My biggest concern would be derailments caused by inattentive engineers running through an open turnout (or worse still into an open lift out section) . Having a highly detailed/painted brass locomotive running on its side is not a pleasant thought. A friend who runs battery RC did have a locomotive hit the floor.
A major plus for dead rail is that protype signaling becomes far easier to wire. (The same signaling advantage exists with 3 rail, but at the expense of appearance) .
Quite a few positives for dead rail, but several negatives to think about include
- Cost factors due to scaleability (eg battery gear in each A-B-A unit)
- Available space in small locomotives (tank locomotives, GE 44 toners)
- Charge management/logistics across a large roster of locomotives before an operating session
- Safe recharging
- And operational issue #1 - wrecks
Those with good running "wired" railroads may want to consider adding a battery powered locomotive just to learn about new stuff. While I'm personally too invested in 2 rail ( and too old) to consider dead rail, it will be interesting to follow its impact on the hobby. If it can attract some new adherents to O scale it all to the good.
