Does any one convert these to DCC or since they probably have a small dedicated track, just run them off an el cheapo power pack you picked up at a train show for $1.
Are good trolleys availible or is the $19 Bachman about it? No I don’t want to pay for brass.
The PCCs on my layout are Bowser and have heavy metal shells. I don’t believe they make many other trolleys but you could look. They come as kits and need some accesory parts but they look better than the Bachman units qute a bit.
As for powering, yes, I do just use my old Tech2 powerpack for them and I wired the track as one block so I only run one train at a time.
~METRO
Chip
Check out;
Bec-Kits
La Belle craftsman wood kits.
Bowser Trolleys
Thanks Gary.
It appears I need to do more research. I don’t even know if trolleys were used in the 1890s. I seem to remember that they were as early as the 1870’s.
Great links Gary, thanks for the info.
Tim
Electric trolley systems were around in the 1890s (as was indoor lighting - barely), but they were generally reserved to major cities (a major exception would be the beginnings of the IT, a mostly prarie-running interurban)
As to the practicalities of modellig a trolley line, what do you want to do with it? If it’s mostly a scenic aspect to your layout, you’ll probably be best served by a simple isolated line, similar to the On30 trolley set that Bachmann sells. The track is fully wired for hands-free back and forth operations, which may be what you want. If you want to model an entire line as a major part of your layout, you’ve got a little more reading to do, since electric line modelling is almost a completely different hobby!
There are trolley models out there, but be prepared to either do a lot of modelling, or spending money on brass. What few plastic offerings there are are mostly junk. Bowser might be your best bet, since their Jewetts are 1890s prototypes.
The Bachmann trolley is a reasonable moulding and runs pretty well (considering that it has a single-truck “pancake” drive unit), it’ll cruise along happily at sensible trolley speeds. I agree the detail could use a little work however - I bought one a few months back with the intention of upgrading it, it’s still in the “to do” box. I’d view them as easier than scratchbuilding but definitely a project.
Good links, I’ll use those for sure!
Matt
Your right on with 1890’s electric operation.And yes the bowser’s are good quality for not to horrible prices.Also they will sell you re-power kits to fit the bachman PCC or Brill car which will bring their height down to scale proportions. Labelle makes fine interurban type equipment but are of good quality as well. Rob
Try this: www.westernhobbycraft.com
The best trolleys in model railroading!!!
I had trolley for a while, but it just didn’t fit in on my layout so I traded it off for other stuff I wanted/needed. Though it was a Bachmann, it ran real well and I didn’t have any problems with it at all.
Here’s one more link.
Tramalan
Eureka had a trolley system in 1903, I don’t think any other Northcoast cities did. The southern end of the Northwestern Pacific (down in Sonoma and Marin County) used electric interurbans and trolleys from teh 1890s on.
The Bachmann Brill trolley is a surprisingly good runner for its price–it looks good, it’s pretty reliable, it has decent slow-speed operation, and it’s cute!
And yes, some trolley modelers have used DCC. Trolley modeling doesn’t need to simply be “a dedicated loop”, there are trolley modelers who build elaborate layouts representing citywide or interuban systems–and many trolley lines carried freight, too!
Other than the two Bachmanns and the four Bowsers, the only choices for a trolley modeler are scratchbuilding or brass (and I consider LaBelle kits to be equivalent to scratchbuilding in difficulty–you get a box full of wood sticks and a few castings, no trucks or poles or power.)
Be wary, SpaceMouse: traction is a dangerous addiction! And if you want to frustrate yourself heavily, keep in mind that trolleys are powered by overhead power wires!
For a look at an amazing trolley layout:
That site was awesome. I was just thinking of providing city dwellers with a ride to the train station. At our club about half the membes are working on a trolley with overhead pick-ups. They have spent a lot of time on it.
Actually, one thing that might be more appropriate to a smaller town in the 1880’s is a cable car–before trolleys came about, they were more efficient than horse-drawn street cars, and were widely used. I think Bachmann makes a powered San Francisco style cable car, and you don’t even have to worry about overhead power with cable cars–just make a little loop with super-tight curve radii, provide a little brick building for use as the powerhouse/cable-house, and you’re all set!
Don’t forget the “groove” between the rails for the cable to sit in. There’s a cable hauled line up in Llandudno (North Wales) that has two sections (upper and lower), the lower section is built as “street running” with the cable running in a groove in the roadway between the rails, while the upper section isn’t paved in - all the pulleys, etc and the cable are visible. I’d say the former system would be the easier one to model, as all you’d have to do would be to leave a small channel in the paving between the rails.