collectors

The site still has problems & lasts for about 5 page clicks if your lucky & then get "browser says the site can't be reached" Not sure why the site is not taken down until its fixed with a simple redirection to there blog. I personally wouldn't trust an order with the site. Shame as its very informative & has a good Goole position. Shame to loose all this for the sake of 30mins of work.
Its almost like their server is picking up on my IP address & blocking me for 24 hours.  It nearly as frustrating as this sites slowness. lol

On 19/01/2021 at 07:42, wasdavetheroad said:

Ah! I read somewhere that you could use a N-FET (transistor?) to switch the 5V+ input voltage of a relay.

 

How many relays do you want to control and what voltage do you want them to switch? It seems the way to switch points with Deltang gear is to use a servo motor which the Rx can control easily.

 

I am not familiar with how relays work but they are basically a 'safe' means of high power switching? and I presume the 5+V triggering the relay has to be continually applied or is it a toggle with a pulse of power to switch on or off? The reason I ask is if it is a toggle or you are switching a single relay you theoretically use the channel 1 MOTOR output of the Rx to switch a single relay, plenty of power there, or if it is a toggle needed  a simple multi way switch could control several relays. The speed control is only a variable resistor and could be replaced with a switch or the RX can be programmed to give a minimum voltage output higher than 5V, theoretically. a simple 'blip' of the throttle would then switch the relay.

 

I have had positive experiences with Micron Radio Control and reckon that if there is a solution to your problem they will find it as they know a lot more about this electronic trickery than me.

 

edit - just visited the Micron site, those FET buffers look like the way to go

Hi, apologies for not getting back, forum not sending notices out about replies. "I think its solved now". Micron is very helpful & he sells some wizardry to switch larger relays "Single FET Buffer". Its a bit like a tiny relay switching a larger relay. Once i have fitted this, i can then get larger relays on a board that can be pulse latching "press once & on / press again & off" So similar to sounding a horn. Think the unit below work in a similar way.

The max current from any P output is 20mA so you will have to use a small reed relay. Alternatively, you can drive the gate of a N-FET from Px (100R in series, 10k to negative). We have some tiny boards with single and dual FETS on page (http://www.micronradiocontrol.co.uk/fet_buffer.html 

Just an extra diagram if needed.
 

On 02/01/2021 at 22:23, decauville1126 said:

Plenty of helpful advice on radio control, lipo's, etc., can be found on this forum:

 

http://www.freerails.com/

Have tried to join a couple of times. a friend also. You have to go through the admin & they decide if they want you. Both of us never got a reply. Maybe they dont want brits??

21 hours ago, wasdavetheroad said:

Interesting, what are you hoping to use the relay for? I am thinking there must be a workaround somewhere?

Hi, was looking to control other things around the layout, like village house lights, street lights & possibly points via relays & my RC controller. But i might be able to use some 5v dsm2 receivers i have for my model aircraft & connect the relays this way. But it would also be handy to have an on/off switch via the RX60 receiver. 

PS: That site had a drawing of Bi led,s
 

Thanks for getting back & sorry for not responding. "I dont get email notice on a reply's" But great info in a more simple English, i would of treated the L as live for led & relays.  I tried purchasing from RCTAINS but got one reply & no more after that, so went to  http://www.micronradiocontrol.co.uk/rc_model_rail.html & he made up a controller but only had the older RX60 boards in stock, so i took these. 
One of the things that confuses me is most RC boards work on a 5v receiver yet this one is 3 to13v with outputs of 3.3v & if you want a basic relay, most rc relays are 5v.  Laugh, cant win. So! do i find a 3.3v relay or increase the output voltage somehow.?
Think my resistor for the led should be nearer 50k, rather than 500k.

Sorry i didn't get back, I'm not getting an email notice. But many thanks.

Hi, could I get some help with two questions on connecting this receiver? Its a DMX  3 amp 13v with built in ESC . Now, i know about connecting the power & the motor on the left of the image, but not the L,1,2,3,4,5 part.
1. The leds. I believe i can change the led colour according to which way the train is traveling “white for forward & red for reversing” so when I select F or R on the controller the lights will auto change on the direction the loco is traveling. If forward the led will be white on the front of the train & red on the rear. These will both change to opposite colours when the direction changes .
Do I connect NO:2 from both led’s to L on the receiver.
Then connect 1 from the 1st led & 3 from the 2nd led & solder to terminal 1 of the transmitter, then take the remaining 3 & 1 led leads to terminal 2 of the transmitter.?

2. Also, What's the best type & best way to connect a latching or flip flop relay to the receiver. IE: which terminals to operate the coil.?

Hi, i am just starting to convert some locos on an ON30 scale to battery. What connectors do you use for charging a battery train/loco. I am using 3 amp 3S lipo's that can be ballance charged. Do you just charge your battery via the pos/neg lead & every now & then balance charge the battery. 
I was hoping not to have to take the carriage apart for charging & fit a jack plug to charge. Or do i fit a 2 pole jack & a 4 pole jack to enable balance charging???
Any words of wisdom would help. Thanks

16 hours ago, wasdavetheroad said:

Which receiver are you going to use because in model planes etc you can fit a BEC which is a battery elimination circuit?. This provides a low voltage to power the receiver from the high voltage battery powering the motor.

 

I don't get any emails either

Looking to use a RCT-Rx65c for size & it has a built in ESC  LINK On the forum part, i know they have had a lot of software problems. Not sure why they dont just change to a PHPBB. I am sure it's transferable. 

1 hour ago, wasdavetheroad said:

The amount of energy available in the battery(s) is the total not just the single battery total. For my express locos I use a 9V voltage booster with 2 x 3.7V batteries connected in series, this has a conversion efficiency of over 90%. in other words 10% of the batteries capacity is used in the conversion process. If you use a 12V booster the efficiency drops to about 80%.

 

Your locos will have different power requirements, mine range from just over 100mA to one loco with 500mA.

 

A low power requirement loco can have a single battery giving a 9V boost at 80% or better efficiency for up to locos which need 300mA , if you want 12v the loco limit is 250mA.

 

If you don't mind the battery voltage declining as the batteries discharge you don't need a booster, 3X lipo batteries in series will provide 12.6V fully charged and 9V discharged, 9V is enough for an express 4-6-2 loco to pull a 12 coach train at a scale 60mph. My heavy freight locos use 2 batteries in series giving 8.4V down to 6V. Maximum speeds with a long train are over 30mph fully charged and over 25mph depleted, this OK as the unfitted train has a speed limit of 25mph.

 

If you are using Lipo batteries don't over discharge them!

Hi, thanks for the info. Will be using Lithium ion 3.7v batteries & will charge onboard via a jack plug with a Li protection PC/board depending on the amount of batteries. I do have room for 4 batteries in a goods van on my on30 locos. Bit tight in a coal tender, so my steam loco may look a little odd.lol. Will have to have 2 voltage regulators, as i will need 1 @ 5v-8v for the RC receiver  & 1 @  ?v  for train. "Was aiming for 12v"
PS: Not getting any emails to say i had a reply. I checked the follow topic button. Any suggestions? 

With a battery train & using 4 x 3.7 batteries am i better setting the batteries at 14.8 with a step down board to 12v or 3.7 & a step up board to 12v to get the best performance & longevity.  Or is/are? both the same? I realize that the 3.7 will give me more Ah, but wasn't sure.
Thanks