TuxTown

Eurobricks Vassals
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    52
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About TuxTown

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  • What is favorite LEGO theme? (we need this info to prevent spam)
    Train
  • Which LEGO set did you recently purchase or build?
    60052 and 60198 Cargo Trains, Eurostar, Crocodile

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Utrecht

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  • Country
    Netherlands

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  1. TuxTown

    Mattzobricks Train Automation

    Hi, I just came back here today after many months of not looking at my lego trains. So I'm not informed about the current state of the Mattzobricks project. Yes, I used MTCPU, but I tweaked the code. Connecting to wifi or mqtt however worked from the released version, last time I looked. Maybe I will do another mattzobricks layout around christmas.
  2. Wow, 58 euro for 8x S32, whereas 10x injected molded S32 comes for 23 euro at Trixbrix. I will be hard to convert non-9V users, I guess.
  3. TuxTown

    Mattzobricks Train Automation

    Not sure what you mean. I did not cut any tracks. For what I think you mean I used the Trixbrix R40 railyard.
  4. TuxTown

    Mattzobricks Train Automation

    Temporary taken down because of music copyright questions, which I doubt are correct. Edit: looks like it is back online, with 1 tune exchanged.
  5. Hi, last few months I have been busy building and automating a large train layout in my living room. With Mattzobricks technology. I made a film with several trains running, which is now also published via the Mattzobricks YouTube channel and website: https://mattzobricks.com/projects/henks-xmas-layout-2020 Hope you like it. The layout is taken down last weekend, so now I have to build something smaller upstairs...
  6. How do I make extension cables? Is the plug a standard plug wich can be ordered somewhere? I need extension cables to reduce the number of hubs (bloody bluetooth unscalability) needed for sensors and switches in a BAP setting.
  7. You can open the motor and solder the wire vice versa. Thats what I did with a PF motor for my double Horizon Express. I case of the 60197, it seems it is doable to drive a double version with 1 motor. Skip one coach and add jacobs boogies:
  8. TuxTown

    4DBrix goes DIY

    About this software Mattzobricks writes: "Anyway, I am presently changing the whole automation system. So far, I have been using nControl from 4DBrix and enhanced the software by about 1.500 lines of own code. Unfortunately, nControl has a lot of bugs and other drawbacks, so I will move away from it and come up with a better, completely different solution. Stay tuned for more! If you want to stay in the loop, subscribe to the Mattzobricks Facebook and Youtube channels." (http://mattzobricks.com/) I hope this solution will still be Python and will be publicly available. We have to wait and see. Mattze is using wifi bricks for trains from 4DBrix, it seems. I hope someone, somewhere will develop things like those bricks to overcome the bluetooth limitations.
  9. TuxTown

    Automation solutions

    Amazing, indeed. And wifi controllers from 4DBrix to operate trains! I need one of these, although maybe thats not possible anymore after the 4DBrix news. "Anyway, I am presently changing the whole automation system. So far, I have been using nControl from 4DBrix and enhanced the software by about 1.500 lines of own code. Unfortunately, nControl has a lot of bugs and other drawbacks, so I will move away from it and come up with a better, completely different solution." I'm gonna follow this Mattze
  10. TuxTown

    Automation solutions

    Wow. An open source python project to automate lego EV3 and PowerUp hubs. I will certainly follow this one. Thanx!
  11. TuxTown

    Automation solutions

    I also found links about DCC/LDCC in combination with Lego Mindstorm RCX gear. Info like this is 15 years old. No references found if anyone is doing DCC-like things with the newer EV3. Hanso in the Mindstorm section of this forum is doing EV3 things for trains. But he doesn't use train motors but technic motors for his trains. (nice project by the way!) I wonder if there are still people doing DCC kind of things with lego trains. Does Fx Bricks have any plans with this once they produce their 9v solution?
  12. TuxTown

    4DBrix goes DIY

    .
  13. TuxTown

    4DBrix goes DIY

    Is this copycat thing about Trixbrix, by any chance? The sentence "some prominent members of the AFOL community..." did rase this question in my mind.
  14. TuxTown

    Automation solutions

    I wonder if anyone has ideas about the future of lego train automation. Last months I have been looking at BAP, the automation project for PowerUP gear. Great concept, great tool. However it doesn't scale, which may be due to the use a bluetooth. The only device in house on which I can connect more than 7 hubs is an acer laptop with a bluetooth 5 chipseth. HP elite laptops with bluetooth 4 are a no go. However the Acer laptop starts to give problems when I connect 12 hubs. Besides that it is almost impossible to find bluetooth 5 dongles online. Its all 4 or 4.2. Probably because there is no need for people to connect more than a few things to bluetooth. In the past and on Lego shows people seem to still use 9v tracks. Arduino setups seems interesting to automate stuff beyond the trick of manually hit a control thing. The Arduino Lego Trains youtube channel has nice videos but the author has disappeared already several years. 'AlmightyArjen' does similar things, also 9v. The downside of this technic is that 9v isn't available anymore and there are lots of wires involved. Fx Track promises us a future for 9v, but we have to see if thats gonna fly. Let alone what it will cost for people started with RC track to replace lots of gear. I've been looking for alternatives for BAP, because of the scaling problem and the fact that the author is hardly around on this forum. 4DBrix has some stuff, but seems to be in problems because of copycats. Shame, as their nControl thing looks like it could be interesting. They have a wifi solution for PF motors according to there site. Wifi would of course be the solution for a wireless solution without the downsides of bluetooth. How are others handling their automation wishes? Is 9v still the best option for larger layouts? (it tackles the battery problems) I like to operate a handfull of trains on the same layout without having to jump out of my chair every minute to prevent a crash ;-)