DCC loco. I use a Digitrax Zephyr and Bachmann Alco S4 with
DCC and sound and she purrs along nicely. I bought the S4 from
TradeMe for a mere $70 New Zealand. But I won’t include that
here as it was very much the exception and they normally go
for more than double that.
I have bought all my rolling stock off TradeMe and set a limit
of $10 to $12 per car. I don’t buy them unless they have Kadee
couplers fitted and preferably with metal wheels. For eight
cars and a loco the total cost would be $171 at the most. With
eight cars it would take 15 to 20 minutes to switch the layout
but now I can be enjoyably lost for over an hour shuffling cars
around with 19 cars. A loco and 19 cars would be $303.
I have specified a new MRC DC throttle and power pack. Like
track work, the quality of the throttle has a great impact on the
enjoyment of the layout and I have used an MRC DC dual throt-
tle in the past and was very pleased with it. The unit specified is
not the cheapest so you could shave a few dollars there as well.
Table One – Rolling stock and power pack
Item
No Source
Cost
Bachman Alco S2 Switcher
1
TradeMe
$75.00 (NZD)
Assorted Freight Cars (max
$12 ea)
8
TradeMe
$96.00 (NZD)
DC Power pack and throttle
MRC AA370 Railpower
1
Trainworld.com $47.99 (NZD)
Total
$218.99 (NZD)
