NIK

Hi, A layout of Ropley in OO will also be running at the Open Day tomorrow. Also the Radio Times layout I mentioned before features MERG electronics (but no photos/videos of the layout allowed as photos are embargoed until the Radio Times article appears). Some of the Basingstoke Bodgers from the Great Model Railway Challenge should be there though not necessarily in Santa hats (see previous picture). Regards Nick

Hi, I haven't had this problem with my two Hornby Class 71's. I had something a little bit similar with a OO Dapol 73. It wouldn't respond to the DCC controller but would go in one direction only at a slow pace. Normal motor control was achieved by disconnecting the lighting circuits. I assumed one of the pickups from the track had been wired to the DCC decoders +Ve (function return) but I haven't pursued this further. Regards Nick

Hi, I've got about 8 Class 128s for their chassis but although the chassis sides are quite thick they are as you say quite wide. Probably too wide even with filling for a Hastings unit especially for my first Unit that needs remotoring - a MTK 6S whose unprototypical recessed solebars making even less room for the chassis. Also the Class 128's top speed is also a bit on the low side but with its beefier motor it may be good for 5 mk1 coaches up a 1 in 40 gradient with 36" curve. I may know more on Saturday at our clubs open day when I hope to compare the results of my test track and gradient/curve predictor with real tests on our gradient with curve. Unfortunately the layout has sustained some damage to its tracks during the week and most of the damage is on the gradient. Temporary repairs have been done, so fingers crossed. The class 16's chassis minus the a lot of the right hand third might fit inside the Hastings unit Cab, Motor and Guards compartment. Many thanks Nick

Hi, On the same point maybe there is a high resistance joint in the wiring between the DCC command station/booster and the tracks the Co-Bos are running on or maybe the power supply to the DCC command station is marginal. A slight increase in friction of thirsty locos (Heljan with the standard motors can be quite thirsty and you said the current had gone up) could be stressing something out. My Heljan Class 47 drew 0.88 Amps @12V DC on a rolling road and would probably draw more with load/gradient/curves/age. Regards Nick

Hi, I haven't got a Co-Bo but I've just bought from new a Heljan Class 16 that ran slow straight out of the box, ran hot and struggled with a train. The hottest spot was over one of the gear towers (I used a cheap infrared thermometer to look for hotspots). I took one of the covers off the underside of the bogie gear tower and what grease there was was on the sides of the tower and not on the gears. I temporarily put some electrolube on all the gears and the bearings at the top of the gear towers. The loco ran faster and its haulage capacity improved - best result with 9 Mk1 coaches: 62 scale MPH on 3rd radius curves @ 12V DC. So it might be whatever grease the CoBo had when it was new may have moved off the gears. Regards Nick

Hi, Regarding my previous post. I've just read the balancing speed for a Class 201 Hastings unit was 23 mph on a 1 in 50 gradient. So a Class 16 chassis should have enough in hand to be a Class 201 Hastings unit donor if it can haul 5 Mk1 coaches up a 1 in 40 gradient with a 36" radius curve at a scale 40mph. I may be able to test if the Class 16 chassis plus 5 Mk1 coaches will go up a 1:40 gradient with 36" curve on Saturday if there is a quiet period in our Open Day https://www.basingstokemrs.org/open-day.html. Hi John, Yes I've got a few 2-HALs from Hattons bargains but I was looking for a chassis that was a bit narrower but still had a flywheel or two. I hadn't reckoned on Heljan putting a 3 pole motor in the Class 16. From my loco pull tests and gradient calculator it looks as though getting the right weight to suit the gradients on a layout is a factor. Too little weight and the grip is not maximised, too much and the bearings of the motor bogie get worn and/or the weight of the power car increases the drag on gradients. I haven't got a milling machine so I can't make my own heavy chassis. I will have a look at how the 2-HALs I have perform at slow speeds with a good DCC decoder with Back EMF feedback switched on. Regards Nick

Hi, I've just loaded up my Class 16 with 9 Mk1s (the extra 4 are actually a 4-TC so at least one coach may have pin point electrical pickups). The maximum speed round my test track was 61mph. Putting the number of coaches into my experimental gradient and curve predictor it predicts 54 grammes of drag due to the coach friction, gradient and curves. That's less than the 59.7 grammes of pull calculated for a 1 in 40 gradient so the chassis might not slip on the club layout gradient and curve. Changing from the test track radius of 20" to the 36" of the club layouts gradient and putting the number of Mk1 coaches to five gives a drag of 55 grammes. So the class 16 chassis might be able to haul the 5 Mk1 coaches up the 1:40 gradient with 36" curve at up to 61 scale mph. The slowest the chassis went round the test track with 9 on was 40 scale mph which may be on a par with the performance of the real 6 car Hastings Unit on a 1 in 40 gradient. So the Class 16 might be a candidate donor chassis for a Hastings unit (probably will have only one powered bogie so will have to try DCC Concepts Powerbase to achieve the same level of grip). Next thing may be to add Powerbase magnets to the chassis and see what it can pull and then try and disconnect the worm and cardan shaft from one gear tower and repeat the pull tests. Regards Nick

Hi, Last week we checked and adjusted the points on the scenic boards in advance of our open day on Saturday. As there had been spray glue, PVA type glue, paint and static grass in use in the weeks before we thought we'd better do checks. We also did some checks that the buffer stops that have been added to the layout hadn't shorted out the tracks. A layout being built for the Radio Times should now be complete so there should now be more space and time for working on Beggarwood. Regards Nick (on behalf of the Basingstoke and North Hants Model Railway Society - still looking for new members).

Hi, I was probably blaming the pickups a bit too much. I think I overdid the use of Railzip on the top of the test track rails. After many circuits and lots of track cleaning the Class 16 got up to a maximum of 72 scale mph with 5 Mk1 coaches. I didn't lubricate the motor bearings as I couldn't see the bearings very well and didn't bother to take the chassis to a better lit place. I'm going to try and add some more coaches and measure the speeds achieved. Then I'm going to try and use my experimental gradient and curve predictor to try and predict what speed the chassis will haul 5 mk1 coaches up my club layout's 1 in 40 gradient with 36" curve. Hi Clive, I hope my loco is a bit of an outlier. Its from Hattons bargains. I don't know how long ago it was manufactured - could it be 5 years in storage?. I have one other loco that is similar - a DJ Models Class 71. It has a high current consumption than I would expect from a coreless motor and runs slowly especially with a few coaches behind it. Regards Nick

Hi, I bought a Heljan Class 16 this week as a possible donor chassis for narrow bodied DEMUs - the Hastings and Tadpole units. I ran it in on my Gaugemaster rolling road and it was getting warm. I used my infrared thermometer and a spot above the cab gear tower got up to 39 degrees C. I tried the loco on my test track (third radius curves) on DC and at 12 volts it was doing 62 scale mph - so spot on for a class 16. However it was hesitant to start and would then surge forward as though it was overcoming friction. Also it would only do 43 scale mph with five Bachmann Mk1 coaches. I took the cover off the bottom of the cab end gear tower expecting to find thick grease and instead found no grease on the gears. As a temporary experiment I put some electrolube on all the gears of the loco and the gear tower top bearing. The Class 16 would then haul two Mk1s at 69 scale mph and 5 mk1s at 57 mph (on the flat). However I disturbed the pickups and the class 16s running was very patchy after that so it was difficult to tell whether any improvements were due to pickups cleaning up or the friction getting less as the mechanism warmed up. For my immediate application the results are a mixed bag. I want to use the Tadpoles and Hastings units on a mainline exhibition layout where the units have to be able to do a reasonable speed straight out of the fiddle yard - no laps to warm up/clean up. The 3 pole motor is possibly a bit retrograde. The lower top speeds under modest loads worries me as I would like the units to be able to tackle the 1 in 40 gradient on one spur of a club layout without slowing down too much. I'm slightly worried about the pickups - I may have to make up a pickup coach that feeds locos under test to see what the mechanism can do with good pickups. Other data: loco pull test 61 grammes @12V DC. 360 grammes weight of loco. Current (after running in) during slip tests: Forward 0.44Amps, Reverse 0.42Amps @ 12V DC. Regards Nick

Hi, We are hoping to get a copy of the TV trailer of the Great Model Railway Challenge that we can show at our open day, this Saturday. Also on display will be a little project some of the Basingstoke Bodgers (the club's team in the Challenge) have just completed for the Radio Times. Basingstoke & North Hants Model Railway Society, Stratton Park, off Pack Lane, Basingstoke, 10:30-15:30, admission free. https://www.basingst...g/open-day.html Regards Nick

Hi, Fair enough. I can't see from the ESU Lokpilot V4 manual how a sensor could be used to turn a function on and off. Another solution if the DCC command station had a computer interface might be to use a computer and JMRI to turn a function off and on at neutral sections. Would need to have position sensors at start and end of neutral sections and have some form of train tracking. However that brings in a computer and sensors on layout just to switch a headlight. For those happy with designing their own electronics they could design a circuit that switches off the high intensity headlight when a hall effect sensor is triggered and switches it back on when two hall effect sensors are triggered. Would have to position small powerful magnets just under the ballast to trigger the sensors. If the circuit (small microcontroller) stored its guess at whether it was in a neutral section inside its own non-volatile memory that might cope with the situation where a train is accidently stopped in a neutral section - say at the end of a running session. Regards Nick

Hi, Are not most auxiliary functions on an electric loco including high intensity headlight battery powered?. Regards Nick

Hi Nigel, Many thanks, I've just found what to do by looking at the Function Map table and CV values in JMRI Decoder Pro. I can see Zimo adding this functionality to their decoders as I think the method I suggested might only work for one function output (at least independently) and is not direction controlled. I came across it as I wanted to add an on train sparks effect that was related to the current drawn by the real train - so the three PWM settings for standing, cruising and accelerating were ideal as an input to a sparks effect circuit. On the prototype side of things would a high intensity headlight be turned off every time a loco stopped (at signals, at an intermediate station)?. Regards Nick

Hi, I've looked through the Lokpilot V4 instructions and I cant find anything about an auto cab light feature. Does it use the Seuthe Smoke Generator settings? (like my suggestion for how the Zimo decoders might achieve the same thing as Andi asked for)?. Regards Nick

Hi, I think Zimo decoders can be made to turn the light off via the Diesel Smoke Effects. Set the appropriate Function Output CV to 82 (decimal). So for function output 1 put CV 127 to 82. Set CV 137 to 0 (this is the value of the function output brightness at standstill). Set CV 138 to whatever brightness level you want (1 to 255). This is the value at steady speed. Set CV 139 to the same value as you set for 138. This is the value during acceleration. However the light will turn off when the train comes to a halt (is that what you wanted?). I haven't tried this for high intensity headlights but you may have to toggle the relevant function key on your DCC system from on to off to on again when a train has come to a halt and you want to move off again. Regards Nick

Hi, I don't have a Kestrel, but I do have an example of current consumption for something that is thirsty: So if a decoder such as a Hornby TTS decoder with a 500ma continuous motor current limit was fitted the speed could be set up to 70% without exceeding the 500ma limit (providing the dial position on the gaugemaster corresponds to a percentage of 12 volts). The above graph is just for illustration - the rolling road rollers may have been a bit stiff. I do have a Heljan Hymek that draws 0.88 Amps DC at dial position 100 but it isn't to hand. Regards Nick

Hi Alan, Its still an experimental predictor so should be treated with caution especially the curves. It might be that more grip can be achieved by two layers of that flexible strip. If so then it might be possible to put two layers above the sleepers on non scenic curves. If putting two or more layers together is practicable then layers could be added until the trains of choice go round the curves. It might be possible to determine what is the maximum pull between a Powerbase magnet and that flexible strip is. I haven't identified what type of magnets DCC Concepts supply (claimed to be stronger than standard Neo magnets). I've bought some Neo magnets from E-Magnets UK to experiment with. PS I was walking along my local canal's towpath the other day and there was a chap fishing for steel/iron objects such as lock keys and windlasses. He had a magnet with a 800kg pull and as we were chatting he found something. The item wouldn't budge and he thought it was either stuck in the canal bed or there was so much crud on its surface the magnet couldn't get a good grip. Regards Nick

Hi Alan, Many thanks for the info on your Standard 4 2-6-0. I shall add it to the database for the experimental gradient predictor. Although its experimental I put the loco pull (with 12mm flexi strip on sleepers) and weight into the predictor (with 5 Bachmann Mk1s): So that prediction is the loco/train/flexistrip/Powerbase type magnets could handle a 1 in 33 on the straight and 1 in 66 on a third radius (20") curve. I've bought the parts to make a helix so I can try the effects of gradient combined with curves. I was going to have two OO tracks one with Powerbase and one without. Now I may add a third OO track with that flexible strip on the sleepers (although each track will have a different radius which complicates comparisons). I hadn't thought of using a metal chain in the loco pull testing. I used a large battery sitting on the electronic scales. I've now bought a £7 electronic scales from my local Argos and taken it apart and mounted it on short piece of plywood with track on. I've glued an eyelet onto the load sensor at buffer height and a thread is attached a coupling. Many thanks Nick

Hi, That's really useful data and I think the first I've seen that includes the loco pull in grammes - how did you measure that?. How much did your loco on its own weigh and how much its tender?. There is space on a club layout I'm helping with to fit an off-scene 1 in 20 gradient at 36" minimum radius. That flexible steel strip you tested on top of the sleepers might allow more types of train to go up the gradient. I don't suppose the strip is flexible in the horizontal plane so it will go round curves?. Regards Nick

Hi, If your locos are running flawlessly with the default values then any changes can risk them running less well. Regards Nick

Hi, I use the same connectors on a large DCC club layout. I haven't experienced connectors falling out except on the cable that leads from the DCC command station to the layout. All the connectors have been screwed to plywood strips which seem to buckle the connectors so they are less likely to fall apart. I've found if that type of connector is loose that carefully prising the split contact pins apart just a tiny bit can provide the extra purchase. Could you use Velcro or heavy duty Velcro to hold the connectors together?. Regards Nick

Hi, I did mention the weight of the train and the tractive effort of the loco on the flat (I do this as you do by measuring the pull of the loco). Regards Nick

Hi, I hadn't thought about putting suitable metal above the sleepers. On my clubs layout we only had enough Powerbase plates to go up the gradient and two feet along the summit (the summit is mostly behind a backscene in the approaches to the fiddle yard). If we have any problems with trains slipping where the Powerbase ends we could add piano wire or equivalent magnetically (steel checkrails?). I'm working on a Gradient and Curve predictor which given the weight of the train and the locos weight and haulage capacity (hopefully from a database such as the one I'm building) can estimate the gradient and curves it can get up without slipping. The predictor should also work for Powerbase although since there is a choice of magnet size, position and quantity means the haulage capacity on the flat may have to be measured after the magnets have been applied. Here I've applied the experimental predictor to a train that made it up our 1 in 40 gradient with 36" curved section the train is going from right to left (no Powerbase magnets). So if a locos haulage capacity was only 15 grammes without Powerbase then hauling the same train it would have got up the gradient but slipped when it reached the end of the Powerbase. It may be a bit of an extreme example as Powerbase might not double the haulage capacity. As to my posting 'magnadhesion?' I just meant to query the spelling. I remember it from my childhood as it collected track pins and filings until the mechanism jammed. Regards Nick

Hi, I forgot to say in my previous post that when the layout crew I belong to used the Powerbase plates we had problems with short circuits. This was due to us soldering medium diameter dropper wires for the track to the underside of code 75 bullhead rail. During soldering the wire insulation would shrink back. Sometimes the exposed wire would touch the side of the punched holes in the Powerbase plates. I think the Powerbase instructions might mention leaving a slight gap between plates but we didn't and we had intermittent shorts and the glued track had to be taken up to look for the problem. The problem can be avoided by leaving a slight gap between the plates and putting any track feeds on different plates (say left rail feed on one plate and the right hand on the adjacent plate (if the section of track is long enough)). PS just sometimes locos can be surprisingly good going up gradients. A Lima Class 47 without Powerbase magnets hauled 7 bogie parcels vans up our 1 in 40 gradient with 36" curve. The 47 has just two axles powered and is not as heavy as some recent RTR diesel/electric locos. Regards Nick