dnamron
Passenger
Posts:3
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 | | 08/24/2008 7:46 AM |
| First a quick biography. We've been blessed w/ two sets of twin grandchildren and one single in the past 2.5 years, all boys. The lady of the house has lots of flower beds in the front yard,continually working them w/ plans for more, and I had the brilliant idea of enhancing said garden w/ a railroad for the boys as something to keep me off the streets and watching it grow with the boys. I have done an awful lot of reading over the past few weeks, and got a starter set from a local hobby shop. It is a Bachmann Silverado with a Big Hauler and is entertainment for her cats in the den now.
I purchased 60 ft of aluminum track from Sunset valley and will start putting it to the ground this week. I am gonna use the pvc conduit method on rocks and metal stakes driven in the ground. (Incidentally I live in Memphis, Tn, where Elvis is still in the building).
My first question is exactly what do I need to order for the Bachmann to convert it to battery power? I've looked over the RCS website and don't know exactly what to get. I will mostly watch trains go round in the beginning but will add passing sidings, sidings and a yard in the future so there will be operating later, but mainly now I will have to spend the time running keeping the twins out of trouble.
Do the components come with simple instruction so I can install them myself? Does the stuff come with batteries or should I get my own for longer running time, which is really not an issue cause the weather here is not really conducive to long periods outdoors, cold, heat or high humidity usually runs me back in just a little while. Anyone been there, done that? I will try to keep questions as pointed as possible since I have read pages of answers that don't apply to my situation.
The next thing that is troublesome to me is the fact that the best place for the empire is in the front yard. I live on a fairly busy residenteal street with a good amount of pedestrian traffic to boot. We plan to hide the RR with tall grasses and rose bush 'fences' as much as possible but I am still concerned about it being a distraction to passing motorists and a temptation for pedestrians to make themselves at home? Using aluminum track as a deterrent to copper thieves. I'm going ahead with my plans anyway but just wanted input on any past experiences you may have had.
Gotta go with the landowner to #1 daughters for breakfast, will put in more later.
Thank you, thank you very much ! !
Mike Normand | | | |
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Les
1st Class Member
Florissant, Missouri
Foreman
Posts:311
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| | 08/24/2008 7:54 AM |
| Mike,
While I'm not going to be able to answer your questions, I can say, "WELCOME to the board!"
Les Whitaker | | | |
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Bill Swindell
1st Class Member
Martinez, CA
Foreman
Posts:234
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| | 08/24/2008 7:55 AM |
| | I have put AirWire systems with NiMH batteries and sound systems in Several Bachman locomotives. You can either make the tender shell removable and use tool batteries or install larger capacity batteries and charge them in place. The batteries that I use will probably give you nearly 5 hours of run time. They are 4.5AH, 14.4V batteries. | |
Bill Swindell
Martinez, CA | |
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Dougald
Moderator
Foreman
Posts:461
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| | 08/24/2008 10:23 AM |
| Welcome to MLS.
The B'mann Annie (same essentially as in your strters set) is not a difficult loco to battery power. Paul Norton, a member of the Ottawa Valley Graden railroad Society, has written up the conversion on our club website. Check it out at http://ovgrs.editme.com/Annie The substitution of an RCS elite for the Aristo throttle that Paul used would be straight forward.
To do the installation with RCS, contact Dave Goodson (a member here named Curmudgeon) at NWRCS - he is an RCS dealer and can explain exactly what is needed.
Regards ... Doug | |
Doug Matheson
Manotick Ontario
SA #122 | |
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Torby
1st Class Member
North Chicago 'burbs.
Engineer
Posts:1907
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| | 08/24/2008 11:12 AM |
| Pleased to meet you! Sounds like a fine plan.
You'll like that Bachmann loco with RCS, and it's not hard to do. | |
 One king held the frankincense,
One king held the myrrh,
One king held the purest gold,
One King held the hope of the world.
-- Point of Grace | |
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Jerry Barnes
1st Class Member
Lexington, NE
Engineer
Posts:1132
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| | 08/24/2008 6:01 PM |
| | Welcome to the site and large scale. Best place to start would be George's site: http://girr.org/girr/tips/tips.html It has info on LOTS of stuff, read over the Bachman things. Some is a bit out of date, but most is still relevant. Jerry | |
Life is too short to take seriously. | |
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TonyWalsham
Melbourne Vic Australia
Foreman
Posts:365
Send Message
| | 08/24/2008 6:15 PM |
| Posted By dnamron on 08/24/2008 7:46 AM
SNIP My first question is exactly what do I need to order for the Bachmann to convert it to battery power? I've looked over the RCS website and don't know exactly what to get. SNIP Mike Normand
Hello Mike.
This is not an uncommon occurence.
A lot of potential battery R/C customers do not realise I make two completely different systems. I even get enquiries wanting to know which EVO part is needed to match with an RCS part. They use the same hardware with a different operating program and do not work together.
To solve this problem I am splitting up the RCS website with the EVO brand now having its own site.
evo-rc.net
Very soon all reference to EVO products at the RCS website will be deleted and the RCS website itself revamped to make decisions on what is needed, much easier. | |
Best wishes,
Tony Walsham
Remote Control Systems. www.rcs-rc.com/
Evolution Radio Control. www.evo-rc.net/
The primary problems of the planet arise not from the poor, for whom education is the answer. They arise from the well educated - for whom self interest is the problem. William Sloane Coffin. | |
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