The Canadian

[peteski]

Sure you have - you pointed it out in your own review of the Con-Cor Aerotrain in the old Atlas forum.

Now that you brought it up . . .    Still, I  would call that an esoteric set from an oddball manufacturer.  Not something I have seen done by the major (high volume) model manufacturers.

[sp org div]

Maybe I missed someone else posting this link over 9 pages but figured some of you would be interested
There are more than a dozen proto images here of the Canadian crossing the rockies back in 73’
https://www.flickr.com/photos/captain_railroad/albums/72157636789203186
Your duty is to post links / pics of the coast starlight circa 78’ as repayment     

Jeff

[w neal]

Ta very much. I would not have thought of putting a geep on that train.

[CNR5529]

In the beginning, power was usually a combination of FP9as, F9bs, FP7as and F7bs. It didn't take too long though for many of the steam generator equipped passenger locomotives to start showing up at the head end, such as GP9s, FPA-2s, RS10s and on occasion even one of the three E8s. Makes for all sorts of interesting combinations!

For more great photos, check out this page:

http://www.trainweb.org/oldtimetrains/photos/cpr_diesel/canadian.htm

[Joetrain59]

I sent an email to Rapido about the rolling quality. Got a reply overnight, with 2 PDF's on fixing issue.
 Hopefully, I can post them here. I haven't looked at them yet.
 Joe D

[CNR5529]

Thanks for sharing those @Joetrain59, I was hoping Rapido would post something to address the issues.

For what its worth, Grant over at the Southern Alberta Railway has posted a good video about adjusting couplers and 3 different ways to improve rolling performance. He also throws in a bit of a rant free of charge... enjoy!

[Cajonpassfan]

Thanks for sharing those @Joetrain59, I was hoping Rapido would post something to address the issues.

For what its worth, Grant over at the Southern Alberta Railway has posted a good video about adjusting couplers and 3 different ways to improve rolling performance. He also throws in a bit of a rant free of charge... enjoy!

Whoa! Forget the couplers and wheelsets. What a layout!!!
Otto

[CNR5529]

Whoa! Forget the couplers and wheelsets. What a layout!!!
Otto

The SAR is an impressive layout to be sure. I encourage you to dig through his other videos, both construction and operations related. It is very well thought out, designed, built and operated.

[Angus Shops]

For those that may still be messing around with the rolling qualities of their Canadian cars, I can offer a little more input: Despite undertaking the centre sill filing noted above, the coaches still seemed to roll less freely than they should. In the end I found some of the cast on plumbing on the floor of the car, at the vestibule end, was interfering with the flange on the outside axle (closest to the car end). A little slicing with the hobby knife just to knock the high points solves the problem. All 4 of my coaches roll perfectly now.

[Dwight in Toronto]

Just got accepted to this board earlier today, so I’m a bit late to the party.  Not late as far as struggling to get my 10 car Canadian set to roll better though … almost six months since taking delivery, and I’m still trying various tweaks and twists.

Out of the box, rollability was deplorable; worse than anything else in my inventory.  Hugely disappointing, but since I live 20 minutes away from Rapido’s office/warehouse, I returned the set to their loading dock the day after it was delivered.  They scalloped the support beam to provide axle clearance in the vicinity of every truck.

Things were somewhat better, but still grossly sub-standard.  Some cars would coast around a bend quite nicely with the vestibule to the front, but then grind to an immediate halt on the same bend if the coach was flipped end-for-end.  I eventually found tiny protrusions under the floor of the coach, on one side or the other, that were touching the wheel flange on those curves.  Removing the tiny bits with a razor knife helped.

Other trucks were being affected by the little plastic nibs that retain the brass power pickups within the wheelsets.  A fine and careful filing job helped there.

At this point, most cars are a lot better, but problems remain and solutions are elusive and hard to analyze.  A single loco won’t pull the 10 cars around a simple, level Kato sectional track test oval with 12 3/4” curves without spinning it’s wheels, and some coaches want to tilt/clothesline/derail, suggesting that there is still excess drag “down the line”.  In comparison, a single loco will pull my 12 car Kato Morning Daylight no problem whatsoever.

Also, everyone will by now have also received their Rapido FP9A locos to go with their coaches.  Those have not been without shortcomings either (see my post earlier today in the topic that deals with FP9A problems). 

All in all, a disappointing experience for me all around, but the museum-quality detail and stunning appearance have me holding out for the long haul, because the locos and coaches truly look that good.  It’s just too bad that, at this price point, they don’t perform nearly as nice as they look.

[Mike C]

  I think you may be using too small of a radius curve . On page 7 upthread the OP said he tested them on a 14" radius and had some troubles . Personally I would use 16" radius as a min .....Mike

[bbussey]

12-3/4” radius is tight for these models.

[kscessandriver]

12-3/4” radius is tight for these models.

Just due to the design of the trucks & couplers, or what? I'd assume something along those lines. My layout now is 11.75" radius for the most part, so I don't anticipate running my Canadian much at all

[dem34]

Just due to the design of the trucks & couplers, or what? I'd assume something along those lines. My layout now is 11.75" radius for the most part, so I don't anticipate running my Canadian much at all

Under body details rub on the trucks, of course if you are a bit adventurous you can decrease the min radius with some filing

[bbussey]

Just due to the design of the trucks & couplers, or what? I'd assume something along those lines. My layout now is 11.75" radius for the most part, so I don't anticipate running my Canadian much at all

Due to the fact that there is full underbody detail including a proper centersill under the trucks, so the trucks don’t pivot wildly from side to side. The shorter non-kinetic coupling distance also is not conducive to tight radii. Rapido passenger cars in general perform better on larger radii. They will run on 16”. They look better on 18” and above, but that’s true with all N scale passenger equipment.

... At this point, most cars are a lot better, but problems remain and solutions are elusive and hard to analyze.  A single loco won’t pull the 10 cars around a simple, level Kato sectional track test oval with 12 3/4” curves without spinning its wheels, and some coaches want to tilt/clothesline/derail, suggesting that there is still excess drag “down the line”.  In comparison, a single loco will pull my 12 car Kato Morning Daylight no problem whatsoever. ...

If you have easement into the tighter curves, they will behave better. But they still won’t roll freely I don’t believe. Kato cars are designed to run on tighter radii, with truck-mounted couplers, centersills that don’t restrict truck movement and minimal underbody detail around the trucks. Just body-mounting couplers on Kato equipment eliminates their ability to run on 11” radius and smaller.