Car Weights

[Guest Closed Account 1]

According to the NMRA Standards:

 

N Gauge cars should weigh a minimum of 0.5oz/14.17g plus 0.15oz/4.25g per actual inch of length. http://nmra.org/beginner/weight.html

 

So, a 3 inch caboose that weighs 0.5oz out of the box needs 0.45oz to weigh a max of 0.95oz.

 

I'm considering 1/4" lead tape for golf clubs and tennis racquets that weighs 2grams per inch placed in the center.

http://www.golfsmith.com/product/30030322/gamma-1-4-inch-lead-tape?cm_vc=vc_cs_pp

 

My Kato 0 Series Shinkansen cars are about 1.2oz without LED lighting. So according to the standards and the way it rolls, this weight is optimal for this car.

 

For the miscellaneous rolling stock do I:

 

A- Double stack the 1/4" lead tape on the centerline to achieve the optimal weight for each car or

B- Use 1/2" lead tape or stick on car weights in the car center

 

What are you using?

[KenS]

So far, I haven't seen any operational problems I'd ascribe to weight.  And I weighed a couple of my early models and recall that they were "close" to a correct weight so I didn't worry about it.  I haven't run my freight cars much yet, and I am a bit worried they could have problems on sharply-curved grades, but I haven't decided what I'd do if they did.

 

I used to use stick-on wights (1/4 oz w/ adhesive tape) for HO scale, but at 1/2-inch (12.5mm) they're a bit wide for N-scale freight use. They could fit with some cutting.

 

I've seen references to using lead (or other metal) shot: just pour the right amount into the car (or onto the underside) and fix it in place with white glue or epoxy. But I haven't tried it, and real lead shot is likely hard to come by now (it's been illegal to use for hunting for some time due to pollution concerns).

[keiman]

Stick on auto wheel weights (FOC) my stepson works as a tyre fitter.

The only wagons  I have felt the need to do so far are my Kawai ones.The Tomix 4 wheelers seem fine.

[The_Ghan]

According to the NMRA Standards: ....

 

I love the NMRA Standards!  I like to wave at them as I pass them by!  The same goes for the AMRA (The Australian equivalent).  To me, these standards apply, very loosely, to scratch build models only.  I certainly wouldn't refuse to buy a Kato, Kawaii, Tomix, or any other brand of commercially available model simply because it didn't strictly comply with NMRA or AMRA standards.  These manufacturers have designed and tested their own work and have their own reputations to maintain.

 

I don't car if my cars are under weight, so long as they look realistic and function adequately on the tracks.  These things are not race horses, you don't need to weigh them down to even the odds.    The same would apply if I scratch built a car.  Unless a car was having consistent problems over points, on curves, etc, I wouldn't even think to check any of the dimensional standards.

 

If something was looking a little "rickity" on the rails I might add a couple of lead roofing washers and some tape.  But that's all.  If that didn't work, I'd use another manufacturer's car.

 

Just look at Newton's Second Law of Motion: F=MA Increasing the weight in a car will increase M and therefore F.  F is the force the loco needs to use to move the car.  Putting more force on the moter will lead to an increase in wear.

 

Just my rambling thoughts ...

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[keiman]

Should have added to my comments earlier,I had not even looked at, or thought about std's for car weight until now.

I just am concerned that my rolling stock goes round the curves,over switches, and thinking about it the only ones I added weights to were the Snow plow's to stop them derailing when being pushed.

[The_Ghan]

Agreed keiman!

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan