This is an MTH HO 3 rail AC loco.
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"HONGZ" stands for HO scale, N scale, G scale, and Z scale.
Post your non-O scale stuff here!
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Nice. I think MTH's HO 3-rail AC Märklin-compatible line didn't get much attention but it added many North American prototype locomotives to the limited range available from Märklin.
@PGentieu posted:Nice. I think MTH's HO 3-rail AC Märklin-compatible line didn't get much attention but it added many North American prototype locomotives to the limited range available from Märklin.
MTH HO North American Prototypes were a hit with Marklin enthusiasts. I been looking everywhere for 3 rail HO and its hard to locate any. I have a Challenger, F3 AB and the GS2.
3 rail? I only see 2. Am I missing something.
@E-UNIT-79 posted:3 rail? I only see 2. Am I missing something.
Yes, the magic trick is the 3rd rail is actually tiny rivet heads down the middle of the ties so the 3rd rail is not a "rail" like you might be familiar with.
Marklin to my knowledge made it popular as a format and then MTH built a fair amount of HO European style locos that were compatible to that style of track system. One difference compared to O scale 3 Rail is we typically use roller pickups and roll on that 3rd rail. With the rivet or other contact system in the HO 3 rail design, they need a sliding long shoe that contacts multiple rivets to ensure constant and reliable power pickup.
Here is the slider shoe on a HO 3rail diesel
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Screen grab from the video showing the rivet contacts down the middle of the track.
@FatBoy Nice video and thanks for sharing. I also was impressed by the layout with the catenary overhead system.
I only have one MTH HO PS3 steam engine, but it's the NKP Berkshire with whistle steam. Yes, 2 rail, not 3, but I have a lot of respect for 3 rail.
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@FatBoy posted:This is an MTH HO 3 rail AC loco.
Is that running in DCC or DCS? I’ve only run my Challenger conventionally so far and it doesn’t smoke that well. I’m guessing the higher voltage of command helps.
Steve
@Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:Is that running in DCC or DCS? I’ve only run my Challenger conventionally so far and it doesn’t smoke that well. I’m guessing the higher voltage of command helps.
Steve
Steve, it runs on a Marklin Central Station 2, under DCC.
It has a default code of 03 and the CS2 picks it up automatically. You have to just assign it a different number because all MTH 3 rail AC leave the factory as 03.
