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A reader writes:

I bought a large G scale collection from an older friend and am now incorporating it into my garden. At the moment I'm in need of a two rail track bender and some additional transformers. The ART-5470 Remote Control Train Engineer System that I bought kicked the dust so I cannot run any trains at the moment. I'd like to replace the unit but I'm unable to find one for sale.

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The AristoCraft TE stuff was replaced with Crest Revolution before AristoCraft went out of business. It is more expensive, and has a lot more features. More features than I'll ever need, frankly. Now that Aristo is gone, your best bet for finding Train Engineer stuff is on eBay or just asking around at the club to see if anyone has a set they're not using.

I hear good report about the Train-Li track bender and there are others that have a decent reputation. If you bought your track in straight pieces, make certain there aren't little screws on the bottom holding the tie strips in place before you use the railbender - those will definitely keep you from having an optimum outcome.

Best of luck - Paul

The reader replied:

Thanks, Paul, for your excellent response to my question. Having been frustrated with a burnt out circuit board in my AristoCraft receiver so that I couldn’t operate any of my trains , a friend kindly loaned me a 1 amp transformer so that I could at least enjoy one train running. I hadn’t thought about eBay so I went ahead and ordered three of the New Revolution systems from Crest. Now all I have to do is figure out how to install them in three of my engines. I already had an old lithium ion battery in one locomotive which, after some experimentation (I had no manuals to work with) I finally got working. Also I was able to borrow a very slick and user friendly dual track bender from Lanny Seaton. It worked brilliantly with my brass tracks but I haven’t yet tried it on my aluminum ones (they’re all straight). I’ve laid track around three of my flower beds and have two more to go. It’s kind of kooky but I like it. It may evolve into something worth sharing with others but for now I’m having a great time.

A reader writes:
Do you have any resource (besides eBay) to find the original Crest Train Engineer 55470? I'm building a garden train(Bachman Silverado set) and don't want to go the DCC route. Thanks!

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I apologize but I don't have any sources for the Crest TE 5470 or any of its relatives.

The new version is called "Revolution" and it's not cheap.

http://www.crest-electronics.net/

To me it's a case of "scope creep" - The VERY simple early units did everything I needed/need, but they kept cramming more features into the things and raising the price at the same time.

If you're looking for a battery-powered solution, Tony Washam's RCS sets have a cheaper entry level. If you contact him, tell him I sent you.

http://www.rcs-rc.com/

Best of luck,

Paul Race
FamilyGardenTrains.com