Are you using DC or DCC?

 

DC, I see that with DCC I could fine tune the speeds. Sinc e the E8A will pull the train easily, I think I will just look for a dummy B unit and sell the Kato E8B. Thanks.

 

Or, turn the B unit into a dummy yourself….

I’m not so sure that Kato made any dummy units….

 

No, but others did, and the appearance is often very good. I have seen some by Con-Cor, for example. I can also just run them and see what happens. I am 74. This stuff will likely out live me. The faster B unit might cause some extra wear on the A unit, but maybe Kato considered stuff like this.

 

By any chance, would the bodies be interchangeable with the chassis? I know some HO F units used the same chassis for their A and B versions….don’t know if Kato did that in N scale tho….

 

By any chance, would the bodies be interchangeable with the chassis? I know some HO F units used the same chassis for their A and B versions….don’t know if Kato did that….

I think you are right that the mechanisms are interchangeable, and the boards could be swapped to change the light. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks of suggesting that. The forward trucks would have to be swapped as well, because the forward truck on the E8A has no coupler (it is body mounted).

 

I compared these new A and B units at the full range of speeds. B catchese A, more quickly at faster speeds. E8A, E8B, baggage, RPO, Dome, Dome, Diner, Sleeper, Sleeper, Sleeper, Observation seems to run without catastrophes at speeds from barely moving to full throtle. Maybe the drag of the Kato cars keeps the B from overwhelming the A. The usual advice to put the faster loco in front concerned me as fast as the B loco could catch the A loco. I could change mechanisms in shells. I hadn't thought of that at first, but it's an option. I think I'll watch it for a while. I don't want to go to the trouble of switching the mechanisms only to find what's in the B unit is still faster, or some other problem stemming from breaking something. Then finding the repair parts are sold out. Clearly I shouldn't have bought that B unit.\

 

Katos are relatively easy to service. Below is the guy on WatchTrains_Now YouTube channel working on Kato E8. My P42 is almost identical inside.

 

The lead trucks have to be changed, a simple operation, because E8B truck has truck-mounted coupler, and E8A lead truck has no coupler, because E8A front coupler is body mounted. I am pretty familiar with these Kato E8s, having used them since the 1990s. I still don't know that the situation as is will even be a problem.