Setting up Radio
control in 14xx and Prairie locos
Being new to
this area of railway control I took to investigating three companies
that provided this as a service. I asked the following of them:
1.
Can you help me put together a package that will drive both
these locos, (they will be DCC driven with sound and probably be
Loksound which I will install – can your equipment control such an
arrangement?)
2.
If so, with these none tender locos can the RC units be
fitted unobtrusively into each one?
3.
What overall do I need to make the whole thing work and the
likely cost?
Finescale:
Pricing exercise
Both locos in factory finish or fully finished, lined, detailed and
numbered states.
The Revolution DCC system acts as a medium between RC and the
decoder so you have the benefit of battery powered RC and the
functions of DCC
So you need:
1 45xx £840 in factory finished
£185 for unlined or £240 lined
1
14xx £675 in factory finished £165 for unlined or £205 lined
1 revo Dcc starter kit £270.00
1 revo Dcc extra receiver £110.00
1 charger £30
1
sound decoders & speakers loksound 4l for the 14xx £145.00
1 sound decoder speaker loksound 4xl for the 45xx £ 193.00
1 battery wiring kit for the 14xx (you will have to use a truck to
hold some of the kit or place the decoder in the cab) £90.00
1 battery wiring kit for the 45xx ( has a big motor so more
batteries and hence 4xl 4 amp) £110.00
We can fit the kit for £125.00 per loco if required
Fosworks Pricing:
1. Yes we can offer a complete package, including the Loksound decoder. There is a choice here - you can have the OMNI Tx4.0 with an XL decoder or you can have an OMNI Tx4.1 with v4 decoder and drive the motor with our Cobra speed controller. The inertia programmed into the DCC project is matched by the inertia control on the Tx4.1, so that it all works nicely together. It's much easier to fit in the model than an XL decoder and quite a saving too.
2. Not a problem, we've done hundreds and have developed kits to suit the spaces available.
3. Basic kit prices 14 xx / 45xx - £160, DCC plus £45, Speaker - £6, Esu decoder with sound project - perhaps you have a preferred supplier. but ranging from £112 v4 8 pin - £195 XL You could perhaps use decoders from your O gauge locos.?
Subsequently asked if batteries could be in the non tender engines as well, Answer: yes, onboard batteries, 12 cell AAA in the 14xx and 12 cell AA in the prairie (if you're prepared to cut away some metal - otherwise 12 AAA same as 14xx)
Brian
Jones response:
I
use conventional model radio control systems like those you would
find for battery powered R/C cars, boats and planes. The only
difference with my system is that the model is a battery powered
railway loco. Hence the Macfive controllers I design and produce,
are for operation with such R/C sets as you would use for R/C model
planes, boats and cars, and
not DCC decoders.
So no go from here on in!
There are cordless handheld DCC throttles which can be used to run
DCC equipped locos, such as those by Massoth for LGB. I investigated
such a setup for a fellow G1MRA member Chris Fleming-Brown some
years ago. It worked well but was rather expensive compared to
conventional battery powered R/C.
The beauty of having on board battery power is that you don’t need
to clean the rail head to maintain electrical contact. As most G1
layouts are outdoor, and are live steam, with lots of oil and muck,
that’s quite an important factor. If you’re staying indoors with a
small layout, then it’s less of a problem.