Hello all.newbie needing help with piko loco

[Tjbkitchens]

Hi.I have a g scale track set up in my garden for a while.Essex. uk. I've just purchased a brand new piko br80 from piko shop in Germany. I believe it has a fault but before I send back someone might tell me different.
If I run with just sound it performs perfect.as soon as I switch the smoke on with oil in.no smoke and only goes 1/3 speed.if I raise the loci enough for wheels to spin on full and switch over to smoke and release loco I get smoke and full speed until I stop and it reverts back to 1/3rd speed.any ideas? Thought maybe faulty voltage regulator??

 

[Zerogee]

That really does sound like there is a problem with the loco... can't think of anything simple that would cause those things to occur.

On a more positive note, welcome to the forum - what part of Essex are you in? There is quite a good little group of us up in the north of the county, around Colchester and environs......

Jon.

 

[Gardenbahner]

What are you powering it with?

 

[Madman]

Welcome aboard TJ.

 

[idlemarvel]

Welcome to the forum.
To help you more we need to know whether this is analogue or digital and what is the brand/model of your controller. If you don't know, the part numbers will help.

 

[Tjbkitchens]

Thanks all. Analogue. Basic lgb starter set which I expanded.not sure why power relevant as it runs fine without smoke switch on??and my lgb loco runs fine too.or should I be upgrading my controller as it's drawing too much power??

 

[Tjbkitchens]

Ps. Clacton on sea.

 

[Zerogee]

If it's the controller from a fairly recent LGB starter set, is it the one with a separate black power pack and a very lightweight red control box? If so, it's probably only good for about half an amp - so yes, your Piko loco might be overloading it with both sound and smoke turned on. Earlier LGB sets came with a 50080 all-in-one "transformer/controller" that was capable of 1 amp, one of those would probably give you enough "oomph" for the time being (you can find them frequently on eBay for around the £20-£30 mark) - but even that would still only be a stopgap, probably better to get something with more power (anything from 2 to 5 amps) that would still do the job when you get some bigger locos.

Jon.

 

[Zerogee]

Ps. Clacton on sea.

It would be worthwhile you joining the G Scale Society (GSS) if you haven't done so already - that will give you access to the info about all the open garden meets that happen through the summer months, we've got a good number of them in and around Colchester, Ipswich, Braintree etc.
There's nothing like visiting a few local layouts to pick up ideas, chat over problems, get advice and generally get inspired!

Jon.

 

[stockers]

Yes, it could be a power problem. Smoke can draw a surprising amount of current and Piko motors tend to want more than LGB ones.

 

[Tjbkitchens]

Thank you Jon. I will sign up.would love to see some layouts.mine is in the very early stages.a basic lap of about 30 metres around the garden but I'm loving it.I was inspired to get into it after a visit to gypsy woods in Wales a few yrs back.fantastic layout. Anyway.yes I have the lgb lightweight controller.will upgrade before I send loco back.thanks for advice

 

[PhilP]

If you can visit a dealer, they may have a track in the shop you can run it on..??
Would prove the problem is a 'lightweight' power supply.

 

[Gardenbahner]

When I bought my PIKO BR80 set with sound and smoke, it came with a 1.6 Amp (32VA) power supply.
So yes, you may be under powering it. It will be worth checking this before sending the loco back.

 

[PLANEBLUE63]

I have both the LGB starter set controller and the Piko one, The LGB starter set unit is not powerful enough to power the BR80 properly the Piko controller is far better and more powerful the only downside to these units is the very slack clips on the back of the unit to hold the wiring in. Its very easy for the power wires to the track to slip out of the holes in the back of the controller.

 

[Nordmij]

Power loading agreed. TJ i am in Southend most folk are at the other end of the county.