Kadee coupler

[tlnibert]

A friend ask me to find out what Kadee coupler fit the three truck Shay
Also for me, what Kadee fits the K-27
How should I remote control a K-27 with battery power. The only thing I have now is the Aristo TE.
Tom

[Kevin Strong]

Kadee now makes a screw-in replacement for the Bachmann coupler, so you can use whatever Bachmann draft gear is on the locomotive, and simply unscrew the Bachmann coupler and replace it with the Kadee coupler. I forget what the number is, but it's on Kadee's web site. Pretty simple solution to a longstanding problem. Wish they'd do that for other manufacturers as well.

As for R/C, that's a pretty open question. A lot of systems will work very well with the K-27. The Aristo "Revolution", QSI "Quantum" (soon to be replaced by the "Titan"), and Remote Control Systems all make plug-and-play systems that will drop into the socket. If you want to do a little extra wiring, Airwire's a good option as well, as is G-Scale Graphics "RailBoss" system.

Later,

K

[tlnibert]

Kevin, I didn't see you at York!  There was a lot to see, I sit a short spell with Lewis Polk. He's nice people.

Kevin I have a DCC system for HO trains. I traded for it and a bunch of trains. Do you know what I would have to have to rc control a K-27.  I'm rebuilding a layout and moneys going to be short for awhile.
I'd like to see the Aristo unit, but no one I know has one.
Hey how about an article from you on how to install an Aristo unit and make a battery car.
Tom
Huntington WV

[Kevin Strong]

Alas, I'm in the wrong part of the country to make it to York. I'd love to see them do something like that in the Denver area. (The closest we'll get is the GRC in Kansas City, which I won't be able to make, either.)

If you're familiar with DCC, then I'd go with either the Airwire G-2/Phoenix combination (around $320) or the QSI with the G-wire receiver (around $280). You already know about CVs and the cryptic nature of programming them, and I'd presume you're used to having a bunch of functions at your fingertips to control. I use both (and Aristo's Revolution) on my trains. Each system has its unique strengths and weaknesses for each installation.

The Airwire is a great motor control, and has a pass-through to hook up a DCC sound decoder such as Phoenix or Tsunami (though the Tsunami won't put out near the volume that the Phoenix will. It is $40 cheaper, which saves you a bit of money making it comparable in price to the QSI option.) The downside with that is that you cannot just "plug in" the G2 into the onboard socket. You'll have to gut the circuit board in the tender and just use the wires to hook up to the pertinent things. The good news is that the wires coming into the circuit board are easy to identify, and it's simple to attach them to the pertinent places on the G-2 and Phoenix board. (That, and you can use the G-2's auxiliary lighting outputs or DCC passthrough to another lighting board to control the firebox, cab, and class lamps.)

The QSI "Magnum" does plug into the tender socket, so in that regard it's a much easier install. The "G-wire" receiver is a very small board (around 1" x 2" x 1/4") that plugs into the QSI via a short ribbon cable. That's the wireless receiver that will give you R/C control. Of course, the Magnum is out of production right now, and its replacement--the Titan--won't be available until June-ish. It's supposed to have some much-improved features over the Magnum, including lighting features, but whether it interfaces with the class lights, cab, and firebox lights on the K-27 via the plug-in socket remains to be seen. The Magnum cannot, save for the headlight only.

The Revolution is a very good system, but if you're used to being able to control a ton of different functions like DCC affords you, then you may find having only 6 functions a bit limiting. If you're not into that extreme level of control, then it'll work quite well for you. When it comes to physically controlling the trains on the track and blowing the whistle, ringing the bell, and other common features, the Revolution is really no different than any DCC system on the market. Different controller, different interface, but you push buttons to make things do what you want them to do. At that level, the specific protocol it uses to do so is irrelevant.

Like the QSI, the Revolution plugs directly into the socket in the tender. Unfortunately, like the QSI, it cannot control the lights--including the headlight in this case. Weird, but that's the way it is. You can gut the socket and wire everything directly as you would with the G-2 installation and be good. In doing that, you can also wire the class lights, firebox, and cab lights to some of the 6 function triggers as well, leaving the rest for sound triggers from whatever sound system you want to install. I like the Revolution for its simple programming. It's not a complicated system, but can do many of the basic things that the DCC systems can do. (I also like the DCC stuff, don't get me wrong. I don't "need" to be able to trigger the sound of water pouring into the tender from the water tank, but it's pretty darned cool that I can.)

I've got the Revolution installed in my K-27, with the socket PC board removed and the Revolution wired directly to the leads coming from the locomotive. I'm using functions 5 and 6 to control the headlight and class lamps respectively. The tender back-up light is controlled via the Revolution's directional light outputs. I could do the headlight that way, too, but I don't like the way the Revolution turns the headlight off when the loco is stopped. I like to have the headlight on unless I specifically want it off.

Speaking of the Revolution, did you see/hear Aristo's new Sound version of the Revolution at York? At a street price expected to be around $125 for the board that includes receiver, throttle, and sound, it's likely to be the most economical choice out there. It'll be interesting to hear it when it's available. (I've not heard it yet.) Certainly something to consider if you're looking down the road a few months before getting going. It's supposed to be out later this Fall. Even if it's not as full-featured as QSI or Phoenix, at that price point, it should appeal to a good number of people who don't need "all" the bells and whistles the high-end systems offer.

As for an article on installations, there's just too much variation between systems, locomotives, and features to do anything that comes close to explaining what's needed for everything. I did an overview a few months ago of what to look for, but it was rather generic. I really couldn't get too specific. I'll be happy to help anyone off-list if they have specific questions. (Battery cars? Old school technology. It still has its limited applications, but by and large there's no need for them with today's technology.)

Later,

K

[StanAmes]

A friend ask me to find out what Kadee coupler fit the three truck Shay
Also for me, what Kadee fits the K-27
How should I remote control a K-27 with battery power. The only thing I have now is the Aristo TE.
Tom

Just a few minor notes to Kevin's post.  For Shay's I remove the truck coupler bar and lower the existing non used coupler pocket on the locomotive.  Then I put in a straight coupler such as the 901 or 1850 into the locomotives pocket.  Very prototypical look.

The K27 are much easier since the couplers boxes are already at the higher height.  I use the 916s for the front and 900s for the rear.

For DCC I use the Lenz Gold Decoders with power modules or backup battery for track power, or use them with the QSI receivers for non track power applications.  I use Phoenix for sound.

Hope that helps

Stan Ames

[tlnibert]

I was at the show, but I didn't see enought. Last night I read Kevin's article in Garden Railways on the Aristo TE and I'm convinced that's the way to go. Today on the Aristo Forum I learn that Lewis is adding sound on to the TE receivers. That will save a ton of money.
I was never interested in battery operation. A Li Po battery that cost me $79.99 a couple years ago can now be bought on line for less than $10. The battery was a 2200ma 3 cell.  I want a K-27 battery powered to clean track.

Tom
Huntington WV

[jsmvmd]

Dear Kevin,

I have been procrastinating about building a battery car or similar for use with an Aristo Rogers 2-4-2 and an Annie.  Could you please contact me via email for me to get your thoughts ?  Loco Bill has been very helpful, and I was thinking about doing a battery car his way, not "Frank's" way  .

Best Wishes,

Jack Majcher, Altoona, PA

JSMVMD at AOL period COM

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Hey Tom,What is your online source for the Lipo battery for only $10 bucks!!  Wow!!   I getting ready to buy some at All-battery.com but the cost is way higher!!

Thanks,

Bill