In a previous thread about the Atlas 0-6-0 the discussion wandered to the topic of horizontal vs vertical drives. Then it got onto Weavers original drive.

Someone stated that the horizontal Weaver drive was a failure in their experience.

I have had just the opposite experience. I have 5 RS-3s and 6 FA/FBs and they are among the best running diesels I have. My experience is that it is one of the best model diesel drives made. It is well designed and runs smoothly and at good slow speeds. It is easily adaptible to many bodies and it is easy to get the model to sit at the right height on the track. Height about the track is extremely important - it is a defining feature of models vs tinplate toys. A model should represent the prototype as well as is possible and practical. iF the prototype sits at a certain height, the model should too. This should be an easy dimension to hit. A toy train on the other hand is not subject to this constraint - it can be whatever the builder or buyer cares to do.

The original Weaver drives did have a tendancy to develop split gears. A friend of mine who was director of engineering MPC when they owned Lionel told me this was probably because the mold was run too cold and the plastic was not totally welding together as it filled the mold. In any case, replacing any gear in the weaver drive is an easy home workshop job. Small handtools are all that are needed - no lathers or wheel pullers or presses etc. The replacement gears have lasted years are are still running. By the way, P&D Hobbies still sells parts for them.

As for pulling power, 2 of the weavers will easily pull 30 freight cars on my 1.5 percent mainline grade around a 52 inch radius curve. That is as long as my freights gennerally get during operating sessions. A single unit will pull at least 20 cars.

My layout is designed for operations where trains do things. There is no continuous loop, all trains run from here to there and have switchlists requiring them to pick up and set out cars. Therefore all locomotives must be able to do some switching - some do much more than others. So the idea of two motor drives for looping trains does not work for my particular case.

I have a few twin motor china block drives and I don't like them. once running they do pull well. But after being on the layout in service for a few years, they don't start and stop well (plus the speed is too high). When starting, one motor will start and the loco will jerk slightly, and then the other motor will start and it will pull. When stopping the same occurs, one motor will stop turning first - the loco will jerk and the other will stop. By the way my old Lionel Santa Fe did the same thing - but I didn't care then, speed was more important. I like to run my diesels in two unit sets with all units powered for flexibility. This start/stop issue is then multiplied by two more motors making a very jerky stop and start scenario.

I have had both Weaver drives in GP38-2 diesels. I did not find one better than the other. I also had the Red Caboose horizontal drive. Gears are easy to repair in either one. I have changed all of my diesels over to the "China Drive" My reason for doing this is so that all of my diesels can be run in any combination that I can dream up at the moment. Like all drive trains the "China Drive" needs to be kept clean and lubricated. This prevents the problems mentioned above. As far as the chassis height goes, their are a couple of little nubs, on the top side of the "CD" trucks, that can be easily ground or filed off, to set the height anywhere you want it to be. My diesel locos are able to run very slowly, at about 2 or 3 SMPH.