I have an acela train as well I have DCC &sound in my powerd loco... I have no plan's on powering my dummy unit because my acela works well on my layout now... I was wondering your thoughts why you want to power up your dummy loco....

Quote from: Billm10454 on March 18, 2013, 10:23:10 AM
I posted this video on youtube. Hope you like it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mi6zVJuDe0k

SWEET LAYOUT & I got the same exact Acela Train... Loco's in shop "now" getting DCC chip & Sound installed

Hi everyone.. I asked my Friend WHY we can't use the ROMEX wire he said ROMEX is just harder to work with " NOT that it couldn't be used " he just perfur es the wire we just ran for "reasons that Brad ed it's more flexible & the fact if SOLID WIRE BREAKS you have more of a problem to fix it " I can see his point there.. & he said he's always used braided on his 2 layout's between 2 houses & has never had a problem with the Braided Wire...

UPDATE : Removed all the ROMEX house wire from hole layout.. Ran NEW 12-Gauge Braided RED & Black & both wire's are separated 3 - 4 inches apart so I don't have a possibility of interference with my NCE DCC system.... My friend started wiring the leads in my Yard Area... I now see WHY Braided Wire is used & it shows it's a heck of allot more easier to work with.. I am glad I took everyones advice with the braided wire... My Friend said Friday he'll start wiring main layout & if he gets all that done he'll wire up my 2 - UTP Plug connector's... GUYS I REALLY DO APREACTATE THE TIPS IT REALLY HELPED ME OUT THANKS

Thank's for that info Ray....

Quote from: richg on March 11, 2013, 07:31:59 PM
Our club has two rooms and we use #14 braided and #24 solid for feeders. We have the NCE 5 amp Power Pro.
The original layout was wired with #24 for DC blocks as the club president worked for the telephone company. When we changed to DCC, we used the original feeders with about a six to seven inch length.
The solid wire is easier to solder to the track but has to be stripped carefully with the correct size wire stripper so there is no nick. With solid wire, if you nick it and do a sharp bend, the nick point sometimes will fracture.

Rich

Lowe's had 16-G wire in stock too but I figured my friend who's doing the wiring for me said to get 12-gauge braided so that's what I got LOL...  He is coming to wire up my layout Tuesday I intend to ask him the pro's & con's or the reason he used this type of wire on his layout... I will be happy when it's all wired-up LOL & at least when I expand my layout in the future I'll know how to do it...... I am glad to see from everyone.. To use ROMEX House Wire was not a shot in the dark & other's have used it.....

Quote from: CNE Runner on March 11, 2013, 01:15:56 PM
I use Romex 12-gauge (house) wire for my buss es on layouts I have built. The big home improvement box stores sell this wire in 25', 50', and larger quantities. After carefully stripping off the outer casing, one is left with 3 wires: a bare copper aux. ground (which I keep for other purposes), a black wire and a white wire (which are used for the layout buss wires). Spaced along the bottom of the layout, I glue small blocks of 1" x 2" wood that is predrilled with two holes to slip the wires through (you have to support the buss wires). Using 3M wire (suitcase) connectors I connect the track feed wires to the appropriate buss wire (it helps to have a diagram drawn on the bottom of the layout board). My track feeds are 22-gauge solid core wire because that is what I can purchase from Lowe's easily. Never had a problem with solid core wire.

Ray

Wow: Funny you guys should metion Romex "House Wire" I had my hole layout wired with Romex-12 Gauge I got 60FT of the Stuff from Lowe's... My Friend that has a Huge Layout in his basement "goes all the way around his wall's" he's wiring all my buss's in & soldering my track leads for me" I will do it next time myself but this time I am an observer... He came Sunday to Wire everything & said to me it's NOT the Right Wire... I needed to get 12-G Braided.. He said something about the romex solid wire is prone to breakage & something about it's more of a hassle to solder track leads to wire... I really didn't argue with him I though OK I'll get the right stuff after all his layout is all of his basement wall's & he said that's the wire he used on his layout....

Hi Everyone: I was just wondering what you guy's used on your layouts.... I am @ the point where I am ready to wire-up all my industry's all my sideing tracks are in... I decided to use Solid 12-Gauge wire over the Braded wire I feel it will be easer when soldering up my track lead's to the main track wire.. What do you guy's think....

Hi everyone : I was on SoundTraxx's web sight last night looking for a sound decoder for my DCC equipped bachmann GP-38-2 Loco & I came across SoundTraxx's Multi-Train Sound System.. From what I read about it the system can store 99 Loco's in a memory they call a roundhouse & you can operate 6 Loco's @ 1 time.. & will simulate Diesel & Steam sound's..... I thought WOW I already 4 Loco's with DCC & Sound  " I just dropped off 2 more Loco's @ the HS Train section for DCC & Sound "... I thought instead of getting the Sound's in the Loco's itself I'd spend the money for this system.... I am thinking & from what I Read All I need for this system to work.. My Loco's need to be DCC ready I don't need a Sound decoder in Loco's because that's what Multi Sound system is for.. I am really interested in this system....... Does anyone else already have this system in use.... Any comments would help       Thanks

Quote from: wb2002 on February 28, 2013, 09:24:25 PM
Anyone know of a product I can obtain from store like Lowes to use instead of Scenics's Smooth-It" to make roads on my layout? I don't live near a hobby shop and the one that is closet will not have it in stock.

Thanks

wb2002

Order your secenery stuff from an online hobby store

With that Loco about 10-12 car's...

I have Dash-940-B Loco's & I pull 11 car's around my layout with no problem I probly can run 1-2 more car's but my layout has a 2% grade I built into my layout..

Quote from: richg on March 04, 2013, 03:16:54 PM

Quote from: Brian1975 on March 04, 2013, 02:07:21 PM
OK everyone:  I am @ the point of the building faze " on my layout " where I need to get a power supply... I have wired the hole layout already & have my wire leads pre-drilled in 6ft section's throughout layout & ready to solder leads to track rail's.. I need a power supply that will be able to give me a constant 14 volt's throughout my hole layout " All my Loco's are DDC equipped with sound " I have a NCE power cab controller already I would procure a power supply from NCE.. but willing to buy any power supply that will LAST & perform well under normal use..

The Power Cab will work out of the box for maybe three sound locos. You cannot add more power to the Power Cab controller using a power supply. The Cab you hold in your hand has a current limit built in.
What else do you plan to run off the DCC? You actually gave us very little info.

If you have more to operate at one time, then you need the Smart Booster which is good for 5 amps. Our club has the Power Pro 5 amp and we have run as many as ten sound locos. I have measured about 3.6 amps. Only two reverser's and nothing else is powered by the DCC.

Rich

Rich : I have 5 total diesel loco's " Currently 4 are powerd with DCC & Sound "
I also have a 2-6-0 steam loco  " DCC & Sound

I have thought about getting the Power Pro 5... I was thinking with my power cab & the Power Pro 5 should be pleanty of power for my layout...

OK everyone:  I am @ the point of the building faze " on my layout " where I need to get a power supply... I have wired the hole layout already & have my wire leads pre-drilled in 6ft section's thoughout layout & ready to sodder leads to track rail's.. I need a power supply that will be able to give me a constant 14 volt's throughout my hole layout " All my Loco's are DDC equiped with sound " I have a NCE power cab controler already I would perfure a power supply from NCE.. but willing to buy any power supply that will LAST & perform well under normal use..

Quote from: TexasBigAL on March 02, 2013, 02:44:53 PM
I have some old Bachmann rolling stock and was wondering if I can replace the trucks or horn and hook couplers with the new version of couplers

I picked up some pullman passenger cars handed down to me & thay had the old school horn & hook couplers & i thought I'd body mount some kadee's & seeing if the passenger cars with some little TLC would work well with my 260 DCC steamer loco.. I wound up throwing out the passenger car's it was more of a hassel than anything.. I am planning on buying new updated passenger car's in ther future..

Quote from: Doneldon on March 02, 2013, 05:13:12 PM
Brian-

As important as the lights you use is the need to put up a valance or something so the lights themselves cannot be seen. This needn't be fancy. Some eighth-inch Masonite bends easily if you need it to and isn't expensive. I even know a fellow who attached curtain rods to his ceiling and hung short curtains in a railroad bib overall pattern. I think his wife made the curtain from some denim she found on a remnant table so the whole thing only took him less than an hour to install. Of course, it took his wife some time to get the material and make the curtain but that was time HE could spend on his railroad. (It never hurts if you can get someone else to do the work.) She also made curtains for the area below his railroad to conceal the shelves he had under there for storage. He used Velcro for those so he could easily pull them off to get a good look at what he had under there. He even had light bulbs under the train table so he could see his storage and wiring. And, of course, it only took him a few minutes to staple up the Velcro and he could play trains while his wife was stitching up the lower curtains. Having valance and curtains to match looked very nice, even professional.

@ Donelton :  Although I don't have a concern about valances or making anything up @ this moment & overall happy with the light's now how they are.. I do thank you for the input & idea

Oh, by the way. While the materials for the curtains were inexpensive, the snazzy restaurant he took his wife too as a thank you was
not. But they both had a great meal and some fine wine.

                                                                                           -- D