RC | How is it done?

Tony Hunter

Tony Hunter

Tony - He/They - on long term break
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Morning everyone,

My name is Tony & I'm new here & im also new to G scale.
My friend is scratch building a G scale inspection vehicle & would ideally like to have it RC controled (unlike his other models which are track powered), but finding away to have it RC is becoming difficult, as our original plan was to get a cheap (£0-£25) remote control car & use the gumph from that, but it was soon pointed out that you will need your finger on the wee lever all the time, which for a hours running is not ideal, we then decided to have a look in the RC planes/ helicopters area as they can also be bought cheaply & you don't need your finger on the control all day, but that idea was soon scrapped after discovering that the motors dint go backwards like the cars do (this helps if the thing gets stuck in a difficult to reach place or needing to go the wrong way). Any help would be they much appreciated!

Thanks,
Tony.
 
It isn't actually an entirely cheap option, but it's worth pursuing.

Issues / balance of probabilities are what size / type of battery - as an inspection vehicle, it's potentially not hauling anything so you can use AAA cells (some people have gone smaller I think)

Ideally you need an electronic speed controller, that will manage the reversing for you - my last project used a micro Viper.

When you come to a Transmitter controller, you have quite a large choice. The cheapest that I have found is the 4 channel Saturn which you could pick up for £40 including receiver. But there are plenty of other options, and plenty of people on this forum who have used them.

The advantage of using a set up such as this is that most of the modern ESCs have cruise control, whereby, if you are a tail chaser like me, you can turn off your transmitter (saving on battery power) and watch the train run round and round - simply switch it on again when you want to exert some further control, as in stop :sweating::sweating:
 
a98087 said:
there are 2 options I can think off, it's either the deltang option sold be RCtrains or use plane/boat stuff but you will need to use a servo to operate a dpdt switch to change polarity.

If space is a concern go for deltang and it's incredibly compact

Dan
Click to expand...
I will have a look at deltang, thanks! :)

Madman said:
Have a look here,

https://www.gscalegraphics.net/store/c1/Featured_Products.html

Del has a whole line of R/C stuff that has worked very well for me. Not sure if his frequencies are for worldwide consumption. You'll need to ask him.
Click to expand...

I will also try to contact Del, but I have a feeling postage will be high due to me being in NI & the company being American(?) based.

Rhinochugger said:
It isn't actually an entirely cheap option, but it's worth pursuing.

Issues / balance of probabilities are what size / type of battery - as an inspection vehicle, it's potentially not hauling anything so you can use AAA cells (some people have gone smaller I think)

Ideally you need an electronic speed controller, that will manage the reversing for you - my last project used a micro Viper.

When you come to a Transmitter controller, you have quite a large choice. The cheapest that I have found is the 4 channel Saturn which you could pick up for £40 including receiver. But there are plenty of other options, and plenty of people on this forum who have used them.

The advantage of using a set up such as this is that most of the modern ESCs have cruise control, whereby, if you are a tail chaser like me, you can turn off your transmitter (saving on battery power) and watch the train run round and round - simply switch it on again when you want to exert some further control, as in stop :sweating::sweating:
Click to expand...

That's an idea that I like, would you know where we can gain these RC equipment?

Thanks,
Tony.
 
Batteries - look at Vapextech

Micro Viper - can't remember where I bought mine; There are a few suppliers on the G Scale Society list of retail links who supply them.

Saturn is made by Ripmax, and I've used a model racing car shop but can't remember which one, however, Cornwall Model Boats are stockists and they are a good, reputable online supplier.
 
a98087 said:
there are 2 options I can think off, it's either the deltang option sold be RCtrains or use plane/boat stuff but you will need to use a servo to operate a dpdt switch to change polarity.
If space is a concern go for deltang and it's incredibly compact
Dan
Click to expand...
Thanks for the plug, Dan

The cheapest way in with RC Trains equipment is the Tx10 at £32 together with an Rx65 (wired) at £35. I also sell a wiring loom at £4.50. All you would then need is some batteries - those will depend on the space you have available and the voltage you want. NiMh batteries are probably the easiest to manage. I would go with Hobbyking LSD batteries which hold their charge when stored. Normal NiMh lose their charge when stored and there's nothing more frustrating than having to recharge a loco each time it's needed. I use lithium ion batteries but they need very careful handling and a decent charger.

There are other radio control solutions available, of course. Such as Yatton, Brian Jones, Timpdon, Peter Spoerer and RCS.

Or you could try adapting non railway related radio control systems but then, as you've noticed, not all operate in reverse and lack features such as cruise control and outputs to control directional lighting and soundcards which come as standard with radio control equipment designed specifically for use with trains.

Always happy to talk through various solutions if you wish.

Rik
 
Tony Hunter said:
Morning everyone,

My name is Tony & I'm new here & im also new to G scale.
My friend is scratch building a G scale inspection vehicle & would ideally like to have it RC controled (unlike his other models which are track powered), but finding away to have it RC is becoming difficult, as our original plan was to get a cheap (£0-£25) remote control car & use the gumph from that, but it was soon pointed out that you will need your finger on the wee lever all the time, which for a hours running is not ideal, we then decided to have a look in the RC planes/ helicopters area as they can also be bought cheaply & you don't need your finger on the control all day, but that idea was soon scrapped after discovering that the motors dint go backwards like the cars do (this helps if the thing gets stuck in a difficult to reach place or needing to go the wrong way). Any help would be they much appreciated!

Thanks,
Tony.
Click to expand...
I use this its cheap and easy to install.
http://www.members.optusnet.com.au/satr/2point4GHz.htm

And this one
https://www.dimensionengineering.com/products/syren10
 
ge_rik said:
Thanks for the plug, Dan

The cheapest way in with RC Trains equipment is the Tx10 at £32 together with an Rx65 (wired) at £35. I also sell a wiring loom at £4.50. All you would then need is some batteries - those will depend on the space you have available and the voltage you want. NiMh batteries are probably the easiest to manage. I would go with Hobbyking LSD batteries which hold their charge when stored. Normal NiMh lose their charge when stored and there's nothing more frustrating than having to recharge a loco each time it's needed. I use lithium ion batteries but they need very careful handling and a decent charger.

There are other radio control solutions available, of course. Such as Yatton, Brian Jones, Timpdon, Peter Spoerer and RCS.

Or you could try adapting non railway related radio control systems but then, as you've noticed, not all operate in reverse and lack features such as cruise control and outputs to control directional lighting and soundcards which come as standard with radio control equipment designed specifically for use with trains.

Always happy to talk through various solutions if you wish.

Rik
Click to expand...

This is a very good option especially since the transmitter comes pre-assembled.
 
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