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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 27, 2017 18:44:18 GMT -5
Mark, But large number turnouts are available for Z: www.handlaidtrack.com/fixtures-z-turnouts I agree larger number turnouts would look better as would larger radius curves, but if you want that level of detail, you want hand laid track. Mark Which is what I do, and it's terrific. It's tiny work, takes a steady hand, and time, but the results are worth it. I've even taken it a step further and built curved turnouts using their process (if not their templates, since no curved turnout templates exist for Z). (The pics are of a #8 and a 30-degree crossing.)
But I have to agree that given the amazing locos and rolling stock AZL produces (yes, I'm a groupie), stick with that rather than go into other areas like track and such. I'd have to imagine the margin on track would be low, or at least lower than locos. Economy of scale could produce good margins if you sold enough, but that's the issue, after all...how much would you sell?
I'd far rather see superbly-running locos with ultra detail and get the track somewhere else (or do it myself, in my case).
Yard switcher, please. SW 1500. PRR. Three road numbers...
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 18, 2017 15:24:36 GMT -5
I've not found one that wasn't my favorite, but I had to give the nod to the GP-38. Aside from being dead last in the voting, it's actually the time period I find most interesting. And it's a great model. Well done. Now if I can just find some of those obsolete speakers and room in the shell...
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 17, 2017 15:18:47 GMT -5
Disappointingly before my time with Z scale. I'd stand in line too. Maybe someday Rob and Hans will release round 2, if they were that popular. Can't even find one on fleabay...you know they're coveted if you can't find one there. Not entirely sure, but there may be one, or a Challenger, in the Omaha rail museum. Don't drive thru Omaha much any more, but if I do I'd stop in for sure. In my neck of the woods there is a restored Nickel Plate 4-6-2 running and another being restored to running condition. Huge task. Can't imagine what it would take to get a Big Boy running...monumental. Just seeing/hearing the 4-6-2 come by is awesome...imagine more than 2X the size. Wow.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 17, 2017 8:48:25 GMT -5
Being a Pennsy guy, I've long envied (and admired) these UP workhorses. Found this on YouTube. Fascinating...
If you like Big Boys, you'll love these... (I don't "surf" much, but found quite a few of these while looking at the awesome Bay Shore videos...)
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 15, 2017 14:58:26 GMT -5
Thanks again for the suggestions. And I now have an idea of what to do but do I need two separate DTDP switches or just one in a central location? .... I understand about the DPDT switch but the question now is, where to put it? At which location? With the hope I'm not being "too helpful" (I'm often "too helpful" without meaning to be).
There would necessarily be only a single DPDT switch, and if I had to choose between one of two locations, I'd choose the more heavily used station. It's a mechanical device, of course, and the nature of the DPDT design means there can be only one.
However, if you're interested in being a little innovative, the relay idea is actually a fantastic option and, frankly, conceptually not that different from how you power a turnout frog. The device here would probably do the trick:
www.ebay.com/itm/12V-1-Channel-Relay-Module-Optocoupler-Low-Level-Trigger-Expansion-Board-Arduino-/112053316365?hash=item1a16e5eb0d:g:7AEAAOSw7s5Xgzcv
The shipping is free, and depending on where you buy the DPDT switch, it's not much more expensive if at all. Hard to beat a buck. But this way you separate the control of the power from the power itself, whereas with the DPDT switch you have the one physical device and it directly controls power polarity. To control the relay, you'd just need switches at each station to trip it, and those you probably already have (same as for throwing turnouts).
The negatives would be common, which admittedly can theoretically cause issue (shouldn't since both units are tied to the same ground in your house), so you'd route the positive through the relay. It's been a long, long time since I did any hands-on electronics, which I'm really looking forward to digging into. But this seems to be at least a viable approach. Good news is it's DC, so a simple volt meter would tell you if it's working correctly.
Please forgive me if I served to beat that old dead horse...
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 15, 2017 6:17:42 GMT -5
Sorry, missed the BCD... funny, you rarely see BCD any more... BCD is backwards, i.e. you are using binary to represent decimal numbers. BCD could not express all the possible values in CV's... True, but it wasn't unusual for the time period in which DCC was developed. In fact it was pretty common then. But I'm glad it's simple binary...
Electrically I can't think of a reason it wouldn't work. The advantage I can see for the more complex units is they serve a dual purpose...that of circuit breaker but also that of a loop polarity reversal controller. They're also "smarter" about the durations of higher current, such as when sound decoders kick off. I wouldn't have thought that important in Z until the recent threads about sounds:
azlforum.com/thread/806/sound-Christmas
So one day, maybe sooner than later, we might need to deal with current inrush for sound decoding. Hoping so.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 14, 2017 19:49:24 GMT -5
Ah, gotcha. Yeah, the name is messed up. I think I was starting to understand that, knowing there is no voltage regulator of any kind on the PCB. Would have to limit the duty cycle of the PWM input.
Not hex versus binary...hex versus *bcd*. Different. But you've answered the question. It's hex/octal/binary. Actually it would be unreasonable to assume some random controller would know to write bcd unless all CV's were bcd, which would be nonsense. Learning.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 13, 2017 21:03:04 GMT -5
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 13, 2017 20:48:25 GMT -5
32 ohms...seemed high, but I don't have specs on that decoder (yet). And I figured it would be tight in the GP-30...still worth the purchase of the decoder to size and see. What are the figures for the Wildcat? (Found it, 16X9X3mm, 8 ohms)
One thing I'm wondering is the ESU Loksound Micro decoder seems to also drive lights and the motor, so if so there is only the one decoder. That's good news at least. I'll know when I get mine in.
Anyway, not trying to beat a dead horse, but am really excited about what you accomplished.
As for that other loco, one has to wonder about the Mikado. I've not cracked the tender open, but I'd be curious to see what's in there and if there is room. I know the motor is in there, so maybe not. Have to look.
(Time passed...)
OK, reading a review on a train store site, I understand why the Wildcat was such a good choice, and why you need the airtight enclosure. (It's just how the speaker works.)
How does this look as a replacement?
www.alibaba.com/product-detail/16-9mm-1W-8ohm-Micro-Dynamic_60499938287.html I know *nothing* about "Alibaba", and could just get ripped off. But maybe not. Curious to see if you feel the specs are good (what's there, anyway). At 2 cents apiece, and assuming no identity issues (big IF), hard to beat the price.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 13, 2017 11:52:52 GMT -5
I've ordered one of those decoders and am gonna try to fit it into a GP-30. Hoping to not lose the GP-30, but this is really cool. Speaker...did you use something like this? www.digikey.com/products/en?keywords=CMR-150632-2-SPSeems like a reasonable size and has a good output.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 13, 2017 9:26:36 GMT -5
I love it. I'll have to look into that decoder...
Did you find you needed something the size of the E8/E9, or might your technique also fit (given time and testing) into a smaller shell, like a GP unit?
I'm amazed by the tonal quality and volume you're getting. Nicely done.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 13, 2017 9:07:34 GMT -5
Would you offer undecorated versions of these units? Better, unpainted? Out of curiosity why? To the best of my knowledge these units only had 4 paint schemes: DRGW prospector, SP prospector, SP "bloody" nose, and the Brazilian RR red (http://sp9010.ncry.org/brazil.htm). I can see AZL doing the first three, but probably not the last one since Brazil uses metric gauge (and there is almost no market for Z in Brazil). Mark Actually, the ML-4000 had all of 21 units deployed in North America, and those for western RR's (as you indicated). I wasn't looking to that particular unit.
I was more interested in the J Class unit. Since I was a kid, brass locomotives were expensive and special, and often came unpainted. I found them to be beautiful just that way. So it would be interesting to have an unpainted unit to show off the craftsmanship. I've picked up several HO PRR models, all unpainted, and am delighted to have them. (Happily, 40 and 50 year old HO brass locos are now comparatively inexpensive...go figure.)
Was just curious myself.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 12, 2017 17:36:27 GMT -5
They're being offered at a substantial discount from the original MSRP. No argument, and I'm thankful. But it's still just at $1700. Just saying I'm savin'...
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 12, 2017 17:32:17 GMT -5
I've not purchased one of these, but I'm going to: dccspecialties.com/products/powershield_x.htmSolid state circuit breaker...seems like a good idea. They list at $44.95 USD, but saving just one locomotive justified that cost. Also, I'd asked a related question here and was kindly pointed to CV's 6 and 5. The DCC units all (seemingly) can accept 12V, so you limit what goes to the locomotive motor electrically using these CV's. Or certainly at least CV5 (top voltage). My TCS docs that came with the decoder don't specify how that value is indicated, hex or bcd (binary coded decimal), but I'll research that, of course, before I fry something. Maybe I don't care since it's programmed on the track by the controller, and it "knows" what the storage encoding should be.
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Post by zoinks007 on Mar 12, 2017 17:17:04 GMT -5
2 and 5 are the "common" leads, so they are the leads powered by the supply currently active based on switch position. Those are the leads that will actually go to your track... (This is at least typical of most DPDT switches.) DC or DCC matters not.
If in doubt, a cheap ohm meter is your best friend. Place one probe on the center "common" pin and one on the pin to either side (long-ways, or in other words the three pins in a line). You should get infinite resistance when the switch is off or away from that pin, and no resistance (or very, very little) when the pin and switch are aligned.
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