Possible return to N gauge modelling

[Geep7]

My father and I have just started building a bit more of serious N gauge layout for my 13 year old nephew, and i'm possibly thinking of getting some N gauge stock to run on it.

 

The last time I properly modelled in N gauge, apart from building my nephew his previous roundy-roundy layout, was back in the late 90's, so i'm not totally up to speed with stuff, as i've been modelling 4mm British outline since. Obviously I know Bachmann now makes the Farish stuff, and Dapol, Revolution Trains and EFE are now on the scene.

 

We'll be modelling current era Cornwall, as my nephew already has a Kato Class 800, and loves the area, so i'm looking at getting myself a Class 66, and a handful of china clay wagons (possibly the EFE JIA's).

 

But, what should I be aware of? I know both Farish and Dapol do a Class 66, but which is the better one to get? My nephew already has a Dapol 66, and it runs fine, but i've heard they are rather prone to gear issues? Have we just been lucky, or is the gears issue not that bad?

 

Just hope some of you out there might be able to just give me a bit of advice. TIA.

[Chris M]

The Dapol 66 is fine in evdery way except that it is a bit light so won't pull long trains. If anything Farish locos are more likely to have split gear issues but in my experience split gears are very very rare indeed on modern Farish stock. Items released by either Dapol or Farish over the last ten years or so are likely to be very good, reliable models.

[Geep7]

9 minutes ago, Chris M said:

The Dapol 66 is fine in evdery way except that it is a bit light so won't pull long trains. If anything Farish locos are more likely to have split gear issues but in my experience split gears are very very rare indeed on modern Farish stock. Items released by either Dapol or Farish over the last ten years or so are likely to be very good, reliable models.

Thanks for such a quick reply. The reason for asking is that i've been looking on eBay for secondhand Dapol 66's, and noticed a few listed as "spares and repairs", so wondered if there was an issue I should be aware of. Split gears, are, unfortunately, endemic in most modern d/e locos, no matter the scale, but does seem to have improved recently.

 

In the space we have available (just over 9ft), I don't think the 66's will be pulling much more than half a dozen JIA's anyway, so hopefully the Dapol 66 being a bit light shouldn't matter too much. Personally, i'm toying with the idea of building a small micro-layout with a china clay works that'll fit on a shelf.

[n9]

Hmmm... I've been on the N scene just over a year and accumulated about 10 new locos, a mix of Dapol, Farish, and one EFE Rail. I should say these are all Era 5. Of those, a grand total of 2 don't have some problem or another. It's possible that I've been very unlucky, or that perhaps it's down to me joining the scene late and not being used to what to actually expect. A couple wobble a lot when they run, another has a gear issue, a couple make noise in one direction but not the another, one loses it's tender from time to time, and there's even one that when running sounds like a Nikola Tesla experiment in full swing (a model sold as new by TT Diecast but distinctly giving the impression it is anything but.)

 

Oh, then was also the return of a faulty Rapido Class 28 (there was a recall) together with 2 sets of their Conflat P wagons with wheels that didn't roll. After months, Rapido kindly replaced them with units that all suffered the same problems and a few more to boot. Back they went again, not to be replaced.

 

From Revolution, I have a bunch of their Class A and B tankers. They are absolutely excellent. Wagons from Peco, Dapol, Farish I've found to be good to OK. Coaches from Farish, very good. Couplings remain completely random as to whether you get NEM pockets at the right height, with the standard rapido coupler being just a daft bit of plastic that hangs there asking to be removed.

 

Trackwise, I chose Peco Code 55. Haven't been overly impressed with it, and have posted about some of the issues.

 

All this said, while this doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement, it hasn't put me off in the slightest and I don't regret my choice to go N - I just know what to expect now, and while not excusing any of the manufacturers for such poor form, I see the tinkering needed to correct these problems as part of the package.

[Kris]

If you are looking for a current livery 150 you will be out of luck, Farish have yet to produce one in GWR green. You can get the older livery blue and pink doors but will need to keep your eyes open on the secondhand market. 

[Geep7]

4 minutes ago, Kris said:

If you are looking for a current livery 150 you will be out of luck, Farish have yet to produce one in GWR green. You can get the older livery blue and pink doors but will need to keep your eyes open on the secondhand market. 

I had wondered whether Farish/Bachmann had produced one in GWR green.... I may just settle with an old FGW purple one, but I think I'm going with just freight stock for myself for now. Unless I see one for a good price.

 

A cross-country Voyager is also a must at some point, but they are a bit pricey, although no much more than the equivalent in 4mm.

 

1 hour ago, n9 said:

Trackwise, I chose Peco Code 55. Haven't been overly impressed with it, and have posted about some of the issues.

We used the plain turnouts on the previous layout, and didn't seem to have any issues, but we'll be using a double-slip on the new layout. I was sorry to read in your posts about the issues you've been having with the code 55 track, especially the double-slip. Most of our stock is going to be all wheel drive, multi-axle locos and units, so hopefully we should be OK. The smallest loco is a Bachmann 08, so will be interesting to see if we get any issues.

 

Unlike my 4mm and HO stuff, I'll be sticking strictly to DC with the N gauge, mainly as it would be unfair to expect my nephew to get DCC.

[n9]

14 hours ago, Geep7 said:

Most of our stock is going to be all wheel drive, multi-axle locos and units, so hopefully we should be OK. The smallest loco is a Bachmann 08, so will be interesting to see if we get any issues.

Yes, I've found that things with bogies have a lot less tendency to have wheels fall into the oversized gaps in the frogs, and most of my diesels and coaches, if not all, give the impression of traversing them smoothly. So you should be good I think. For me, it's wagons with 4 wheels that suffer most - with my Revolution takers for example, if you gently let them roll freely across a frog, they'll quite readily end up on 3 wheels as the 4th plunges into the gap bringing it to an abrupt halt. My trains of 4 wheel stock all bounce up and down on each frog. Maybe some find that look acceptable, to me it just looks very unrealistic.

 

Anyway, what I'm getting at is that wheel and weight distribution appears to govern success. But should you get the problem, putting shims in the frogs might be the answer with the caveat that wheel sizes aren't standard. I'll be experimenting more with shims soon, and hope to find a happy medium since all my stock is recent and I don't plan on running anything very old.

[Chris M]

I spent most of my life as an 00 modeller. I sold the whole lot in the 1990s and eventually moved on the G scale in the garden. After 7 or 8 years I realised it was  uncomfortably cold in the winter so I built a nice little N gauge layout . That was in 2012. Since then I have built 3 N gauge layouts and somehow acquired circa 60 locos. 
 

I have to say I don’t recognise many of the problems mentioned. I do have one loco that is annoyingly wobbly, it’s not that bad and it never derails but it is still annoying. I think it might be to do with the traction tyres. It was ok when I bought it but is seems to have got worse, or maybe once I spotted it I couldn’t unspot it. I have used code 80 and now I use Peco code 55. I really don’t clean it very often. At exhibitions I clean the track on Friday afternoon and it is still running fine at close of play Sunday. All my locos, coaches and wagons run well through all my points although I don’t have any double slips. A lot of care is required when laying N gauge track. 
My wagons are a mixture of Farish, Peco and Revolution. The only grief I get is the Revolution wagons like to come uncoupled. That can be fixed. One method is to put a bit of nail varnish on the inside of the coupling. 
For me N gauge has been a most satisfying experience in terms of results. I have never returned a new loco because, apart from the one wobbler, they have all been fine. I’ve had to replace 3 motors but that’s just something that happens. One of those was caused by an old Triang controller which wasn’t really suitable for N.

I have found that pick up contacts can get quite cruddy and need to be checked and cleaned from time to time. 
 

This video shows what I consider to be ordinary everyday running on my N gauge layout.

 

Edited November 9, 2023 by Chris M

[Chris M]

Another ordinary bit of running with a Farish Warship and a train of Peco 5 plank wagons all with their standard plastic wheels. These wagon kits cost less than £5 each at the time. I have had this loco apart. It was passed on to me for £20 because it would only run in one direction. I stripped it down and carefully rebuilt it. It now goes both ways and doesn’t seem to run too badly.

 

 

By the way I just run plain old DC.

Edited November 9, 2023 by Chris M

[Geep7]

Thanks @Chris M, I saw your layout at the Farnham show, and was rather impressed with, not just the running, but the layout as a whole. It really does look like Dawlish Warren, and reminded me of when I sat on the wall alongside Langstone Rock watching trains during the 1999 solar eclipse, as the trains weren't being obscured by a load of grey cloud.

 

I'm also rather partial to the Hydraulics. I'm not old enough to have seen them running, but as a child I used to keep looking through my father's copy of Railway Elegance, so something must have stuck. I've already started down that slippery slope in 4mm, but i'm trying not to be tempted in N. The N layout is going to be post privatisation, almost current era, 2016 onwards. So mostly Class 66's, 70's, IET's, HST's...... maybe Western Champion on a railtour.... no, that's naughty thinking there.....

Edited November 9, 2023 by Geep7