I am almost giving up. I am having a hard time getting my train to run outside so considering battery power.

TTaannggss said:
What I am learning quick is that battery power and metal tracks are a bad mix. When you get a derail it shorts out real easy. I have gone through 2 fuses in 2 days plus I think I blew the head light interior lighting fuse.
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You were warned, more than once, and said you would not mix the two. It is quite important that the wheel pick-ups are disconnected if using battery power, this can be done with DPDT (centre off recommended) switch.
 
That is why you fit a switch (for battery or track)..
Or, you totally isolate the pickups, from your converted loco..

<typing at same time as Jimmy>

PhilP
 
There is no power going to the tracks. I have since made the curve around the palm not as tight so less chance of derail. With the cover off I can see the running lights still work inside the engine. Is the cab supposed to be lit up I forget but it isn't now. As well as the head light is not working. The 9 volt pulled a rail car and not bad performance so far. It might of shorted because left and right sets of trucks touched the same rail. I will now cut the pickups because this will happen again. I did want to still have track power but not now. I went through 2....3a fuses. Now running a 2 a
 
Ok so The engine is running a lot better around that curve. I was going to do something with that curve anyways. So what do you guys do for head lights?
 

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Ya well I just started all this. As per garden railway this is only month 2 with 2 seperate extensions. A headlight can not be that hard to hook up. I might even have spare bulbs from ho but I think I might need something stronger. I do want to make a new utube video and it would be nice if I had a running head light eh.
 
PhilP said:
You will be fine at home, as you are controlling things, and I presume you are NOT having track power on / connected, at the same time you are using battery..

You would normally disconnect the track pickups in the loco, or fit a centre-off switch, to switch between track and battery.

If you took your loco to another track, where there was track-power, either you could feed battery into the track, or the track-power could get into your loco, as well as your battery supply.

Battery-power back into the electronics of other loco's, could potentially damage them.
Track-power into your speed controller, could damage that.

Another advantage of the speed controller, that square, flat, orangey-yellow thing on it, is a fuse..
I bet you aren't using one, so far?

We just want you to be safe, and not damage yourself, or your loco's.

PhilP
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I was listening. You even said I would be ok if I just used the engine at home. I had a derail. The right and left sets of trucking touched the same rail. I had no power to the tracks and that is what caused the short. I have since corrected the track so should not happen again.
 
TTaannggss said:
The right and left sets of trucking touched the same rail. I had no power to the tracks and that is what caused the short. I have since corrected the track so should not happen again.
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It would be better to correct the loco and disconnect those track pickups. ;)
 
If there was no power to the tracks, it's hard to understand how that situation caused a short.

Best practices, are just those, they avoid problems.

By the way, your track needs fine gravel / ballast between the ties, not dirt and mud. No wonder you had conductivity problems.

But, it's your hobby to explore, I'm just concerned that bucking the advice given you will cause your efforts to fail and you will give up completely.
 
Yes I think I have good news. I put the shell back on making sure the rear fit connections were on very well. Well I got the head light to work. Did a run and derail. ..Waaaa. so I cut the pickups and taped then shut. No more track power for this dude... Off to get more fuses tomorrow. I am optimistic. With my experience with HO I never did all this. The closest thing I did was put a battery in an old ho engine to use as a track cleaner...Set up was all indoors andI never liked the battery operated engine.
 
Greg Elmassian said:
If there was no power to the tracks, it's hard to understand how that situation caused a short.

Best practices, are just those, they avoid problems.

By the way, your track needs fine gravel / ballast between the ties, not dirt and mud. No wonder you had conductivity problems.

But, it's your hobby to explore, I'm just concerned that bucking the advice given you will cause your efforts to fail and you will give up completely.
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I am far from an electrition. But if I had the pick ups still connected. Using one rail that is brass and conductive. Would that not cause a short. All I know is I was getting derails and popping fuses. Enough is enough no more track power it has reached the final chapter. (I think). Later tonight I found a 1 amp fuse and seems to be working. Will try it out tomorrow. Permanent no derails would be nice and something to work on.
 
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TTaannggss said:
I am far from an electrition. But if I had the pick ups still connected. Using one rail that is brass and conductive. Would that not cause a short. All I know is I was getting derails and popping fuses. Enough is enough no more track power it has reached the final chapter. (I think). Later tonight I found a 1 amp fuse and seems to be working. Will try it out tomorrow. Permanent no derails would be nice and something to work on.
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If you were running on battery power but were not able to switch off the track pick-ups, then it meant that you were also feeding power to the track! Any derailment of trucks could (and did) short out the battery!!!!!!!

I mainly run on track power (with a protective fuse on the power feed), but I do have battery locos. I built one that has a seperate truck to carry the batteries and plugs into the loco - like you mentioned. If I want to run the loco on track power, I built another little truck to pick up power from the track and that also plugs into the loco,

Testing Trains (4).JPG
the red van picks up the track power!
 
trammayo said:
If you were running on battery power but were not able to switch off the track pick-ups, then it meant that you were also feeding power to the track! Any derailment of trucks could (and did) short out the battery!!!!!!!
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Mick, I think we all told him this more than once, but the advice given does not seem to be taken (initially), he then seems to get frustrated, and sometimes eventually takes heed of the advice.
To be honest I am running out of patience, he may be a newbie to garden railways, but having asked advice, don't complain when it is not taken and things go wrong.
 
JimmyB said:
Mick, I think we all told him this more than once, but the advice given does not seem to be taken (initially), he then seems to get frustrated, and sometimes eventually takes heed of the advice.
To be honest I am running out of patience, he may be a newbie to garden railways, but having asked advice, don't complain when it is not taken and things go wrong.
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I think the pic in post 224 says a lot. I know we all have to start somewhere, but a little bit of prep, some barrier and perhaps some ballast would make a big difference.
 
TTaannggss said:
Permanent no derails would be nice and something to work on.
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Page 13 (minus 1).

Curb any enthusiasm you have for running anything at all, until you fix your track properly, and I mean properly. Rip up what you have laid, and build a firm formation for your trackwork. In the case of garden railways, a firm foundation is something you can walk on, and not leave any deformations behind! Then, and only then, set out your trackwork, ensuring it is to a good line, even grade, no dippy or kinky joints, and flat crosslevel (cant, is the term). Fix the track to the formation using your chosen method (screws to solid base, or ballast on formed roadway just like the real thing). Now, you are ready to do the push tests, get some rolling stock, and push it around your track, each time doing it a bit faster until you get to a speed that you plan to run at. When doing all that, put a few drops of 3 in 1 oil on the rails in a various places, your test train is going to clean your track for you. Keep doing all this until you don't get derailments. If you do get derailments, fix the track, and keep fixing it until you don't get derailments.
Now, perhaps, you just might be ready to run a loco, using whatever power source you decide on. Of course, you will have bench tested it first. Run it by itself for a while, getting a bit faster each time. Then, after not having any derailments, haul a train around. If the track is good, and the train is good, you shouldn't have any problems. Now, we are half way there.
The ultimate test for a garden railway, is to run your train flat out, in reverse ! This will not only test your trackwork, which is of course perfect, having followed all the advice you have received by now, but, will test your rolling stock..... but that subject will be for later discussion.
 
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I agree. But it does look nice on the ground like that. It is only that one curve....dead man's curve.
 
trammayo said:
If you were running on battery power but were not able to switch off the track pick-ups, then it meant that you were also feeding power to the track! Any derailment of trucks could (and did) short out the battery!!!!!!!

I mainly run on track power (with a protective fuse on the power feed), but I do have battery locos. I built one that has a seperate truck to carry the batteries and plugs into the loco - like you mentioned. If I want to run the loco on track power, I built another little truck to pick up power from the track and that also plugs into the loco,

View attachment 300192
the red van picks up the track power!
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As I said many many times. I have never run electricity through the tracks while on battery power period. I cut the pickups off last night and will remove the power pack today. No sense having a power pack outside with no intention of using it. It should not short out if I have a derail and pick ups cut but you never know. I will also be trying to smooth out dead man's curve.
 
TTaannggss said:
As I said many many times. I have never run electricity through the tracks while on battery power period. I cut the pickups off last night and will remove the power pack today. No sense having a power pack outside with no intention of using it. It should not short out if I have a derail and pick ups cut but you never know. I will also be trying to smooth out dead man's curve.
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What I meant was that, before you cut off the pick-ups, you were feeding BATTERY POWER to the track!
 
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