And set it up on one of our flat cars. I put it in front of a Kato EMD SD40 loco and let it run. I started it on track 2 and let it run half its course to the switch that connects it with track 5. There it did the inbound and outbound loop around track 5. The loco was set for 30% speed but we lowered it to 25%. Next time I will run the whole layout at a speed of 10. This was a good first run!
So, the build is complete and we have rewired the entire layout, soldering all connections and optimizing our switch control panel. We found some track problems with two SD70 locos we purchased...the front end of these locos rides so close to the track that any defect was immediately detectable. We also had to carve some tunnels wider to account for the longer trains and we had to pull one section of track entirely and straighten out a kink in the railwork. It worked like a charm. Now we are testing each of our six locomotives, with and without rolling stock, to make sure they run smoothly on all five tracks and transfer smoothly at each switching point. Yesterday we tested our very first engine, a Kato AT-SF EMD-F7A diesel engine designated 304. We also purchased an identical engine designated 315 but it always had an annoying wobble to it. Taking it to the Kato people at the Springfield Train show two weeks ago revealed the cause, misaligned wheels on the front truck. So we have it on an abandoned track with some cheap partially damaged rolling stock we picked up on the cheap at the show.
The upshot of the test is that engine 304 performed spectacularly on all tracks and switches and handled the cars behind it at a speed of 30% like a champ. Less than 30% and the ride gets a bit jerky but 30% is a good speed for this engine on this layout. Next up is an EMD-F3A, an SD40, an SD-45 and two SD70a's. All in good time.
