I’m currently in a work stretch that precludes most train time, but I’m more and more convinced that battery power is my path to model railroading bliss, at least in my O scale modeling. For me (at least at the moment), sound is a secondary consideration.
My big thing is to get something converted to battery power, so I think my first candidate is going to be my Atlas B&M F3a/F3b pair—which was originally going to be a 2-rail pair of locomotives. The F3b ended up being an unpowered three rail locomotive when I received it in the mail, and the F3a was an unpowered 2-rail locomotive.
While I was mulling over how to get them to work with each other I happened upon a great deal on an Atlas powered three rail F3a, so after a shell swap, I now have a good running pair of 3 rail-scale locomotives that look pretty nice and run well together.
So it seems completely natural to not leave well enough alone and convert them to Blunami Deadrail power. I’m going to leave the three rail, “pizza cutter” wheels on them for now, mainly because most of my locomotive roster is now equipped with the deep flanged wheels, and with battery power eliminating the need for a third rail on my home layout I find I can easily overlook the non scale wheelsets as long as everything is converted to fixed pilots, proper handrails, and Kadee couplers.
If the deep flanges start to bother me (and I’m 99.5% sure they won’t ) I can begin to worry about fixing them at that point.
I’m not now, and never have been, a purist. My #1 gripe with “toy trains” was always more about swinging pilots and lobster claw couplers than anything else, and with deadrail really beginning to be approachable (and somewhat affordable) the “can I live with it” objections I used to stress over are rapidly disappearing.
There’s a ton of great looking three rail rolling stock and motive power (steam, diesel, and electric prototypes) out there, and with battery power and my ability to hand lay track I think I can have a good running, decent looking layout that will make me happy—and keep me engaged and energized to get it done (or at least fairly far along) before I shuffle off this mortal coil.
I may even reach some sort of tolerance for sound and smoke—in the same manner of the French reaching an accommodation with the automobile back in the day…
Jeff C
