Toastie

Hi retrotecchie, nice! But why aren't you using the 4.5V battery directly as the PF receivers power supply? The receiver runs smoothly on 4.5V, just tested it again. I may have dropped that somewhere around this forum, forgot. It actually does correct PWM control down to 2.8V, which means that it will flush the 4.5V entirely without malfunctioning, I bet. I don't have 4.5V motors, used the PF motor for this little test. BTW the receiver also operates on 12V like a charm. So regardless what "retro-train type" you are using, 4.5V, old 9V, 12V: The PF receiver does them all. When hooked up to the proper LEGO electric stuff (4.5V supply -> PF receiver -> 4.5V motors or 12V supply -> PF receiver -> 12V motor you naturally won't have any overvoltage issues at all ... There is a discussion over at the Technic Forum regarding higher than 9V supplies on PF stuff. Rien is running some of his PF driven LEGO equipment on 11.1 V using a custom LiPo. Works like a charm as well. People are concerned a bit about the 11.1V with regard to the motors - but no one is having problems with the receiver. Seeing what Rien has been doing with his PF stuff, the PF receiver is a really nice piece of equipment TLC has made for us! All you need is a custom PF extension cable (The 9V -> PF converter cable works perfectly well). Cut that in two pieces and connect the 9V terminal C1/C2 lines to the 9V/0V line at the PF terminal which then snaps onto the receiver's PF supply terminal. The 9V terminal may go to any 3V ... 12V supply you see fit and the receiver will happily drive the matching LEGO electric stuff (motors, lamps ...) Have fun! Thorsten

Hi TechnicFreak, well, that was essentially the message: It is not complicated to soak the LA's in heptane, but who on earth has an ultrasonic bath and at the same time heptane at hand? (Well I do, I am a nerd chemist though and I do have heptane in the lab ... but nobody else probably has) BUT: The real message is: What is the lubrication all about? Could it be that the MOC's, MOD's, or whatever people built requiring lubrication to "function" is - well - designed "on the edge"? In that case I guess we all have to live with the chance that things may go wrong. 10 LA's though, man THAT IS BAD ... how about sending them to me, I'll try - and send them back for free. We may end up with 10 dirt crap LA's but it would be worth a try. I'm in it. All the best, Thorsten

Hey Duq, I quite like your post train design! Beautiful as well. With respect to the guns as part of the pantographs: Like that as well very much. Particularly when following the bullet pathway ... hey, would-be trouble makers at the station may actually get some flak when these trains come in Nice! All the best, Thorsten

Since this seems to be an emergency ... and the dripping maybe really slow ... The pieces and everything else should be at room temperature, 20 deg C that is - to get the olive oil into the mood. Get an ultrasonic bath - in Germany some retailers occasionally sell them rather cheap. Get a well fitting glass container. Place the glass container into the bath. Fill up the ultra sonic bath with water - if you want to go all the way, use demineralized water, as used for steam irons and what not (this is just to keep your bath clean, it doesn't do anything else). Put your adversely affected Lego pieces into the glass container. Fill up the glass container with the solvent "heptane". This may be somewhat complicated, don't know where you would get this stuff from. Again, in Germany they sell this as "white gas for cleaning purpose" - don't laugh, I looked it up on LEO (as if that would matter) - "hexane" would work as well. And other non-polar solvents - but NO aromatics!!!. ABS - the LEGO plastic - and hexane/heptane don't do much to each other. But olive oil would dissolve pretty nicely in the solvent(s). Then, after buzzing them for about 15 min do what you wanted to do, get them out of the bath and hang them upside down. Collect the gunk and dispose it, as you would dispose paint solvents. Repeat the procedure maybe twice and you should be all set. BE CAREFUL THOUGH. The solvents are flammable. Smoking would not be a good idea. They are not toxic, so I guess this is a plus. I would do it right away, just get that dirty stuff out of your LEGOs! Good luck and all the best Thorsten

Hi Hoexbroe, there is an announcement from TheBrickster at the very top of the train tech forum saying that EB Fellow Teddy is in charge (well has had the guts to take on this challenge) of organizing a new Train Tech index, including "original" LEGO MOCS, but also some non-LEGO solutions. Your entry would go into the all LEGO instructions - would love to see a PDF or LDraw mpd file with your solution. Will probably take a little time but as I said: Be prepared! All the best, Thorsten

Nice! I like that. Never thought about it. I guess it is equally non-purist (maybe even worse!) to modify longer flex cables, as suggested before. Will try your solution out. Damned. That was entirely unintentional, I swear. Nor do I stock any appreciable amounts of flex-cable, just cut pieces ... should have thought about that though, would have been rich beyond my wildest dreams by now ... All the best, Thorsten

Hi TechnicFreak, did it before, sounded like a nerd, do it again: That is not the only issue you may have in the future when using olive oil or the like. It is a natural product, it is healthy, but as far as I am concerned it is (long term wise) not suited as lubricant. Temperature is one issue, all lubricants face this issue; some more, some less. Think about motor oil you guys are using in Michigan. There is some high-tech stuff that lubricates a motor at - 20 deg C and at + 30 deg C. If you go a little cheaper, there is oil for the harsh winter time and oil for hot summers. Don't use any of that for LEGO though, it will do damage. Olive oil has another built-in feature, the second and more nasty issue: It chemically changes with time. That's one of the reasons it is considered healthy: You body uses it by changing it chemically (otherwise it would go through your body untouched and - well leave it unaltered ... ). That also happens when it is exposed to heat, cold, light, time, what not. And it turns into lesser an lesser lubricating material eventually ending up as solid. I would not use it for lubrication. Silicon based stuff maybe, but then again, eventually time does change this as well. If you need lubricants for you LEGO models, then you should clean them off upon long-time storage coming up. Best regards, Thorsten

Uhmm, Hoexbroe, when this is your first LEGO train MOC, I am very, very curious to see your upcoming MOCs! This is wonderful. Has all been said before, I'd just like to point out the detailing on the roof - electricity wise. Fantastic! I literally can "see" current going into this thing and making it alive. Beautiful. And there is quite some snotting and sloping going on here. You should prepare yourself for showing more details - instructions even? This is really good stuff. Best regards, and think about it - did you notice the very first "Announcement" forum entry??? Be prepared! Thorsten

Hi there, me again, did not notice before (damn ...) but: Brand new 7938 on the track, ok modified, but all the brand new parts present, bley, slopes "never" seen before (at least not in red) and and and - and then 4.5V track! Or is it 12V without power rail? Who cares? THAT is what TLC is about. THAT is why I am believing in the most enjoyable toy in the world, regardless of what TLC is doing to us: It is all compatible. The 4.5V/12V area is AGES ago, but 7938 runs smoothly on the point. Thanks for sharing this "cimddwc", you made my day. Best regards, Thorsten

Wow, that is a great solution to all my problems with 7938! Just perfect. I love the shared bogies and the doors most . The increased length is also very well matching with the overall appearance of the real thing. Guess I am going to copy quite a lot here. Love it! Did you buy two 7938 sets to make this (would it make sense?) or did you have the extra stuff at hand or got that separately? Very nice train! Regards, Thorsten

Dear All, this discussion is worth a lot. It illustrates very nicely the "width and depth" of EB, the tolerance, the work so many people are devoting to make this actually work. Just imagine: A web at hand - who wants to join may join and post ... and then there needs to be some sort of organization. I have been around here only for a couple of months. And yes, to be honest, I was wondering (when starting to explore things here on EB) who is getting "etiquettes" for what, what contribution appears when I open EB, and how in the world can you ever post 1000+ messages? Easy: Do what you want. All I want is: Sharing ideas, get information, furnish information. Front page? Well as far as I am concerned TheBrickster has really made the point: It is nice to be on the front page but it is not the pivotal point here. And that makes EB so strong. Finally, I sort of "felt" it before, but this discussion really underlined it: The folks running, moderating, making this site really DO CARE. Wonderful. Congrats to you all, for having this discussion going and for making EB what it is! All the best, Thorsten

Hi Blackburried, it teaches you to use NXC or RobotC. The former is free the latter has a 30 day trail then you have to pay - as far as I am concerned - a reasonable amount of money. So you have ample of time to compare the packages. I have both and will never delete these programming environments from my computer. It may very well be that you know all that, but oithers may not. The NXT PBrick is essentially a micro controller and these are programmed in text oriented environments - as you may all know again. I am teaching from time to time classes in this regard and I can tell you, once the kids jumped on it, they love it. And many of them are damned good. Best regards, Thorsten

Thanks Philo! Your motor comparison page is invaluable. I used it a thousand times I guess. So nice that you keep it updated. Best regards, Thorsten

Hi astra, it depends what you are asking for. Yes, V2.0 of the NXT set features the new color sensor. And new firmware for the NXT PBrick. The other stuff (lets call that passive LEGO pieces) are no way worth to invest that amount of money for the NXT upgrade. Further, I doubt that the HiTechnic sensor is really that low quality, as stated before. I have one (with the NXT 1.0) and it works very well with up-to-date firmware. Now what programming environment are you using? When TLC upgraded the RCX 1.0 to 1.5 they have improved the firmware but at the same time cut cost on the hardware and downgraded the PBrick to a battery-only version (actually the PCB has all the wholes for the rectifier, capacitors, etc. but they are left empty). The "upgrade" to 2.0 just meant that firmware was improved again, but that was it. And of course some new LEGO bricks were included. NXT1.0 is hardware-wise identical to NXT2.0. If you prefer alternative firmwares, e.g., RobotC or the like, you'll get latest improvements through firmware updates at relatively low to no cost. The "new" LEGO bricks are available through BL. The color sensor ... well that has been said. BTW, has anyone programmed the NXT with some tough color sensing and actually experienced HT color sensor glitches? I would really appreciate any input here. Best regards, Thorsten

Hi reload, man, this is incredible. Nothing more - nothing less. Amazing. And: For me, HiTechnic stuff is indeed 100% LEGO. They make COOL things that TLC actually is supposed to create - but TLC simply "outsourced" that to maximize revenue and minimize risk. HiTechnic makes stuff that 100% works with LEGO PBricks. And they have been certified by TLC (whatever that means). As far as I am concerned, your model is 100% LEGO. Wonderful. Rock on, Thorsten

Hi Teddy and all, that was exactly the same issue I had with my copy of Ben's 23. And it was much worse when motorizing it. Finding the right length is indeed some elaborate (and maybe costly) procedure. I guess I have figured out a rather straight forward way in getting the right length cables: Buy long flex cables. Two ends are already perfectly suited. Cut the wire exactly to length (Teddy's factional mm dimensions are indeed critical if you want to deliver power via a flex system driving rod - in this regard the flex tubing lengths are equally important). Then carefully carve out some sort of notch at the cut end with an exacto knife or the like, approximately matching the original shape on the uncut end. The shape is really not that important - the Technic Flex System Pin Connectors are rather tolerant with the notch. All that matters is that the cable is pushed in all the way into the connector. You can even close the connector without notch using a caliper, but then the cable may slip. All the best, Thorsten

Rob, I think a pinned topic would be perfect! Nope no dream at all, a challenge, but a fun challenge!!! I am working on more or less exactly the same thing for about 8 years now it took me a little time to learn PBrick programming (RCX, Scout, now NXT), PIC programming (I do PICs, as said), "programming" (VBasic, and since it takes that long, I have to switch now from VB6 to VB.net, damnit) - well I guess my programming style is rather interesting than elegant but it works. I picked up 6 Scouts for $6 each in 2006, and 10 MicroScouts for $5.50 each in 2005 so I decided to go all LEGO. The RCX bricks hurt funding-wise, but I am collecting the ones with the jack (1.0 version) for about 10 years now, so there are 6 waiting to run trains. The NXT is form 2008. My PICs are handling the RF transceiver logic, since I am working with discrete receivers/transmitters, for no other reason that I did not know better. I'd love to share all this stuff and some ideas - it would perfectly fit into the entire work discussed here and in JopieK's Arduino thread. My PC based control program handles RCXs directly, PF and soon RC trains via a NXT translator running RobotC with the IRControl sensor (Xander Soldaat has thankfully implemented an RCX driver for RobotC in 2010), and takes care of all the switch points. With RCX and Scout PBricks communication is bidirectional (sort of handshaking), with dumb PF and RC trains one-way. Do you think this could be of any interest within the framework discussed here (Arduino etc. etc.?) Rock on, Thorsten

Hi JopieK, as far as I am concerned, we need to arrange all your wonderful(!) input and other "stuff" into a way more organized manner. We have sort of discussed the Arduino approach before here at EB, but the whole thing got more or less "swamped" (Teddy's well articulated terminology) by other interesting(!) forum entries. Is there any way that we can focus this whole thing a little? I'd be very happy to try out your ideas, I just don't know how to get a hands-on instruction (My world is restricted so far to Microchip's PICs and then NXT, Scout, Spybot, and RCX micro controllers - lets call them PBricks). Also, I guess I am pretty familiar with the PF protocol; but we need a "focused place" to discuss these issues, don't you agree? I guess Teddy, you are with me? All the best, Thorsten

Hi there, I just used backbone's reply for a reply ... Well, I don't get it. There are folks who use 100% original LEGO pieces, there are folks who modify LEGO pieces that are simply not available at time of creation (as for example a 11.X V LiPo) but work perfectly well with existing LEGO stuff, there are folks who just create what they judge as reasonable, there are folks who do what they want - that is all perfect! Hey, it's a free world, join the group that suits your needs most and all will be good. Some thoughts though before I leave ... To my opinion, TLC is sometimes simply bullshitting around with us. Oh, I know, that is almost - if not - blasphemy, but let me explain. The 10V LiPo charger got me all exited. That was bad, and it hurt. That is megablocks. You don't need that thing and the whole story was set-up by TLC to just make BIG money. Very clever indeed. Charging the LiPo works with the cheapest 12 V wall wart you can find - I have done it for one year now - it works perfectly well. So what is this? And then: With every new set a new nifty piece may come along. TLC makes what they need, what they see fit. Why shouldn't the non-purists do that as well? Should they wait until the Justified and Ancient give them another piece they desperately were waiting for but they were afraid that TLC will punish us as unbelievers? I have seen it so many time before; for one of my trains I needed a fractional height offset piece, so I cut one of the snot thingies into half and it worked perfectly well. I felt bad though. Man. It is a toy. A couple of months later that thingy was available in one of the new sets. Hmmm. Sit and wait? I don't know. For me 100% purists are very nice folks and the I-could-not-care-less folks as well. I admire both, particularly when they show off their wonderful creations and share them!!! All the best, and play well, Thorsten

Hi Teddy, well, got my PhD about two decades ago , found a decent job , and speak rather fluently LDraw or better MLCad . If you need any help here, I'd be happy to fill in. Furthermore, I believe that this model deserves more than "just" an LDraw mpd file to live in - a full instruction is what it deserves, similar to the BR23 instructions available on the RailBricks website. Will also be a couple of months for me but eventually ... the only thing I can't adjust to is charging for it Best wishes, Thorsten

Folks, don't worry about the LEGO PF LiPo 10 V charger. It is a rip-off. Get a 12 V DC cheap wall wart and it will do! Tested it many times now. It works perfectly well. Regards, Thorsten

Hi Teddy, I have been waiting for this - what a beauty! For me, this is one of the most impressive LEGO steam locomotives I have seen in the past. It does perfectly combine brilliant solutions to the most challenging issues when building LEGO steamers, particularly German pre- and post war varieties: All the detailing on the 7-wide scale (!) generating a perfect overall appearance. But much more impressive: All that wonderful technology to create a engine driven locomotive, the carefully adjusted pivot points, the PF motors in the boiler (!!!) - Wow. Congratulations on your MOC, Teddy, this is a nice X-Mas surprise!!! All the best, Thorsten

DaveE, I was born in Northern Germany, close to Denmark. A pretty much famous Viking Village called "Haitabu" near Schleswig has been found earlier the last century. It was inhabited until the year 1000 - and part of it has been restored with a lot of effort, time, and money. I love to go there and learn from the past. Your village is such a nice replicate of what they did in Haitabu, it is amazing! It feels like being there, in the year 1000. Wonderful. Thanks a lot for sharing!!! Best wishes, Thorsten

Nope, I feel exactly the same. I am voting for the MOC = my own creation / MOD = my own modification version, as many others have already done. It would be nice though to see right away whether the MOC/MOD is vitual/digital or real (particularly in topic titles/subjects). To keep is as simple as possible, as the Brickster wishes: I'd just add a "D" for the digital and nothing for the real version: MOC = my own creation (bricks) MOD = my own modification (bricks) MOCD = my own creation (bits) MODD = my own modification (bits) @Teddy: Big difference to your suggestion, huh? I just swapped the last two letters Best regards, Thorsten

I completely second that: What is the limit of "PF"? Well, I guess better phrased: What are the limits of the PF LiPO, the PF receiver, the PF lights, and the PF motors? I tried to charge the LiPo battery with ++10V DC: No problem at all. Charging was a charm up-to 18 V. I frequently charge my LiPo at 15 V; solely for the reason that it charges faster and I happen to have such a power supply. This has been done for at least 50 times. This does NOT mean that motors run at +10V DC, BUT honestly: 9 V -> 11.X V is next to nothing for a decently designed DC motor. Lifetime MAY go down, but do people have experienced that at all? The PF receiver is fine with running on power close to 5V; and it runs very well on 15 V. Motors are different, but is there any damage evidence? Regards, Thorsten