Fiddle yard and shunting is n Gauge the right choice?

[EtchedPixels]

It helps if you are modelling modern era because the bogie diesels are generally more reliable (although some of the older Bachmann Farish CO-CO ones and the DMUs I rewire to fix the crappy thin brass power transfer strips with fine wire). Later ones have a different system which is usually better but can often be tweaked a bit. Modern era is the easiest - nowdays shunting is often done by class 66 locos and all you need to do that properly is a decoder that lets you do flashing lights as well as forward/rear/off.

For the 03 and 04 check all the wheels pick up reliably with a meter and adjust if needed. Many arrive with pickups wrongly adjusted. Extra weight will help (and decent pointwork is a must for a short wheelbase - the classic Peco insulfrog stuff is awful in N). A second option though is to permanently attach a small flat 'match' wagon to the 03/04 if you are modelling into the BR blue era. Amusingly this was done on the real system for exactly the same reason - except they were having problems with shunters disappearing off the train detection systems.

The match wagons were usually either flat or just a wagon chassis, either easy to model. In later days many of them had wasp stripes which sounds hard to paint but Fox sell black stripes on clear so you paint it yellow and cut a bit of decal to go over it so it's not hard. You'd get away with primarily dirt/rust colour too.

Some people do similar things with brake vans and other small shunting locos. That also has the advantage that if you squash hard you can get DCC sound and extra pickups into a brake van.

If you've got a match wagon you can fit metal wheels, pickups and fine wire links (transformer wire is good) to the loco itself. If using very thin decoder wire instead use black, bend it down below the buffer beam and it looks like you modelled the brake pipes

For DCC make sure you use a decent decoder and one that either lets you set it, or defaults to continuing at the previous speed after a momentary power interruption. CT used to be best here, Zimo may well nowdays hold the crown.

Other than that - cleanliness. I don't use plastic wheeled stock of any kind on a small layout and I clean it regularly with the rough side of old cereal packets include the inside edges of the rails not just the top. During operation I've got a minitrix track cleaning wagon if needed (15500) which isnt quite UK but will do until I tweak the body a bit.

That (plus very occasional use of the strategic gentle hip bump of the board) seems to work well.

Much of it is about weight though. I've got a pair of probably 40 year old N gauge 0-4-0 tank locos with white metal bodies and they will run over stuff modern locos struggle over and I keep a Minitrix 47 to run my main track cleaning train because it'll run over dirty track reliably and can haul far more heavy stuff than the modern locos.

Alan

[Bealman]

Some great advice there, Alan. Thanks for posting!