pendlerail Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 Hi all, I have a small inglenook layout and a sound fitted 08 and 03 shunters, sound locos work fine into and out of the fiddleyard but the shunters only move a short distance and stop. they work fine on the club roundy layout but not on short distances, obviously a disadvantage to shunting engines. any ideas? thanks Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelcliffe Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 I don't fully understand your question(s). is it : the locos don't play their sounds in the short spaces available ? In which case, its possible that some CV changes to the decoder may help, but you may be stuck with what's possible in the sound project, and therefore need a different sound project to be built and loaded into the decoders to suit your small spaces. the locos keep stalling on the track ? In which case, clean the wheels and track. Sort out any mis-alignment in the track (often very small amounts of vertical). And, then if those are fixed, consider adding stay-alive components to the loco (which, on small locos depends how ambitious you are with soldering and small devices, but there are not many where it is "impossible") Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pendlerail Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share Posted January 17, 2017 keep stalling, have tried cleaning track and wheels, my 03 now has extra pickups on a shunters truck, may just have to cleaning them, but it is getting frustrating Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnb Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 Seems that it may be track irregularity, or insulfrog points allied to some dirt around. What is the layout environment, much dust around? What track and points? These small locos need pretty good track conditions. Also check the wheel/pickup area are the pickups clean, as dirt there will cause problems. If the loco rocks on the track that could leave onlt a couple fo wheels in contact with the track and if one has poor wheel to pickup contact then all will stop. John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pendlerail Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share Posted January 17, 2017 Peco code 75 with electrofrog and frog juicers. In a spare bedroom but not often used Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelcliffe Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 If there is a shunter's truck with pickups as well, then the problem is pickup. It may be poorly laid track - underlay (foam and other materials) can be a plague here, it leads to things being alternatively "high" and "low" all over the place. It may be bent pickups, it may be dirty wheels (particularly wheel backs), though ready-to-run loco wheels usually come with decent hard and smooth plating coatings, so pickup on those should be reliable. Diagnosing this on a layout is a matter of watching extremely carefully and keeping notes. Does the loco always stop in the same position (may be a track issue) or is it several places (when it might be track combined with pickup) ? Does it always stop on a curve (suggests pickups moving away from wheels when going round a curve) ? A Stay-Alive module would fix things, but it needs squeezing into the space. Its also the "wrong" solution when there is a fault, the stay-alive should be added once the loco runs reliably, not to mask bad running. Otherwise, if things get a lot worse, you'll never be able to work out what is going wrong. - Nigel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
machinery Posted February 26, 2017 Share Posted February 26, 2017 you say the layout is in a spare bedroom and not used often are the locos left on the layout whilst not in use if they are the temperature has to be pretty constant as dcc decoders are susceptable to variations and condensation plays havoc.I found this out a while ago with an exhibtion layout and stock left in vahicle overnight! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Geep7 Posted February 26, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 26, 2017 Hi all, I have a small inglenook layout and a sound fitted 08 and 03 shunters, sound locos work fine into and out of the fiddleyard but the shunters only move a short distance and stop. they work fine on the club roundy layout but not on short distances, obviously a disadvantage to shunting engines. any ideas? thanks Phil One thought. Which make are your 08 and 03? I'm going to make a guess as Bachmann. I had a similar issue with my Bachmann 08, even though it was the newer edition, and i've had to add additional pickups (pics on my layout thread). If it is happening on plain track as well as the pointwork, it would certainly point to the pick-ups being an issue. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJGraphics Posted February 27, 2017 Share Posted February 27, 2017 Peco code 75 with electrofrog and frog juicers. In a spare bedroom but not often used . . . Probably dirty track as you mention "not often used". But as others have said, check pickups and seriously consider "stay-alives". Covering the layout when it is not being used really helps as I've found from my own experience. Bought some plain curtain lining material and got my daughter to cut it to size and hem it for me. Works a treat. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pendlerail Posted February 27, 2017 Author Share Posted February 27, 2017 Hornby 08 and Bachmann 03. The room is centrally heated as part of the house. May look at covering when not in use. Thanks Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethashenden Posted February 27, 2017 Share Posted February 27, 2017 Do they stall in the same spot(s) repeatedly or it it a new spot every time? If it is the same spot(s) does a bogie diesel make it across? You may also want to take a multimeter to the track and check for continuity. There could be a section of rail with an iffy feed. Either the rail joiner isn't doing it's job or a dry solder joint, something like that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alcanman Posted February 27, 2017 Share Posted February 27, 2017 Hornby 08 and Bachmann 03. The room is centrally heated as part of the house. May look at covering when not in use. Thanks Hornby 08s with factory fitted sound have a well documented problem with 'stuttering' when the volume is too high. Try turning down the volume using CV63. This worked with my Hornby 08. Worth a try. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAF96 Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 Seldom used track and loco wheels should be given a wipe down before use, with a more thorough proper clean every few uses. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pendlerail Posted February 28, 2017 Author Share Posted February 28, 2017 Not factory fitted 08. Digitrains sounds. Stalls in various places bogie locos are fine across the layout. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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