# HO Scale Incline?



## Evan

On my new layout i will be building has a incline that goes up on top of a mountain, as you see in the picture I circled the incline in red.







I know 2% is the best grade to use but how will I raise my track?

Edit:

Would Woodland Scenic's Inclines work?
Which is better for the layout?
2% = http://woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/show/Item/ST1410/page/1
4% = http://woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/show/Item/ST1411/page/2

How many cars can a GE 70-Ton Switcher pull on a 2% grade?
How many cars can a GE 70-Ton Switcher pull on a 4% grade?


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## swiggy

how big is the layout?


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## Evan

swiggy said:


> how big is the layout?


55" x 99"/100"

I'm pretty sure it's 4%, if you look closely it says 4% on the track.


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## swiggy

I think it tells you on that link that for a 2% incline you need 16 feet. that said, it does not look like 16 feet in your picture. even the 4% incline needs 8 feet. 

I have a 3-4 % incline/decline on my layout that goes about 12 feet (along the wall). i used atlas track risers and just covered with scenery.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95ECnn_H4gM


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## cabledawg

There is a 4% incline, but only to 3" at the switch, so it doenst need the full 8 feet. The remaining 1 1/4 inches over the tunnel is made up after the switch with another small 4% incline section. And when I designed this, it was with smaller switcher locos and only a few cars in mind as it was supposed to be a logging area. 

I see you are using a switcher, but the number of cars really depends on the size of the cars. You only have so much room on the switchbacks, so dont expect a huge consist of full size log cars or flat cars. I'd say 5-6 log truck pairs with smaller logs or 2-3 of the full size flat cars for bigger stuff. Remember too that you can get traction tires to keep the loco from slipping, but at 4% you should be ok.


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## Evan

Okay Thanks.


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## tkruger

I have the Bachman Spectrum GE Switcher. It is light and does not pull well on grades. I have an incline that starts as a 2% and gradually increases to a 3%. It gives up with three Athearn 40ft Blue Box box cars. The wheels just start spinning. Also keep in mind that it requires more effort for the locomotive to climb a grade on a curve than one on a straight run. This is because on a curve one set of wheels needs to break traction and slip as the locomotive goes through the corner. 

I am not a big fan of traction tires etc. for the sole purpose of increasing the pulling power of a locomotive. These items can cause a user to overwork their loco without warning. The slipping of the wheels is an indication that the loco is pulling the max it was designed for. I say this from experience. I stripped the gears out of a loco using traction tires. If you need to get up the grade use a larger locomotive or adding weight over the trucks. Adding weight will increase tractive effort but keeps the weakest point in the drive line as the location where the wheel meets the rail. Things break at the weakest link.


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## jzrouterman

tkruger said:


> I am not a big fan of traction tires etc. for the sole purpose of increasing the pulling power of a locomotive. These items can cause a user to overwork their loco without warning. The slipping of the wheels is an indication that the loco is pulling the max it was designed for. I say this from experience. I stripped the gears out of a loco using traction tires. If you need to get up the grade use a larger locomotive or adding weight over the trucks. Adding weight will increase tractive effort but keeps the weakest point in the drive line as the location where the wheel meets the rail. Things break at the weakest link.


Very interestingly put and well written. 

Routerman


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## sstlaure

Keep in mind that you can split the grade as well. Instead of having 1 track going up at 4% you can have 1 track go up at 2% and your other line going down at 2% to achieve the clearance between the track heights you're looking for.

I also agree that adding weight to a locomotive is a great way to get more pulling power. Companies make self-adhesive lead weights in .7g increments that are easy to mount. I added 2.1g to one of my youngest's Thomas trains and doubled the pulling power (8 cars rather than 4 pulled up a 2% grade)


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## TapRoot

am I mistaken or is 3% grade a drop of 1" over 1'


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## gunrunnerjohn

Nope, that would be an 8.3% grade.


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## TapRoot

lol so is it 1" over 3'...I used to have this written down somewhere....


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## tjcruiser

Tap,

1" over 3' is a ratio of 1" to 36", or 0.028, or 2.8% ... pretty close to 3%.

A rise/run ratio of 1" to 33" is a bit closer to a true 3% grade.

Cheers,

TJ


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## tooter

Evan said:


> I know 2% is the best grade to use but how will I raise my track?


Woodland Scenics foam risers look like they'll work nicely.

Along with raising the overpassing track, you might consider *lowering* the underpassing track. That way you can get the proper height clearance using *half* the approach length. 

Greg


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## gunrunnerjohn

It's simple math, divide the rise by the distance and you'll come up with the percentage of the grade.


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## sstlaure

A 3% grade would be a drop of 3" over 100". So if you want to have 3.5" clearance between diverging tracks, you would need a run of at least 116.7" of run if only 1 track is doing the work of changing the grade. If you have the 2 tracks diverging from each other (1 going uphill, the other going down) you can cut this run in half - i.e. a run of 58.35" (or about 5 feet)


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