My Experience with a 2/3 rail MTH Engine with Scale Wheels

I've been facing the same issue. I've been thinking about buying a 2-rail 3rd Rail CNW H1 Northern instead of the 3-rail version, but I wouldn't be able to run it on the curves down at the club. Still might get one anyway. So far, the scale-wheeled diesels are more forgiving with respect to curve radius, but they'll get you if your track is uneven or kinked.

That's a NICE engine Matt!  I think 3rd Rail engines, in this time period are a steal.  The newest engines I purchased from them are superior to things I purchased in the past (which were also excellent).  Reserve it, you won't be sorry.

Already reserved one. Thinking about changing the order from 3-rail to 2-rail

Thinking about changing the order from 3-rail to 2-rail

I know the dilemma.

I think that if I was going to do this I would just go 2 rail all the way.  If I were to be interested in a steamer (which I am) I would buy it in Hi-Rail version.  I think that since steamers do not have a swinging pilot so to speak I wouldnt worry much about it.  Maybe change out the leading trucks (is that right?) to scale wheels but leave the drivers Hi Rail.

Sorry my steam lingo is not yet up to par...

Sorry my steam lingo is not yet up to par...

 I know how you feel.  That's why it's nice to have Hot Water around to straighten us out and perhaps learn a thing or two.

Hot Water posted:

The name "Engine Truck" is a universal term, or sometimes call a "Lead Truck". The term "pilot truck" is only a hobbyist term.
The Trailing Truck is called,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Trailing Truck!

I've been facing the same issue. I've been thinking about buying a 2-rail 3rd Rail CNW H1 Northern instead of the 3-rail version, but I wouldn't be able to run it on the curves down at the club. Still might get one anyway. So far, the scale-wheeled diesels are more forgiving with respect to curve radius, but they'll get you if your track is uneven or kinked.

Why? 3rd Rail driver flanges are now small enough that they can be run on code 148 track. The 2-rail version will likely have all drivers flanged, which means that you'll need something like 60" radii to run it. The 3-rail engine likely will have the middle drivers blind and wide enough that they won't drop off the rails on 0-72curves. Does this offend your sense of aesthetics? Well, I can live with it if I can run a loco with TMCC and sound.

Ideally, a manufacturer could offer locomotives with insulated drivers and pickup wipers so that the loco, with some electronic fiddling, could be run as either 3-rail or 2-rail. Sort of an improvement on the MTH approach.

This is all good stuff.  I continue to learn a lot from these types of topics and posts.  After more than a year, maybe two of dealing with 3RS, I finally bit the bullet and have started the conversion to 2 rail O scale.

Well, not totally.  For the forseeable future I'm retaining an outer 17 X 32 3 rail loop with a 20 ft siding.  And I have TMCC, Legacy, DCS and NCE Wireless DCC so me and my 3 rail train buddies can still run just about anything.  (Ever notice how much the NCE and MTH Remotes resemble each other?).  In the overall scheme of the layout this loop is up at 60 inches where the center rail all but disappears for anyone 6 ft tall and under.  The 2 rail part is much more extensive and will be a point to loop to point at 53 inches going up to 60 inches and back down at a max 2% grade.   As time goes by if I choose, I can convert the 3 rail loop to 2 rail and add a couple of crossovers or I xan remove it and turn the real estate into backdrop scenery.  

Since making the decision to switch perdominately to 2 rail, when reading these topics I still learn a lot because many issues are common to both 2 rail and 3RS.  But, I do feel a sense of relief that my decision is made.  I have a new focus and sense of direction.  And a lot of the 3RS issues that were bugging me have gone away.

Of course the 3RS issues that have gone away have been replaced with heavy duty layout conversion work and buying and selling engines and selling or converting rolling stock.  But, I was converting rolling stock to 3RS and Kadees anyway.This will take a good while.  But, the frustration I felt with 3RS is gone. 

At no time in this two year period did I give one minute's thought to converting to HO or any other scale.  Viva O Scale.  2 or 3 Rail Scale.

Austin Bill  

One big reason that steam engines from MTH in 2-rail do not take the sharper curves is because they do not articulate the side rods.   Brass Models generally have articulated side rods - with a joint at each driver.    This allows the front and rear flanged drivers to both move to the same side in a curve.    On MTH and other diecast engines I have looked at, the side rods (the rods connecting the drivers to each other) are solid with no joints.   If all the drivers are flanged, when the loco goes into a curve, the front drivers slide slight into the curve as they should, but the solid side rods force the rear drivers to slide on the opposite direction - defeating the side play built in for curves.  

The 3 rail engines that have blind drivers don't have this problem, because they only have front and rear drivers flanged, and work more like an 0-4-0