Big light for a Big Hauler

[on30gn15]

In the obsessive, so my wife says, quest for ever brighter headlights, how do ya figure this will come out?

Pennsylvania Big Hauler is test subject.



Back was removed and number boards were opened out for adding clear part.



The less satisfactory presently in use 5mm warm white led behind stock lens will become backup light, stock was unlit.
Yes, these are 2 different light castings, one was grey plastic, one black, on the same loco!

[Joe Satnik]

Dear on30gn15,

I presume you know about the need for a resistor (for current limiting) in series with the LED.  

If you wanted brighter light at slower speed (DC), you could put diodes in series with the motor to slow it down.  

According to George Schreyer, Bachmann LS 4-6-0 stall current is 4 amps, so you would need at least 4 amp diodes (->l-).  



North rail pickups ------------l--------------------------l---->l--(repeat..)--l----------------l
                                        l                                    l                           l                    (+)
                      smoke switch, smoke, light(s)               l----l<--(repeat..)--l                  motor
                                        l                                                                                    (-)
South rail pickups------------l--------------------------------------------------------------l

More diode pairs in series drop motor voltage even further.  (About 0.6 V each pair)

Added bonus: two pair would just about wipe out the 1.25V zero throttle voltage of the Bachmann LS set power packs.  

Hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Joe Satnik

Edit: removed redundant stall current sentence.

[on30gn15]

Ahhh. thanks Joe.
Will peobably be couple days before anything happens. body is being hard to get along with today.

[on30gn15]

Something else thinking of doing as this is PRR loco is that at some point they added marker lamps to pilot beam ends and tender tank rear corners.

Somewhere in one of these pages there are photos of locos so equipped http://www.northeast.railfan.net/prr_steam1.html

Going to make those lights battery operated off sound battery in tender as that way if track power is lost you can still find your loco in the dark.

Okay, here's one showing that lighting arrangement, much later loco. So what?
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/prr8396s.jpg
www.northeast.railfan.net/images/prr1961s.jpg

Aristocraft 4-6-2 Pacific markers ordered via LHS and 3mm white LED from Christmas string are supplying the parts.

Here's how class lamps are done using those same marker castings
Ran wires outside smokebox up to headlight as real conduit would have been outside smokebox. Lamps are mounted in notches cut in smokebox sides. Notches in locating ring of smokebox front are required too.
Rear facing lens is painted amber with Tamiya clear orange.  Other lenses are white to signify train running as unscheduled extra.

Probably going to mostly use this Big Hauler 4-6-0 as freight engine and pull Bachmann PRR passenger cars with HLW 4-4-0. Which will get green class lamps to signify second section running behind it - even though in garden Ry reality there likely never will be.



Oh, yeah, reflector for 5mm h/l is made from party goods chromed plastic bling ring.

[on30gn15]

Made a spot of progress, glued strip in recess for stock molded lens.
Strip just thick enough to leave a couple hairs wide lip to glue .005 or .010 clear sheet styrene lens to.
Strip was worked into curve with Kadee HO coupler trip pin pliers.

Next thing to do is paint interior white.
As LED is 10mm diameter and casting interior is 15mm dia. there is little point in trying to make 2.5mm worth of reflector.

[NarrowMinded]

Instead of painting it white how about cutting strips of aluminum foil to size and glueing them inside the of the housing.

NM

[on30gn15]

Instead of painting it white how about cutting strips of aluminum foil to size and glueing them inside the of the housing.

Did that for another loco and for unknown reason decided to do this one different. Thought about paintinig inside silver but settled on white.
Can't say why it is, just that it is.

[on30gn15]

If you wanted brighter light at slower speed (DC), you could put diodes in series with the motor to slow it down.

for some reason have been insecure about trying that, even back in the HO Athearn blue box days if 2 decades back.

I don't know, guess I might have to; I mean if I can saw bits off $300 trains and change headlights, what real problem is there? 

There's plenty of room in boiler to put gizmos and whatnot since smoke unit is removed as I can't use the stuff.

[on30gn15]

Frustrating - was testing to see how light looked now that it's after dark and succeeded in getting resistor wrong and blew LED. 

Did have one more. got it going.
Don't know that I'm entirely happy with it - kind of wish it had a greater beam angle than 10 deg.  20 would be nice.

Still going to use it outdoors a couple times.
Then decide if to do something different.

[NarrowMinded]

When I replace my bulbs with LED's I have them pointing straight up the light bounces around inside and is extremely bright it also produces a more prototypical beam of light from the unit

NM