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irishthump
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Posts posted by irishthump
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I have several of MSB's sound decoders, 141's, 071's and 201's. As Boskonay said the quality of the sound files are excellent.
I also have a 141 decoder that I had made up by Olivia's Trains in the UK, it's a Loksound decoder like the Murphy Models 071 and 201 (the MSB decoders are Zimo). Both types have excellent motor control but the Loksounds have a "manual notching" feature which allows you to increase the revs of the engine sound independently of the locos speed. It's great for simulating getting a heavy train started but not essential!
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The second question is... : way back when I bought a Lima signal light that hooks into a lima 3 switch gizmo (flattish square red yoke with a black switch and three power points on it and this feeds to the signal and then to a track with a cut in the rail. The idea been green light you have power to the track and move on ; red light you have no power to the track and go nowhere. My plan was to use this as the programming track as its in the yard and I thought it'd look pretty fancy with the signal light that killed main power to the track. I get the impression that this might be a bad idea DCC wise
I don't think that switch is suitable as it sounds like it uses a single pole/single throw switch which uses a common return. You need to wire it with a double pole/double throw switch to keep the two outputs seperate. It's also a good idea to have a section of track between the main line and programming track which is dead when the programming track is activated.
Here is a link to a great site for all things DCC - http://www.brian-lambert.co.uk/DCC.html#Programming
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Power requirement is mostly the number of locos that you'll be running - track length won't bother it too much.
Modern locos like the Murphy's 141 and 071 will draw around .5 Amps when running. Now correct me if I'm wrong but I think the Powercab provides 3 Amps of power so you should be able to run 6 locos at once.
As Broith said the size of the layout has little bearing on that as long as you use suitable sized wire for the DCC bus.
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I used enamal sand thinned them
Try a 50:50 mix of Humbrol matt black and matt leather over the bogies and underframe of the loco. When that's dry follw it with some very light touches of matt leather over the bogies.
I use the same colours on my own stuff - http://irishrailwaymodeller.com/showthread.php/77-Graham-s-Workbench/page11
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Sean they look great! It's very easy to over do it with an airbrush but you've got in just about right.
What paint did you use by the way? Acrylic or enamels?
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It's definitely the way to go either way, and you can still run the DC locos (one at a time) on the DCC layout/
A few manufacturers say you can run a DC loco with their controllers but it's really not recommended!
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Don't get me started! DCC is the ONLY way to run model trains as far as I'm concerned..... I bit extreme maybe but have said it a thousand times, if it had'nt been for DCC I would never have returned to the hobby.
Anyway, yes it's easy to change a layout from DC to DCC at a later date, in the wiring is less complicated. DCC just requires that there is power to ALL parts of the layout at all times, there is no need for isolating sections or sidings.
Murphy's locos are easy to fit with DCC as they all have sockets for a decoder. Suitable decoders can be got for around the €20 mark and you can get small discounts from suppliers if you but them in bulk.
As for controllers the Hornby Select is ok to start with and will run trains fine but it is very limited in its functions and programming, I would advise that you buy a good controller from the start. As NIR said Lenz are excellent but also very expensive. The NCE Powercab can be got for just under €150 online and will do pretty much all you will ever need.
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Lads,
I came across this on RMWEB and thought it might be useful for anyone who owns some of Model Shop Belfast's sound decoders. On the 141 sound chips I always found that some of the volume levels were a little unbalanced; the horn sound was too quiet, the flange squeal way too loud in relation to the prime mover. These decoders allow you to change the volume of any of the function triggered sounds seperately by altering the CV relevant to each function key. Each CV can be given a value of 0-255.
F0 CV571
F1 CV514
F2 CV517
F3 CV520
F4 CV523
F5 CV526
F6 CV529
F7 CV532
F8 CV535
F9 CV538
F10 CV541
F11 CV544
F12 CV547
F13 CV550
F14 CV553
F15 CV556
F16 CV559
F17 CV562
F18 CV565
F19 CV568
F20 CV674
F21 CV677
F22 CV680
F23 CV683
F24 CV686
F25 CV689
F26 CV692
F27 CV695
F28 CV698
Hope it's of some use, folks!
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Gob. Smacked.
Anything would be better than an old Ringfield but that is just lovely. Great solution, and a tidy little runner.
Yeah, it worked far better than I imagined! Might be useful for anyone re-motoring an old chassis for a Silverfox kit. I imagine it would work for the Lima pancake motor as well.
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You sure this is a model and not a sneaky Inchicore shot
Lovely work, VERY realistic.
Cheers, man!
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Absolutely stunning weathering job! What scale is it?
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Some UK outline for a change:
I picked up an old Hornby HST from Ebay a while back, it's in good condition overall but the ringfield motor was little knackered! A good service didn't improve matters much and getting a replacement was proving difficult as well as potentially expensive, then I came across this low cost alternative which uses a motor from an old CD drive. Here's the link...
http://web.onetel.net.uk/~johndent/ringfield.html
I installed the motor as described except that I had removed the old magnet which left a lot more space around the motor, which I simply filled with blobs of hot glue. Here's a pic:
I wired in a bog standard Hornby decoder and was amazed at how well it runs. Here's short video of it in action, sorry about the low quality as I took it on my phone....
I considerably increased the weight in the loco and as you can see it pulls a 5 car rake as well as a driving trailer with no problem at all.
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Must be part of the 0.00001% of the male population that is immune to World Cup fever.
Makes for awkward pub chat, esp since I can't discuss the goal that zsa zsa gabor scored for Tanganika.
I feel your pain.....
Here in work they look at you like you have 10 heads when you tell them you didn't see "The Match" last night!
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Regardless of the size of the stanchions, it certainly looks the part after a coat of primer...
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I use Windsor and Newton acrylic artist's varnish, it comes in a spray can but I apply it with an airbrush.
I just spray some into a small paint jar and let it sit for a while to allow the aerosol gases to escape then pour it straight into the airbrush.
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As far as I reecall, the MSB chips have 14 functions
Depends on which loco the chip is for. The 201 has around 18 functions, so with the Select you would be missing out on a lot of the sound effects. If I remember right the main headlight is on F11 so straight away you would not be able to turn it on.
For sound equipped locos you really need a more sophisticated controller than the Select. I had one myself at first but upgraded right after I started buying sound equipped locos.
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ok, did you check the pick ups?
Good call. These can get very mucky with general dirt from the track as well lubricant from the bogies.
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You could always try the IE approach; and never, EVER wash them!
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Thanks mate I hope the older generation enjoy the super train liveried A Class
Brings back a few memories alright!
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Bloody hell, Anto..... So realistic!
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Before you look at replacing the wheels use a continuity tester or simply turn the loco upside down & apply power to each wheel in turn to check that all pick-up wipers are working and power getting through to the motor from all wheels.
Bachmann locos have nickel plated or blackened brass wheels the plating tends to break down due to a combination of wear and spark erosion particulary on DC or analogue control, there tends to be less spark erosion with the AC waveform used with DCC. I had a lot of trouble with poorly adjusted pick ups on new Bachmann N Gauge locos more or less direct from the factory.
I have not found the wear/plating break down to be a serious issue and the Bachmann wheels are less prone to pitting & picking up dirt than other more expensive brands.
I found the most important things were to keep the track clean and only run stock with metal wheels. I use a very fine (non-scratching) metal polishing block from Eileens Emphorium for cleaning the track & use IPA for wheel cleaning in both G & the smaller scales.
I've already checked that the loco was picking up from all 8 wheels. In fact, when I got the loco 2nd hand there seemed to be a problem with the circuit board where both axles at one end of the loco were not picking up power. I re-soldered the connections to the PCB so I know everything is ok there. I also make sure the pickups are properly adjusted every time the loco is cleaned.
I'm pretty sure the loco was ran on a DC layout so maybe that's the reason for the condition of the wheelsets.
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The problem isn't so much having to clean the wheels it's the how frequently I have to clean them!
Like I said this is the only loco that gives this sort of trouble. After less than an hour of running it's starts to run erratically and needs cleaning again. I have a Heljan class 27 which gave the same problem and I noticed it had the same type of brass wheels, I changed them for a new nickel set and the problems stopped.
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I use meths as my preferred spirit - try reading the reviews in here - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Barrettine-Methylated-Spirit-500ml/dp/B002ATI4VG ....
..they're right at the bottom..
Haha! Those made me laugh....
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Hi irishthump
The wheels on my 141's are brass, newer models seem to have a nickel coating but I can see brass coming through this finish.
Don't use wet n dry or emery paper to clean them, this makes them pick up more dirt, only use a scratch pen. If its the first time with the scratch pen give them a really good going over to get the surface smooth again.
If they still pick up dirt you will need to look at the track
murrayec
I only use IPA and cotton buds to clean my loco wheels with, as you say, a fibreglass pen for stubborn dirt. Guess I'll need to try and give them a good polish. I don't think the track is much of an issue, I clean it very regularly and none of my other locos collect much dirt even after weeks of running.
DCC questions
in DCC, Electrics and Electronics
Posted
Dave, you notice any issues with the Hattons decoders when trying to set start and top voltage CV's? I'm having some trouble getting them to run how I want them....