JimFin

Possibly not working but since recently purchased you should be able to return or have it repaired by the seller rather than open it up. They might get funny if you "interfere" with it. One possible answer - is your test track digital or analogue? If analogue, its possible the loco is digital but had analogue capability switched off.

My wallet is a bit light to venture there.

As the weather turned wet yesterday - got some modelling time as other tasks put on hold. Sneak preview of WIP -

I believe that the arrangement at the Montebello Curve is a special case hence not covered in the book. The diagram at the top of page 139 shows mast 381 and 382 being used to pull off the catenary in a standard configuration.

I think RocRail is capable of all you are asking - https://wiki.rocrail.net/doku.php?id=manual-routes2-en but has some limitations with a PowerCab - https://wiki.rocrail.net/doku.php?id=nce-en

Last picture I can find that shows the 460 with to "2000" on the front is 2005 and by 2007 none have it so I guess - 2006? Good resource here - https://www.railcolor.net/index.php?nav=1410914&lang=1&file=slm_5545_51&action=image&position=

Sorry - missed that Paul - printing flat panels still gives a grained finish BUT not if the visible side is the one which was attached to the base of the printer. The base of the first layer has some different characteristics and comes out as smooth as the glass bed. So a bit of mental origami and if I printed the body panels upside down - it might very well work. There might be a few misfires as that layer would have to be 100% perfect for it to work and its not always! Never usually matters as you don't see it! Given the nature of these panels, might give it a go. Just need to think about how to deal with the louvres. I just do this stuff for fun, as I said earlier, there are bits of the current model I am not completely happy with and Paul has sparked an idea that may well lead me to making another! I will post it here if I do. If it resolves the bits I am not happy with - quite willing to provide a kit of the printed and/or cut parts for you - material cost (maybe £5 to £10) and postage. You would need to source chassis, couplings, handrails, SMD's if you want lighting, paint, decals etc yourself but could write up some notes and maybe some photos of the build record of the next one - but not sure when that might be! You see I have my eye on the Gmf 4/4 28701 - 04 as they would lend themselves to the same approach with a couple of these tucked in it - http://www.kwtrams.co.uk/productdisplay/mentf26s09-tf-gauge-narrow-4-wheel-truck

Flat sections would still have "grain" its just the way 3d printing works, they would be easier to sand and finish - but I think its a case of choosing the best material / technique for the job. I think too many folk get hung up on one medium for everything e.g. handrails. Why represent them with course printing when, in this instance, a bit of left over Sommerfield overhead line offers a supply of 0.4 and 0.5 mm wire. Now I am just messing about! Do need to fit the Croc detailing though!

No lines Paul, these are NOT printed, they are cut from styrene sheet using a Cricut Maker and then assembeled just like a plastic kit. This might explain - The printing at an angle and avoiding suction are features of a resin printer rather than FDM - may invest in one later in the year if the price is right, the print volumes on the hobby ones are a bit small and quite restrictive for HO or above, other than small components, but the Elegoo Saturn as I mentioned addresses this quite nicely.

Not tried that specific variant but generally use rPLAG which is 80% recycled material (r) with a glycol trace added to the compound to reduce brittleness. The issue I have is an FDM printer will never (in current iterations) get anywhere near the surface finish I would want to represent a metallic surface, its simply too course. Great for buildings (see the Neuburg thread) servo mounts, brackets etc. I am waiting with interest to see the Elegoo Saturn when it is released as I may be tempted to spring for one of those. Thats essentially what I did, made a plasticard body kit to sit on the printed underframe - I am not precious - attached is a copy of the CAD file. You can work out some of the details yourself! http://www.kwtrams.co.uk/productdisplay/mett42d10-3mm-scale-4-wheel-truck You need to modify for DCC by isolating the motor from the chassis and replace the white metal motor strap with a brass strip to get it inside the frames. 1 87 tm 2 2.stl

I am putting this post in this thread but it could go in many, hope you find it interesting anyway, This started off as a little 3D design project as I fancied a Schoma shunter for Neuburg but the Bemo versions rarely appear for sale. Thought I might revisit 3d printing a vehicle. Never been happy with the results previously - too much texture and finishing needed, you loose the detail in the post printing process. A bit of research threw up a BEC 12mm tram chassis with 42mm wheelbase. At this point purists should leave the thread, its 1mm short for the prototype. I reckon since the public should never get close enough to notice it was worth a punt. Anyway, the CAD was relatively straightforward - A few draft prints to were knocked out to check dimensions and the chassis fit before a final high quality print. But as anticipated the body was completely unacceptable - however the underframe was quite decent and I had printed it and the handrail panels as an experiment in e-PLA, an engineering grade plastic that can be annealed in a domestic oven after printing for additional strength. Having modified the BEC chassis to fit and converted it to digital, it runs really nicely, found a German Zimo supplier that is providing a decoder loaded with the appropriate sound file which is on its way. Having decided the body was not up to scratch but having a decent CAD design, I sliced the relevant shapes into SVG's and borrowed SWMBO Cricut Maker to cut them out of plasticard. Quite handy that doing it that way, windows are the negative of a window cut out so able to cut exact fits for those, the headlamp covers and perspex sheet on the handrails. Also cut vinyl window outlines dimensioned + and - 0.5mm of the windows to act as frames for the glazing. Much messing about later and this is the result. There are parts I am not happy with and may well redo the body - as I have learnt along the way!

Block of apartments there now - but quite sympathetic, in the same style and finish as the railway cottages.

From memory - the United bus garage. Station is just to the left in this photo.

Yep - ther I looked up their forum and this was discussed in 2017 but the request received the following - We do not release the protocols for our Prodigy system. We do not offer an API or release of any kind for our protocols, it is a closed software. There is at least one user using a backdoor approach but RocRail is not supporting it. So sorry if that was a red herring.

In theory, you could simply take a feed from the existing power supply you use for your DCC - unless you have a large layout with many locos and accessories running it probably has sufficient capacity for both. If you want to stick with a separate supply, laptop battery chargers are a good source but you need to check the voltage / power requirement of your CDU and buy appropriately.

Looks like you may have made progress but if still seeking an alternative, RocRail is worth a look as Nigel said Their method of creating a screen control panel is almost identical to AnyRail with defined objects for track points and accessories. Once you have set up your panel, each element has a fairly straightforward dialogue box to assign the appropriate values. Point, uncouplers, signals, lighting etc all follow the same path. Full automation is possible as is web based control from tablet / mobile phone etc. should you want to go that direction in the future. It also allows external commands which I use for sound effects by bluetooth to a remote speaker. View of my simple control panel below. the "stray" point icons for track and workshop run the servos for the loco shed doors, need to get round to changing those icons - but for the moment - they work! All the best with your project.

I have some thoughts about a couple of aspects. I don't think its anything to do with "power" - the amount of "power"provided to the track is fairly constant but it sound like the signal to the decoder with the instructions of the task it has to perform has become "deformed" and giving incorrect instructions to or reading back corrupted date from the decoder. Assuming the track wheels and pick ups are clean, the possible sources of the issue would be the connection of the jack plug on the back of the decoder, wire connection to the track or internal connections within the base unit. Maybe checking these would help? Reason for suggesting that is if you are getting clean signals to the main track - the service track jack plug or related internals of the base unit are the most likely culprits.

Thats a tease - go on - what are they?

Beware that the Marlikn tool is set for HO not HOm, it might not work too well. Attached are a set of tools for Sommerfelds HOm I made up if you can get anyone locally to print them off for you. 3 height guides and 3 mast positioning guides. You need to add pins to the mast positioning guides to give you the limits of the alignment of the overhead wire. They clip into the track and set the mast position correct distance for the side. Go for the longest wire lengths your track alignment allows - Sommerfeldt go up to 500mm but allow a few mm less than that for fixing. mast alignment tool.stl

You need to factor in the programming protocol of accessory decoder(s) you are going to use. e.g. The ESU switch Pilot can only be programmed in blocks of 4 and must start with a multiple of 4 - so the first groups available begin 1, 5, 9, 13 etc. Same applies with Gaugemaster, maybe others. Gaps in the sequences cost nothing so long as you always use all the available outputs and leaving gaps in multiples of 4. From a practical standpoint, but my layouts are less complex than yours, I number from left to right looking at the layout from the front. As I use computer software and a touch screen mimic board, the numbers are only relevant during the build and programming parts of the job but do keep a written record and diagram for trouble shooting.

Suspect it may have been called up to recover the TM 2/2 based at Bergun which may have failed. (12.45)

Essentially classic "bog brush" stuck on a length of florists bamboo. Take a loop of soft wire lay in some teased out string and spin up (slowly!) with a drill. Drill and stick into top of the cut to length bamboo. Bamboos is painted with a dulux tester - mocha brown - dipped in n gauge ballast to give texture like broken branches. Spray the top matt black, trim and shape with scissors. Good coating of hairspray and dip into foliage in a bottle (cut out as photo), twizzle until fully coated, spray with matt acrylic varnish. Needed a cheap and quick method, there are 60 odd in that clump of forest. Apologies for interfering with your thread MrTea.

Can you confirm how you did this? If you used the "delete loco" option on the handset, this just removes the loco from the Dynamis roster, it does not change the loco decoder programming. To reset the loco, you need to know which manufactures chip is installed (read CV 8 and look up the number you get from the NMRA table - https://www.nmra.org/sites/default/files/appendix_a_s-9_2_2.pdf ) and perform the reset instruction appropriate to that manufacturer.

While that is happening - can you try leave the locos running and switch from loco1 to loco2 on the handset. Is loco 2 showing any bars in the speed indicator or blank?

In both HO and N - I have used fabric hanging basket liners for scrub undergrowth and forest base. They have to be the fabric type, not the coconut ones. for forest cover, shades of brown are best, cut to shape and then the fabric teased out to form clumps etc. It is one instance where I have found dyed lichen helpful and don't forget to add some old / stray trunks from previous growth. Mix it up with clump foliage, brown static grass. Image is from Neuburg in HOm but hope it helps.