NFWEM57

Still a bargain and brilliant to boot..!

Excellent idea to sell switch blades and crossing V parts separately...!

Once I have found a hobby room/building measuring 50ft by 16ft with a reasonable size house attached (to satisfy senior management), I can start my mainline layout..! And yes, Wayne has done a fantastic job.

I'm on a track building weekend in a few weeks time, I'll make a couple to take with me. On assembled common crossing, I think that is the approach I will use as well.

Than you for the reply. Apologies, there is a dimension given in the 2mm Scale Association shop, who sell them. So, as 9.42mm is the 2mm gauge, I assume the EM equivalent would be 18.2mm. Image is from the 2mm Scale Association Web Site and made form brass. The book indicates it is primarily used for setting a crossing nose from the (fixed straight stock rail) or a closure rail gauged from it. In other parts of the book it shows them being used to gauge the curved stock rail from the crossing V. Seems to have quite few uses. Have a lathe , so I might manufacture a few as they seem to be useful for the 2mm community.

The 2nd Edition of the 2mm Scale Association's book on Track has a crossing nose gauge, sometimes called a button gauge, on page 49. I can find no such gauge on the web or any mention on RMWeb. The book gives no dimensions, that I can find and I have not seen it mentioned in other track making references, Iain Rice, Norman Solomon, etc. Have never seen any for sale either. Does anybody know what the dimensions would be for an EM version would be, I assume 18.2mm given that the 2mm scale version is 9.42mm and matches the roller gauge dimensions? Or indeed, if it used in gauges other than 2mm scale..! The book says it is an essential gauge along with the roller and triangular gauges but I have not seen it used in OO or EM. Is its a nice to have or very useful?

It is a small 3 terminal motorised turnout motor, not servo, which is initiated by applying the voltage to the centre terminal and grounding one of the other two terminals. The motor runs until it reached the stops and the electronics disconnect the supply. Apply the ground to the other terminal and it moves back the other way. Mounted underneath the baseboard and links to turnout using piano wire as usual. Linear travel and movement adjustable in 3 steps so good for N and OO and possible O gauge. Very small footprint, 28mm x 40mm and low power use. Comes with built in frog switcher. Other versions have two switches, one for the frog and one for feedback. Made by MPB. Image form MPB website. DCC controllable switching using the likes of a Digikeijs DR4018 or ESU, Yodi or YaMoRc equivalents. Shop around as there are some overinflated prices but expect to pay £15~£20 in bulk.

I believe there are more 'flexible' 3D printing filaments but I am not an expert like others. Certainly a market for it .

OK, apologies in advance if the answers to my simple question are somewhere in this length topic. As I understand it, with HM7000 decoders you can: Install and then download the correct sound using a phone/tablet via Bluetooth with the locomotive powered from a conventional DCC track. Switch the decoder to DCC mode and use on a convectional DCC track thereafter; ESU ECoS powered. Switch back to Bluetooth for sound upgrades, if available. I have several HSTs to add sound to need to confirm the following: You can set 2 HM7000 decoders to the same long address, as you could with any other decoders, eg TTS, ESU. No need to adjust wiring for dummy power car, simply adjust CV29. Thank you in advance

All good points but a baseline sets of characteristic can be fine tuned for a layout. My planned layout has a long almost straight scenic section and so trying to simulate the prototype is more practical. So, working out maximum acceleration light engine and with a heavy load is of benefit. On the scale length, mine will only be very slight compressed so not really a factor. For more compressed layouts, once the acceleration and braking times have been worked out for all locos, a single 'compression' constant could be applied to suit the layout. So if the prototype take a minute to get to speed and travels x distance, adjust the acceleration to travel the compressed layout distance in the same time; might be an iterative process on one loco to work out the constant and then apply to the rest of the locos. I think I will proceed as planned and, if it of use to others, I will happily share.

Further to my previous contribution about locomotive characteristics, there is an interesting thread on the Scale 4 Forum about Brake Force and Stopping Distance which, in addition to the discussion, references a very interesting BR publication which summarise some of the characteristics for most of the early diesels and electric locomotives and groups of rolling stock. https://www.scalefour.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5340 Appears to be a great starting point for setting some of the CVs.

Whilst I appreciate that hard run locomotives on exhibition layouts need constant maintenance and/or adjustment, this is probably an outlier example, but useful information regarding operating at, or outside of, the design envelope. Once set up, I doubt I will need to adjust the CVs in my locomotive very often...! So, perhaps a database of pertinent locomotive characteristics used to inform the relevant CV settings. For example, acceleration and deceleration times, speed curves, light configuration, braking. They won't necessarily all be as per the prototype, but would provide the (average) baseline as used by manufacturers for specific models. I have been involved with complex engineering for decades and we always set systems to baseline setting before fine tuning, be that mechanical, electrical or electronic. I'll run my Class 37 tests and see what comes of it. I'll also try to find out about the operating characteristics of the prototype; which might prove difficult...!

Yes, rinse, lather, repeat seems to be common to many forums..!

You just beat me to it..! OK, I have 5 types of Class 37 in my collection, all EM gauge, without traction tyres and all Ultrascale. Alan Gibson or Accurascale wheelsets: A Lima Class 37 with full size CD motor, it just fits because of the EM gauge conversion. ESU LokPilot V5 DCC C37 profile A Lima Class 37 with a railroad chassis and AG wheel sets plus additional weight. ESU LokPilot V5 DCC C37 profile Several Bachmann 4 wheel drive with Ultrascale wheels with vanilla ESU V5 Basic Several Bachmann 6 wheel drive with Ultrascale wheels, one with Bachman factory fitted ESU V5 Sound Programmed Several Accurascale with 6 wheel drive Accurascale wheels, all with Accurascale ESU V5 DCC Sound Programmed So we are looking at similar traction, metal on metal, I will measure draw bar pull and look at the CV settings across the collection. It will not be overnight, sporting season coming to an end and I am team captain. But as some have indicated, its a start. And that was always my goal so that those less confident or unsure have a starting point. Yes, some like 0 to Mach 2 in a splits second, no adjustment needed. But, it will be a useful exercise to see what the CV variation is. Assessment about what each lighting CV does noted and I have a DCC modification that allow direction sensitive Red lights and Cab lights using one Aux function respectively only. Once I have the results I will upload. Sound decoders come preconfigured, but I do not use sound for the large part but I do want the loco characteristic for non sound decoders. Thanks for the the feedback.

Which just leaves acceleration, braking, etc.

I have a few class 37s from different manufacturers fitted with factory set decoders. Perhaps it would be a worthwhile exercise to generate a comparison list to see what the CV spread is.

It was to indicate the scale of the task, nothing more. A manufacture's CV list does not provide an idea of what to set for a particular class/model, that is the issue.

Would be the same for any decoder fitted, sound or otherwise. It's the baseline settings that are the starting point.

We have mapped the human genome, so this task would be many many orders of magnitude smaller. You have to start somewhere. There are circa 7,500 locos in the Model Rail Database and many will be the same model in different liveries. So that might reduce the list to 750, A tiny list in reality. If CVs are provided for the main decoder manufactures that might increase 5 fold. So, 3,750 profiles and many settings will be similar. But think of the benefit to others less certain of what CV setting to use. As far as i am aware, there is no copyright on CV settings...! So, if modeller X wished to use a little known decoder for his little know model of a class 37 for example then a range of profiles might be available for baseline settings.

Thank for the very swift response but, no, I did not. My question was about profiles being available. My observation was that every loco would be different..! So, maybe we should start one?

I am trying o find out if there are profiles available for (ESU) DCC Decoders. Not sound decoders, just ordinary decoders. Every loco is different and I am surprised there is not a site or a service available to list the CV adjustments required. A Hornby Railroad Class 37 will obviously require different CV setting to a Bachmann or Accurascale one. Anybody have any idea if there are such profiles available?

I had better pluck up courage to do all the previous updates which are needed to be undertaken one by one before this one.. One error and its back to Germany for a rebuild taking months. Which is why I have not updated since purchase in 2020..!

Update I decided to purchase the Shipway parts as, in bulk, it is effectively the same costs per ETS part as buying the West Hill Wagons packs and having a lot of wasted parts. Just tried to use Shapeways for an order and magically, at the final stage (4) of checkout process, the prices for each item increased by over 20%, nothing to do with VAT, shipping , handling etc which were all itemised separately. Luckily I spotted it, so caveat emptor with Shapeways. I have sent them a complaint, doubt I'll get a response. I know the USA considers the UK to be treasure island, they can charge want they want and we will pay, but significantly uplifting the price during the checkout process..! Surely that is illegal...in the UK at least..! I have sent an email to the developer, who is UK based, to see what options there are.

Just tried to use Shapeways for an order, reluctantly, and magically at the final stage (4) of checkout the prices for each item increased by over 20%, nothing to do with VAT, shipping , handling etc which were al itemised separately. Luckily I spotted it, so caveat emptor with Shapeways. I have sent them a complaint, doubt I'll get a response. I know the USA considers the UK to be treasure island, they can charge want they want and we will pay, but significantly uplifting the price during the checkout process..! Surely that is illegal...in the UK at least..! I was after Class 47 ETS and MW connecters. I make my own pipe work but the TTS and MW connectors would like parts more detailed than I can make myself. The recent West Hill Wagon packs are too expensive for just the ETS parts and lack the MW connectors. If only the UK developers of the parts would manufacture and sell within the UK. For interest I have been running a separate thread on this.

Fascinating thread. Now officially an OAP, I think I am fairly safe with my wired ESU DCC set up..! Who know, the major DCC manufacturers and the NMRA might agree a wireless standard one day..!