HO scale freight trucks

I'd like to offer a thread on HO scale freight car trucks. As many of you know, this is one of my real interests in model railroading. I learned a lot from Richard Hendrickson, Pat Wider and others. I like to always install the correct truck under my HO freight car models as often as is possible.
Question - We all know about Kadee's fine line of HO freight car trucks - offered for years, all metal, sprung, excellent detail, roll fine, several different styles of freight trucks. I've used many of these.
My question is - how many of you have used the recent new models of HO freight trucks introduced by Kadee over the past couple of years? These are the "HGC", plastic, two piece, equalized, self centering trucks. They come in a whole host of truck styles, including caboose, they look great, and will roll uphill (*). I'd like to discuss these truck models and, in fact, I have at least several of the various models, mint, unused, unopened, I'd like to sell as, once again, I'll never use them.
Otherwise, what are your favorite freight trucks that you use? What wheels do you use?
RR trucks are one of my several main interests in railroading, and when I saw a new truck model, I almost always bought it!
Ken
(*) This is what the guys at Tinkertown here in StL would always say about Kato's ASF A-3 "Ride Control" truck model. The Kadee HGC's roll pretty close to the same. I still have a bunch of the Kato's as well.

 

The KD trucks I use get Reboxx wheels right away, new old doesn't matter. I have found the KD wheels run really good when new then tend to get worse upon wearing in.
To the point they wont roll down hill. We really havent done a serious comparison of trucks on the same car for free rolling qualities. I gotta say the newer Athearn trucks with the plastic axles, plastic trucks are getting to the point where some wheels will be replaced with Reboxx wheels as the factory Athearn plastic axles are starting to act like the KD plastic axled truck sets. I guess for us here most if not all products that are like materials as in, plastic trucks plastic axles dont wear well together. Many folks buy Inter Mountain axles in bulk bags of 100. Now consider what makes these wheels so free rolling is the sharpness of the axle ends or points. In bags these points get beat and sometimes bent up pretty bad, so bad that I have seen cars wobble from it, plus IM wheels are 1.015-1.020 long when many trucks need 1.025-1.040 length axles, to fit the truck without excessive end play, which will also keep the couplers centered better, for improved coupling as well as other issues. When too short of a axle is used, not only does the truck have excessive lateral end play, but the axles are not riding on the very tip of the axles either, more contact surface will sometimes mean less free rolling characteristics, and coupler heights compromised, which is a big deal here. The best rolling and performance for us come when the axles have just a few thousands end play, and are riding on the very tips of the points on the axles. I do use KD metal trucks and metal wheel sets with the insulated wheel to the same side on trucks on opposing trucks to power caboose lights or ETD's, but you better put just the tiniest little bit of grease on the ends or they will squeak.
IM and Reboxx, Tangent and I know others sell wheel sets that come packaged so the axle ends don't get beat up in shipping, but you still need to be careful in handling them.

The self centering trucks from KD I have only used on cabooses and with the right wheels under them have been good performers for us although not enough of them in service, nor time in service to say much about them, other than they are sure easy to put on the tracks!
Thats my 4 cents.

 

My prime interest in posting this topic was to ask who in the group has tried out the "new" Kadee HGC trucks - two piece, plastic, self centering, non-sprung, free rolling, very good looking (in my opinion). Tom has used them under cabooses with success. Who else? Kadee offers a bunch of different styles - leaf spring caboose with Bettendorf, Bettendorf T-section, Barber and arch bar side frames, plus freight car trucks - ASF A-3, Barber S-2, National B-1, arch bar, Bettendorf generic, Bettendorf T-section, friction bearing, roller bearing, 50-ton, 70-ton, 100-ton, 33" wheels, 36" wheels, code 110 wheels, code 88 wheels, rib back wheels, smooth back wheels, plus their previous full line of all metal, fully sprung trucks - which also include Andrews, Vulcan and PRR 2D-F8 trucks.
You can get almost anything you want! (We need a good Chrysler truck for the 50ft QA&P GARX insulated box car. I just put a set of National B-1's under mine).
Before I start expounding on trucks and boring everybody, I'm just wondering who has tried these new Kadee HGC trucks and what you think of them. I think they look great, but remember, I have no layout, so I'm not sure how well they all run. I'll bet they are very good.
K

ps - If you want to learn about freight car trucks, read the stuff the late Richard Hendrickson authored. Very, very well done.
ps2 - I'm still betting on the Kato ASF A-3 "Ride Control" truck as the best rolling, if not the best looking, ASF truck. Important, as it was the Frisco's favorite freight truck.

 

Ken, this is a good idea.

I have at least 5 rolling stock projects in various stages of progress/disarray, and I don't want to muck them up with the wrong trucks or poorly performing ones. I'll soak this thread upland will also be a potential buyer for your supply of trucks when you start to move them.

 

George et al -
Try these for a start. Richard authored several articles on railroad trucks among other topics - all excellent. He is greatly missed.
Ken

 

George -
Ha, thanks! In my experience, The Meteor generally was on time or close to it - I usually rode #9. Rode #10 only once, but it was right on time.

I usually rode home from Rolla on the Will Rogers, on #4. It usually was not on time, but I didn't care, since it was so much fun to ride. Only rode #3 twice.
That was my usual routine when coming home from Rolla on the Frisco, 1960-1964, - up to StL on #4, back to Rolla on #9. The #3 and #10 trips were rare. About half the time I took the train, the other half used US-66 when wheels were available. Rode the Greyhound once in a snow storm when #4 was running about five hours late. The "hound" was close to on-time!
K

 

Here's another useful reference for model railroad truck study:
Go to Kadee.com
Click on "Trucks & Wheelsets" in the upper left corner of the page.
There you will find descriptions of all the many truck models and variations offered by Kadee. Each is pictured along with a detailed description of its features. The pics are small, but click on them too expand them to allow study of the truck.
K

 

I never had any trouble with Kadee's wheel sets, in fact they were my standard, though I did use some Life-Like and Intermountain wheels. But, I never really put a great deal of running time on my stuff as my "layout" was small and not used much unless the granddaughters happened to be visiting. They really liked the passenger train being pulled by those "red train engines with the blinking headlight".
K

 

You have to have good track work to use the thin wheels (code 88), though they look great! My track work was average at best. I had good operating luck with the wider wheels (code 110), but did have eight (I think) thin (Kadee or Intermountain) wheels. They tended to derail too often on some turnouts, so I used them mainly for display. Naturally, someone bought those cars during our 2016 estate sale and I had forgotten to replace those wheels, so they are gone.
K

 

Yessir William.
We can't have a car longer than 75ft coupled to a car shorter and 37ft, for the very reasons you suggest. Crazy thing is, the onion pacific allows an a/c unit with the equivalence of 10 powered axles shove on empties (DP).
Well as many of you have said, the thin wheels were a PIA for me till I added .015 shims to my Peco guard rails. Reason is the thin wheels allowed the frogs to be picked as the guard rails and frogs were designed for the wider/thicker wheel sets. Since the addition of the .015 shimms on Peco turnouts, no problems at all.