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PRR T1 kitbash from 2 Hudsons


rbrown7713
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Nick, are you concerned about the out of synch. chuffs?  On the T1, the two driver sets are independent of each other, so that is why sometimes the chuffs are in synch. and go out of synch.  Is that what your concern is? Bob. 

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   Bob, I know that being out of sync is normal,  concern was that the wheels appeared to me to not increase in speed but the chuffs did, and if so not in the same ratio.  I use mostly older Phoenix or Sierra when I can get them and use contacts on the wheels or the piston rod to  make sure the chuffs are where they should be.  Of course they don't have the 'voice' sound, but then I'm not crazy about that.  Have I not seen it correctly on the video?  Please don't get me wrong, I am still in awe of your work.  

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The sounds of articulated steamers run in and out of sync. Don't confuse that with timing to the drivers. It's just an attempt at making it sound right. For it to be exact, you'd have to have input from both engines.

Now if you are seeing problems with speed or sync being correct, it usually is just the spacing of the tach being off, or a bad tach or wiring to it.

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Ummm ohhhh. errrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

I have never wired an engine up to battery power! Ray or Chuck here maybe will help? I have to imagine it's straight forward though. Polarity to and from the TIU should be observed. PS3 won't care about it (other than direction).

PS3 engines have a funny thing that they start with a very low volume. When the caps get full charge, the volume goes to regular. Now if you have a pot wired in, that control the volume in conventional use. That also dictates the starting volume in command some how.

Putting the speaker in a baffle always is better than open. The sounds can cancel themselves if the front of the speaker is allowed to mingle with the rear too much. Porting is a whole 'nother subject!

I like using 4 ohm total, aftermarket speakers with these boards. It gets the most out of the smaller onboard amp. Finding one with some deeper bass and low free air resonance is the key and to fit in the space.

The stock upgrade kit speakers aren't the best available. They provide some clear basic good sounds.

I recently found some $2 4 ohm 2 inch speakers for O scale. They sound better than most stuff out there. I bought a (mid priced $20?) higher end peerless speaker for my O scale 3rd rail Niagara and the bass is much deeper than many others. If you don't mind spending a little more there's a lot to choose from. I haven't tried the big dollar ones yet.

 OK, sorry. I'm rambling. Let me know what else I can do.

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Well... we know that the minimum impedance the amp can drive is 4 ohms. So you can look at 4 ohm speakers, or 2 8 ohm speakers wired in parallel.

Specs of each speaker only give a small idea of what they will sound like. Efficiency, free air resonance, etc.

I am a big JBL fan after working in the rock and roll field for so many years. Their 2 inch horns have been state of the art for decades. A lot of guys go with specs and their sound systems sound that way. Very harsh or tinny sounding to me.

What I can share is that the sounds of a speaker need to be heard to determine if it will satisfy you. All the best specs mean nothing to me.

I know that only makes it tougher. The good news is there are many low priced speakers coming available that make it easy to pick from.

The speaker Ray has on his pages has good overall sounds for a very reasonable price for example.

I don't care what all the other users post about their choice of speakers. If it pleases you, you have done right!

If the stock speaker from MTH included in their kit pleases you, just go with it. Adding the stock type speaker enclosure assures a basic consistent result.

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I actually liked the MTH speaker at first, but then when I fired it up again, it lacked volume, but I think that the fact that the batteries ran down to 15 volts might have had something to do with it.  I have now charged the batteries and they are up to 22 volts, so I will see if it makes any difference before I change the speaker.  Maybe you can tell me about the effect of lower voltage in powering speakers.  I am installing the batteries in the engine today. Thanks for all of your help guys, I appreciate it.

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I am not positive of the full effects when the voltage gets too low. The caps act funny and the volume does drop off. I would think the board is good above 12 volts and 14 is probably what to shoot for minimum? I'm also not sure of maximum volts. I shoot for 24 volts on my meters. At the track it's already lower like 21? with wire and track resistance. When you get too much, the boards start acting flakey. If you could regulate the volts at say 18, I would think that would be optimum? I forget that you still have to power the TIU in the chain.

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I was originally going to put the batteries in the tender until looked into the rear of the loco and saw all of that empty space, nice to have a long engine.  I could only use two of the original stock pieces of lead that fit into the frame so the loco wasn't very heavy, but now, with the batteries, the weight is where it should be.  I have a double throw switch under the tender, off, charge, or on.  Also, I will be able to charge the batteries without  removing anything, like a roof, or open a hatch.  I put the charge plug on the rear of the tender, so all that I have to do is flip the switch to charge and plug it in.  I don't even have to uncouple any of the cars, my best design yet, compared to the P42, I had to remove a hatch, hate to have to do that, very laborious, LOL. So, I am waiting on some parts and when I install those and a little sanding and paint, I can kiss this 9 month project goodbye and start on something else, Bob.

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I like an idea that Ray Manley gave to us! I took some penny rolls and wrapped them in tape. I then hot glued them over the truck areas on my diesels or in the fuel tank. For about three dollars you add a lot of weight. I take into consideration what other weight is there like the speakers. I try to even up what each truck will be loaded with.

On the articulated steamers, this can be tough. The front truck of articulids won't load evenly from this added weight. You have to add spring pressure to get the weight to apply to these axles.

Your design does not need that. So I'm am interested to see how she pulls. Regardless she is looking great.

I look forward to see her in her PRR paint and decals. There's something extra interesting about what PRR ran. I have to build one of these someday soon, unless I can get one of those high dollar ones.

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I found out what was wrong with the sound, lack of volume.  I had pressed the menu and went to sounds and adjusted the whistle and bell down to 50% and later when I wanted it louder, I went back into the menu and adjusted back to 100%, but it didn't work.  So, a few minutes ago I pushed the plus volume button on the remote and the sound volume came back loud.  I am satisfied with the speaker, sounds good to me.  Here is a short video of the loco. in operation, and I know, I forgot to reverse the wires on the motor for the headlight, I will take care of that.  Almost done, took nine months.  Thanks for everyones kind words and help, Bob.

 

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