I thought I would have a go at putting a working brake light onto a EggerBahn brake Van.
After purchasing a 12 volt train module kit from Small Scale Lights, I've attempted to fit it with a degree of success but would be keen to know if there are any better solutions!
Photos show work to date and by positioning wires (which I tipped with some solder)behind wheels, light flickers on and off as train trundles round. Any ideas on how to get a consistent contact?
Set comes with two lights so may have to disable one.
The bracket holding wires in place underneath is a 009 Peco sleeper, held in place by Fleischmann track screws!
Thanks!
Are you DCC or DC?
Hello Stephen
A frustrating time I'm sure....hope you are back to modelling soon!
My layout is DC.
Thanks
Peter
Perhaps a battery powered lamp would be better than trying to get power from the rails?
You could just have a tiny switch under the floor to turn it on and off.
Brian Meldon
As Brian suggests using a battery of some sort would remove the need to pick up from the track and would give a constant light.
As a first step it may be worth giving the wheels you are using to pick up current a good clean - much in the same way as keeping loco wheels clean - by giving the treads a good go over with a cotton bud and some Isopropyl Alcohol (known as IPA, not to be confused with I.P.A. or India Pale Ale!) and also the backs if that's where the pick ups are making contact.
The other solution would be to use something other than the solder on the end of the wire as a pick up. Most of the commercial set-ups (loco chassis for example) use a phosphor bronze (PB) strip (bigger contact area than a wire though PB, brass or any stiff wire that does not tarnish will do) but the tough bit to get right is the balance between enough pressure of contact to wheel to get good conduction and not so much pressure that the wheel doesn't go around. Other suggestions that may improve the pick ups would be to use both axles, one for each polarity, and by using some conductive paint to 'short out' the plastic insulating bushes - do one on each axle so that it doesn't short the track - and fit them so the 'live' half of the axles are on opposite sides as this means that the pick ups can be rubbing on the axles rather than the wheels and the friction per wheelset is reduced as then each axle just has one (not two) pick ups.
Hope that helps.
I believe Ted Polet of this parish has done something similar with 3V button cells?
Many thanks for this advice!
I have a 3 volt version which could be an alternative as suggested by Hugh and Brian.
I will start by trying Julien's tips to improve contact with what I've got in place.
As I try things for the first time, I'm delighted to see it working in anyway at all....nice feature as train trundles off in dim light!
Firstly I would try and get some wheel sets which have one side not insulated (Greenwich have just launched a range ) This will obviate any rubbing strips .
Then make dummy "chassis" for each one out of brass with soldered bearings from Dundas .You can then solder the wires from the brass (one via a resistor ) to the LED.
Cut the axle guards off of the egger "bogies " and stick these to the outside of each brass chassis to hide the brass. .
With this method there is no friction because of rubbing strips .
With only only one wheel each side picking up current any method you use will not be devoid of flickering although I believe it is possible to introduce a capacitor in the circuit to avoid this .
Quote from: Peter Richardson on March 23, 2020, 08:28
My layout is DC.
You could use a very small bridge rectifier coming from your wheels feeding a 100uF capacitor and run your LED from that.
I will draw a diagram when I have my right arm back :-)
Thanks, plenty of thought provoking ideas for me to research!
I'd second the battery route... One other thing I'd add is that in steam era (and most preservation set-ups) the lights used are very, very, dim, even when using electric lighting. Most commercial products are far too bright. I used to have a couple of railway lamps used for rear and front train lights when i was a kid and they couldn't light up very much in front of them even when in "white light" mode... That's my only issue with such lights on model railways, they are so unrealistic.
Quote from: Hobby on March 25, 2020, 08:41
I'd second the battery route... One other thing I'd add is that in steam era (and most preservation set-ups) the lights used are very, very, dim, even when using electric lighting. Most commercial products are far too bright. I used to have a couple of railway lamps used for rear and front train lights when i was a kid and they couldn't light up very much in front of them even when in "white light" mode... That's my only issue with such lights on model railways, they are so unrealistic.
I have worked on a NG railway where in the operating rules we had to put a lamp the last vehicle on the train. However, the lamp only had to be lit in the hours of darkness or in thick fog, it was just an unlit lamp during the day!
Brian Meldon
The modern SG railway has lights all the time (though even then not as bright as the models I've seen!), but as you say, Brian, that is not the case for many railways. All the lines I model don't use a lamp during the day at the rear, just a marker of some sort, usually metal and painted red and white. Even when the lamps were lit (such as in fog) the old oil lamps were next to useless until you were right on them. For most models of NG all that's needed is the lamp itself, front and back! Usually even they are missing, even though there are some cracking dummy loco/tail lights in 4mm scale! For the tail lights on my coaches I just paint the light in a dull red colour which is as it looks in real life.
It's up to the individual, though, personally I just see it as a gimmick, but I know many people like them, and when the layout is viewed "in the dark" it can make all the difference if they are of a realistic brightness...
Here's a typical steam era tail lamp, you can see that the red lens is only just visible and it's not much different when lit...
https://www.gwra.co.uk/auctions/4-railway-lamps-br-tail-lamp-lmr-train-splitting-l-2019apr-0244.html