Duq

You're forgetting the 10173 Holiday train, 7597 Toy Story train, 9467 Ghost train and 3740-3747 My Own Train. I wouldn't include Hogwarts; it doesn't run on track and is too ugly to be called a train. I agree though that I'd love to see a nice red/black German steam engine released as a set.

Yup, there is of course a difference because they do different things. One has joysticks for full forward and full reverse, the other has jogs for speed control. 8879 Speed controller Uses Single Channel mode - PWM except when both stop buttons are pressed, then it uses the 'Brake then float' command for both channels on Combo Direct mode. 8885 Simple controller Uses Combo Direct mode for everything. So there's a few modes that the current controllers don't use. I've created this picture to illustrate the difference between the two increment/decrement commands: LEGO PF PWM by Duq, on Flickr

That's an interesting one. I've just tried another receiver (recent S@H purchase, expecting a V2 but getting V1) and that does indeed behave differently. Like you said, when you turn on the battery there's a faint blink of the receiver LED before it comes on. On the newer receiver the inc numerical and dec numerical commands behave mostly as I had expected from the documentation; if the motor is running then increment numerical (0010) will increase the speed, whatever direction it's running. Decrement numerical (0011) will reduce the speed. When the motor is stopped, increment numerical does not turn it on. To answer the original question: this inc/dec does use the same 7 speeds as other modes. Toggle direction (0001) does what it says; it reverses the direction, keeping the same speed. In comparison, increment PWM (0100) and decrement PWM (0101) behave like the speed controller; if the motor is running forward and you keep decrementing the speed it will go 'past 0'. After stopping it will reverse with increasing speed.

On my V1 receiver the numerical increment and decrement don't seem to work. If the motor is stopped nothing happens. If the motor is turning then either inc numerical or dec numerical sets the motor to full speed in the direction it's running. The Toggle direction command seems to have no effect.

Haven't played with this particular mode yet but since all other modes that have increment/decrement commands refer to the 7 steps I'd be surprised if this one would be different.

There are various solution with all sorts of Technic pieces. Just to get you started: https://www.flickr.com/search/groups/?w=1353660%40N21&m=pool&q=coupling

The short answer is no. Like you said there, the trick here is replacing firmware. You can replace the firmware on the RCX but not on the PF controller. If you want more accurate PWM control of your train you have two options; put an RCX brick in your train (tricky, they're BIG) or use 9V motors and track and use an RCX with brickOS as your speed controller. Or of course option 3: convert your trains to DCC...

Single, I take it?

DaisyDuq and I are also coming by rental car so depending on what we get we can take another 2 or 3 people.

It's a bit crude, just drawn with straight track pieces, but it gives you an idea of the relative sizes: LEGO Track curves by Duq, on Flickr

I voted for plastic for the same reason as Cale but I voted for 104. If we're going for this we might as well aim big. If we can have 2 then 88 would be my second choice so we can have double track with wide curves. I think 56 is pointless as a first product because it offers little benefit over the current solution of using standard curves for the outer track, just with an extra straight at the start. I certainly wouldn't pay $4.50 per section for R56. Having said that I haven't quite decided whether I'll be spending serious money on R88 or R104.

Yes he will. I'm making them now ;-)

Looks like the old Model Team wheels to me: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=2695c01

Yeah, that makes me wonder how well those lumps actually fit...

It's also clearly stationary ;-) It's quite common for electric loco's to be parked with the panto's down. I have to see the original is no beauty but you've done her proud. It's a good likeness, even if it took some stickers and a drill.

If that's your first steam engine you're quite ambitious! First of all you'll need to choose between speed and power; you can't have both. Have a look at the instructions for the Emerald Night for a possible solution; that uses an XL motor to drive the drivers. For a different solution have a look at some of Cale Leipharts engines: B&O Em1 18 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr

Hey Daddy. The search box is in the top right of the screen ;-) It sounds like you're missing the speed controller. The rechargeable battery box has a speed control built in but it means you set the speed and let go of the train. The typical thing to do for Power Function trains is to include the receiver: [link] Then you use the remote control to control the speed of your train: [link]

Ah, I didn't get the axis of rotation bit. FBBF or BFFB makes quite a difference in overhang. If the F wheels are further apart then more of the loco will be inside the curve and less will be outside. Don't have a picture handy to show the difference. On top of that, you can't have BFFB at the wheel spacing shown above because you can't have the F drivers side by side.

Legoman, I've absolutely no idea what you're trying to say... Can you explain, maybe with a picture?

Hey Tony, my experience was similar; in lab conditions all seemed fine but real world at a show wasn't as reliable. Especially points can be tricky. I haven't had a chance to do some troubleshooting to try and improve the engine. For the moment though I won't use FBBF again in a hurry. The problem of course for engines with 4 drivers is that the overhang at the front or back will be enormous. For my BR 55 I went for BFBF. I needed to keep the rear overhang to a minimum to keep it close to the tender but it means at the front it swings out 4 studs past the sleepers...

Practice makes perfect. There's a first time for everything. Hmm, let's see, which other cliche's would apply ;-) Seriously, once you can read instructions and have a bit of patience you can build any Lego set. And if you do happen to get stuck you post your question here and there will always be someone willing to help you out. While the new passenger train will no doubt be easier to build I think it'll also be less satisfying to build. Creator Expert sets are created by the best designers Lego has and it usually shows in the level of detail and the original techniques and solutions.

So let me get this straight. You've found the guidelines on ramps. You don't have the space for the recommended incline so you want to make it steeper. And now your trains don't make it to the top. Those guidelines are there for a reason. They're based on experience. Lego train wheels do have rubber bands on them but they only get you so far. To improve traction you'll need to make the train heavier but that will also make it harder to get up the ramp. Do you have the space to go up half the height, make a turn and then go up the other half? Otherwise I think your options are getting a bigger table or changing your plans...

It's a slightly odd looking thing but you've modelled it well. I don't think the tender looks too short though, in fact I probably would have made it shorter than this.

Click!

The site linked above seems to have died in the last hour but Ausini can be found elsewhere too. And from the same friendly childrens toy manufacturer: Build your own Kalashnikov...