I’m looking at a number of OO gauge engines. I know the voltage for HO is ok, but does anyone know if they will run on 83 as well as 100 ho track?
i am pretty sure they will.
Yes. I have a train set that is HO/OO and the engine runs on HO track. The scales are basiclly the same.
In short, yes OO will run on HO code 83 track. Will it run well? Maybe, maybe not. My experience with OO has been,
I have several of the Thomas the Tank engine locos (Percy,Duck,Gordon,James& Thomas) and out of the box, they run fine until they come to a turnout (switch)[:0]
At this point the slightly narrower guage of OO will contact the inside rail at the points, and cause a short[|(].
The only remedy I have found is to very gently spread the wheels apart on the axles, until they match my NMRA guage for HO. Its a very delicate operation and care must be given to evenly support the center hub of the wheel while not denting the soft frames of the engines, or getting the wheel crooked on the axle shaft!
. After doing this, they all run well![:D] And yes, they all have room for decoders inside![:D][:D][:D]
Current British OO will run fine on HO track, most will probably do okay on code 100.
The old (pre’50’s) Lionel OO ran on 19mm track (vs HO’s 16.5mm).
All British OO engines run on HO track.Thats the big compromise over here. I often run Atlas, Athearn, Kato, etc on my OO layout.
Jon
As Karlb suggests – always check and adjust the wheel flanges’ gauges, with your NMRA template.
But we all do that anyway, with new equipment – don’t we ?
Remarkably; almost all of my British locos and cars were perfect (on delivery) – with the notable exception of those (aptly named) “troublesome trucks” which I wanted for a period coal train – and all of which will have to be re-wheeled !!
Most current British HO will run on Peco’s fine scale (code 75) track. There are no enforced standards over there, so everyone is a bit different. I’ve just been replacing some older whelsets with current ones to take the finer frogs.
Older equipment can be a problem, and is also inconsistent, even on the same loco. Much of the equipment before 1980, notably Tri-ang and Tri-ang Hornby will bump along the tie plates or rise up on them and stop.
If you’re looking to re-wheel OO scale vehicles, the Hornby wheels are worth a look - they come in packs of 12 axles in either spoked, three hole, or disc patterns, have reasonably fine flanges and treads, and are perfectly concentric. I’ve used these on quite a few Bachmann tankers which had out of true wheels.
Thanks Taffy,
I just love browsing around in the –
http://www.hornbyrailways.com/pages/prod_det.aspx?id=1802 – website
Presumably you’re talking about R8096,7&8 – it doesn’t say what diameter – do you happen to know that, please ??
The wheels are 12mm diameter, and yes, those are the correct reference numbers. I’m just annoyed that I can’t use them on my Bachmann MK1s as they’re too small!