Recent content by platypus1217

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    Strobe Light

    I want to install a strobe light on the top of my n scale locomotives and hooking it up to the decoder. I was having trouble finding white 1.5mm white LEDs. I was thinking of using a small incandescent bulb instead, probably something like this Has anyone done a similar installation? Any...
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    Layout CAD Programs

    RTS is probably about as straight forward as you are going to get, but again it is only useful if you are using only Atlas sectional track. XTrkCad has more flexibility with the type of track and is much better at handling flex track. But it is difficult to learn. I am normally pretty quick...
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    Another Layout Thread

    I got the foamboard from Home Depot. It is 1" insulation. I framed the layout with 1x4 around the outside and 1x3 cross bracing on the inside. I put a sheet of plywood on top of the frame. Then I secured the 1" foam insulation to the top of the plywood with construction adhesive. The foam...
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    Digitrax Back-EMF

    I got the top speed of my two locos matched up ok last night. But they have different starting inertias so once you go below 3/4 throttle they start to get out of synch. I was half tempted to go out and get a scale speedometer and USB interface so that I could write a program to do it for me...
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    Digitrax Back-EMF

    Has anyone ever set up the back-emf features on a digitrax decoder? It seemed like a bit of work going through the three CV's and indvidually incrementing them to find the correct value as described in the instructions. Is it worth it? I tried turning them up pretty high and I still had to...
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    Taking the plunge to DCC

    Everything got here earlier this week. The decoder installation was a little bumpy. Mostly issues with my engines and not the decoders. One of my engines had a loose wire on the motor and during the course of putting in the decoder I knocked it off and it took me quite a while to figure out...
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    Taking the plunge to DCC

    Well I ordered the equipment: A Digitrax Zephyr and 3 decoders, two for my GP's and one for my MP-15. I went with the Zephyr because of the "Jump Port" functionality that you can use a DC power pack as a DCC control To get another DCC cab it would have been at least another $60 for the cab...
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    Roundhouse car kits ?

    I have been body mounting my own MT's on any cars where I need to upgrade the couplers as well. I didn't like the results I got with trying use the MT conversion kit that mounted on the trucks. There were a number of CSX kits that were right about at the range of what I would consider paying...
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    Taking the plunge to DCC

    Actually I just have one. I use the blocks so that I can park an engine on a siding and let another go by on the main line. That is another reason for me to switch: With DCC I can park the engines anywhere without having to worry about what block they are in.
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    Taking the plunge to DCC

    I think I might convert my layout to DCC. The motivation is running consists of locomotives. Over the past few months I have four Atlas GP38-2's. Unfortunately they all run at slightly different speeds, and only two of the four are close enough in speed that I feel comfortable running them as...
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    Roundhouse car kits ?

    Good to know.
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    Roundhouse car kits ?

    Does anyone know if roundhouse car kits come with trucks? If they do what kind of couplers? How is their quality? I have seen several on Ebay lately and am trying to decide what they are worth. If they don't come with trucks or don't have the right kind of couplers I need to get them...
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    New in town, introducing myself

    Looks like a neat site. Good luck with it.
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    N scale coupler question......

    I have a mix of Accumates and Microtrains. I prefer Micro trains.
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    My 3x9 HO layout

    Nice! Do you have any projects lined up for the layout?
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