Didn't the IRM "Pilot" and cars do some "Zephing" to Des Moines and back a few years ago ??? Would LOVE to have seen that go through Rochelle, IL !!! NJ, I'm a BN guy, but wish CB&Q or BN had a reason to come through Joliet, IL !!!
Since the Big New Santa Fe's HQ is in Ft Worth TX, it could come here! After UP's Big Boy stopped here last (?) year, I figure that's the least BNSF could do! Is it any wonder that BNSF is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway?!
So I took my Silver Streak Kato set and a standard E5 to trains tonight. Upon checking them out I found that on flat level track, they both are fine. But if you have a situation that causes the front of the lead truck to angle up (possibly a sharp transition from flat to a grade) the skirting can catch on the body shell. I found this by holding the unit upside down and manipulating the truck by hand. The good news is nothing I did to an E5 without the skirted trucks would cause the truck side frames to catch. So I would think a standard E5 should solve your problem.
Thank you, I do have elevation changes on my layout [with easements] so that is encouraging. The one I had exhibited the tracking problems at the hobby shop's layouts and they are flat. Hopefully whoever got it has been able to fix it.
That really doesn't sound like a real world "test." I still don't believe that there is any Kato design issue here.
"Design" must include "design for manufacturing." Some issues are simply because manufacturing tooling/equipment fell out of spec and produced out-of-spec product. Those are manufacturing defects. Otherwise, it is a design issue. I find it interesting that the prototype abandoned the skirts. That's a failure to "design for maintenance." There are many, many aspects of "Design for X."
Same issue with maintenance crews HATING streamlined steamers. I mean, it was enough work just normally servicing them without having to remove all that shrouding, too. Doug
I always wondered how much the rail-riding public cared about what the locomotive looked like. The car exteriors, maybe, but the loco??? And compared to diesels, steamers needed a lot more "makeup" to pass as 'streamlined' (and a LOT more maintenance.)
I still don't believe that there is/was any issue with the Kato E5's tracking. Design, process controls (which is what you're referring to) or anything else. We have a single date point with unknown post-manufacturing history. Certainly nothing systemic and traceable to the skirted trucks.
It's a matter of designed clearance so it's not really a defect. It's just that, if you allow interference through track design or construction, there will be problems. Doug
This is not the only time I've seen reports of problems with Kato E5's, but they appeared to be rare. But neither would I presume to dismiss them as track problems either. Your experiences differ. That's cool too.
The only E-5 I had did not have skirted trucks. But I wonder if the skirted trucks has the skirt as a separate snap on piece.
That's odd. As I mentioned, I'm a huge E5 fan and read any thread regarding the E5 as they come up. This is honestly the first time I've ever seen an alleged "problem" reported. Do you have any links?
As Doug noted, sometimes it's just a matter of clearances and luck........on the club members unit, there was just enough play in the front truck that if you wiggled it in one direction it hit but if you wiggled it the other way it didn't........unfortunately the way it did was the way the truck moved when the loco moved forward. To fix it, we had to cut the back side of the front ladder at a 45 degree angle. But there are no absolutes..........I know a lot of people who hate BLI locos with a passion, but I have a bunch and they have been among my most reliable locos. On the flip side most people LOVE Kato stuff, and they have been my WORST locos, especially on a percentage basis (3 bad ,or 6 if you include programming issues, out of 11 total) I generally avoid Katos for that reason (and also because they don't make much transition era stuff). I DO have the FP7s (3) for the Olympian Hiawatha, and a pair of F7s and they have been good ( although I had a horrible time getting the FPs to take their DCC programming).
