Back in December I decided to by me a Christmas present – A Lionel UP H7 2- 8 -8- 2. I have a good size roster of PFE reefers and I have always wanted a UP steamer to pull them.
I finally got around to unpacking the engine after Christmas and putting it on the layout. I fired it up and everything was great until the H7 entered one of my Gargraves 096 curves. It derailed just about every time it entered a 0 96 curve, and it always derailed in the center of the 90 degree turn formed by the 096 curves. The problem was more pronounced on my inside oval. The H7 derailed on a 096 switch, but usually would make the loop with fewer derailment when running on the outside oval.
When I built the layout I used a Lionel Pennsy 2- 8 -8 -2 as a test engine in an effort to make sure my O 96 sectional curves were “true” and clearances were correct. The UP H7 must have found some serious faults in my track work. A major track alignment project would be required. The H7 did not move for a month, nor did anything else on the layout.
This weekend I decided to face up to the project at hand. Back in December I had made some adjustments to the curve where the H7 derailed every time it entered the center of the turn. As expected the H7 derailed in the same spot. Since I had not ran the engine for a month I decided to send the H7 through the other three turns. I was going to mark each section of track where the H7 would derail. It made it through turn 1, 2, then turn 3 that had a 096 curved switch, and then into turn 4 where it had always derailed. It made it through turn 4, and has now been running fine on the layout.
The train gods must have been at work.
Here a few pictures of it running.
The Up caboose was found on the For Sale Forum
Pulling a string of PFE Refers.
Sometimes in this hobby things go right because you know waht you are doing, or as a friend told me today other times, as with this problem you just get lucky. Maybe the train gods intevene.!
Have a good week,
Richard