No I haven’t converted but I have had these old Lionel HO cars lying around for years and I figured I have a small loop of ON30 with HO track so why not? The only problem i had is I didn’t have one HO locomotive to my name! I went to TrainWorld where they have a sale on a Long Island GP38-2 MTH model with PS-3 for $109.99! 👍 I’m running it through my TIU and WIU with the MTH app. I hope Alan doesn’t bump this to another forum so some of the O scale guys can see this. Anyway it’s been a fun side project. Enjoy.
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Chris, I am glad you are enjoying your purchase, but I love the video for a whole other reason. If you fast forward the video, the alien ship is trying to make a milkshake!🐄
Not a bad buy. Question, when you started moving the locomotive and the bell was ringing, it looked like every time the bell would ring the train would sort of stop and go like it had the jitters or something, did anyone else see that?
I haven’t noticed that in the running of the loco but I did move the camera “phone” a little to the right when it came to a stop on the PFA announcement. I am using my iPhone so the video quality isn’t top notch.
I'm guessing you have a shrink-ray or the accessories and vehicles are O-scale.
Chris, I have a MTH UP Alco PA ABBA that is a terrific piece with all four units having sound and smoke. Each AB pair was around $225 on special awhile back.
I have some 3rail Marklin HO, mostly US prototypes, which I enjoy on the few occasions I get it out to run. DCC HO I experimented with a bit but the engines and cars have been display items for years. If I had a permanent layout I'd definitely make a little space for both.
P.S. I do have one MTH HO steamer, an FEF3, and one diesel too. I have thought about their passenger cars esp. SP Daylight articulated sets, which are not easily available/done in O.
I have two, one steam, one diesel, MTH HO engines and have been very happy with them.
Steve
Google dcc++. You can build one pretty easily and it works. Great way to experiment with dcc.
Pretty, pretty tempting.........
Where did you fit this in on your layout?
Hey Chris after I saw this I had to do it I have a bunch of HO that I keep saying I will put in my garage I powered up an MTh Erie PA that I had with DCC and was just as impressed as you. Sounds, Smoke and the operating Scale coupler were awesom
Captain John posted:Where did you fit this in on your layout?
I have a hollow core door to the right with a small loop of Bachmann HO track and a couple of sidings.
bluelinec4 posted:Hey Chris after I saw this I had to do it I have a bunch of HO that I keep saying I will put in my garage I powered up an MTh Erie PA that I had with DCC and was just as impressed as you. Sounds, Smoke and the operating Scale coupler were awesom
Awesome Ben! The prices of HO next to our O scale looks down right cheap!
When did HO switch from those ugly NMRA horn-hook couplers to the more realistic knuckle couplers? The HO from my youth (around 1959 or so) still has horn-hook style couplers.
Not sure when that happened but the Lionel cars in the video had those horn type couplers until I changed them to modern Kadee couplers.
Hard to pass up a PS3 engine for about a $100...
I bought that same loco for my son last year...it really is a nice engine.
We just bought the MTH J from Trainland last month:
Another fine engine!
Attachments
Roy,
Kadee couplers came out sometime in the mid 1950's. But NMRA was still the standard. By the early 1960's, most HO scale modelers, including myself, started converting to Kadee couplers. By mid to late 1970's, many manufacturers started to include Kadee and I would guess by late '70's the NMRA coupler was a dinosaur. Kadee was the norm from all major manufacturers by then.
Ray
Thanks Ray.
Ray of sunshine posted:Roy,
Kadee couplers came out sometime in the mid 1950's. But NMRA was still the standard. By the early 1960's, most HO scale modelers, including myself, started converting to Kadee couplers. By mid to late 1970's, many manufacturers started to include Kadee and I would guess by late '70's the NMRA coupler was a dinosaur. Kadee was the norm from all major manufacturers by then.
Ray
I recall the NMRA X2f coupler was actually developed in the late 1950's. Prior to the X2f's most HOer's used either the Mantua loop couplers or Baker couplers. There was also a functioning scale sized knuckle coupler from Model Die Casting. There were also various dummy couplers availble.
The X2f was a solution for an inexpensive coupler made available to all the manufacturers for standardization. Reliability left something to be desired, but it still became the standard HO coupler for decades..
The Kadee patents expired in 1997, allowing the various Kadee clones to be offered on HO products.
Rusty
Rusty,
My first HO engines and cars had the Mantua hook loop couplers. I lived with those for a couple of years, then went to dummy knuckle couplers even though the NMRA couple was a standard from almost every supplier. I never liked them. So when Kadee first announced their new coupler (slightly different from today's version, I started to convert my models to Kadee.
I'm now using Kadee on most of my O gauge 3-rail freight cars.
RAY