NIK

Hi, If there was an old remote control stuck in the sofa for example one of its buttons could have been pressed by a weight above. If the remotes front was not obscured it would transmit all the time a button was depressed. Infrared remotes unlike radio comms can't uses a carrier wave so interference in the form of signal swamping is more likely. Just an idea. Regards Nick

Hi, I think some of your questions have been answered before on this forum although I find it difficult to read between the lines of previous topics. The last time I looked Hornby Railmaster couldn't do full automation as I would understand it as it didn't support any position sensors. I know Train Controller, RocRail and JMRI support position sensors. Computer to do automation: I understand some top-end DCC command stations offer some automation such as a shuttle. Otherwise a computer or tablet compatible with the automation software selected will probably be needed. How to get the trains to stop (either to change direction or to stop at platforms): this is normally done by position sensors. Yes the tablet will need to be switched on for it to perform automation. Whether it needs to be on when automatic running is not selected may depend on how the tablet is informed what trains are where and what their DCC addresses are. The key thing I think is to make sure the DCC command station suits the automation software and the software suits the automation needs. You mention planning the layout. I would suggest when you have got the DCC gear and the automation software you try if you can some tests on a few yards of track. Its possible that not all locos will stop in the same distance after triggering a position sensor so platforms may have to be extended or points and signals moved further away from position sensors. Regards Nick

Hi, The other club project I mentioned in my last post had been sufficiently successful that it was extended. Working on Beggarwood Lane down the club should resume in the next few weeks if not next week. These things come up once in blue moon. The only previous one I can remember is the club building an automated model railway for the Mid Hants railway to fit inside a medium sized railway van. I'm not sure if its the only model railway that gets regularly shunted about. Going back to the subject of rangefinder electronics I mentioned last time- after a second tranche of mini £4 rangefinder circuits arrived from China the sensor manufacturer announced a sister chip with increased range and the ability to adjust the field of view electronically. This may be more what I need as a flat chip may be easier disguise than one with a collimating tube on the receiver optics. I will wait to see when they become in stock as chips and (hopefully as modules). Problems that might need to be overcome may include finding a suitable cover material for the optics and also how to select the field of view via the electronic interface. Regards Nick (on behalf of the Basingstoke and North Hants Model Railway Society - still looking for new members)

Googling 'Plux12 decoders' reveals lots of suppliers. Regards Nick

Hi, If you have access to the underside of the baseboard and have a multitool (oscillating saw) the following might work: Attach a marker or very small clamp to the appropriate width saw blade to show/limit depth of cut to the thickness of the baseboard (plus any cork or similar). Mark underside of baseboard with location of magnet. Carefully cut a rectangular hole (use narrow blade for the narrow sides). Carefully ease out cut part of baseboard. Fit magnet. Reballast if required. Regards Nick

Hi, With their third rail EMUS you have to paint everything except the sides. However the parts to be painted are generally just one colour each so maybe not too difficult. The EMU kits normally require a motor bogie to complete. Beyond that you only need tools and glue. The instructions I've found very good - better than any other kit. Regards Nick

Hi, There hasn't been much work being done directly on Beggarwood Lane this week due to another club project. I've started evaluating an infrared rangefinder sensor for possible use on the layout. There are a number of places, mostly sidings hidden by backscene or embankment where its difficult to shunt at present. The sensor is in the middle of the photo mounted on a circuit board with interface components. The photo show my first tests using a model train. I've connected the sensor to a Chinese Arduino Nano clone microcontroller (cost £1.50) - on right of photo. I've then connected the Nano to a Raspberry Pi computer running JMRI model railway interface software. I've interfaced the sensor data from the Nano to JMRI and in this test JMRI displays the distance to the loco as a series of 4 position sensors. I've got a JMRI script which via a computer interface to my NCE DCC command station makes the loco go back and forth between 300mm and 50mm from the sensor. I've had the loco go back and forth for hundreds of times without any problems (I've averaged ten sensor samples to reduce glitches). So the sensor looks quite good at present for use for the ends of hidden sidings and sidings where its possible to hide the sensor. It costs £4 in the UK and the circuit board with interface costs £4 from Aliexpress in China. What's got to be solved is how to get the data back to the layouts information system (uses JMRI) in a easy and cheap way. Regards Nick (on behalf of the Basingstoke and North Hants Model Railway Society - still looking for new members)

Hi, Its an offer from Zimo UK (along with a couple of other Zimo DCC decoders). I've bought quite a number of Zimo DCC decoders since the £20 offer started (mainly MX634Ds). Regards Nick

Hi, On Saturday 14th the layout was put up in an adjacent building for our clubs open day. Due to my lurghi I wasn't there until 90 minutes after opening to the public. After the power supply for the NCE cab bus was located, a Cab address changed and a servo lead plugged in the layout seemed to behave itself. Some of the new routes involving bidirectional track Zero in the fiddle yard didn't seem to work properly. I may have to work on them while electrostatic grassing is being done on the scenic boards. The next task on the layout is probably fitting all the electronics on the scenic boards with pluggable connectors so the circuit boards can be removed for electrostatic grassing. The larger buildings need to be made so the final shape of the layout can be imagined. Regards Nick (on behalf of the BNHMRS - still looking for new members)

Hi, I haven't had any time to take any photos as we've been getting ready for our clubs next open day tomorrow, Saturday. As I recover from a lurghi I've been trying to correct Routes set up on the NCE Power Pro 5 command station. I'm using the NCE Macro editor in JMRI Panel Pro on my Windows laptop to edit the routes. I'm doing the editing at home with none of the layout plugged in apart from the command station. I've got a Raspberry Pi 3B connected via the local Ethernet network to display the theoretical state of the points on most of the layout on a second monitor. I then went on to add routes related to the bidirectional track in the middle of the fiddle yard tracks. Up until now the bidirectional track (track 0) has hardly been used as there has been no routes leading in or out of it. The route crib sheet has been updated to include these new routes: The pale green background to the cells shows the new routes. Amongst other things it should make it easier to reverse trains that have come up the incline. So if you want to see Beggarwood Lane running in the next few years why not come along to our open day tomorrow: https://www.basingstokemrs.org/open-day.html Our club is short of members for our future exhibitions so Beggarwood Lane might only run at open days for a while. Regards Nick (on behalf of the Beggarwood Lane crew/BNHMRS (Basingstoke)).

Hi, I've just done some tests on a Bachmann Jubilee I've been lent for conversion to DCC. I tested the tractive effort on a slip track with the coupling connected to a load cell. I then weighed the loco. I put the tractive effort and loco weight into my experimental gradient and curve calculator. I then took the number of coaches your Jubilee could haul on the flat from your graph in post #1 of this topic in order to estimate the friction of the coaches. I put the estimated friction of the coaches into my calculator. The calculator predicted that my Jubilee would haul 4 of your coaches up a 1 in 50 gradient but not 6 coaches. Above shows 4 coaches, calc was run again with 6 coaches and at 1 in 50 the loco traction was less than drag due gradient and friction. I haven't tested any other locos on your graph but I was relieved my calculator/predictor wasn't way out. Could you send a link if possible for 71000's article on gradient tests as I couldn't find it under post #567. Many thanks Nick

Hi, Locos taking off at full speed is thought to mostly happen when the DCC decoder interprets a rogue signal on the track as DC instead of DCC. A fix for that is to alter the value in CV29 to turn off DC mode (might have to consult your decoder instructions for how to do that). I've had one loco take off at full speed and it was my fastest loco by far. Regards Nick

Hi, I find it interesting that staff costs have gone down slightly. I thought increased staff costs were one of the main reasons Bachmann Europe cited for the large price rises in the last year. Perhaps they have scaled back production and have reduced the workforce to match. Regards Nick

Hi, Just for info the three thirstiest locos I've tested are all Heljan: These were tested at 12 Volts DC on a Rolling Road (the continuous current is the right hand column). So the voltage is probably near enough worst case but the current may go up when hauling a train. The colours were for my benefit as some of the DCC decoders I am considering using have 0.7, 0.8 and 0.9 Amp maximum continuous currents. Regards Nick

Hi, I found that if I started an exhibition with clean wheels and freshly cleaned track then most locos would keep going for 8 hours or so. The track (OO) would need cleaning the next day and possibly some of the loco wheels. Regards Nick

Hi, What a great set of data. I'm working on a gradient and curve calculator for predicting what gradient and curve a train will manage. Was the 1 in 100 gradient straight or was there any curvature in it?. Regards Nik

Hi, The Bachmann press release mentions motors in the driving cars (which I think has been mentioned before). So it could be two N gauge sized coreless motors each driving the rear bogie of the driving cars. So could have dummy driveshafts on front bogie. Looking at a MK1 coach there's only about 10mm between the bottom of the solebars and the bottom of the windows. I think the Dapol OO Cl122/121 was a good attempt at a low profile mechanism but seeming to use a standard height motor. Regards Nick

Hi, Its even got the dummy transmission shafts. Will this one have the low profile motor mechanism in it - if so will it be in the centre car?. If it is in the centre car then it wont be possible to model the DMB twin that reportedly LIMA came across when they were measuring up the class 117. Regards Nick

Hi, The answers should be the instructions that hopefully came with the point motors. https://www.dccconcepts.com/manual/cobalt-ss/ PS the conventional way with DCC is to have a DCC accessory decoder wired to the DCC bus and that drives the point motor(s), so the controller that goes with it is little different. Regards Nick

Hi, The E-mail I've received from Rails mentions: 5 pole skew wound motor So it looks as though the motor will be of a modern standard too despite the small size of the loco. The DCC socket is going to be a NEXT-18 - ​ don't know much about them but it may make sound fitting easier (dedicated speaker pins?). Can't see any mention of limited numbers per livery option which is encouraging to me although the deposit (option?) may counterbalance that. Regards Nick

Hi, Partly, also I don't know about the quality of Bachmanns 'own' sound decoders. Regards Nick

Hi, Is it ESU/Zimo sound or Bachmann lower cost sound chip?. Regards Nick

Hi, The info you want on the Ultrascale website is under products/conversion packs. I found the Nickel Silver version of the wheels transformed the slow running of Lima locos presumably due to better pickups. Regards Nick

Hi, It depends on how much the Heljan 26 draws when hauling the CMX up the banks. If the CMX jams (I've seen it happen) the current may go up further. If you can plug the DC shorting plug back in and have a multimeter that reads amps, carefully your fingers over as many wheels as possible and turn up a DC controller and see what the stall current is (I use 12V DC for worst case). If you can test the DC draw of the 26 hauling the CMX up the bank that would be very useful as that will give the maximum continuous current that the DCC decoder must exceed. One of my Heljan 33s that are very similar to the 26 drew 750ma continuous on my rolling road (so no train and no gradient) and all my 33's draw more than an amp when stalled. I can give more advice if its possible to measure the continuous and stalled current draw. Regards Nick

Hi, The latest info on the DCC supplies website says the 21pin Imperium is not Railcom equipped, so if it is by TCS its not the EU621X. Also the info mentions Coach lighting feature (CV59) ​which isn't mentioned in the TCS EU621X two page information sheet or the TCS CV list or the TCS comprehensive programming guide. ​Some of the integrated circuits are in a different place to the EU621X. ​Regards ​Nick