This is a great video. I know it must have been a pain to set up the catenary system. I am sure it was time-consuming too. I would like to see more videos that include catenary systems.
HI Greg, thanks for your comment. I drove a little too fast; that is the only thing I'd change about the video. Honestly, the catenary was (is) a labor of love. I took great pleasure in designing my own system, but it does require the same care as the real thing. It can be a pain (esp. track cleaning, which I use a CMX for now), but then that is part of the draw for me; same with all the pantograph work. However in over 5 years of operation, I have only had one support fail (bad design, that is detailed in the link above) and one pantograph snag due to wire creep. Otherwise, the system works great. I hope to shoot more videos at some point.
Thank you for your comment. I drove too fast for the video, but otherwise everything worked out well. The catenary is a labor of love, but I was pleased with how it came out.
Thank you, Bobby. I hope to do an updated video soon, as this one is now rather outdated. Several improvements have been implemented, and it is a bit more interesting to watch. Also, nice thumbnail of the AEM7 Brecknell-Willis pantograph.
I've shot AEM7s for a long time, and am a bit of a pantograph nerd in general; it was instantly recognizable even for a small thumbnail. I had to do a lot of research on pans to get a good design that works for O scale catenary. I am a bit embarrassed of this video; my pan designs have a come a long way since 2017. They are much more stable at speed, and use a more robust head layout. Also, I ditched the conductive silver grease (which was a terrible mess) in favor of NeoLube, which is an alcohol/graphite solution. Thanks again.
I am so impressed! My nephews & I were thinking of installing an MTH catenary system for our Milwaukee Road EF2 units... Thought I'd just some stuff out first. Love this, thanks for sharing
Greetings Ty -- Thank you for your comment. You can check the link out to see how I built it. I think its more rewarding (and MUCH less expensive) to build your own. Also, I think the MTH stuff is hard to find. Catenary is not for the impatient, but man its fun to watch the trains roll once its done. I think the top speed was a little high on this video. DCS said 120smph, but it seemed disproportionally fast.
Thank you for your comment. Yes -- I drove way too fast for the small layout footprint. It was an accurate 110smph, but on video its almost nauseating. The cab car video I just put up is at 95smph, which is more comfortable. Hopefully with the next layout, I will have room for some longer straightaways.
That's why I always loved O gauge, especially MTH stuff... You can run 'em fast and not have to worry too much about them tipping over, they get pretty heavy! Nice work.
Indeed. HO has more variety of equipment, but it just drove me nuts how delicate and light-weight it was. I'd rather have a smaller but rugged O scale system like this that runs off the catenary. Thanks for commenting.
Well, DCS says it was going 120 scale mph, but I agree, it was too fast. Other videos I have and never posted are much slower. The speed wouldn't be so bad, but with the rather tight loop, one gets a little sea-sick. That is my only regret for this clip. Thanks for your comment and for watching.
Fantastic setup, looks and runs amazingly! I’m trying to make my own PRR system in HO scale and I was wondering if you had any tips on soldering the copper wire T joints between the dropper and contact/messenger wire. Is it best to use flux to get the solder to flow in the right spot? I’ve been having a hard time getting a proper bond between the solder and copper 100% of the time.
Question! How did you wire that to run off of the pantograph? I have two of these units in O Scale 2 Rail by atlas and want to run them via overhead. Second question, what sound chip did you use? Thanks
Now this is true model railroading. Certainly never seen this before. Now I know it's truly possible, and I really admire the work and time you put in. I assume you rewired/rebuilt the locomotive to receive overhead power. Also wondering if it can travel faster than running on normal DC third rail.
Thank you for your comment and kind word. It is a labor of love, but I really enjoy the engineering part, and it is very rewarding to see the motors fly under the wire, (though I drove too fast in this video). Most modern electric motors have a switch inside to choose between 3rd rail and overhead. I reinforced that wiring some (heavier gauge wire and removed the switch), and also removed the 3rd rail rollers. Speed is not really a function of power source, assuming you've met the current requirements. O gauge/scale is generally powered by ~18VAC, as this is, and I have 10.5A of juice at the 'substation'. I also reinforced the pantographs and lubed them with Neolube to encourage good conductivity and avoid hotspots. The link above gives more detail on how everything works.
The voltage on the line is ~18VAC at a possible 11amps. There is a link in the description that details the construction and operation. Thanks for your comment.
The catenary is all scratch built; there is a link in the description about how it was built. There are no full O scale catenary kits, though there are some components by MTH, Sommerfeldt and Märklin (I think), but it is expensive and delicate. This system is neither. All the parts are available at Lowe's or Home Depot. Thank you for the comment.
Greetings Gary -- Not quite. The system is powered by ~18VAC, not DC. One could say that the trolley wire is 'AC hot' and the two outer rails are 'AC return', to complete the circuit. The middle rail is used by the coaches, and is on a circuit of its own.
Thanks for your comment and for watching. There is a link in the description above that takes you to the O Gauge Rail forum, where all the details of construction are. If you are mechanically -minded and patient, its not really that hard a scratch-build.
@@pantenary2217 I have background in Mechanical engineering. Thanks for your help and suggestions. Waiting for you to upload more work like this. Thanks again
Thanks for your comment. The poles are 3/8" threaded rod, and the wire is simple 18g copper wire, both of which can be found at Lowe's or any decent hardware store. A major design parameter was to use materials that are readily available from local sources. I did end up getting some of the wire on a larger spool from Amazon, but that was more for convenience than necessity.
Hi Will: You can check out the link in the description for exactly how I dealt with wire over turnouts, with text and pictures. Basically, there is one of two ways I dealt with it. If the diverging route was on the same catenary electric circuit, I used a brass I-beam as a support to solder the main trolley wire with the diverging wire. Then it is only a matter of getting the alignment right, which isn't really that hard. If the diverging route is NOT on the same catenary electrical circuit, then I had to devise a method to have one trolley wire end and another start in an overlapping fashion while not touching. You can see the result at 2:54 . Note the one wire stops, and another starts, while not touching. You can also see a still image of the junction at (ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/fileSendAction/fcType/0/fcOid/71397233975789549/filePointer/71819767759532810/fodoid/71819767759532789/imageType/MEDIUM/inlineImage/true/mceclip6.jpg). it is probably a little bit over-engineered, but at that speed I don;t need to be tearing pans off of motors. The OGR link details all the construction details for that and the rest of the system. Thank you for the comment.
Thanks for the comment. The top speed was a prototypical 110smph according to the MTH DCS remote. However, I think it looks a little better from outside the train; onboard it indeed is a bit dizzying. Subsequent onboard runs would probably be at 90smph or so in order to reduce that effect. The other things that hurts a bit is the O63 ruling curve, which is a little bit tight for the coaches and prototypical runs. I think an O81 ruling curve would be best (at least), but given the room I had to work with, O63 was the best I could reasonably do. The outer siding/spur is O72, as is the Atlas Wye tracks in the yard. It is a little tight all the way around, but I am quite content with it given the space constraints.
Indeed. I miss them, E60s as well. I saw recently that 942 and 928 2 were sent to Pueblo, presumably to be yard goats on the electrified test tracks. That's a long way to travel to see them, but at least they should be safe there.
Pantenary I've been tracking the STB's recordations which show who owns what and leases of rolling stock. Some of these recordations show that Pueblo may be in control of up to 19 toasters... some probably for crash testing.
My research has suggested that as well, which seems absolutely ridiculous. What would that gain? If that is the case, why don't you just beat up on the old DC units? Oh, because you already SCRAPPED THEM. Morons. Multiple sources have also suggested that the functional AC units are in storage as emergency power. It would be rather amusing if the ACS64s laid an egg like the Silverliner V or the Acela a few years back.
I agree, but with the small space i have to work with, you would almost go from one curve to another. That will have to wait for the next layout, I'm afraid.
![Engines of Amtrak - EMD AEM-7 [REMAKE]](/img/n.gif)
Now that's what I call a cool railroad powered by a catenary.
Thank you, I appreciate it. Hopefully some new videos soon.
This is a great video. I know it must have been a pain to set up the catenary system. I am sure it was time-consuming too. I would like to see more videos that include catenary systems.
HI Greg, thanks for your comment. I drove a little too fast; that is the only thing I'd change about the video.
Honestly, the catenary was (is) a labor of love. I took great pleasure in designing my own system, but it does require the same care as the real thing. It can be a pain (esp. track cleaning, which I use a CMX for now), but then that is part of the draw for me; same with all the pantograph work. However in over 5 years of operation, I have only had one support fail (bad design, that is detailed in the link above) and one pantograph snag due to wire creep. Otherwise, the system works great. I hope to shoot more videos at some point.
Nice, sharp photography. Great catenary system!
I couldn't stop watching your video. Your catenary system is awesome! Cheers!
Thank you for your comment. I drove too fast for the video, but otherwise everything worked out well. The catenary is a labor of love, but I was pleased with how it came out.
Even though i don"t model in this scale you did a superb job on your catenary set up,i truly commend you.
Thank you, Bobby. I hope to do an updated video soon, as this one is now rather outdated. Several improvements have been implemented, and it is a bit more interesting to watch. Also, nice thumbnail of the AEM7 Brecknell-Willis pantograph.
@@pantenary2217 Thanks.
Thanks for the thumbnail comment,you"re the first to notice.
I've shot AEM7s for a long time, and am a bit of a pantograph nerd in general; it was instantly recognizable even for a small thumbnail. I had to do a lot of research on pans to get a good design that works for O scale catenary. I am a bit embarrassed of this video; my pan designs have a come a long way since 2017. They are much more stable at speed, and use a more robust head layout. Also, I ditched the conductive silver grease (which was a terrible mess) in favor of NeoLube, which is an alcohol/graphite solution. Thanks again.
I am so impressed! My nephews & I were thinking of installing an MTH catenary system for our Milwaukee Road EF2 units... Thought I'd just some stuff out first.
Love this, thanks for sharing
Greetings Ty -- Thank you for your comment. You can check the link out to see how I built it. I think its more rewarding (and MUCH less expensive) to build your own. Also, I think the MTH stuff is hard to find. Catenary is not for the impatient, but man its fun to watch the trains roll once its done. I think the top speed was a little high on this video. DCS said 120smph, but it seemed disproportionally fast.
OMG Real train performance 😃😃😃
Excellent! Prototypical run. Exceptionally done!
It'd be amazing to see it running on a straight track with surroundings
Its fast af
Thank you for your comment. Yes -- I drove way too fast for the small layout footprint. It was an accurate 110smph, but on video its almost nauseating. The cab car video I just put up is at 95smph, which is more comfortable. Hopefully with the next layout, I will have room for some longer straightaways.
This is truly amazing. Well done sir
Thank you; I appreciate your comment.
That's why I always loved O gauge, especially MTH stuff... You can run 'em fast and not have to worry too much about them tipping over, they get pretty heavy! Nice work.
Indeed. HO has more variety of equipment, but it just drove me nuts how delicate and light-weight it was. I'd rather have a smaller but rugged O scale system like this that runs off the catenary. Thanks for commenting.
this is soooo cool!!!! Thanks for sharing
Thank you for watching, and for your comment. I appreciate it!
Excellent. I felt like this was going even faster than real AEM7.
Well, DCS says it was going 120 scale mph, but I agree, it was too fast. Other videos I have and never posted are much slower. The speed wouldn't be so bad, but with the rather tight loop, one gets a little sea-sick. That is my only regret for this clip. Thanks for your comment and for watching.
Great stuff amazing work
Thank you for watching and commenting!
awesome bro!!!
Thanks for your comment and for watching.
Read your page following the link. Awesome work. And thanks for the inspiration :)
Thanks for watching. If you have the stamina and drive to finish it, the results are very rewarding.
superb!
Thank you, I appreciate the comment.
Very impressive!
Fantastic setup, looks and runs amazingly! I’m trying to make my own PRR system in HO scale and I was wondering if you had any tips on soldering the copper wire T joints between the dropper and contact/messenger wire. Is it best to use flux to get the solder to flow in the right spot? I’ve been having a hard time getting a proper bond between the solder and copper 100% of the time.
Question!
How did you wire that to run off of the pantograph? I have two of these units in O Scale 2 Rail by atlas and want to run them via overhead.
Second question, what sound chip did you use?
Thanks
This train getting power from that pantograph
Yes. I do not use 3rd Rail rollers on any motors. The third rail powers the coaches only.
Now this is true model railroading. Certainly never seen this before. Now I know it's truly possible, and I really admire the work and time you put in. I assume you rewired/rebuilt the locomotive to receive overhead power. Also wondering if it can travel faster than running on normal DC third rail.
Thank you for your comment and kind word. It is a labor of love, but I really enjoy the engineering part, and it is very rewarding to see the motors fly under the wire, (though I drove too fast in this video). Most modern electric motors have a switch inside to choose between 3rd rail and overhead. I reinforced that wiring some (heavier gauge wire and removed the switch), and also removed the 3rd rail rollers.
Speed is not really a function of power source, assuming you've met the current requirements. O gauge/scale is generally powered by ~18VAC, as this is, and I have 10.5A of juice at the 'substation'. I also reinforced the pantographs and lubed them with Neolube to encourage good conductivity and avoid hotspots. The link above gives more detail on how everything works.
Amazing stuff...well done!
Thank you, George.
Impressive
Thank you! I appreciate the comment.
what voltage is used for the overhead wires the overhead system is amazing
The voltage on the line is ~18VAC at a possible 11amps. There is a link in the description that details the construction and operation. Thanks for your comment.
Very nice!!!
looks awesome...
Thanks for the comment, and for checking out the video.
This is exactly what I want to do with my light rail layout (that I still don't have just yet)
It takes time, but keep at it. It will get done one day for you to enjoy.
I'm just asking ,but do your know what kind of horn that was? It's one of the best I've heard!
Almost all AEM7s used K5LA horns, which is modeled very well on the MTH unit I used in the video.
Sweet catenary system
Looooove the catenary
Amazing! Is this a kit or did you build it yourself?
The catenary is all scratch built; there is a link in the description about how it was built. There are no full O scale catenary kits, though there are some components by MTH, Sommerfeldt and Märklin (I think), but it is expensive and delicate. This system is neither. All the parts are available at Lowe's or Home Depot. Thank you for the comment.
The above wire is positive and track rail is ground?0
Greetings Gary -- Not quite. The system is powered by ~18VAC, not DC. One could say that the trolley wire is 'AC hot' and the two outer rails are 'AC return', to complete the circuit. The middle rail is used by the coaches, and is on a circuit of its own.
It is very impressive. I am also working on an electric train project. Could u tell me more about your setup?
Thanks for your comment and for watching. There is a link in the description above that takes you to the O Gauge Rail forum, where all the details of construction are. If you are mechanically -minded and patient, its not really that hard a scratch-build.
@@pantenary2217 I have background in Mechanical engineering. Thanks for your help and suggestions. Waiting for you to upload more work like this. Thanks again
Next thing someone’ll take apart an EMD-645, shrink all the parts and put it in a loco this scale.
Build it and they will come.... th-cam.com/video/-2kvA3UHMfs/w-d-xo.html&ab_channel=MrGoodcat
Just heat would become an issue in an O scale unit. G scale would work just fine.
Arduino? Raspberry Pi? Any type of controller for the electrical system
Sorry, just saw the new comments. I use MTH DCS 6.0 to control the trains and turnouts, though all the turnouts are not wired yet.
Proto sound 3 PS3 but the PlayStation 3 is also calld PS3
fast!! wow
Yes, too fast in hindsight. If there were longer straight runs, it would be fine, but the tighter loop is a bit sickening. Live and learn, right?
Hello 2021
Hey where did you get the wire and catenary poles from?
Thanks for your comment. The poles are 3/8" threaded rod, and the wire is simple 18g copper wire, both of which can be found at Lowe's or any decent hardware store. A major design parameter was to use materials that are readily available from local sources. I did end up getting some of the wire on a larger spool from Amazon, but that was more for convenience than necessity.
be nice to emulate the Hurstbridge line with Tait trains and wooden poles.
I'm just curious, how do switches work with catenary? Does the wire shift as well?
Hi Will: You can check out the link in the description for exactly how I dealt with wire over turnouts, with text and pictures. Basically, there is one of two ways I dealt with it. If the diverging route was on the same catenary electric circuit, I used a brass I-beam as a support to solder the main trolley wire with the diverging wire. Then it is only a matter of getting the alignment right, which isn't really that hard. If the diverging route is NOT on the same catenary electrical circuit, then I had to devise a method to have one trolley wire end and another start in an overlapping fashion while not touching. You can see the result at 2:54 . Note the one wire stops, and another starts, while not touching. You can also see a still image of the junction at (ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/fileSendAction/fcType/0/fcOid/71397233975789549/filePointer/71819767759532810/fodoid/71819767759532789/imageType/MEDIUM/inlineImage/true/mceclip6.jpg). it is probably a little bit over-engineered, but at that speed I don;t need to be tearing pans off of motors. The OGR link details all the construction details for that and the rest of the system. Thank you for the comment.
@@pantenary2217 thank you for your reply! Thinking about integrating an interurban line with catenary into a future layout
Oh my gosh that is going fast, if I was a little model person I think I would be feeling sick. Otherwise this is excellent.
Thanks for the comment. The top speed was a prototypical 110smph according to the MTH DCS remote. However, I think it looks a little better from outside the train; onboard it indeed is a bit dizzying. Subsequent onboard runs would probably be at 90smph or so in order to reduce that effect. The other things that hurts a bit is the O63 ruling curve, which is a little bit tight for the coaches and prototypical runs. I think an O81 ruling curve would be best (at least), but given the room I had to work with, O63 was the best I could reasonably do. The outer siding/spur is O72, as is the Atlas Wye tracks in the yard. It is a little tight all the way around, but I am quite content with it given the space constraints.
ARE YOU AN AEM-7 FOAMER AS WELL?
Indeed. I miss them, E60s as well. I saw recently that 942 and 928 2 were sent to Pueblo, presumably to be yard goats on the electrified test tracks. That's a long way to travel to see them, but at least they should be safe there.
Pantenary I've been tracking the STB's recordations which show who owns what and leases of rolling stock. Some of these recordations show that Pueblo may be in control of up to 19 toasters... some probably for crash testing.
My research has suggested that as well, which seems absolutely ridiculous. What would that gain? If that is the case, why don't you just beat up on the old DC units? Oh, because you already SCRAPPED THEM. Morons. Multiple sources have also suggested that the functional AC units are in storage as emergency power. It would be rather amusing if the ACS64s laid an egg like the Silverliner V or the Acela a few years back.
And hey, SEPTA still runs them for now. That is better than nothing.
Your easements and superelevation now need work.
I agree, but with the small space i have to work with, you would almost go from one curve to another. That will have to wait for the next layout, I'm afraid.