout.
I have been called a “rubber gauger” since I have tried so many scales. Still in their boxes are some On30, Gn15, G scale 3’ gauge and a couple of HO street cars plus the old MinitrainS. The street cars will finally find a home on my big layout. The others? maybe a series of small layouts under the big one and a garden layout too? OR maybe I should just sell all my odd ball stuff and stick to one scale.
At 71 years old I just don’t have time to build layouts in so many scales.
Larry T.
There was a recent thread on these, orginated by “Nittany Lion”:
http://cs.trains.com/TRCCS/forums/t/204379.aspx
I had both a diesel and a steam of these back in about 1968 or ‘69. I have one of each of the new ones. The operation of these new ones is FAR improved from the others. I have only operated them on a 3’ section of track connected with some jumper wires. I have a idea/plan for a micro-layout using these in an industrial scene. The operation is still not up to the level of standard-gauge HO, but seems that it would be dependable, especially if care was given to keeping the track and wheels clean.
Bill
I bought a set of the MinitrainS when they first appeared on the market just over a year ago. I have the diesel loco and it runs pretty well, although the internal contacts needed cleaning from time to time. Not a big deal; just lift off the cover and clean them.
I am building a layout inside a 16" x 20" shadow box. There’s a turntable with five spurs instead of any turnouts, and one alignment permits continuous running. The layout is based on a design from Carl Arendt’s site. The theme will be “Hard Rock Candy Mountain” and it will portray a candy mine with a dispenser on one side, fed by the little ore train.
It’s hard to do this sort of thing in such a small space with any other scale.
–Tom
Larry,
My stash of AHM wasn’t quite that large, but I was fortunate enough to sell it all off at a sweet price a few years ago. Sort of like my parents sold that condo in a town that got hit by a hurricane a year later. It’s all in the timing.[:)]
Hey kid, you’ll settle down and model in one scale when you get older. [;)] Beats the alternative!
Bill,
Sounds like positive improvements. Can you tell if there’s still room to spread each wheel out about a millimeter wider on each side, i.e. from 9mm to 10.5mm/HOn3? I’m pretty sure that’s all that was involved previously.
Then there’s the cab. Room inside for a decoder or does the new motor take up space?
Thanks for the helpful input guys.
Me thinks I’ll shell out the $80 bucks and get one of the diesels. I’ve done some measuring and I should be able to fit a “L” shaped layout about 4’x 3’ x 20" deep under my big layout. I also have 12 of the original small radius turnouts and 11 of the HOn30 flex track sections so I’m good in that area.
Ideas for a layout have been bouncing around in my head. A island or two in one of the great lakes strikes my fancy. The narrow gauge could run from a dock area with a turn table and my original AHM engine house to a resort higher up on top of the island. It would carry coal to a small power plant and supplies to the resort. The rr would bring guests to and from the resort also. Ashes from the power plant could be taken to a dump site in a remote area too. Most of the resort would need to be on the backdrop to save space. We have several resorts here in the Black Hills so I should be able to find one to photograph and use on the backdrop.
This layout will be a good diversion from my city layout,
Larry T… the old kid.
Dave Frary and Bob Hayden used these Minitrix back in the late 60’s early 70’s when they modeled the Maine 2 footers. He talked about this on one of the older Scotty Mason podcast, but basically he said you they ran pretty good. Bob and Dave’s layout was know (back then) for the great scenery and good running trains, but remember this was 40-45 years ago.
Dave has a free download of an article about using the diesel on the Carabasset and Dead River
http://www.mrscenery.com/pdf/HOn30_diesels_150dpi.pdf
Might be slightly off topic, but it was an interesting read on using the Minitrix trains.
Mike:
I don’t know about that “spreading”. The gauge on these is actually a little less than 30" in HO - likely to accomodate tight curves. I don’t have a need to disassemble mine and did not do so. It appears that some milling of the frame outside of the wheels would be needed, and looking in there it appears that there is some sort of copper wiper outside of the wheels that would need to be modified.
And I’m not one that is familiar with decoders, as I operate DC and have many older HO locomotives that would need conversion. There is already a small circuit board of some type under the cab roof - affiliated with the headlight. In HO-scale feet, the space within the cab measures 4.5’ long by 6.2’ wide. Given that there are reliable decoders for N, perhaps there is something that would fit. Again, I did not open up the locomotive to determine if there is any other space between the motor and the underside of the shell; glancing in from the cab, it would not appear to be the case.
Hope this helps, Bill
Bill,
Yes, thanks, very helpful. Looks like things are considerably improved, at least versus my memory of the originals. Everything under the hood, so to speak, I’d say. There was no lighting in the original. The drive looks much better from what I can see.
I suspect a conversion is workable, though. You noted how the bottom of the frame is right next to the outside of the drivers. Is it plastic or metal? I can deal with either, but curious. I suspect that the axles go through, as I can see two shiny spots on the underneath shot, but don’t see them in the side shot? If so, then it will likely be a matter of cutting as needed underneath for clearance outside of the wheels, then sliding the wheels out.
The copper strips are likely the electrical wipers. These can usually be bent to adjust to the wider gauge.
Then there’s the couplers. That’s going to require a ‘porch’ on each end to get enough clearance for them, but I did that recently when mounting dual gauge couplers on a Bachmann 44-tonner, so no big deal. It looks interesting. I wonder who is going to be first to chop one of these into HOn3? It wouldn’t surprise me if someone already has. And I think they should consider offering HOn3 from the factory, Looks like there’s enough room and that’s a booming market.
Mike:
The bottom cover plate appears to be plastic - I scratched it a bit with an xacto. And yes, the axles DO extend out past the “outboard” side of the drive wheels - I just double checked that.
The LED headlight does look pretty good in operation. These discussions get my thoughts fired up on the possibility of a micro-layout. I’ve been purchasing items for that and just placing them into a box for the future. The concept is for a standard-gauge HO using a sector plate on one end and a transfer table on the other to allow some shunting of a few cars. I’ve a side-rod GE 45-tonner for that use. Then I picture an “automated” back-and-forth shuttle of HOn30 on an elevated track using those dump cars to haul gravel or other product out of a structure to a dump/load area. A second HOn30 operates on a continuous loop below the HO grade and with an “automatic” pause at a loading chute, hauling coal. Add in a complex variety of angled elevators and industrial structures, and an a functioning switching layout could result that would fit in a small apartment.
Bill
Mike,
The Jan/Feb 2012 issue of the Narrow Gauge And Short Line Gazette has a article by Sam Swanson on page 68. It covers cosmetic changes to a MinitrainS diesel (AHM version). This includes installing N scale couplers.
Larry T.
On the Yahoo HOn3 board, someone (I think it was last year) talked about converting one to HOn3 and had success with it. I seem to recall they said it took less than an hour to do one.