It's SWITCHER SATURDAY January 25, 2025

@Don McErlean,  that WBB NW2 is sharp looking.  Williams and then WBB did a great job on that model.  I've got three older ones so they don't have engine sounds, just the Tru-Blast horn sounds.  That's okay because track noise drowns out the engine sounds from my 70 tonner but the Tru-Blast horn sequence is loud and clear.  I bought years ago from Train Land during one of their blow out sales.  Here's the Conrail version.  I also have a New York Central and a Great Northern.  I thought I had a picture of all three sitting on the switcher shelf but apparently not.

@trumpettrain - Patrick thank you for your response on the Cow-Calf and Cow-Slug.  I appreciate your view and thank you for the additional information.

Best Regards

Don

@MELGAR posted:

I was offline all day on Saturday and missed Switcher Saturday in real time. I was at the Railroad Hobby Show in West Springfield, MA with my son. A huge show. I started attending back in 1998 but missed several years during Covid. Absolutely terrific and quite a bit more O gauge than in past years - but I bought only reading material - no trains. Had a conversation with Bill Serratelli of Atlas O and Rich Foster of MTH. Some of my pre-orders from them may be arriving soon. I thought there were some pretty good prices on O gauge locomotives. Lionel displayed unpainted models of their latest high-end steamers. I hope that @Steam Crazy found a switcher to take home.

MELGAR

I miss attending, since I move south a few years ago.

I was only a hour away in Connecticut and would go for two days.  It was always an educational and productive occasion.

I really enjoyed the Railroad club layouts.

@coach joe - Thank you for the compliment.  I agree the NW-2 from WBB seems to be great.  I ran my new one this afternoon and it really goes great.  I like your Conrail as well...you never know, I might come upon one of those again.

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

OK after a long response in a question to Patrick, here is my "Switcher Saturday" response today.  I am excited to say that this is a brand NEW switcher for me.  It is a Williams by Bachmann, Western Pacific, NW-2.  Candidly I was really impressed with the level of detail and the expertise of the finishing on this locomotive, I think Williams did a first rate job.  The "round" handrails vice a flat metal stamping, the embossed detail in the plastic shell, and the 3 color paint really make this loco stand out to me.  Note that it also has TWO motors, prime mover sounds, bell, horn, and operating couplers on both ends.  Williams also included two spare light bulbs for the lamps and spare traction tires, even though their estimate of tire life is about 100 hrs.

I really didn't need (hey how many of us NEED any of this stuff anyway )another locomotive, but the NW-2 is a great size for my small layout.  The loco is able to use 0-27 curves so it will run on my smaller inner loop.  I will be honest, the other thing that made up my mind is that this loco lists for $363 and it was offered for $150! or less than 1/2 price as an end of year sale.  I just couldn't pass it up.  No I haven't run it yet, I have been a bit tied up with work and home chores but that will happen later today.  Hopefully I can post a video at a later date.

Best Wishes to All

Don

Don, congratulations on your acquisition of your WbB NW2! Shell-wise, she is a straight up reproduction of the earliest 1952 version of Lionel's venerable 623, right down to the 10 attachment points of the side handrails. I'm really happy WbB "re-issued" this switcher in so many roadnames. I got my PRR version in black for $179, so you beat me there! She'll pull about anything you can put behind her.

One problem you may encounter, however, is slight scraping on the shell of the rear motor flywheel when she is negotiating your tight 027 curves in the forward direction without load. When nothing is pulling on the rear coupler, the rear truck moves slightly forward causing the flywheel on the motor to scrape the shell just under the front windows when the truck rotates left or right to a high degree in the tight curve. I addressed it by adding a "pressed-in" brass bar that limits this forward travel just enough to eliminate the problem without limiting truck rotation:

I hope you don't encounter this problem, but I wanted to let you know what I did to correct it in case you do.

@Bill Swatos - Bill, thanks for your comment and tip.  I have not noticed this problem yet, but its always good to have a solution in hand if I encounter it.  Thank you for posting.

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

@Bill Swatos - Bill, thanks for your comment and tip.  I have not noticed this problem yet, but its always good to have a solution in hand if I encounter it.  Thank you for posting.

Don

Don- One more tip would be to wire the motors in series. Williams engines are jack-rabbits, series wiring slows them down considerably.

I have the PRR model and it can "crawl" so to speak as conventional engines go.

Bob

Bob, I'm sure wiring the motors of WBB engines in series makes for smoother operation, but I have found putting a relatively heavy train behind the engine helps to eliminate the "jackrabbit" starts and stops.  I have seven WBB engines; this method works for all except my 70 tonner.  I need to get that engine wired in series!

To sum it up, I'm sure series wiring is the best solution, but a heavy train helps a lot.

John

@Steam Crazy posted:

Bob, I'm sure wiring the motors of WBB engines in series makes for smoother operation, but I have found putting a relatively heavy train behind the engine helps to eliminate the "jackrabbit" starts and stops.  I have seven WBB engines; this method works for all except my 70 tonner.  I need to get that engine wired in series!

To sum it up, I'm sure series wiring is the best solution, but a heavy train helps a lot.

John

John, the trouble with the WbB 70- and 44-tonners is, unlike PW and many newer Lionel locos, they utilize non-reversible (or non-backdrivable) worm and gear drives with woefully inadequate flywheels so when voltage drops to zero, the motors stop turning suddenly and the worm acts as an "instant" brake for the worm wheel on the driven axle, slamming the loco to a stop. Series wiring will get you down to a lower minimum speed but will not eliminate the slamming stops when there isn't much load on the loco. As you mention, coupling up a train that is sufficiently heavy to prevent the loco from starting up on level straight track at the minimum voltage of your power supply will allow you to get prototypical train braking AND prevent the worm wheel from loosening on the drive axle.

Well guys I thank you for your interest and support in making my switcher a better performer.  Right now though I think I will just enjoy making it "go round" in a circle and switch a few cars before I even try to modify the electrical parts. My electrical skills just about max out by plugging in something!.

Thanks again,

Don