TRAIN TECH Help, General Questions & Talk to the Staff

[Ropefish]

8 hours ago, Duq said:

Download issue 1 of Railbricks here: https://brickmodelrailroader.com/index.php/download-railbricks/railbricks-issue-1/

Was that 17 years ago? Damn, time flies...

On page 22 you'll find an article by Cale Leiphart describing how it's done.

And there's a lot more to read in those old magazines ;-)

Oh wow! I’ll be sure to give them a read then thanks for your help!!

[Stereo]

I've looked around the third-party stores a bit, but it's always possible to get more specific on what you want, until nothing is right.

Does anyone produce smaller wheels intended to work with the metal axles (in the 2878 holders)?  I'm trying my hand at a 6 wide passenger train (digital-only so far) and coming up with an aesthetic issue where the locomotive's floor is a good bit higher than the passenger cars, seems like 33" wheels on the cars and 40" on the locomotive, so the livery (same height horizontal stripe on everything) doesn't want to sit in the right place, as it's basically the floor of the locomotive and the lower edge of the windows of the cars.  Being able to lower the floor of the cars by a plate would help; the part substitution I have in mind is to go from #5 (small) to #3 diameter wheels, which would avoid needing custom holders.  

#3 is 1 plate smaller radius than #5, so the new flange is the same size as the original rolling surface.  The side decorations I have mocked up here wouldn't work, but the coupler and truck in general do.  A more complete solution would be #4 wheels in a holder that puts them 0.5 plate closer to the floor of the car, giving it this same height but with wheels that fill the space better, but making custom wheel holders seems like a much bigger job.

In the meantime I'm probably just going to treat it as one of the quirks of 6-wide (like cars being half as long), it's just when I zoom out and look at the overall colour blocking of the livery that I'm not super happy with how much black 'underside' the locomotive has, and when I compare to reference photos, the one out-of-scale problem is that the entire train is 1-1.5 plates higher than it should be.

[Lister]

Is there a thread for converting PF switches/points to 9v; specifically around any bridging that needs be done to keep the 9v integrity; I've added copper tape to the X crossover but the trains stop dead on them [guessing as power isn't going across the gaps] and so want to know how those with more knowledge than me overcome that? Small drill hole and wire under the track, with copper tape holding the poking ends down to the rail?

Theres fantastic stuff out there to cha get geometric, repair cables etc but not finding anything specifically for getting power across points (on converted track)

[zephyr1934]

On 9/1/2024 at 8:29 PM, Stereo said:

Being able to lower the floor of the cars by a plate would help; the part substitution I have in mind is to go from #5 (small) to #3 diameter wheels, which would avoid needing custom holders.  

Using ball bearing wheels you can lower most trains a plate below what is feasible with normal train wheels. You can do that with technic axle wheels too, but they have a lot of friction. Problem is, the normal tran base has a one plate tall hollow underneath that completely hides the bogie plate, so I think it comes out the same when you use train bases. I don't think the #3 wheels would work in the normal train wheel holder, I suspect there is not enough clearance on the underside.

[Stereo]

I think the bottom half of the train base is what it can eliminate, yeah.  Just eyeballing where the wheels are, it'd probably be ok to have it under a lower train base on larger curves but not R40.

I suppose I can 3d print 8 each of #4 and #3 and see where that gets me.  That's a longer term project though, as I've found out Shapeways is out of business, so I'll need to find a new source for accurate prints.  Luckily the only really key dimension is the 2mm hole for the metal axle and I can drill them to size if needed, anything else being correct just makes it roll more smoothly.

[Stereo]

On 9/9/2024 at 12:58 AM, Stereo said:

I'll need to find a new source for accurate prints.

I found a local printer for them, I'm still calling them "#3" and "#4" but actually it turned out the truck wheels are slightly different in dimension from the ones meant to go on axles, so more specifically it's 1 and 2 plates lower diameter than the regular kind, rather than in the standard aftermarket wheel dimensions.  In short summary, both sizes work fine in the trucks, though the smaller ones leave less than one plate clearance below the train.  I'll post about it in a topic once I have the train built, as it's mostly an aside to that.

[Dhivael]

I really hate cutting into official lego-- does anyone know anywhere to pick up the "ridged" or "flex" hosing that lego uses or something similar that fits the lego tolerances?

[zephyr1934]

10 hours ago, Dhivael said:

I really hate cutting into official lego-- does anyone know anywhere to pick up the "ridged" or "flex" hosing that lego uses or something similar that fits the lego tolerances?

In the name of full disclosure, in some sets Lego does specify to cut their hose down to size and I've heard some lego purists say they would never use 3rd party hosing. Disclaimers aside, the following thread holds answers, enter the dark side at your own risk (insert evil laughter here)

 

[trucks3]

is 8w or 10w the best scale? i built my train in 8w and it turned out pretty good

[Murdoch17]

2 hours ago, trucks3 said:

is 8w or 10w the best scale? i built my train in 8w and it turned out pretty good

Honestly, there is no 'best scale' @trucks3. It's all subjective to the builders tastes and personal preferences. For example: I mostly build 6 wide, as I like matching the official LEGO City trains. I do build some 7 wide things for steam locos, but anything beyond that (8, 10, or bigger) I don't do.

[dr_spock]

Speaking of scales, 8 studs to 10 feet

 

 

 

 

[ilcanty]

On 9/22/2024 at 6:37 PM, Dhivael said:

I really hate cutting into official lego-- does anyone know anywhere to pick up the "ridged" or "flex" hosing that lego uses or something similar that fits the lego tolerances?

Hello,

don't know if it can help, but actually i discovered that standard electric wire 1x2,5mm fits perfectly in the 48729, 2555 or 15712 part.
I've used a black wire to make a handrail in my train turntable platform.

Here the platform with the handrail : https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54080283542_cf5c9ab618_c_d.jpg

Here the control room with the handrail : https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54081406098_4a28dc4d1c_c_d.jpg 

Here the wire on a locomotive : https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54080338077_393647d40f_c_d.jpg

You can remove the copper inside the tube to make it more flexible, or keep it to model hard-to-reproduce shapes.

Hope this helps, any comment and suggestion is appreciated!

 

 

[Bornin1980something]

Hi, will the 12v central power rails fit in the centre of the modern plastic track, or do they only work with era correct rails and sleepers?

[VQD]

This question serve as technical foundations for my brick-built track system, so I'm asking here. Please note that I only have Stud.io to work with at the moment and can't test anything out in real life.

I want to hold the blue plates in place at the precise angles and positions seen in this image, but without using the R40 curved track itself.

I'm currently looking for any "legal" ways of achieving this goal using hinge pieces or Mixel joints and have surrounding structures and potential baseplates to hold the whole thing in place. After some tinkering, I have came up with the following assembly for the inner side of the sleepers. Note that one end of the assembly is more inset than the other by one stud:

Do keep in mind, most of these are still not tested IRL, as I do not have the means to do so, therefore can any of you confirm if this assembly works or is even legal? If not, I would like to hear some suggestions, preferably legal building techniques that don't involve tubes. Thank you very much.

[L-Gauger]

For those who are familiar with the Powered UP system, what capabilities does the Powered UP app have that the Powered UP remote lacks? I know there are more control possibilities with the app, but have never quite learned what the limitations of the app are as they pertain to Lego train enthusiasts. 

[idlemarvel]

9 hours ago, L-Gauger said:

For those who are familiar with the Powered UP system, what capabilities does the Powered UP app have that the Powered UP remote lacks? I know there are more control possibilities with the app, but have never quite learned what the limitations of the app are as they pertain to Lego train enthusiasts. 

There's quite a long list but the main points are:

The app can control any hub, the remote only the City 2-port hub (well the Move hub as well but only in a very limited way).

The remote can only control simple motors (basically the train motor) and lights, the app can control any motor.

The remote has 10 equal speed steps (probably 6 usable), with the app you can have smoother acceleration and braking controls.

The remote cannot interact with sensors, the app can respond to any colour, light, force or motion sensor.

With the app you can automate some operations like shuttle trains or level crossing gates.

Of course the remote wins on simplicity and ease of use. You can link the remote to the app and get the best of both worlds.

I have written a book on the Powered Up app which you can download for free. The topic is pinned at the start of the Train Tech theme.

Hope this helps.

 

[Selander]

Excellent information, idlemarvel !

[Toastie]

11 hours ago, idlemarvel said:

You can link the remote to the app and get the best of both worlds.

But this is the thing, isn't it? Once you know how to do that, you can control any actuator via the hardware remote control.

I'd say this is one of the beauties of the PUp system.

I never use the PUp app, but other BLE servers such as ESP32 and derivatives - when doing that you can control a bunch of other BLE devices using the LEGO remote control, that is real fun!

Best
Thorsten

[L-Gauger]

@idlemarvel, thank you for this information! I'll have to check out your handbook on Powered UP. Didn't know it was possible to link the remote to the app... I'm guessing that's the best way to control a PUP Crocodile Locomotive (or similar) with the remote? 

Also @Toastie, would you mind explaining the meaning of "BLE" and "ESP32" to a person with minimal Bluetooth skills? 

[Toastie]

2 hours ago, L-Gauger said:

I'm guessing that's the best way to control a PUP Crocodile Locomotive (or similar) with the remote?

Without shortcutting @idlemarvel (who knows much better!!!): Yes, I believe so, if you want to go all LEGO.

2 hours ago, L-Gauger said:

explaining the meaning of "BLE" and "ESP32"

You know, I guess, when I am doing this, I sound like a smart *ss without really knowing things, I am a chemist ^^.

Just briefly: BLE is standing for "Bluetooth Low Energy"; this is some hardware, along with some software, almost all Bluetooth devices use today. Not that important, as you do not need to know anything on that hardware level, other than the protocol LEGO uses for their BLE devices called "PoweredUp". They have published that protocol (but never updated it): https://lego.github.io/lego-ble-wireless-protocol-docs/

"ESP32" relates to a >powerful< microcontroller family made by the Chinese company Espressif. These have a multitude of communication means on chip, along with BLE. In order to use the BLE functionality of a number of ESP32 hardware boards, such(!) as the ESP32 vroom devkit v1 board (=chip + things to run it off from your computer), you need software to make it work with LEGO's devices. This software is - for example - LEGOINO, published by Corneliuz Munz. Just turn on Google for details ;)

All the best
Thorsten

 

[L-Gauger]

Okay, thank you for that explanation, @Toastie! That makes perfect sense now. 

And don't worry, jargon isn't a bad thing. I have to constantly remind myself to explain the jargon I use whenever I talk to someone who isn't a historian or a train nerd. 

[Toastie]

39 minutes ago, L-Gauger said:

the jargon I use whenever I talk to someone who isn't a historian or a train nerd

Yeah - here is to feeling good!

All the best
Thorsten

[XG BC]

On 9/5/2024 at 4:24 PM, Lister said:

Is there a thread for converting PF switches/points to 9v; specifically around any bridging that needs be done to keep the 9v integrity; I've added copper tape to the X crossover but the trains stop dead on them [guessing as power isn't going across the gaps] and so want to know how those with more knowledge than me overcome that? Small drill hole and wire under the track, with copper tape holding the poking ends down to the rail?

Theres fantastic stuff out there to cha get geometric, repair cables etc but not finding anything specifically for getting power across points (on converted track)

you can solder to the tape, or probably stick some more tape to the tape and hold the wires in that way. i currently have the same problem, currently converting some points to 9v.

 

[domik]

Hello, I don't know if it's the right place, but I figured it is. I'm trying to build a SJ B class steam locomotive and the one which I'm looking at -

has this cool ship-like cabin roof with it going narrower towards the boiler. I'd love to have something like it in my loco, but have been scraping my head on how I could do it.

If anyone has some ideas, I'd appreciate help!

[zephyr1934]

On 7/6/2025 at 4:49 AM, domik said:

has this cool ship-like cabin roof with it going narrower towards the boiler. I'd love to have something like it in my loco, but have been scraping my head on how I could do it.

If anyone has some ideas, I'd appreciate help!

That's a tough angle to pull off in lego. There are probably tricks to do it but it will require a lot of trial and error before you find the trade off that you like. Perhaps start a new thread and show what you've got so far and tell the readers what you do not like about it or what you want it to do.