Flexitrack

When I was a child, model railway track came in short sections, each perhaps 20cm long. There were straights, curves and points. One can still buy track like that. However, for some years now, it has been possible to buy something called "flexitrack". In the case of HO track, this comes in 1 metre lengths and can form either a long straight section or be curved right or left by simply flexing it one way or the other- it is flexible.

There are  advantages to flexitrack. Firstly, one does not have to make so many joins between sections. This results in a smoother run of track. Also, every connection one makes between two sections of track can lead to reductions in electrical connectivity, so the fewer the sections the better is the flow of electricity round the track.

Secondly, one can tailor the curvature of the track to the exact needs of the situation: one is not constrained to the pre-set curvatures of the short-section system.

Thirdly, one can cut the track into the exact length required for any situation.

However, one has to be careful about how one cuts the track.

I'll tackle that issue another time.

Today's listening has been DJ Krush, Holonic.

Good old Germany.

The rest of my Trans Europ Express coaches arrived from Michael in Freudental in Germany. There had been a lot of mucking about at my end in trying to transfer the payment but Michael's bank in Germany had been very helpful communicating with me in English. Michael had also been very helpful and patient. And, he included a little "present" of HO scale station accessories!

Anyway, here are some photos of the complete Trans Europ Express - difficult to get it all in the frame.

Tonight, I have been mostly listening to Botchit Breaks - dug out from my CD cupboard as a change from iTunes.

Success

Unbelievably, after wiring up a piece of track to the DCC Controllers, the engine actually moved. Well, if a technically incompetent person like me can instal a DCC chip into a loco not actually prepared for such technology - and this little Jouef is ancient - then anyone can do it.

Would like to have posted a video of this event but a rather feeble still will have to suffice.

And by the way, today I have been mostly listening to the complete string quartets of Bela Bartok performed by the Keller Quartet. Very, very consoling.

Fitting a DCC decoder into an HO Jouef steam loco

The first task is to cut the two wires carrying electric current from track to motor.

The ends of the wires have to be stripped of their plastic covering using my new wire stripper.

4 short sections of black heatshrink tubing are cut off and slipped over each of the engine's wires ready to be moved into position to cover the soldering joins between motor wires and DCC decoder wires.

I decided to sever the connections to the front light incase that caused a short circuit to the chip - not sure about that but better safe than sorry.

Changed my mind and placed the heatshrink tubing around the 4 wires coming from the chip - they were longer and easier to place the tubes around. I'm only using 4 of the plethora of wires coming from the chip. The others are to send instructions to headlights, tail lights and other functions.

Next I tried to solder the 4 pairs of wires together - you really do need two pairs of hand to hold everything in position plus the solder plus the soldering iron. I'm convinced that one of the four joins will be unsuccessful. Both ends of the wires to be joined went black and after trying the whole procedure again, the result was the same. It was as if the metal wires had been transformed into  molten black plastic from the plastic sleeves. One has to live in hope.

Next one slides the heatshrink tubing over the solder joins and melts them into permanent position with a hairdrier. This prevents the metal joins touching any other metal and short-circuiting.

Finally, one joins the actual chip (the black square in picture) to the wires by plugging in that white endpiece that the wires go into. A most UNSATISFACTORY fit - does not feel plugged in at all but one is scared to push too hard in case something breaks.

Oh well, we'll see what happens tomorrow when a short section of track is wired up to the DCC control system. Do not believe it will work, I'm afraid.

Tonight I have been mostly listening to ...........

The soldering iron has arrived so tomorrow I'm going to tackle the installation of that DCC chip into the wee French steam engine.

Tonight, I have been mostly listening to the Brindisi Quartet playing string quartets by Schoenberg, Webern and Berg. Very moving. Feel tearful.

Wiring an old loco for the computer age.

This is the loco that I am going to practise on - an old Jouef  040 - TA.

My understanding is that one has to locate the DCC chip between the track and the motor. In otherwords, one interrupts the flow of electricity coming from the track and diverts it into the chip. Whether the chip decides to release that electricity to the motor thus allowing the loco to move depends upon the instruction that one sends to the chip. Those instructions come from the controller and travel along the track up through the wheels of the loco and thence to the chip. Hope these three diagrams illustrate this.

Here is the situation at present. The electricity reaches the motor through two wires connected to the wheels which pick up the electricity from the track.

So, the first task will be to cut these wires.

And then wire-in the chip so that two wires (thin black and yellow) going to the chip pick up the electricity from the track and two other wires (black and red) then carry the electricity from the chip to the motor.

Hope that my understanding of these DCC principles is correct. As soon as my soldering iron arrives I shall test them out. Will be very surprised if it all works out.

Tonight's alcohol.

It's not possible at the moment to do something every night on this railway project - I don't have the tools in place. However, a soldering iron, heat-shrink tape, wire strippers and fine solder have been ordered and when they come I'll tackle the installation of the DCC decoder into the little steam engine.

In the mean time, here are, in chronological order of consumption, the three  beverages that will provide tonight's alcoholic units.

Pineau des Charentes:

Jurancon Sec

Cotes du Roussillon