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Paperinik77pk

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  1. Paperinik77pk
    Hi all, I'd like to show you a little thing I made 6 years ago for my daughter...and then became unused on the shelf since it was "retired" by Duplo trains. It was a sort of DB E69, used to transport frogs and penguins (all made with Lego Basic sets instructions). After she saw the real 7720 she liked the whole set. So I created a newer "clone" of the 7720 locomotive. This weekend I decided to revamp it a bit to make it work again. So I modified the roof, the handrails, the pantograph (which now is very similar to swiss ones) and made it a bit more "studless". The battery car is now blue instead of Yellow. It was - and still is - powered by a Medium PF motor, since it was not Infrared controlled and the standard PF train motor was too fast. Instead of IR receiver, it kept a "vintage" solution to be started. I used the PF lever the same way the 7720 used the red lever on battery box car. The IR receiver can be put inside the battery car if needed. As you can see, I have the same 7720 inverters placed on PF track...and the result is the following (sorry for the video quality, the phone cannot do better than this). The cat likes this "reversing" feature a lot! Next steps: two long two axles wagons resembling the 7720 ones, and the white doors on blue wagon created in SNOT mode (or a simple sticker, if I fail ) It is a silly train, but I hope you like it!
  2. Paperinik77pk
    You are right, I made a mistake in explaining - I used the centreline gauge for calculating the bigger scale, since I measured the gauge approximating it in studs (and then calculating the resulting millimeters) and not directly measuring it in millimeters. The correct inner-rail gauge is 37.5mm.
  3. Paperinik77pk
    Speaking about real trains circulating on 1435mm gauge, I've always calculated the Lego scale (in millimeters) starting from the gauge of Lego track. Being the "gauge" the distance between the two inner parts of the rails , in Lego terms we should have 4 studs for 8 millimeters = 32 mm in total (same as O gauge? - it can seem this way, but if you put an O gauge train on Lego tracks you will find it narrower). The true fact is Lego rails are have an inverted T form, therefore the real distance between rails is 5 studs (40 mm). Therefore it depends what we intend for Lego Gauge (32mm or 40mm) 32mm*45= 1440mm - 1:45 scale - tipically the 8-wide trains. 40mm*36=1440mm - 1:36 scale - tipically the 10-wide trains (which in my opinion give the more correct look) for narrow gauge it is simpler, taking a "quite" metric gauge (1000/1067/950) a 1:32 scale or 1:40 is good (I prefer 1:32). So, let's make a comparison - a tipical Italian diesel railcar vs a typical Italian car of the early 80s: FS Aln668 railcar - 1435mm (a long one): In 1:45 scale Lenght 23.540 mm --> 23540/45= 523,1mm - in studs 523mm/8mm=65 studs (buffers included) Width 2.878 mm --> 2878/45= 63.9mm - in studs 64mm/8mm=8studs In 1:36 scale Lenght 23.540 mm --> 23540/36= 653,8mm - in studs 654mm/8mm=81 studs (buffers included) Width 2.878 mm --> 2878/45= 79.9mm - in studs 80mm/8mm=10studs Alfa Romeo Alfetta 2.000 (it is quite a narrow car) In 1:45 scale: Lenght 4385 mm --> 4385/45=97.4mm in studs around 12 Width 1640 mm --> 1640/45=36.4mm in studs it is 4.5...let's say 5. In 1:36 scale: Lenght 4385 mm --> 4385/36=121.8mm in studs around 15 Width 1640 mm --> 1640/36=45.5mm in studs it is 5.69...let's say 6. So I imagine a contemporary truck being 6/6.5 wide in 1:45 and around 8 wide in 1:36. Tell me what you think about it
  4. Paperinik77pk
    In my opinion it is a very interesting train, and the interior detail is very nice!!!
  5. Paperinik77pk
    I love this one!!! Nice, small, compact, everything squeezed inside...great!!!
  6. Paperinik77pk
    Oh well... at the end I discovered that a bit of central link is needed in case of wagon pushed on one side and with a free coupler on the other one side. I moved pivots forward and back...problems everywhere. So I got back to the standard multilink. I tried to keep the axles alignment independent (each one with its rubber band) and it works average. The central link with rubber parts is good for smaller wagons, but has problems on bigger ones like the one I'm using. The common elastic band connected to the two axles both works as alignment and a bit as link. If I turn one axle, the second one turns a bit aswell. But under heavy load, this auto-turning movement is very very difficult since the rubber band is not hard enough, I tried to make a video but there was no light and no silence enough. I used my 7740 converted to PF with standard PF wheels. It is an extremely heavy locomotive, with batteries over PF motor and original 12v central weights. The wagon goes nicely alone through curves with no or small load (three or four 4,5v motors). But with more than one kg of weight, the 7740 had problems pushing and pulling it on simple curves,starting to slip wheels . But...it worked before with 7720 and now, with a powerful 7740 I get stuck ? Is it possible ? Yes...it is . I switched again to the good old red locomotive. And it works. The problem with heavy loads, at this point, are the small PF wheels - they do not have any traction (and I have all new PF wheels with very soft rubber bands). I think I'm done with the tests for now - I cannot think of another better solution to steer that damn free axle . I think my future 2 axle wagons will be shorter than the one I'm using for experiments. Going back to BANANA (version 2.0)!!!
  7. Paperinik77pk
    Really nice, with simple and effective design! I'd add a wall clock outside
  8. Paperinik77pk
    Nice thread! For my 4,5v / 12v trains I'd keep the 4-wide cars. On 7/8 wide trains a 5/5+ car and 6 studs truck in my opinion are perfect!
  9. Paperinik77pk
    Absolutely yes. This is the current situation. A pushed wagon has problems managing the direction of the free axle. Yesterday I tried to play a bit with axle pivot, trying to move it near the edge of the wagon, to achieve a "shopping cart wheel" effect. More or less like I did in this old example, but applied to one axle the new yellow wagon. Sincerely I do not know...it does not convince me even if I think is correct from a physics point of view. It was late and I did not experiment further. See you later!
  10. Paperinik77pk
    It is an interesting approach I was wandering about before trying the multilink. By moving pivots you also mean a little movement of the axles too? So - a little axle movement forward/backward to engage the most correct pivot point?
  11. Paperinik77pk
    Sweeeet!!!
  12. Paperinik77pk
    Really nice tanker cars!!! Good start!
  13. Paperinik77pk
    After a bit of thinking and trial/error procedure, here it is - the multilink. @Hod Carrier - you were AB-SO-LU-TE-LY right on magnets - the more I stop them, the more the car's behaviour goes better. So I used a rubber band wrapped around the magnet. It moves a bit, but it does the job. It allows the coupler bar to follow the pushing car withouth any pasta effect we can think about. Following the coupler, wheels turn as well, guided by the multilink. Wheels have their own pivot, The coupler turns more than the wheel, since it is in an advanced position. This should allow a better alignment of the wheel on the track. It works fine on standard radius turns, both in pushing and in pulling mode. There's no link between the two axles, only a rubber band in common. Now the "stress test" part. Obviously I had no batteries, and 7720 came back to help. This is quite a big load, but the good-old little locomotive can manage it (I put two 12v weights over the 4,5v motor to increase traction). Between two wagons - pulling mode - very good Between two wagons - pushing mode - very good Last wagon in pulling mode - good First wagon in pushing mode - good Why only good in these two last cases? The "free" axle really tries to turn the coupler too and to follow the track. In some cases it has success, in some cases it fails. With an empty wagon it is not a problem even if it fails. With 1 kg on it it makes really the difference. It does not stop the almighty 7720, but it has some slowdowns. I think this part can be improved removing the common elastic band. If the pushed coupler is turning, it is applyng tension to the central band, which pulls the free axle and tells it to go straighter than it should do. So I'll try to go for dedicated rubber bands (but I want to buy better rubber bands, these are really bad). The inter-axle (pivot to pivot) is currently 23 studs. I think the multilink can turn wheels even with a larger inter-axle, but I do not know the real limit. I think it is all for today!
  14. Paperinik77pk
    Hi! I absolutely think is better to work on coupling centering, I still have to try the full solution , yesterday it was too late and I fell asleep looking at the wagon! I try to add weight as well so I can understand how the steering linking between coupler and axles work. I'll try also to keep axles independent. I now have a PF "locomotive" to move the cars at faster speed. Regarding your last sentence, the rubber linking solved a bit the problem (wrong turning wheels on zigzag curves) shown by @LEGO Train 12 Volts , because it left a bit of freedom to each axle. So it is more a "suggestion" than a real fixed link. But I'm beginning to consider it less efficient than a good axle-coupler solution.
  15. Paperinik77pk
    Great work!!! We're following the same "pivot" path !!! ...I forgot the phone at home today, so I cannot post any picture, but I'll try to explain it in a fast way - Powerpoint will help me. There are three possible pivoting points: The magnet one (the one you centered with the rubber band) The coupler one The axle one so in my opinion they must be separately managed. The enemy is the "spaghetti effect", which happens when the pushing car tries to move the pushed car coupler on the opposite side it should go. Having the coupler pivot and axle pifot on the same point (first case) means that I have a bigger leverage, therefore less force needed from pushing car to move both coupler and axle in the wrong way. In case 2, coupler has its own pivot, and so does the axle. There are two rods to transfer steering to the axle during normal operation. Leverage from coupler to pivot is now shorter. This alone does not eliminate the "spaghetti effect", but forces to create it must be stronger. Now, a little focus on linkings geometry - it must be analyzed a bit, since it there are two specific cases: Coupler is subjected to pushing and pulling forces, which are quite strong - or no forces at all (free coupler on the first pushed car) Axle is only responding to track inputs, which are reeeeally weak. So linkings must be configured in order to: allow axle to move a bit the coupler with less effort (as it is shown, more or less) allow coupler to move the axle , even with a worse leverage. Then...let's see where to put the self centering mechanism, I'd say on the coupler lever and on the central linking lever between the two axles (which I'm convinced it is still needed). And on magnet, obviously
  16. Paperinik77pk
    I thought a lot on the behaviour of the wagon when pulled, pushed (or both, in case it is in the middle of the train). What I began to think about is the "sensing" of what is required to the train car. Bogies are smart, the paired wheels know were to go. single axles are ignorant. Coupling are more informed about train behaviour, but only in pulling mode. In pushing mode they are more ignorant than axles. Probably the linking is good to teach axles where to go, but I'm beginning to think it is not sufficient, since it is driven by couplings, and if they fail, it fails too. I have an idea to develop, this evening I will work on it
  17. Paperinik77pk
    Hi all, the 12v SW10 is now finished and ready to work! The 28-long train base is a bit dusty, I received it today and I did not clean it!!!
  18. Paperinik77pk
    Go on without any problem, it is an interesting problem to solve...but like you wrote at the beginning..."spaghetti" are the enemy here. When pushing, it happens that the locomotive moves the copuling on the opposite way it should go, following the wheel. On smaller cars like the Banana, this problem is less evident. On bigger cars I think it is a real pain. This is a longer car. As you can see the pivot point is immediately after the coupling, and there's a stopping pin that prevents too much lateral play on the connecting rod. But I think I'm near to the limit. I can push two big 12v wagons (extremely heavy on wheels) and it can manage them on points, but without stop pins it derails, sometimes. And the 7720 is slow...
  19. Paperinik77pk
    Ok, "nostalgic mode" activated... I remember my first train...it was the 7710 and came home in 1981 for apparently no reason (it was not Christmas or my birthday). My father and I built it the day after (saturday). A month later it was powered with 4.5 motor and battery wagon came after we ordered it to Lego Italy. On Christmas 1982 came the 7720 (which still is one of my favourite sets) and the 7810. 7810 got a 4,5v motor too after awhile. I remember changing the battery wagon between 7720 and 7810 since we never got a third battery car. My first layout was a long single track going from my bedroom to the living room (with some switches in the middle part to allow two trains on the same track). At the two ends, a reversing loop and a pair of dead end track. Everything made with the help of my father, I was 5 at the time. He liked those little trains too. Then came 7730 and 7740 in 1983, and the 12v layout during the same year became the classic "8" with two switches and a signal. But I kept running the 4.5v trains, asking for light bricks, tracks and other motors and parts. I always asked for Lego, no other toys interested me at the time. I had Hot Wheels, but nothing serious. When my mother gave me the 7777 book (I made a very good classwork!!! ), then both 4.5v and 12v worlds began to expand. I got train books, Lima and Rivarossi catalogs...everything I search now on Google without any effort was like discovering America or landing on the moon for me. Movies like "Runaway Train" or "Silver Streak" were documents, not films! The last Lego train set I ever wanted was the epic 7760. But it was too late, 7745 and 7735 were on stores (and I did not like them - I liked them more when I bought them some years ago). So I continued to ask for 12v motors,and accessories, lights, points, signals and I began to build my trains myself. It was 1986 and the first "MOC" was a true legend found on an english course book...the English Electric DP1 - the iconic "DELTIC". It was extremely long and used two 12v motors. Then I tried to motorize it with two 4.5v technic motors, but the bogies were quite impossible to build - so it was scrapped. I continued to mix Technic and Trains worlds. From 1986 I began sharing my time between the Lego Trains, Nikko RC cars "Turbo Panther" and "Bison", and the Commodore 128. Never had a 9v train before I was 30 (Metroliner + panoramic car + another middle car) - nice set!!! "Nostalgic mode" off. Maybe.
  20. Paperinik77pk
    Hi all, I'd like to show how I tried to manage the castering effect. I follow this thread since I've subscribed, because I like two axles - long bed wagons. I saw both @Hod Carrier and @LEGO Train 12 Volts solutions, so I decided to try a mixed solution between two independent axles and passive steering. It's a sort of a semi-linking mechanism, involving the Lego rubber joiners as elastic part. So I built a goods (probably BANANAS!!! ) wagon for testing - it is my first all-technic train creation...I think I will experiment more on this kind of solution Here's the semi-indepent linking featuring the two rubber joiners. Pivot point of the two axles is centered with wheels. The axle connected to the locomotive turns more than the other one (which is guided by the linking, but keeps a bit of freedom. In this case turning is forced to an unnatural angle to show the link effect. The rubber joiners allow the linking to go back to central position. I did not film the train in motion, but it works on points, on multiple points, on crazy curves both forward and reverse, as a single wagon, in the middle of train, as first and last wagon. All tested with the little 7720 since I do not have a faster locomotive at the moment (12v test layout was put away). If needed, one of the two axles can be locked in central position (Technic long pin). The other axle is free to move. I have to test it more, maybe with a longer bed - this one is 29-studs long. Let me know what you think about it!
  21. Paperinik77pk
    Wooow, the sliding center axle is something really neat! Nice Job!
  22. Paperinik77pk
    Nice suggestion, they seem a bit too big for this one! I'm designing a 1:36 version (10 wide), probably that one will have sufficient room to fit some kind of controller and a bigger motor Buwizz is great!!! You gave me an idea...
  23. Paperinik77pk
    Ahahah no problem, it was only a suggestion on general "look and feel"...nice boxes you have, they seem very practical!
  24. Paperinik77pk
    Really nice Bipolar!!! I love its simplicity! If I can give a personal suggestion...maybe try to create longer cars, this E2 will be a big lady and standard Lego lenght cars seem too small in comparison. 24 studs is the lenght of normal train platform - I'd say 1,5 times - 36 studs should be enough
  25. Paperinik77pk
    Wow! These are really nice custom tracks for narrow gauge trains - pity there are no switches. I usually use this double gauge track, made with straight dark stone grey tracks and the standard flexible track. It works fine, but has very long radius curves. I'd like to have (maybe using 3d printing) smaller 4-stud long grey tracks, so I could have a standard-radius curve and create a close double gauge layout
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