Traction Tire

[eness76]

Hello gang, I've been reading along for quite some time but this is my first post. I'm struggling to get traction on some of my engines for slow speed running using PF train motors. I have one tender powering a large steam engine where I used two motors and still have the problem. Is there a more effective O-ring then the included traction bands? I could have sworn I read something but must not be searching the right keywords. Thanks.

[Cale]

Hello gang, I've been reading along for quite some time but this is my first post. I'm struggling to get traction on some of my engines for slow speed running using PF train motors. I have one tender powering a large steam engine where I used two motors and still have the problem. Is there a more effective O-ring then the included traction bands? I could have sworn I read something but must not be searching the right keywords. Thanks.

You need look no further than this old blog post from Railbricks. It should explain every thing you need to know about upgrading the O-rings.

http://railbricks.com/blog/a-power-functions-primer/

Cale

[Captain Zuloo]

Hi eness76, and welcome to EB.

While it's difficult to help much without any images to show us the problem, the culprit behind poor traction is often tight driving rods, not allowing the wheels to spin freely, and perhaps the engine doesn't have enough weight on it. Although if you're talking about adding more motors and it still being a problem, perhaps the problem isn't traction after all.

Pictures would really help!

[peterab]

Hello gang, I've been reading along for quite some time but this is my first post. I'm struggling to get traction on some of my engines for slow speed running using PF train motors. I have one tender powering a large steam engine where I used two motors and still have the problem. Is there a more effective O-ring then the included traction bands? I could have sworn I read something but must not be searching the right keywords. Thanks.

Cale has given one solution, but you can also improve traction depending on which traction tyres your wheels have. The RC wheels (from the Green RC cargo train and white RC passenger train) had quite hard black/grey traction tyres which were not very effective, these are still used on some un-powered trains like the Toy Story. Over time these have been replaced on powered trains with a softer transparent tyre which give far more traction. If you are not already using the clear traction tyres you might want to replace them (I think if you contact Lego service they should be able to help you out).

As others have said you may also need to add weight to your engine if you plan on pulling long trains, and make sure the friction on the engine and cars is low particularly in corners.

[WesternOutlaw]

I would recommend you introduce yourself as this is your first post on EB. You can do so in the "Hello My Name Is" Forum or our Train Tech Registry if you are a LEGO Train fan.

[eness76]

Thanks for all the help guys, adding weight helped, and the o-rings really did the trick! Thanks again.