Hornby 2 BIL

[bazza.]

I did'nt think that a DDC fitted model would work on old the old DC. Seems they don't

 

I would take out the DCC chip before it gets damaged.

 

Regards

 

Bazza

The 2 Bil (R3162X) arrived on Friday.

It is being run on a DC layout even though it has a decoder on board, and seems to run very well in the forward direction (power car first).

 

To get it to go in the opposite diredtion from rest is another matter. It won't - you crank the power up to full blast and give it a gentle push and - nothing.

It sits there like a lump of lead grinning at you with a 2 Bil toothy smile. (I imagine that the 2 Bil face could have been the inspiration for Spongebob )

 

However if I drive it forwards and then reverse it, it will run very well - even slowly.

It has been run it in in both directions and the problem still persists.  

I am thinking of leaving it running overnight but worry it might wind up damaged in some unexpected way...

Sould I remove the decoder? Would this help to make it perform as designed expected?

Do the Hornby models need a blanking chip?

I notice it came without one - the few Bachmann models that came chipped all came with spare blanking plugs...

Has anyone else experienced this problem?.

 

Other than it's a lovely model but I still do wish Hornby would leave modelling EMU's to Bachmann and company...

[phil-b259]

I did'nt think that a DDC fitted model would work on old the old DC. Seems they don't

 

I would take out the DCC chip before it gets damaged.

 

Regards

 

Bazza

 

Acording to the manufacturers (Hornby, Bachmann, etc) all DCC fitted items can be used with DC control and nor should usage in this way cause any damage to the decoder unless - and this is the main exception - a high frequency track cleaner is employed on the layout.

 

That is not to say that performance of a DCC fitted item on a DC layout is perfect, certainly the response suffers because of the extra electronics between the rails and the motor and the need for the decoder to recognise that the incoming voltage is a DC one. Thus removing the decoder may benifical.

 

Also it is not impossable for decoders to be defective - in Bill's case it may be that the decoder will not work on DCC but does (after a fashion) on DC. In this case removing the chip would soon show this up.

[Gwiwer]

I'll let you know what happens when the unit arrives.  Fulfilment of order has been confirmed and it's in the mail.  I run DC using Gaugemaster track cleaners of the sort mentioned above and have a few de-chipped locos running very happily with blanking plates in.  None with a chip though so this will be new to me.

[dibber25]

I'll let you know what happens when the unit arrives.  Fulfilment of order has been confirmed and it's in the mail.  I run DC using Gaugemaster track cleaners of the sort mentioned above and have a few de-chipped locos running very happily with blanking plates in.  None with a chip though so this will be new to me.

Surely it would be easier - and cheaper - to buy the analog version, rather than buying a chipped model and removing the chip? As far as I'm aware, no chip will survive use with a high frequency track cleaner.

CHRIS LEIGH

[Gwiwer]

Surely it would be easier - and cheaper - to buy the analog version, rather than buying a chipped model and removing the chip? As far as I'm aware, no chip will survive use with a high frequency track cleaner.

CHRIS LEIGH

 

I might have to plead confusion.  My order is for 2134 (BR green, current batch R3162 and with no X suffix to its serial number) so should be unchipped.  One or two sources confusingly suggest it is "DCC fitted" and I may have overlooked the fact that reference is made to R3162X above.  

 

I blame the warm weather.  It's been above 30C for weeks now and well above 20 through most nights!  Love the weather but not what it does to my sleep pattern or memory.

[bazza.]

Hi Mr Gwiwer,

 

Hornby R3162 is DCC Ready (no chip installed but can be fitted with any brand of chip if required), the unit number 2134.   Hornby R3162X is DCC Fitted (it has a DCC chip installed) and the unit number is also 2134. Hope this helps

 

Same here, best summer that we have had in Hawkes Bay for years. The down side, it has'nt realy rained since September last year. Good for us townees, good for going to the beach and an ice-cold beer,  but heart-breaking for our farmers, their livestock, and their livelihood.

 

Regards

 

 

Bazza

 

 

 

I might have to plead confusion.  My order is for 2134 (BR green, current batch R3162 and with no X suffix to its serial number) so should be unchipped.  One or two sources confusingly suggest it is "DCC fitted" and I may have overlooked the fact that reference is made to R3162X above.  

 

I blame the warm weather.  It's been above 30C for weeks now and well above 20 through most nights!  Love the weather but not what it does to my sleep pattern or memory.

[Bill]

Surely it would be easier - and cheaper - to buy the analog version, rather than buying a chipped model and removing the chip? As far as I'm aware, no chip will survive use with a high frequency track cleaner.

CHRIS LEIGH

 

It would indeed have been cheaper, but on this occasion due to a perceived supply problem, all that appeared to be available was the Hornby chip installed X version of the 2Bil.

 

This chip clearly does not work very well on DC, unless you only ever want to run it in one direction. But even then, It also suffers a performance hit on DC - slow running characteristics were muchimproved once the chip was removed.

 

I am sure that the chip was not defective. As designed it appears to work on DC 50% of the time

[bazza.]

Hi Mr. Qwiwer,

 

Also have a look at the forum started by 250BOB. "Running DCC fitted locos on DC. -quite unbelievable..!"  This might also help you.

 

Regards

 

 

Bazza

 

 

 

I might have to plead confusion.  My order is for 2134 (BR green, current batch R3162 and with no X suffix to its serial number) so should be unchipped.  One or two sources confusingly suggest it is "DCC fitted" and I may have overlooked the fact that reference is made to R3162X above.  

 

I blame the warm weather.  It's been above 30C for weeks now and well above 20 through most nights!  Love the weather but not what it does to my sleep pattern or memory.

[BR(S)]

Some nice clear front end detail on 2090 here: http://mardle.smugmug.com/Trains/British-Trains/7399032_ZDZPzR#!i=476665462&k=rKCdz82

[Gwiwer]

2090 advised as available for general sale at Kernow MRC

http://www.kernowmodelrailcentre.com/product/39468/R3177_Hornby_2BIL_2_Car_Electric_Multiple_Unit_number_2090

[John M Upton]

Just picked up my NRM 2090 this afternoon and have opened it up primarily to put a couple of drivers in the cabs.  (I was also going to apply a SYP with black triangle at the appropriate end but shyed away when I looked at the delicate jumper cables knowing full well if I started to remove them they would be heading for the carpet monster never to be seen again)

 

I note that the drivers desk is part of the windscreen moulding and as such is also clear plastic.  This needs to be painted before I crew it up but the question is what colour?

[zarniwhoop]

Just picked up my NRM 2090 this afternoon and have opened it up primarily to put a couple of drivers in the cabs.  (I was also going to apply a SYP with black triangle at the appropriate end but shyed away when I looked at the delicate jumper cables knowing full well if I started to remove them they would be heading for the carpet monster never to be seen again)

 

I note that the drivers desk is part of the windscreen moulding and as such is also clear plastic.  This needs to be painted before I crew it up but the question is what colour?

If you don't paint the black cab rear, I very much doubt you will be able to see the desk - even the driver and the handbrake will be mostly invisible.

Also, don't forget to put '1' decals on the first class doors of 2090, along with the cantrail stripe

 

ken

[Gwiwer]

I seem to be one of the lucky ones.  2134 arrived in the mail today and is sitting happily on the workbench awaiting testing.

 

First impressions from a former daily 2Bil commuter?  Lovely little unit competently modelled despite a number of known glitches.  One jumper housing was fitted with Chinese unsticky glue and has had local sticky glue applied as it was found loose in the box.  The absence of inter-unit couplers strikes me as curious though is perhaps a corollary of the countless items which arrive with more than one such fitting such as the Bachmann Mk 1s.  They are easily added for when a future unit arrives.

 

The conundrum of what to do with the headcodes on a unit which I intend to run in both directions has been managed by applying 35 to one end (Brighton - Littlehampton) and white blank 1 to the other (Brighton - West Worthing among many other meanings).  While not strictly correct it was far from unknown for such a display to be seen at the leading end (which should have shown black blank 1) and sometimes also on the trailing end if the driver had forgotten to remove it or intentionally left it there while operating short-distance shuttles.

 

With headcode 1 "leading" the 35 display will be at the rear and again we may assume the driver has simply forgotten to remove it.  That happened.

 

The colour is close enough to how I remember the units in traffic (allowing for individual variations in paint wear and fade) and I have in mind to first ink in the door frames to provide depth, then lightly polish the green to resemble the BR - SR gloss finish and then to weather over the top.  Polish over dirt will look wrong; the question is will dirt in the form of weathering powder adhere to a polished-up bodyside.  Time will tell.

 

I plan to leave the unit plain green and hope that the success of the model will inspire Hornby to follow on with green SYP / FYE and blue units in due course.

 

The unit will not have a permanent place on my layouts.  It will run as I choose under Rule 1 and may also be used to test my intended live juice rail operation for the new layout.

[SRman]

Mine is still on its way here from Hattons but I almost wish the jumpers would fall off so I can more easily apply yellow panels to the fronts!

 

I also received an email from Hattons saying the first batch of NRM BILs has arrived and already been pre-sold but that another batch is due soon and my pre-ordered unit will be in that delivery.

[New Haven Neil]

My NRM 2090 arrived today, and I have to say it is better than the general opinion on here lead me to believe.

 

I reckon many of the posted photos (around the web) have been taken in very contrasty conditions, which seems to have over emphasised the rivets etc.  Whilst not a perfect model, it is pretty impressive, and the lack of a 1 and a touch of paint isn't going to cause me any sleep loss until I get around to rectifying it.  Some of the criticism I have read in this thread and others is mis-informed, or at least 'me too, awful isn't it' IMHO, which is a shame as there are many valid points and criticisms being made, but it's hard to filter out the good information from the Hornby-knockers who don't actually have one themselves to examine. 

 

No, I'm not a Hornby foamer, just someone who likes models that capture the character of a prototype, which I feel it does.  I have Bachy EMU's too!

 

Edit to add 'around the web' - I wasn't referring to the photos on this thread.  The viaduct ones are fine!

 

...and to replace 'lot with some - I'm not trying to be provocative, merely make an observation.

Edited March 18, 2013 by New Haven Neil

[Dogmatix]

Got my 2BIL (BR, no yellow ends, with DCC chip) a few days ago, and it's a corker. I'm thinking to get a second one, non-chipped, to de-motorise as a trailer unit, and fit close-coupling mechanisms to the non-motor ends.

 

The collector shoe beams are lower and further out that those on the Bachmann EMUs, and are hitting surface-mounted point motors (Roco) in a hidden section of my layout. But I intend to rebuild that part soon anyway....

[Re6/6]

. I'm thinking to get a second one, non-chipped, to de-motorise as a trailer unit, and fit close-coupling mechanisms to the non-motor ends.

 

I wouldn't worry de-motorising the second one, unless of course you want the motor bogie for something else. We ran a coupled pair of them at all speeds on our (DRAG) test track last week and they performed beautifully.

 

We'll probably be testing an '8BIL' next week as another member has bought two.

[10800]

We'll probably be testing an '8BIL' next week as another member has bought two.

 

Does Pete know about this?

 

Video will be provided afterwards.

[Ceptic]

Nit pickin' ...moi ?  ... Not only is the NRM version missing the '1's on the DTC's doors, it only has two of the corridor main-light windows labelled with '1st Class Hotdogs',  whereas R3162  /  '2134's trailer hasn't any !  

[Re6/6]

Does Pete know about this?

 

Shsss!

[Judge Dread]

I wouldn't worry de-motorising the second one, unless of course you want the motor bogie for something else. We ran a coupled pair of them at all speeds on our (DRAG) test track last week and they performed beautifully.

 

We'll probably be testing an '8BIL' next week as another member has bought two.

Referring back to my postings #618 & #624, do come to the Ally Pally this weekend and watch a couple of Bachmann 4-CEPs with a MLV in tow, career around "Meopham East Junction" at some where near the allowed line speed of 90MPH. If this is not a invitation for bringing disaster around my ears, then I don't know what is but, hey ho...fiddley dee!! Edited March 21, 2013 by Judge Dread

[Matabiau]

I have just received my NRM 2-BIL - very disappointed with Hornby's quality control. The motor bogie doesn't turn, there appears to be some blockage inside it such as the wiring. Add to that one of the clips (forms part of the cabside window) was snapped off and rattling around inside the body making it a loose fit. Finally one of the brake rods was snapped and rattling around inside the box. I know the clip could be a result of a shock in transit but the other issues are clearly poor manufacture.

To add to my disappointment it seems my supplier is out of stock so I shall have to go without. I just wish Hornby would improve their packaging, the polystyrene trays are not suitable for transporting such fragile items.

[Oldddudders]

I have just received my NRM 2-BIL - very disappointed with Hornby's quality control. The motor bogie doesn't turn, there appears to be some blockage inside it such as the wiring. Add to that one of the clips (forms part of the cabside window) was snapped off and rattling around inside the body making it a loose fit. Finally one of the brake rods was snapped and rattling around inside the box. I know the clip could be a result of a shock in transit but the other issues are clearly poor manufacture.

To add to my disappointment it seems my supplier is out of stock so I shall have to go without. I just wish Hornby would improve their packaging, the polystyrene trays are not suitable for transporting such fragile items.

If you wish to reject the model and send it back to your supplier for a refund, ebay has several versions on sale at various prices.

[PrestburyJack]

......................, ebay has several versions on sale at various prices.

 

Including this Olive Green one for £249.99  

Edited March 20, 2013 by garyeagger

[G-BOAF]

I have just received my NRM 2-BIL - very disappointed with Hornby's quality control. The motor bogie doesn't turn, there appears to be some blockage inside it such as the wiring. Add to that one of the clips (forms part of the cabside window) was snapped off and rattling around inside the body making it a loose fit. Finally one of the brake rods was snapped and rattling around inside the box. I know the clip could be a result of a shock in transit but the other issues are clearly poor manufacture.

To add to my disappointment it seems my supplier is out of stock so I shall have to go without. I just wish Hornby would improve their packaging, the polystyrene trays are not suitable for transporting such fragile items.

You shouldn't have to go without just because a model is damaged in transit. If you supplier is sold out and there are none to be had anyway, send it to Hornby to repair, it is their problem, and they should have the resources to fix it.

 

HOWEVER, among other suppliers, Kernow Model Centre still have the NRM 2BIL in stock, and not at an earth-shattering price so worth trying them if you really want the model.

 

However if you want to support the retailer you have already purchased from, then send the model to Hornby.

 

I do disagree with you over polystyrene, if designed properly it can be great, and is relatively soft. UNLIKE the vacuum formed trays which will quite happily crush any detail or thin/fragile corners that is slightly in the wrong place, or that shifts in transit.

Edited March 20, 2013 by G-BOAF