geoffers

Going back to the issue with the "non-stay-alive" on my 7800 "Torquay Manor" I have purchased and now fitted the ESU LokPilot v5 Next18 decoder from Accurascale. Thought that, maybe, the decoder designed for the Manor would enable the stay-alive to work. This replaced the Zimo MN180 Next 18 decoder. Sadly the stay-live still does not function even after fiddling with CV 113.  So I have come to the end of my investigation on this issue short of sending the loco to Accurascale for a look-see and repair. As in all other ways the loco runs well, smoothl, slow crawl etc. I shan't bother doing this.  One thing I did discover  was that on the Zimo chip the firebox flicker works on F1 but on the LokPilot it is F8. It also works randomly on the LokPilot.

3 hours ago, Cofga said:

I believe that Zimo decoders use 2 wire stay alives whereas ESU/LokSound decoders use 3 wire stay alives. Given that the circuit board in the Manors is designed to be used with a LokSound decoder I doubt they will function with decoders that use 2 wires. As far as I know only DCC Concepts and Lenz also use the 3 wire stay alive. The white wire in the circuit is used to turn the ESU stay alive on and off—Larry “The DCC Guy”

Ah! - that is interesting. Think I shall get an ESU LokPilot Next18 decoder to try out. Thanks so much for the tip.

22 minutes ago, MikeParkin65 said:

Sharing for info  and pretty sure this has been mentioned previously upthread but for anyone using NCE Power Cab with the 5amp booster changing the voltage on the power supply from 12v (which seems to be how it is supplied) to 13.8v via the slider in the power supply brings the Manors 'Stay Alive' into, well, life! No other CV changes required. 

Good to know, Mike. Thanks. My NCE PowerCab uses a DCC Concepts Alpha Power which delivers 18 volts and up to  5 amps. Stay-alive on 7812 "Erlestoke Manor" works fine. For some reason but not so on 7800 "Torquay Manor" but having fiddled with reboots and CVs it is still not functional so have given up now as everything else works on this loco fitted with a Zimo MN180 Next18 decoder.

10 minutes ago, big jim said:

We’ve got a school opposite us in our cul de sac, this afternoon while I was trying to get some sleep there was a car parked outside with the windows down blasting ‘let it go’ on a loop, my wife went out and asked the driver to turn it down as I’m on nights tonight only for the woman to tell my wife to pi$$ off and she can play the music as loud as she wanted!

 

I went out to ask her to turn it down too, having been woken up and got told ‘I pay my taxes I can park where I like’ and my wife had come out ‘giving attitude’ so she’d be playing her music loud to entertain her kids before saying ‘goodbye’ and putting the window up, of course the car was also left running for about 20 mins while she sat there

 

The whole thing is on my ring camera and you can see my wife going out and asking her nicely to turn the music down so she certainly wasn’t ‘giving attitude’!

 

went over to speak to the headmaster as we’ve had a lot of issues with parents driving too fast in the estate since the school opened a couple of years back and he’s going to speak to her tomorrow

Sympathise with you having done many night shifts over the years. Used to put earplugs in but you needed, of course, someone to wake you up. Looking forward to hearing your report that she told the headmaster to "...p**s off..." as well.  Sounds the type.

3 hours ago, Nigelcliffe said:

 

( I don't 100% follow what's been tried so may have this wrong...).  

 

You say that 36-567A decoder works fine in no 7812.   But in no 7800 it doesn't have stay-alive.   That suggests the problem is the stay-alive in 7800 and not a decoder issue.   

In turn that may be the components used "pair of capacitors" - which ones, wired in what arrangement ? .   One can't just put capacitors onto the +volts and 0volts on a PCB, there needs to be a charging circuit (minimum of a charging resistor and a discharge diode) to control current in/out of the capacitors.   

 

 

Thank you for this. Am increasingly thinking this is a stay-alive issue and not decoder. The capacitor bank is Accurascale installed in the tender. Not sure of the value. Have re-sited the Zimo MN180 decoder but still no stay-alive. I have attached some photos of the installation. I am very much inclined to leave this as it is, with the loco otherwise working fine, as every removal of the tender body is resulting with fine detail dropping off or breaking and the fiddly repairs are taking it's toll on my eyesight. But thanks for advice and interest.

Thank you gents. The stay-alive is a pair of capacitors of equal capacitance wired to the PCB. I have tried a different Bachmann 36-567A decoder in 7800 with the same result - zilch. I was wondering if there are other CVs apart from CV153 which would effect a result. It may be an issue with the PCB then. In the end it probably is not important enough to me to faff around with as the loco runs smoothly on a non-sound decoder and has loco and tender pick-ups. Cheers,

I am aware of some debate about this elsewhere, and have also been in contact with Accurascale who are looking into it, but am asking on here as there are some very knowledgeable folk who know a great more than I do on the technicalities of decoders as this may be a decoder issue.. Have two of Accurascale Manors, 7800 "Torquay Manor" and 7812 "Erlestoke Manor". Both run very smoothly, both have non-sound decoders installed and F1 switches the firebox flicker on. and off. So the decoders work fine. 7812 has a Bachmann 36-567A Next18 decoder and the stay-alive works. 7800 has a Zimo MN180 Next18 decoder and the stay-alive does not work. Strangely when initially installed I am sure it did. Hence I feel this may, I stress may, be a decoder issue. Have done a CV8 reset to 8 (twice) to no avail, and have fiddled with CV153 (set to 0 initially but have tried a variation of numbers up to 50) and also to no avail. Are there any other CVs I need to look at? By the way I don't speak German. CV153, incidentally on the Bachmann decoder is also set to 0 and it works. 

12 hours ago, melmerby said:

 

Yes indeed, too long.

I've cut mine right back by changing the value of CV153 in Zimo decoders to 5 (half a second)

I found when using manual control, running very slowly over an incorrectly set point, that the DCC cutout operates immediately but the loco carries on through the point and ends up completely derailed before it stops.

Thank you for this tip. Doubt whether I will change the CV value as the great majority of derailments tend to be operator initiated but it is good to know.

15 hours ago, Hal Nail said:

 

I'm hesitant to mention anything that will incur the wrath of the fan club but the copper cap is slightly smaller than the main body. They could mean that. Pic on this page shows it.

 

In the interests of balance, Dapols chimneys have an obvious join.

Would agree with that observation but it is a very small and from a viewing distance not noticeable on either, at least to me.

15 hours ago, rprodgers said:

Did they say which chimney, there are different chimneys on some of them.

 

The earlier GW one or the later BR one, I am presuming they were comparing like for like?

 

If I recall correctly one of the GW ones is as preserved rather than having the GW chimney.

Did not specify as he/she was getting defensive about it. It was pointed out, by others too, that the chimneys were changed on re-draughting but it is a good point you make as to whether he/she was looking at the preserved one. No version was mentioned just a comparison with another make of Manor.

Have enjoyed this book A couple of bits of info - at the bottom of page 233 the "unidentified 8F 2-8-0 is 48760 as recorded in Bob Bunyar's book "Somerset and Dorset Swansong", plus other references and personal recollection as I was at Templecombe that day.  Now onto the Bailey Gate pages - Bridge no 217 was locally known as "Cliff Arch".  Bottom of page 281 - have seen this Alan Jarvis photograph before. The guard may have been Frank Staddon but the "farmer" is Bailey Gate porter Charlie Stroud, and one of the amused ladies is Charlie's wife who had maybe just returned from a shopping trip to Poole. At the bottom of page 285 we see Standard Class 4 2-6-4T 80085 which was not a Bournemouth engine at the time but looks like it must have been "borrowed" for trips on 3rd and 4th March, 1966. Could have come down from London on a parcels or some such trip and was nabbed by the Bournemouth shed for a couple of trips. Her sister, 80138, was a Bournemouth shedded loco, was often seen on the line in the last year, and was active on 5th March 1966, pulling the last train through Bailey Gate to Bournemouth in the evening at 10-10pm, quite a few minutes late.  She also pulled the the 7-10am departure from Bournemouth Central to Templecombe. I and a friend was on that train which we boarded at Bailey Gate.

18 minutes ago, jonnyuk said:

out of interest, how long does the stay alive last for?
surely not a second one going back, that would just be unlucky?

Too long if a derailment happens!!! I guess 3 to 5 seconds.

Stay-alive works okay on my 7800 and 7812, the first, 7800, with a Zimo MN180 decoder, the second, 7812, with a Bachmann 36-567A (rebadged Zimo). I found the locos needed to be on the track a short while to enable the capacitors to "charge up". Incidentally pressing F1 on both these locos fired up the firebox flicker. 7812 will be refitted with an Accurathrash Manor sound decoder when they are available and arrive. Can always turn the sound off if I don't like it. On another group I read a comment from a chap who felt the chimney profile was incorrect. Looks okay to me.

2 hours ago, TheQ said:

My club Broadland MRC, lost the use of the big hall we used to use which was church owned, it's church use only now . With the deficit of big halls in the area, we've gone to having two, smaller events in different village halls.

 

From what we've found village hall cost is so much cheaper than the big hall it more than compensates for the loss of big show income.

It's easier to both organise and operate the two smaller shows than the big one.

The physical effort to transport, assemble and disassemble the show is much less.

 

Even if a big hall became available again I doubt the membership would wish to back to such a show.

Enjoyed your show yesterday. Good talking to you and thanks to "the loco doctor" for repairs to 6869 " Resolven Grange".

Happens a lot off the north Norfolk coast , ie Holkham and Wells. The tide rushes in very quickly.

3 hours ago, meatloaf said:

What are the folk who got the DCC ready version using with regards to decoders? As its not got a load of lights im assuming any decent decoder will be fine?

Have used Zimo MN180 Next18 decoder. Can get firebox glow with it (switchable). I like Zimo because of the motor control. Runs a treat with it installed. I guess there are others you can use though.

On 19/08/2023 at 17:07, melmerby said:

If you don't want to hold the F1 key down to get firebox glow, change function mapping to F2 to switch on or off at each press.

 

F1 is often non latching

Thanks for that. It turns out that F1 pressed once turns it on and pressed again turns it off. 

Rightly or wrongly I take them to my local recycling centre  and put them into the small electrical bin. Maybe not for long, though, as Norfolk County Council are proposing closing a very well run and efficient operation. 

41 minutes ago, geoffers said:

Have run the Manor on DC, everything fine but notice the firebox glows.  However I run DCC and have installed a Zimo MN180 Next18 decoder. Again all is fine but no firebox glow. Does anyone know which CV I need to battle with in order to get a glow? Or even if this decoder will support it? Thanks.

Doh!!! All I need to do is press F1 on controller. Doh!!!

Have run the Manor on DC, everything fine but notice the firebox glows.  However I run DCC and have installed a Zimo MN180 Next18 decoder. Again all is fine but no firebox glow. Does anyone know which CV I need to battle with in order to get a glow? Or even if this decoder will support it? Thanks.

For those who are still looking for an Accurascale Manor my local model shop,  Great Eastern Models in Norwich, had a delivery this morning. When I collected Torquay Manor they had six left (Cookham, Torquay, Erlestoke, and Anthony). They do mail order.

Mine, 7812, was due to be delivered today but as I was out of the house today, and will be tomorrow, and again Monday showing a guest from Arizona around Norfolk, I have asked DHL to deliver Tuesday (no option for Saturday and Sunday offered when I will be home). Ironically their depot is only a couple of miles away but I need, it seems, a no delivery card from them in order to collect. Since I ordered and paid for it in December 2021 I suppose another six days won't matter. 

On 05/07/2023 at 09:50, alastairq said:

Preceding my abandoning the work environment, I/we were offered lots of chances [and subject to huge amounts of persuasion] to change the pension scheme we were on.

It was a 'hard sell' in every respect! 

Cynical me, I reckoned that the only reason Government wanted us to adopt the new scheme 

was to save money. Which, to me, meant glossing up the positives, but leaving us worse off,  finding out only when it was too late.

So I opted to remain with the original scheme I was on.

Me too. Same reasons.

On 27/05/2023 at 23:10, KeithMacdonald said:

 

+1 for Bournemouth.

Five minutes walk from car park to check-in desk.

Olde-worlde walk across tarmac to steps to aircraft.

Not a lot of people know that (for a while) Bournemouth was actually London's official airport - London (Hurn).

It even flew Concorde charter flights.

Started my meteorological career at Hurn, in the days of DanAir HS748s. Office was a small cold WW2 building adloined to AIS and across the way from a "Tramp Reception Centre" for the "Kings of the Road". After it closed we would get "visitors" which was quite alarming on a solo night shift. The great majority were gentle souls and we let them bed down in a spare room providing they left before the boss came in at 7am. on the other side of the airfield was BAC where they built the BAC 111s, a noisy aircraft if there ever was one.  Can remember days/nights when Heathrow and Gatwick were fogging out and we would get loads of diverted flights incoming. Some interesting people visited us including, occasionally, one Douglas Bader.  We youngsters were in total awe of him. In our present life we use Norwich Airport (with its controversial "airport development fee" of £10 which you have to pay before you are allowed in the departure lounge). Hop over on the KLM "City Hopper" to Amsterdam Schiphole and the world's your oyster. 

20 minutes ago, Pteremy said:

Are the crews on double time (or similar) if they have to wait for their locomotives to arrive?

Have been informed of crew arrival too. Sure there is something they can do.