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    A question about brake systems

    This is something that has puzzled me, I am familiar with air brake systems on highway trucks, air pressure is required to keep the brakes in the released position, if the system fails and air pressure is lost the the brakes activate stopping the truck. If an air brake trailer is parked then it...
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    22 guage wire ok for feeders

    I am using HO scale, DCC. I was using 20 guage for my track feeders and now I need more wire. I have plenty of 22 guage solid wire, will this be heavy enough? I have been running a feeder to each piece of flex track. Thanks
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    transition from mainline to branch

    I used HO scale cork for my mainlines and wish to use something smaller for branchlines as the cork looks too big, any suggestions, and how do I go about the transition so I don't have a low spot for trains to uncouple.
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    some questions regarding ballast and rail painting

    My track is laid, I am ready for ballast and scenery. Do you ballast the turnouts? My last layout I only put ballast on the outsides of the turnout and it looked OK from the sides. I wish I had painted the cork grey first, but I failed to do so. What do others do? Rail painting. I am...
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    scenery base over foam

    I have my track laid and I am ready to start scenery. What do you use over the pink foam? My last layout I used plaster cloth, but I have ruled that out due to the expense. I thought of just roughing up and then painting the pink foam, my test area turned out very well in fact, but I would...
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    What does this sign mean

    Today I spotted a sign by a track and was curious as to what it meant. At a spur that runs into a small grain elevator, just as the track passes under the loading chute (which is under cover) there is a stop sign (highway style) and under the word STOP it says "dismount". This is clearly for the...
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    Impressive loco sound

    I was at the hobby shop today, and in conversation with the store person he asked if I have got to hear the new Broadway Limited locos. Now bear in mind I have never heard any model locomotive make a sound other than its motor. So he demo'd it for me, (I think he just enjoyed hearing it)...
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    Frog on Peco turnouts

    I am curently laying track for my new layout, as I install a turnout I run my test cars througth the turnout. Here is what is going on. I am installing Peco code 100 Large #6 insulfrog turnouts, my test cars are two Athearn / Bev Bel heavyweight passenger cars with three axles per truck...
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    Road slug

    Where I live I noticed on one of the local CSX engines has "road slug" stencilled on it. I noticed it had no fans on the top, quite rough looking. What is the purpose of a slug? Couldn't a single locomotive handle local switching duties which is mostly a couple of dozen cars of grain hoppers...
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    rail pick up wires

    Today I measured stall amps in all my locos and determined which, if any, had insulated motors. I noticed that using a continuity meter, if I placed one probe on a motor terminal and the other on any wheel then there would be continuity, so how do you determine which is right side and which is...
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    cheap 2 function decoders

    I read somewhere about a brand of 2 function decoders that are priced about $10.00 anyone able help me out here.
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    Decoders in cheap locos - worthwhile?

    I am just getting started in DCC, my Prodigy should be here soon, while I will be adding decoders to the Athearn, Hornby, and LL2K locos, my son has several Model Power locos, is it worthwhile adding decoders to these cheaper locos or just run them in DC mode? He does enjoy them and the're don't...
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    I'm new, formerly from the Atlas forum

    Hi everyone, I see some familiar names on this forum so I thought I would give it a try. I had went on vacation and when I came home I seen that Atlas was shut down. I stumbled onto the railroad forum but found it very slow, so now I am here and I thought I would give it a try. Glad to be here...
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