Just starting out in G gauge

That's the sort of day to have, and well-deserved for you.
Sarah Winfield said:
I was watching a video of Lazy Grange Bay layout, at least I think it was that. I do like the idea of radio control it seems more like driving the locomotive.
A fascinating railway.
Sarah Winfield
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That's interesting, Sarah. I started with radio control and battery power, determined never to go to track power. But I did, still also keeping battery and radio control as an option, and I found that I felt more in control, more connected, to the track powered locos.
 
Our little layout, is generally about 80cm from its inception as our daughter, a wheelchair-user, used to like playing trains. Mind you, it's only that high nearest the house, toward the corner the ground rises about 40cm.

tac
 
GAP said:
Oops that should be 100CM one of these days I'll get used to that newfangled metric stuff
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Stick to imperial then you know what you mean let others convert to metric if they need to upload_2018-3-29_9-28-57.gifupload_2018-3-29_9-29-5.gif

Shaun
 
Hi Sarah
Just been catching up with this thread. Not sure how/why I've missed it up until now. As Phil has said, there's a fair bit of info about converting locos to battery r/c on my blog - but what might be most relevant for you as a starting-point are the conversions I've made to my own (and others') Stainz locos.

The simplest conversion is to put the batteries and r/c gear into a trail wagon and plug the output into the socket on the rear of the Stainz. No need to disassemble the loco (which can be a bit daunting the first time). See - http://riksrailway.blogspot.com/2016/03/how-i-converted-lgb-stainz-loco-to.html

If you want to do a more comprehensive conversion by installing everything in the cab of the Stainz then see - http://riksrailway.blogspot.co.uk/2016/05/how-i-converted-lgb-stainz-loco-to.html

As has been mentioned, I've done a fair few battery conversions and builds - see http://riksrailway.blogspot.com/p/contents.html#rc

Any questions then please ask.

Rik
 
Nice blog, came across a used Stainz for $20 recently, so will convert to DCC, but a separate unrelated question, I see the socket in the back of the loco where you can feed power for a battery setup, but is it possible to use the switches inside to disconnect the track pickups? And that switch is really under the lead weight you cannot get to without pulling the entire loco apart?

Thanks, Greg
 
Easier to just remove the wheel brushes, they make black carbon dust that really stains the red plastic chassis anyways, along with removing the track skates. I put my battery in a box car and fed the Stainz thru that rear power port.
 
Greg Elmassian said:
Nice blog, came across a used Stainz for $20 recently, so will convert to DCC, but a separate unrelated question, I see the socket in the back of the loco where you can feed power for a battery setup, but is it possible to use the switches inside to disconnect the track pickups? And that switch is really under the lead weight you cannot get to without pulling the entire loco apart?

Thanks, Greg
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As Artfull Dodger says, easier just to remove the pickups and skates (by taking off the baseplate). Unless, of course, you have a decoder fitted, which might need to be removed. Not tried running a loco off battery with a decoder fitted, I assume it will just operate in DC mode(??)

Rik
 
Greg Elmassian said:
Nice blog, came across a used Stainz for $20 recently, so will convert to DCC, but a separate unrelated question, I see the socket in the back of the loco where you can feed power for a battery setup, but is it possible to use the switches inside to disconnect the track pickups? And that switch is really under the lead weight you cannot get to without pulling the entire loco apart?

Thanks, Greg
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Greg where did you get the Stainz?
I would like to get 2 mechanism for a kit bash but the prices asked and postage is just prohibitive.
 
GAP said:
Bit of a problem in that I only have metric tape measures, imperial departed these shores years ago.
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Sorry Gap didn't realise, we are still bilingual here, at least as long as we still use imperial units.

Shaun
 
TLR said:
Sorry Gap didn't realise, we are still bilingual here, at least as long as we still use imperial units.

Shaun
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Officially, we only use them for milk and distance and we have a generation and a bit who have only been taught metric (i.e. international system) units. Only Liberia, Myanmar and the USA don't use SI units, although it seems that the metric system is the preferred system in the USA for trade and commerce.
 
"Give them an inch and they'll take a yard!" - is there a metric equivalent of that - or "Going to spend a penny" ?
 
playmofire said:
Officially, we only use them for milk and distance and we have a generation and a bit who have only been taught metric (i.e. international system) units. Only Liberia, Myanmar and the USA don't use SI units, although it seems that the metric system is the preferred system in the USA for trade and commerce.
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and beer - don't forget the beer!
 
stockers said:
and beer - don't forget the beer!
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Don't start me on beer!!!
The sacrilegious mongrels reduced the bottle sizes from 375mL to 330mL :mad: :mad: :mad:

Not to mention the crisps packets went from 50g to 45g but the price stayed the same along with the scotch bottles reducing from 750mL to 700mL to line up with the European standards. :mad: :mad:

Can't even call SWMBOs favourite tipple Moselle anymore it's now "soft fruity white" because of European branding/trademark restrictions; but I won't change guess I'm just a rebel without a clue. :) :)

Ahhh!!! that's better rant now over.

"Going to spend a penny" is known colloquially as "Draining the spuds" down under or another term that is not for polite company such as this fine forum. ;) ;)
 
playmofire said:
Officially, we only use them for milk and distance and we have a generation and a bit who have only been taught metric (i.e. international system) units. Only Liberia, Myanmar and the USA don't use SI units, although it seems that the metric system is the preferred system in the USA for trade and commerce.
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We are able to buy food by the ounce / pound / inch [ black pudding ] and drink, all depends wether we want to use imperial units or not, as the saying goes use it or lose it

Shaun
 
Living in a rural area, you soon find out who is metrically-minded - signs offering land for sale in Ha and acres are quickly replaced by acres only, and not a single farmer we know has changed the name of his farm to 'Fairhectares' or 'Greenhectares Farm'. We buy our fuel either in money - £25-worth/whatever - or until the tank fills up. Eggs are in dozens, else how are you going to buy a box of five eggs? I've yet to see a single road sign in Km, and if you DO see an 'm', it means miles, not metres.

Mileage in a vehicle - not kilometerage - is measured by how far you can go using ONE unit, a far easier proposition than the faintly ludicrous 100 km per so many litres, made more ridiculous by the fact mentioned above that all distances on road signs are in miles...

Foot pounds torque is easy, but Newton Metres? WHAT? Foot pounds energy? Another easy one, so what is a Joule - metric for a metric? HP for Horsepower? Great. PS [German, in case you didn't know, for Horsepower - Pferdestark] is a little bit less for more, or is it the other way around. Who cares - HP is a British invention when the British invented and developed the working steam engine.

Sure, the money is metric, but so is everybody else's.

We might have adopted the metric system back in 1971/2, but until everybody who was alive at that point or grew up with the Imperial system is dead, it will remain the province of Johnny furriner.

tac
 
Agree with that..
It was murder when metric came in! - Working in a DIY shop..

9mm ply STILL came in 8' x 4' sheets..

2" x 1" planed timber 'suddenly' got smaller (to Joe Public).. - It had always been the case that '2 by1' was the rough-sawn size, and it came out as 1 7/8 x 7/8 once 'Planed All Round'.. But now it was 25 x 50 (mm of course, and we had turned the measurements round) suddenly everyone was aware that it was actually about 21 x 47 mm.
The real 'killer' was it was now in linear measure of 0.3 metres! So 6' of 2x1, was now 1.8 metres of 25x50, oh and that will be a little short, if you actually want it six foot..

The only difference buying it today, is we seem to have gone to the actual finished size of the timber for the cross-sectional measurements.

Oh, and when did they start supplying PAR timber with rounded corners? - Bet it is a health and safety thing?? :giggle:
 
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