When running my Shay I have to turn the E-Z Command control about a third of the up before it moves, is this common with the Shay ? My 460 Baldwin & 0-4-2 Porter & Rail Bus start running as soon as I turn speed control nob. Thanks John ???
Quote from: GreenbrierShay on January 28, 2014, 03:47:00 PM
When running my Shay I have to turn the E-Z Command control about a third of the up before it moves, is this common with the Shay ? My 460 Baldwin & 0-4-2 Porter & Rail Bus start running as soon as I turn speed control nob. Thanks John ???
Very normal if the Shay has a dual mode decoder. The logic circuits on the decode require at least five volts just to wake up. Microprocessors require five volts to operate. A volt or two more for the loco to begin moving.
The microprocessor via other components sends positive or negative pulses to the motor.
Rich
Can I do anything to rectify this issue ?
Quote from: GreenbrierShay on January 28, 2014, 04:02:58 PM
Can I do anything to rectify this issue ?
Obvious Man told me to pull the decoder and plug in the six pin adapter that comes with the loco. Back to full DC control.
Below is a link to this loco with the DC adapter plugged into the eight pin socket. Click on the page to enlarge it.
http://www.hoseeker.net/assemblyexplosionbachmann/bachmann3truckshaydccreadypg1.jpg
Below is a link for a block diagram about how a typical decoder is made. Just ignore the cap, diode and resistor. A sound decoder would have a few more components.
With DCC, try not to make any assumptions. The digital world is somewhat different than the analogue world.
(http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l267/richg1998/DCC/Decoderdiagram.jpg) (http://s98.photobucket.com/user/richg1998/media/DCC/Decoderdiagram.jpg.html)
Rich
Quote from: GreenbrierShay on January 28, 2014, 04:02:58 PM
Can I do anything to rectify this issue ?
I don't think this is a legitimate issue. The Shays are geared much lower than rod locomotives, just like the prototype ones were. They were made for increased pulling power, not speed. Most Shays had a top speed of about 15 mph, and their lower gearing meant that the engine powering them was turning at a fairly high RPM, even at that low speed on the rails. Your model is much the same, it's motor has to turn a fairly high speed for the given speed of the model down the track.
I don't think pulling the decoder and running it on straight DC is a very good solution, it will still have a low top speed, even if you do succeed in getting it to start at a lower voltage, and you'll be throwing away the advantages of DCC control.
Keep your DCC! Take the loco to someones layout that uses a DCC control system that can program the loco decoder speeds. See if you can get it to run good on that layout and then take it home and it should be OK. That is one of the disadvantages of the EZ Command.