skinner75

Good idea Noel, on fitting your pre-DCC locos with 8pin sockets instead of directly wiring the decoder onto the loco. As you say, makes it easier to replace in the future if needs be!

The number of pins used to connect them to the loco? ;-) I'd go for the 21pin one, as that what the Murphys locos use. I picked up a couple of different decoder chips from Hattons there last week, just to try em out, but haven't fitted them yet.

I opened up the power supply I got, and snipped off the existing power cord coming from the psu, leaving about an inch on the two wires coming from the board. I then got a 'kettle lead', and cut off the plug, and joined the live & neutral wires to the corresponding ones in the psu. This leaves me with a male kettle lead connector at the end. I will attach a female kettle lead connector to the baseboard, with the two point motors and toggle switches joined to the other end. This will allow me a quick but solid connection for hooking up power to the point motors. Before doing all the above, I opened up the psu block and tested it. I offered up wiring from an unmounted point motor, just to see if it would activate the solenoid, to the power output points on the psu - it did. The point motor sheet lists 16v AC as the power source, but the psu I'm using is 19.5v DC as mentioned earlier. I then fitted both point motors under the baseboard, after making sure they were spot on so as the throw bar could travel freely & switch the points above. That was a bit fiddly, but got done in the end. I have the peco wiring looms attached to the point motors just waiting to be joined up. I'll pick up the female/male kettle lead tomorrow in work, and that'll allow me finish off the electrical side of the layout. Next on my list is to find something I can mount the NCE Power Cab power connector board, and the two toggle switches into.

Found a load of big power supplies for laptop docking stations due to be sent off for recycling in work - 19.5V / 11.8A, so I'll grab one of these to use on the layout

After a bit of research, I've ordered a 'DCC Concepts ADS2 Solenoid Point Motor Accessory Decoder'. Looks like it gives the option of either DCC control or toggle switch control. Can be powered off the DCC bus too, or from a seperate power supply. It can only handle two points, but that's all I require so will do the trick nicely.

Cool, I'll take a look at the old supplies and see what the beefiest is & use that. As for joining up my board, I'll decline, as this is really just a test of the various skills more than anything else. That, and I don't drive a car, so transporting it by motorbike would be a no-no! ;-)

Hi all, I've just started my first layout, well second if you include when I was a nipper! It's nothing fancy, just a 4'x2' baseboard on which to set a 00 Inglenook, or shunting puzzle. I'm using it as a test bed for my first foray into DCC. Track is Peco code 100, with electrofrog points. I've one of Tam Valley's dual frog juicers to hook the two points upto. Currently have the track wired up to the dcc bus, and the loco can run to the end of all sidings & across the points at a crawl without stalling, so I'm happy with that. I'm using the NCE Power Cab for my controller, and find it easy enough to get the hang of. I picked up an 8 pack of bachmann 12t vans to use in the shunting puzzle. I tried popping out the tension lock couplers on them, and fitting kadee #19 couplers in their place, but they appear to sit a tad too low. Looking on the kadee site, they recommend #5 couplers for bachmann branchline wagons, so I've ordered some of them to try out instead. The #19 coupler appears to be at the correct height when fitted to a MM141, which is the loco I plan to use. I'm waiting on some on/off/on toggle switches for remote point control. I have peco point motors, the pl10e, to fit under the baseboard. On that, can I ask for some info on point motors and dcc? The point motors says to use a 16v supply, so is this seperate from the dcc bus then? I have access to plenty of used laptop power supplies - can they be used for powering point motors? Anyway, heres a link to my flickr page with pictures of progress so far, which I'll update as I go along

It's been a while, but I have two bodyshells left over from MIR 071 donors. Not 100% sure, but I think they are only the Athearn ones

Here's a linky to an article on the train that was designed by H.R. Giger (he of Alien fame) to be used in the 1995 movie Species. Too bad only the tiniest bit was seen in the movie itself! http://www.hrgiger.com/ghost.htm

Well put Patrick! At the end of the day, it's waay better than either the BR Class33 or Hymek repaints from the 70s! You've got your layout up and running & it gives you pleasure to operate & 'watch the liner pass' - that's all that matters at the end of the day!

I've seen twits bidding against each other on a vinyl copy of an album that is still available from the record labels own online shop, and paying over the odds for the pleasure

Lovely weathering job on that wagon!

I'm sure that'd be thrown out of court. Scum need to be slapped into place by the genral public - it's the only way they'll learn that they can't be doing whatever they feel like

200 people on board, and not one of them would put it up to the scum? Probably too busy having a whinge at how they were going to be late getting into work. At least the toerags were caught - now lets hope they get a proper sentence

Great looking layout! The buildings are amazing - really makes a difference. More pics please!!

Very nice job of the SSM kit there Kirley!

Pics of the G class here: http://silverfoxmodels.co.uk/ir-ie-601-class-g-class-0-4-0-deutz/

I'd be interested in a couple of those - I missed out on a lot of Jim's fantastic kits in the past

Top job! I was thinking of just spraying one yellow, and adding the decals from one of the new ballast wagons - an easier job for those of us with less time, skills & patience!

could be interested depending on price & details of track (curved sections / straights), and also steel / brass

To be sure to be sure!

My favorites too - at least until the 121 models are produced & hit the shelves!

Deadly shots! Gotta love the freight

I'd go for a 2014 calendar too - great shots in this years one!

Interesting looking livery on a 201 alright!