Simond Posted May 30, 2020 Author Share Posted May 30, 2020 (edited) Well, lockdown does strange things to the mind... it’s been around 21 months since I touched the Garratt. but the frames that were milled all that time ago on the ruddy great machine were dug out and reconsidered, and found to be useable, so I built the chassis of the engines over the last few evenings, and finally, it sits on its wheels... more soon, perhaps. atb Simon Edited June 14, 2020 by Simond 11 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giles Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Great stuff Simon! You'll love it once it's done! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted May 31, 2020 Author Share Posted May 31, 2020 Coupling rods cleaned up, and gearboxes soldered whilst MrsD had a lie-in this morning. We might be running under power sometime, maybe, possibly, soon... 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMortimer Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Ooo! That looks nice. p 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 2, 2020 Author Share Posted June 2, 2020 It goes.... last thing last night, it trundled up & down PD Loco’s front siding. Next steps: load video fix multi pin sockets to engines arrange springing finalise engine pivots fix motors to frames to allow suspension movement work out decoder installation & wiring at that point, it’ll work properly, and I can start on the fiddly bits, valve gear, brakes, pretty bits and plumbing... video later I hope atb Simon 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 2, 2020 Author Share Posted June 2, 2020 a thought. Comments please; one decoder or two? One is obviously cheaper, and clearly "good enough" - I can place the speaker in the firebox / ashpan, where the whole boiler can be a sound chamber. I would require 4 wires to each engine - two for pick-up and two for the motor. Sound can be sync'ed to one or other engine. Probably the front one? Alternatively I could fit a decoder to each engine, with a pair of speakers in the firebox - I'd still need 4 wires to each engine, in this case two for pickup (to join the bogies together electrically) and two for each engine's speaker. This would allow each bogie to be run and tested independently, and the sounds to be sync'ed with each engine - so at times they'd be together and at other times, they would drift apart. They would obviously share the same address. It's obviously going to be ~ £90 or so more expensive to fit two decoders. Does anyone think it is worthwhile? I'm sure there are things I could do with ninety quid. Answers on a postcard please! I guess there is a middle ground of fitting a sound decoder at one end, and a non-sound at the other, but I can't see any advantages of that approach over the one-in-the-middle approach. cheers Simon 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
steveNCB7754 Posted June 2, 2020 Share Posted June 2, 2020 15 minutes ago, Simond said: ... a thought. Comments please; one decoder or two? Fear Ye Not, it is possible to achieve the 'Garratt sound', with only one decoder. I refer you to a post some time ago.... https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/92527-zimo-chuffs-for-articulated-locos-such-as-garratt/ Steve 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barclay Posted June 2, 2020 Share Posted June 2, 2020 I'm not a fan of sound personally but if you're doing it then I think it has to be 2 - if you review the video of Giles' example posted on this thread in Feb '17 the sound is really unusual and off-beat, presumably as the units go in and out of synch with each other? 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giles Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 Ah...... ive tried both..... Mine has spent most of its time with a sound decoder in the front, an non-sound in the hind engine. The off-beat sound is a double-heading feature on the decoder. I had surprising difficulty in synching the two decoders- even with identical motors and decoders from the same family (one was simply the sound version of the same decoder). I got there in the end, but going up that steep bank one unit would always slip. In an effort to cure that I tried a single sound decoder. One unit now slips coming down the bank! If using two decoders, build in a switch so you can easily switch one out to alter the settings on the other..... If I were doing it again, I would probably try one decoder first and see how that went, if the mechanics match up well enough it will probably be fine under most circumstances. Probably worth pulling through as many wires as you might need just in case! What motors and gears do you have? 1 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 3, 2020 Author Share Posted June 3, 2020 thanks all, a single decoder sounds like a plan... In terms of programming, if I had two, I'd have done each engine as a separate loco with the same address, but a single decoder with the sound built in is worth trying. Order to go out today, I think. The motors are Taff Vale on Steph Dale's 54:1 ballrace gearboxes, with split axles. They fit the water tanks, just! I'm going to spring the axles over the next few evenings (well, not tonight as it's my 25th wedding anniversary, and I suspect the undergubbins of a loco will not strike madame as "romantic") using cantilevers of piano wire and try to fix the JST sockets, and motor torque reaction brackets as the next step. atb Simon 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 9, 2020 Author Share Posted June 9, 2020 It goes... https://youtu.be/o2rOLjGYEWg ran into a problem which I managed to resolve this evening - I had insulated the axles a la @Steph Dale but I had not allowed sufficient clearance between the central portion for the gearbox and the journals for the axle boxes. If the axle shuffled sideways, it could connect the central portion to the inside edge of the axle box, this connected the chassis of one engine to one rail, sometimes. Which wouldn’t be a problem if it didn’t occasionally happen at the other end too slipped the axles out, and turned the diameter of the problem area down by a few thou. Problem solved Decoder arrived from YouChoos this afternoon so that’s on the to-do list, not sure what the priority is, as I’d like to start on the valve gear too. Simon 4 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgman Posted June 9, 2020 Share Posted June 9, 2020 Super work once again Simon nice runner definitely worth the time and effort. Just out of curiosity may i ask which decoder you will be using ? ATB G Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 10, 2020 Author Share Posted June 10, 2020 Grahame, it’s a Zimo 644, 21 pin, fitted to an ESU Adapterplatine, which has screw holes, for fixing. Due to a slight misunderstanding, it’s programmed with the sound file of the LMS Beyer Garratt, rather than something a little larger than a Jinty... I’m going to start making the valve gear. As Captain Oates said in a rather worse situation, “I may be some time”... atb Simon 2 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Regularity Posted June 10, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 10, 2020 3 hours ago, Simond said: As Captain Oates said in a rather worse situation, “I may be some time”... Ah, but was doing it outside in the snow.... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 11, 2020 Author Share Posted June 11, 2020 damn thing is not going today. I was playing last evening, and managed to short on a live frog, which did not trip the booster, annoyingly, it fried the wires running along the running plate. They were only temporary, but it's still annoying. atb Simon 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 12, 2020 Author Share Posted June 12, 2020 Giles, Phil, & anyone else who has built one - I presume you connected the pickups on both ends together. where did you run the wires? insight & inspiration most welcome! (photos too, if you can!) cheers Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giles Posted June 12, 2020 Share Posted June 12, 2020 i did indeed connect the engines..... I ran everything up into and through through the smoke box and boiler and down through he firebox, having made large holes in all the discs and castings as I constructed it. I suspect this doesn't help you! IMG_1594 by giles favell, on Flickr IMG_2024 by giles favell, on Flickr 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giles Posted June 12, 2020 Share Posted June 12, 2020 (edited) If I were doing it retrospectively, I should most likely run them down the inside of the cradle frames, popping insides the firebox for the last bit, and cleat them as oil pipes or similar. Use decoser wire, or something suitebly fine (allowing for AMPS). Edited June 12, 2020 by Giles Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 12, 2020 Author Share Posted June 12, 2020 Thanks Giles, the boiler still comes to bits so an inside job is certainly feasible. I did use decoder wire, and it glowed bright orange... something a bit chunkier like you have used would be more suitable, I guess. atb Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giles Posted June 12, 2020 Share Posted June 12, 2020 Just a thought- Micron Radio Control sells teeny inline resetting fuses 0.5 amp for £1 each.. With these in line, that should never happen again...? I use them to protect the batteries in the RC stuff... Best G 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barclay Posted June 12, 2020 Share Posted June 12, 2020 (edited) 9 hours ago, Simond said: Giles, Phil, & anyone else who has built one - I presume you connected the pickups on both ends together. where did you run the wires? insight & inspiration most welcome! (photos too, if you can!) cheers Simon Mine's in 4mm, but I just ran the wires under the boiler cradle. DC though so only pick up wires needed. Edited June 12, 2020 by Barclay 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMortimer Posted June 12, 2020 Share Posted June 12, 2020 I have yet to add the pickups to mine, but I will be linking the power units - wires running down the inside of the cradle frames using decoder wire . I did this for my OO9 K1 and NGG16. The wireing will be different for each - one will be dc with the motors in series (3 wires needed) and one will be for DCC (4 wires needed). I will post pictures and a report when i get round to doing it - that blasted thing called work is getting in the way! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brack Posted June 12, 2020 Share Posted June 12, 2020 Disappointed nobody is hollowing out the exhaust steam pipe and using it as a conduit... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMortimer Posted June 12, 2020 Share Posted June 12, 2020 Thought of it - went to replace it with tube on the two I'm building, but didn't work - kept collapsing. Used solid brass rod instead and I'm not hollowing that out! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted June 12, 2020 Author Share Posted June 12, 2020 And it would stop you taking the bogies off... atb Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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