Battery Powered Forney

[BakerJohn]

Among my other projects, I'm planning to start conversion of my LGB Forney to battery R/C power. I have a couple of questions for someone who's done something similar before. I've found several US-based companies who sell such products, but my main concern is voltage. The manual says this loco will run at 0-24V, so does that mean I need a battery of that size?
I'm sure I'll have many more questions after this one.

 

[Tony Walsham]

14.8 volts (4s1p in Li-ion speak) is perfectly adequate.

 

[dunnyrail]

I have an LGB Twin Motored Diesel that runs on 10 x 1.5 NiMH quite happily for in excess of 4 hours with Sound as well, so if you do not wish to go down the Modern Tech Battery option there is another way.

 

[PhilP]

10-12 NiMH batteries will be adequate, of the Lipo option, as above..

Easiest way to work it out:
Length (loop?) of track.. Analogue supply (or bench power supply - that will have meters!)..
Run up loco to 'bit more' than sensible top-speed, then measure the voltage on the track.

 

[BakerJohn]

Thank you all for your input. I am looking into bluetooth connections to minimize the hardware purchased. What are your thoughts?

 

[Zerogee]

I would agree with Tony, having used 14.8 volt lith-ion packs (either 4 cells in a 4S1P pack, or 8 as 4S2P) in my two LGB battery conversions (both twin-motored locos, a 2095 BoBo and a Saxon IVk) that sort of voltage is more than sufficient to give a good speed, much faster that you would ever want to run as "sensible" scale speed.
You can get the 4-cell packs in either square or flat format, either of which is only a little bit larger than a 4xAA battery box; I would think that one or the other shape would be a relatively easy fit into the cab or bunker space on the Forney.

Jon.

 

[Tony Walsham]

Baker John.
I would be delighted to hear of any success or otherwise with Bluetooth on board battery control.
Please advise what Bluetooth equipment you are investigating and whether or not the telephone handpiece is practical / usable outdoors in sunlight.

 

[stockers]

What sort of range can one expect from Bluetooth?

 

[PhilP]

What sort of range can one expect from Bluetooth?

Probably not enough, for outdoor use, unless you run 'cruise control' and are happy to let them go at the far end of the run.

You *can* boost range a little, but it means 'getting at' the electronics.
Given Bluetooth devices tend to be physically quite small, this may be problematic for some?

 

[maxi-model]

I saw Shawn Viggiano has a battery powered Fourney in one of his recent videos. It is a Bachmann though by the look of it. He is on here as "Shawn" so you might want to PM him. Max

 

[Greg Elmassian]

To be fair, there is a higher power, longer range bluetooth setup... some people making bluetooth control systems claim quite a bit of range.

Bluetooth 5, in cell phones in 2017, has some new modes, and gives up to a 4 times increase in range in exchange for slower data rates (and we don't need high data rates).

Now, not sure if any of the bluetooth systems out there specify BT 5.0, but it is possible.

Greg

 

[PhilP]

I would expect many to re-purpose an older mobile handset for this??

That would tend to suggest the Bluetooth would be the older standard / power. Buy, yes, there are ways and means to increase Bluetooth range.

 

[stockers]

Increasing power may well put them outside of some radio interference regulation. Power output is very tight in EU and sometimes tighter in UK.

 

[BakerJohn]

Thank you, all.

I have decided against Bluetooth for the moment, as the one company I was looking at appears to be out of stock until August or so. The company was BlueRail, Tony. I do like the look of their board, but I'm not looking to wait until the fall to get my loco running. Instead, I have found two companies S-Cab and RC Trains. Since the latter is from England, I'm not sure about shipping, but his stuff is simple enough that I would be very interested in using it. S-Cab seems a little more advanced (and more costly) than what I really need at the moment. Within the next three years I'll probably only have a couple trains, so I don't need an expensive transmitter that will run multiple locos.
So, I've got most of my system planned out and basic wiring diagrams drawn. I've even taken most of the Forney apart to see what the wiring currently looks like (though, I cannot get the boiler apart.). I'm still unsure about sound; but if I do add it, it will probably just be a simple chuff (based on speed) and a manual-activated whistle. Additionally, if I do add sound, the speaker will probably have to fit in the steam dome, which only gives me about an 1" of usable space.

That's enough ranting for now, I think. Thoughts, comments, and concerns are more than welcome!!

 

[PhilP]

Thank you, all.

I have decided against Bluetooth for the moment, as the one company I was looking at appears to be out of stock until August or so. The company was BlueRail, Tony. I do like the look of their board, but I'm not looking to wait until the fall to get my loco running. Instead, I have found two companies S-Cab and RC Trains. Since the latter is from England, I'm not sure about shipping, but his stuff is simple enough that I would be very interested in using it. S-Cab seems a little more advanced (and more costly) than what I really need at the moment. Within the next three years I'll probably only have a couple trains, so I don't need an expensive transmitter that will run multiple locos.
So, I've got most of my system planned out and basic wiring diagrams drawn. I've even taken most of the Forney apart to see what the wiring currently looks like (though, I cannot get the boiler apart.). I'm still unsure about sound; but if I do add it, it will probably just be a simple chuff (based on speed) and a manual-activated whistle. Additionally, if I do add sound, the speaker will probably have to fit in the steam dome, which only gives me about an 1" of usable space.

That's enough ranting for now, I think. Thoughts, comments, and concerns are more than welcome!!

Hello John,
Not a problem to ship to the States..
PhilP
phil@rctrains.co.uk

 

[BakerJohn]

Hello John,
Not a problem to ship to the States..
PhilP
phil@rctrains.co.uk

Oh! Hi there Phil! I did not realize you were one in the same haha Are my emails getting through to you?

 

[PhilP]

Oh! Hi there Phil! I did not realize you were one in the same haha Are my emails getting through to you?

Yes..
Emails getting through..

Taken to email, but will probably see more of this later??

 

[BakerJohn]

Here we go, everyone! I ordered all my small electronic components as well as the battery and charger.


So, I'm going to be putting a 14.8V Li-ion battery in the coal bunker. The charger socket and SPDT switch will hide under the coal behind the cab. The switch will have three options: OFF - ON - CHARGING. I glued a small piece of wire to the coal so I can grab it to pull it away easily.


The speaker is going to go into steam dome. That dome is molded with the boiler so I just need to add a false bottom to the dome for the speaker to sit on. In the photo you can see the two feet at the bottom of the dome that the weight used to sit on. This is where the false bottom will rest. I also have to remove the pads that kept the weight from moving at all.


I am also going to put a switch into the lead to the smoke generator. I wanted to put it in the sand dome, but that will require a lot of rebuilding the dome. Alternately, I'm thinking of putting it all the way in the back where LGB had a 2-pin socket. I would have to buy a new switch for this. The push button for the sand dome won't work in the rear socket. Any thoughts??


That's all for now. I'm still waiting for the battery and charger to show up. Next to order: the transmitter, receiver, and sound decoder.
I know these pictures suck; I blame the basement lighting. ahaha

 

[PhilP]

If the smokebox door opens, could you put your switch in there?

 

[BakerJohn]

If the smokebox door opens, could you put your switch in there?

It doesn't, unfortunately. The only other option is under the cap of the water tank.