Cheshire Lines.

8 hours ago, WestRail642fan said:

wait, the APT has cab lights?! the cab light on my one doesn't light up

On my APT , the cab lights work on F1 in the direction of travel, but they only work if F0, the headlights, are also on - they work independently of the headlights but they don’t work if F0 is off. 

Hi all, a few people have asked me how I took the coaches apart so I’ve made a short video explaining the disassembly process. Hope it helps. 

Just to chip in on the stay alive question - I have 3 sound Deltics and they all run for about 5 seconds after being lifted off the track. They are also incredibly smooth runners even at speed step 1 - for me loksound and lokpilot chips work really well  - far better than Zimo especially from an ABC perspective.  My controller is an ECoS - perhaps that makes a difference? . . .

For those who wish to alter the brightness on the head codes, it is CVs 262 & 270 - each one is end specific. The default is 20 - I’ve altered mine down to 2 which gives a more characteristic glow to the plated over dominos. 
 

I also had the missing speaker screws but just used some spare small Bachmann screws and now the sound is fantastic!! 
 

A truly outstanding model !  Well done Accurascale !

On 22/06/2022 at 01:36, WestRail642fan said:

So, has anyone here found a way to hide the visible capacitors from the trailers and is it wise to outright remove them?

There are 2 ways to do this - both require de-soldering the capacitor and adding wires between the cap and the pcb. You can then either hide the cap in the vestibule at the end of the coach or hide it in the well under the seating which is what I did - you can see what it looks like in my detailing video which I posted above.

10 hours ago, marcusd666 said:

 

Just watched your video fantastic work any chance of making a kit that I can buy from you so I can upgrade my APT (14 car set) to the same standard.

 

Cheers

Marcus

Thanks Marcus - I've just sent you a DM to help sort out a kit for you. Chris

5 hours ago, amwells said:

Would you make any of them available to buy at all? They look amazing, but not sure I’d know how to create them from a file!

I’ve got some spare decal paper so would be able to do that - best to send me a DM and we can work something out.

49 minutes ago, E100 said:

That's superb.

 

Would you be open to sharing the files for the decals?

Thanks !  Yes happy to share the files - probably best to DM me. 

And here is the video :

After having to repair the steps and motor - it wouldn't run backwards - it now is a fantastic model - very pleased with her - here is a video

Hi all, as most of you have mentioned, I too had the drag issue which caused the set to derail ALOT ! -  it was the 2 kitchen cars causing the issue and IT IS the brake shoes rubbing against the wheels. I have used pliers to bend the shoes away the wheels - there are 2 shoes per wheel - I know that's obvious, but 2 of the shoes are hidden under a bar making them difficult to get to, but they were the main culprits touching the wheels. Having now made these adjustments to all 8 shoes on each bogie, they and the whole set run very well. One to to try if you are having the same drag problems.

I would just like to thank YesTor for his post and photographs which have really helped me.

First the disappointment - my 66 789 arrived with one of the yellow larger steps and one of the small black steps missing from the front and one of the smaller battery boxes detached. Fortunately as the steps were on the spare aprons in the detail bag I was able to replace them.
When it came to running, mine had a horrendous wobble. On closer examination of the loco on a flat surface I could see that not all the wheels were touching the ground - see first photo. Following what YesTor had done I identified 5 axle boxes that didn’t seem to align very well and removed them. All had glue over them and one in particular - the one at the bottom of the 2nd photo had lumpy glue all over it - once I cleaned them up and replaced them, the loco sits with all whees on the ground and the wobble has gone !
Clearly the glue around the axle boxes wasn’t allowing the bogie to sit as it should have done and caused wobbling due to the uneven glue on the AB shaft.

Now the good - It is a fantastic model - delightful infact when you look at all the pipe details, cab interior, overall heft and general presence of the loco. In particular the lighting and the sound are stand out features - the ability to switch off the rear lights and have the cab light extinguish when the loco moves are brilliant. I also love the way the wheel squeal works.

All in all it is a stunning model, I just wish I hadn't had to replace missing parts and take apart the axle boxes which did take the initial shine off, but now very happy with it.