N scale locomotive suggestions

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Stephenr216

New Member
Dec 13, 2004
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Hello, I'm another newbie to the forum :) I was wondering if y'all could help me make a suitable selection for one my gf's Christmas presents. What I can't decide on is which locomotive to buy for a new N scale setup. I don't think she will be very keen on very small detail work, so smooth power and reliability are of higher priority than having super realistic graphics. Also, the area the train will operate on is 48" by 48", so I opted for 9.75" radius curves, allowing her to make twists and turns all over the place; this probably necessitates a shorter locomotive, right? As far as steam or diesel, I haven't decided yet...I think I'll find some smooth way of asking her which kind she thinks looks better, but probably steam. And as far as cost, I would prefer to stay below 100, 30-60 would be ideal. The locomotive does not need to be "DCC ready"; she will only have one engine, and I think this unnecessary feature raises the price considerably. Oh, and as far as brands, I've been looking at Atlas, and (I know I know not the BEST quality) Bachmann, but I'm open to all suggestions. Finally for road name, we're from Texas, so probably Rio Grande, Santa Fe, Pennsylvania (It's well known enough not to look out of place), B & O, Short Line, or Reading would be fine :) Sorry for the long message, but I know I like it when people elaborate when explaining things to me.
Thank you in advance for any help,
-Stephen
 
Stephen,Welcome to the forum..My suggestion on locomotives will be Atlas since they make several types of 4 axle locomotives. Life Like makes a jim dandy GP20.
May I suggest this on line shop since they have quality locomotives in your price range?

http://www.buynscale.com/

I am not affiliated with this company in anyway except as a customer..
 
Thank you Brakie for your suggestion! I managed to find out that she prefers steam engines though, without raising any suspision :cool: . Now if I can just keep her from seeing my internet favorites or history between now and Christmas... Wow, Bikerdad, that Atlas 2-6-0 Mogul looks perfect! Two questions though, would a <Output: 23V DC, 18.5V AC; Total Output: 20VA> Power pack fry the motor of an N scale locomotive like that? I was looking at another locomotive today (Kato I think) that said, "maximum voltage: 12V". The only reason I am considering buying such a powerful pack is because it has these neat momentum and braking features that I imagine would make conducting her train much more enjoyable and challenging. Has anyone here had any experience with these kind of features, good or bad?
 
Just got done searching and reading about brake and momentum controllers on here :) Sounds great, I think I'll go with the MRC 260 (since the MRC 220 isn't in stock on the site that I'm ordering from). ANOTHER question (sorry) : with the old time steam engines, how did they stop? I think from all the cheesy movies from my childhood that if you pulled the emergency brake it practically derailed the train on the spot, right? So if they didn't have modern dynamic breaks, did a conductor have to coast for miles and eventually hit the breaks hard near the end? Would using the brake button be cheating with a steam engine?
 
the 'brake' buttons actually _extend_ a model's stopping ability. Without it Model Trains tend to stop VERY dead in a very short time when you cut the throttle.. the fancier powerpacks, like the one you are looking at, lag the electricity drain from the rails, so the train 'coasts' to a stop over some distance, instead of stopping on an N-scale dime.
 
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