cravensdmufan

Yes, I too remember manhandling the trolleys accross barrow crossings! Here is a menu card from my time on the trolleys - sorry about the reflections. I have it framed in my layout room! Hope you can read it OK! Note the prices!

A lot of long distance trains - particularly weekend holiday trains with lengthy rakes of Mk1 corridor stock - during the 70's and 80's were provided with Travellers Fare catering trolleys. I know, because I was one of the attendants pushing/pulling them through the corridor stock! Very lively days thrashing up and down the WCML doing a ton (and more sometimes I reckon!). Tea urn balanced on top of a trolley with no wheel lock. No Health and Safety in those days! We had to re-fill our hot water urns at major stations. I well remember doing Euston-Holyhead return - the first couple of trips I had some wages docked because I was taking Irish 50p coins! Nobody told me!

I know I will be very much in a minority here - but I actually prefer the look of Code 100! Particularly concrete sleepered track when rail sides are painted and it is well ballasted. Plus I can run my older stuff together with modern stock. And I really can't face relaying the whole layout!

Hi folks, I hope I'm on the right thread here - I'd like some help with an ESU Loksound v4 please which I purchased secondhand recently, and fitted into a Bachmann class 105 - one of the early models with an 8 pin decoder socket. According to the Bachmann paperwork interior lights will work on F1 and side lights on F0. Mine don't, but work when side lights (F0) are turned on. It also says that if the decoder (8 pin) is fitted the wrong way round they will not work. I've checked the fitting of the decoder and it is the correct way round but would like the option of turning the interior lights on and off. Does anyone know which AUX the interior lights work on as at the moment they are working on F0? I'm assuming that probably the interior and side lights are on the same circuit and cannot be worked separate unless someone knows different. Thanks very much in advance!

Really looking forward to these 87s too. The photo on pages 30/31 in June Hornby Magazine shows Bachmann's 85 026 and Hornby's new 87 035 side by side. The shade of BR blue looks about the same on both and therefore spot on.(I reckon my 85 is perfect). So hopefully Hornby's really dark blue that was used on some previous models has been consigned to history. Edit - sorry just read ThaneofFifes post #1062! I should pay more attention at the back of the class - as I was repeatedly told all those years ago!

That looks some smart train alright. Imagine, we could have those instead of Pacers. Dream on......!

I'm hoping that the incoming LNER wil be better for staff morale. With East Coast you often saw the same onboard crews working well together - regular travellers got to know the teams, and there was a certain comradery. But since Virgin took over, particulary in the last year, I noticed a lot of new people that maybe only ever see once or twice. Are there a lot more short term or temporary jobs or even zero hours contracts? I thought i read somewhere that there would be more staff involvelent in the new organisation - surely things can only improve.

Yes, happens all the time. And often a quick examination of the card reveals that the seat was reserved for a short journey further up the line before you got on and is therefore now vacant, and the other way round of course. I often get on at KX just to go to PBO and the reservation is, for instance York to Newcastle. So it pays to look at the tickets if the train is busy.

VTEC will still be operating until 24th June (unfortunately!).

Typical Virgin spin! Like they were giving the impression that they had planned the build and introduction of the new trains for the ECML! Edit: Stationmaster - you just beat me to it by about one second!

It's a pity we don't have British Rail Research anymore. An organisation that provided a wealth of R&D to railways not just here but internationally. Just the sort of project they would have undertaken and thoroughly tested - such as the remotely controlled Class 46 crash into the nuclear flask.

Sorry - just seen this new topic which is more relevent now that ECML will rid itself of Virgin Trains - at least for the next couple of years! http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/134204-ecml-franchise-to-be-broucht-back-under-public-ownership/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44142258 Well it had to happen! Surprised it's taken this long actually. I'm glad Stagecoach/VT weren't let off the hook with a continuation on a "not for profit" basis (er, what private company operates without wanting a profit?!). Branson must be grinning well tonight. He's had Virgin plastered all over the ECML for the past 3 years with just 10% of the loss! Cheap advertising or what? I'm not a bit disappointed at this news tonight. Hope staff now feel a bit more secure.

Allan - well I've run out of ideas on that one! Quite possibly a dodgy decoder then. Maybe test the decoder in another 8 pin loco (not a Heljan!). If it behaves in that it eliminates a decoder fault. If still dodgy I would return it to the retailer (as per Sale of Goods Act or whatever it's called!) rather than the manufacturer. It's up to them to sort it out with Hornby. As discussed on another TTS topic on here. There are so many different TTS topics on RMW, I can't remember which thread! Let us know how you get on.

Are the loco's wheels and pick ups clean? Dirt is usually the cause of cut outs. But I did have a similar problem a while back where locos were losing sound and running away (all brands of decoder) on one section of the layout. I then found that there was a dodgy connection to the rail section causing a power drop. Rest of layout was OK.

Great stuff - looking and sounding very good.

Further to my OP, I contacted the Sunday Times re: their error in reporting that the 321's are diesel trains. They have now amended their online digital article. That detail apart, the general matter of hydrogen power for trains is very interesting.

Very interesting presentation. Thanks for posting.

It does get easier Russ - it took me ages to get my head round it all! Just a question of trying different combinations. You can always do a full decoder reset CV8 to 8 if it all goes wrong, and start again. I tend to write values down as I go along then if you get it nearly right then it all goes wrong, at least you have a better starting point from where to carry on! If you check out my cravensdmufan YouTube channel you'll see a few TTS that I've done - some of them I've put the CV numbers in the comments. Let us know how you get on.

Yes you can indeed change the loco address without changing the CV settings. No need to reset decoder. One thing I always do is when I get all the settings perfect, then I read the CVs back from the loco on the program track, and be sure to write them down. I have a separate notebook. Very occasionally I get a runaway or "cannot read" (not just TTS, I had a couple of problems with ESU Loksound v4 too) and sometimes I do need to do a full decoder CV8 to 8 reset to get it back. Some of the TTS take an hour to get right so that's why I always write them down!

Yes, CV 150 selects either algorithm 1 (select 0) or algorithm 2 (select 1). See which one controls the motor with less stuttering. Then fine tune CVs 151 and 152 if using algorithm 1, or 153 and 154 if using algorithm 2 to get it smooth. I have found that changing CV10 (Back EMF) doesn't have much effect. Changing CV3 (accelleration) and CV4 (decelleration) helps to get smooth starts and stops. It takes time to fine tune these decoders but well worth it. I have fitted 12 diesel locos of different classes, Hornby "high spec" and Bachmann, and all have required different CVs even the same manufacturers model class! Plug and play they certainly aren't, but for £35 ish each I think they are really good. Especially if you upgrade the speakers. On my Bachmann 8 pin 37 429 I found that the following CV's suited it very well: CV3=100, CV4=30, CV150=1, CV151=25, CV152=5, CV153=30, CV154=1. I use NCE Powercab - other makes of controller will possibly produce different results. Good luck, let us know how you get on.

The Sunday Times today has a third of a page report today with a graphic picture of a Class 321 showing hydrogen tanks installed in the roof space, which certainly caught my eye. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/hydrogen-fuel-cell-trains-herald-new-steam-age-mdf78f2dk (You need to register with an email address to read online). Going on to read the article by their Transport Correspondent, it reports that 100 *class 321 diesel trains, which date to 1988", are to be converted by Alstom. Alstom's MD says - "What we are responding to is the fact that as of 2040 diesel as fuel for rolling stock is no longer allowed". Expect them in the north of England (where else?!) around 2021. Apart from the not inconsiderable error in stating these units are currently (!) diesels, it is an interesting enough article! Analysis of the article and more here: https://anonw.com/2018/05/13/hydrogen-trains-herald-new-steam-age/

I messaged Bif about it some time ago and spoke to him at BRM Peterborough 2016. I'm hoping to go to DEMU Showcase this year so maybe can chat with you then. Thanks very much for clarification.

Thanks Albie - I still have one of Paul Chetter's Zimo Digitrains 101's. I'll check it out again in the next few days and try and post a Youtube video of it in action along with comments.. But I'm still very interested in the "Wheeltappers" versions.