Jason Railton’s tips for successful train shows
- The load on the motor is the biggest single factor. I’ve had a motor overheat and cut out after just half a day under a heavy load. Once that happens, it tends to happen again more quickly for the same motor. I’ve never killed one outright though.
- Don’t ever have automated trains crossing each other’s paths - especially for an unmanned display. However safe and controlled you may think you have it, something will eventually break down. If you have two trains coming together it can be catastrophic. I tried to shuttle two trains over a crossing, and it worked for five days straight. On the sixth day, that’s when the polarity switch started losing contact.
- Don’t run trains constantly. Your display will get more interest if your trains start and stop a lot, so take the opportunity to give them plenty of rest. This stops the heat building up in the motors.
- If you normally have two motors on a train, add a third one for running all day. Add a small truck or a carriage with a motor in to spread the load along the length of the train. A third motor could save the lives of the first two.
- Note that if you’re using multiple motors in conjunction with isolated sections of track, you need to link the motors electrically. You can chain IR motors from 9V ones too.
- Don’t have more than 180° of curves in any one corner. Even better, use 90° corners spread out a bit.
- Don’t have trains driving out of a corner onto a point (a switch). Always have one, if possible two, straights before each point, or your train might go the wrong way.
- Make small trains with a single motor and a few wagons and make them do most of the work. Only run your big and heavy trains rarely. You’ll save on motor wear and generate more interest.
- Make sure ALL your wheelsets have had the plastic cut down inside the wheel arch to allow for wear. Wheelsets, even good new ones, will eventually wear down and bind, dragging the motor down and making it overheat.
- BBB small wheels don’t have the problem of touching the wheel housing, but the technic axle they rest on can generate wear and produce a lot of plastic powder. If you don’t clean this out, it can slow you down too over time.
- Don’t use the very small train/cart wheels as they make more drag (especially the old sort).
- Don’t use BBB wheels at the very front of a train as this can (though rarely) derail on points.
- If you have sliding or moving pistons on a train, consider greasing them. You can get a suitable grease from a model shop, used for the plastic gearboxes of radio control cars.
- It doesn’t help much to grease rotating axles. You may find the grease makes them sticky and slows them down (particularly if they are already partly worn). Just use it on sliding parts.
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