# Consisting and speed matching



## tazzy45 (Dec 6, 2015)

I have a question about consisting and speed matching. Is it better to speed match the locos before consisting or create the consist and then speed match. I tried speed matching before consisting and got the locos to be close in speed, but when I consisted they were not running close. I have an NCE power cab. Any suggestions are welcome.


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

IT is much better to match them first. Once they operate the same way, or largely the same way, as you dial up individual speed steps, then a consist will work well...or better. Many people don't do more than to match them somewhat closely using CV's 3, 4, 5, and 6.


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## tazzy45 (Dec 6, 2015)

mesenteria said:


> IT is much better to match them first. Once they operate the same way, or largely the same way, as you dial up individual speed steps, then a consist will work well...or better. Many people don't do more than to match them somewhat closely using CV's 3, 4, 5, and 6.


Thanks for the quick reply. Would you recommend speed matching all my locos to one specific loco or just the ones I want to consist in a specific consist. I have 8 locos


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

Due to design and decoder interface, one or more engines will start more prototypically, nice and slow, and smooth. The others might jerk into an immediate 4 scale mph, and then accelerate smoothly.
You'll have some locomotives whose top speed is faster than others, often just due to a choice of gearing. 

For bottom end stuff, starting a train from standing, you'd want the quickest off the draw to be the lead since it can't start any slower. So, the slower locomotive, the one that starts more gently, needs to be sped up. You'd do that with CV2, or V-Start by raising the current value. 

Then, the top end of the slowest locomotive becomes the determinant, and the other locomotive, the one with the highest top end speed, has to be brought down to match, so you'd curb it via CV5.

I would hope that you'd not have to bother with CV6, or the mid-range of the speed. Ideally, it would not matter, even if one loco is a few scale mph out at the mid-point of the voltage range. If you find they fight each other at a scale 40 mph, you might have to adjust both of them for a good fit, or maybe just one of them by raising/lowering the value. You could separate them by six feet and then give each of them the same throttle setting. Then enter CV6 using Ops or Programming on the Main mode, and adjust to fit.

Note that it is often best not to rely on CV's 3 and 4 when consisting. They tend to cause problems with BEMF and you'll get bucking action between them, the two engines fighting one another. In fact, it might be necessary to figure out how to switch off BEMF when they're consisted.


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## ncrc5315 (Jan 25, 2014)

I use the Accutrack 2 speedometer for speed matching my locomotives. I use the 28 speed steps, and set a top speed of 56 MPH, therefore each speed step is 2 MPH. By setting them up this way, then I can consist any locomotive to any locomotive. You could also set up your locomotives to have a logarithmic speed table, which would allow for finer speed steps at low speeds, and wider speed steps at the higher speeds. In other words, you could have the first 7 speed steps 2 MPH apart, the second 7 at 3 MPH apart, the third set at 4MPH apart, and the last 7 steps at 6 MPH apart for a top speed of 105 MPH.


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## DavefromMD (Jul 25, 2013)

I found consisting to be somewhat of a challenge especially with locomotive of different makes. I put 2 locomotives on the track at the same time and get them speed matched using start, mid, and top speed CV settings. Get them very near a perfect match as they go around the track staying the same distance apart.

Then when I consist them together, danged if one doesn't "drag it's feet" and make it very difficult for the other to get moving until I turn the throttle seed up pretty high - like to 10 on a 28 step speed.

Frustrating.

To boot, when I go back to individual operation, the speeds are all out of wack for both of them and I have to readjust them to get them back to what I want.

I've pretty much given up.


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