I received a Heisler today from my UK Supplier, I am very pleased with the loco it runs cery smoothly and is powerful, I await delivery of the sound module so it can be brought to life aurally!!
Just one query though, the lights are bright ( far too bright for an early Heisler) according to the instruction sheet the lights are dimmable using F1, however this does not work and the lights remain bright!
I have done the usual decoder re set a couple of times but still F1 has no effect,
I have of course tried all the other available function numers ( 1 thro'16 ) but again no dimmed lights.
Has anyone else experienced this problem?
regards Steve
Whoa!
You got your Heisler!?
Lucky you!
Hopefully those of us in the States will get ours soon as well!
Hey!! I didn't know that you had not got them yet over there in the USA, mind you this has happened before with some of the new releases.
So as far as my query on the light dimming is concerned unless Mr Bachmann comes up with an answer I will have to wait a while!!
The retailerI buy from here in the UK is www.tower-models.co.uk in Blackpool (where the Tower is!)
They recvd delivery on the 18th Feb. the Plain black is already sold out.
"IF" we should ever get them here in the States and I happen to get one at a decent price and happen to experience the same issue, I'll hope to experiment with this.. ;)
Seriously and all jealousy aside, congrats on the new loco. Very glad to hear its a good runner. ;D (OK, now back to being jealous...carry on.)
I am sure yours will not be too long away now!!
Dear All,
The Heisler's are indeed on the way, and I'm sure you'll all be pleased.
I'll check dimming when I get mine.
Have fun!
the Bach-man
Thanks Jeff
You have saved me looking it up, there is no manual as such with the loco just the usual schematic of the loco's parts.
I will check it out later and report back on here re the dimming of the lights.
Just a bit more info, the loco comes with all the usual additional alternative parts, (fuel type, cmoke stacks, lights etc)
Also I fine the loco is very powerful, it will haul much more than the average small Heisler would have done in reality!
All I need now is the sound module!
Your welcome Hope it works out, keep us posted on the sound quality
I'd like to have one of these to run around with My little porters
NM-Jeff
Quote from: NarrowMinded on February 23, 2013, 05:48:59 AM
Your welcome Hope it works out, keep us posted on the sound quality
I'd like to have one of these to run around with My little porters
NM-Jeff
Tried the CV settings as suggested, and a few others also, but to no avail. the lights remain bright,with no change when using F1 or any other function through to 16!
Strange one this I may try using an alternative decoder later to see what difference it might make, I will be interested to see if my Heisler is unique with this when others receive theirs.
I
Re the lights I also should have mentioned they are not working directionally, both fron and rear lights are 'on' at the same time, Perhaps Mr Bachmann could find out if this is correct or should they be directional??
I seem to recall a similar post with the same issue
Interestingly the CV settings for CVs 209 to 214 are noted on the quick start guide stating that if a decoder reset is carried out they should manually re set to the values below:
CV 209=12, cv210=8,
cv212=200,cv213=8, cv214=15.
These values do not correspond (with the exception of CV 210) to the values quoted on the Soundtraxx website for the Heisler
Perhaps Mr Bachmann would be able to check this out?
It will be interesting to see what happens when the sound module arrives, to see if it has any effect on the lighting problem I am experiencing with this loco.
I have tested the loco using an analogue power supply and the lighting works the same as on digital, BOTH lights illuminate brightly.
Quote from: Stevelewis on February 23, 2013, 12:59:51 PM
Tried the CV settings as suggested, and a few others also, but to no avail. the lights remain bright,with no change when using F1 or any other function through to 16!
Strange one this I may try using an alternative decoder later to see what difference it might make, I will be interested to see if my Heisler is unique with this when others receive theirs.
I
Hi Steve,
Trying a different decoder might be more trouble than it's worth, especially if you want to add the sound board later. I would guess this loco's decoder is not a plug-in unit that has a standard NMRA 8 pin connector, rather it is likely hard-wired, since the sound-only add-on board plugs into the decoder, and the decoder is included in all versions of the loco (ie: no separate DC only versions). Checking the exploded drawing included with the loco may verify this.
Glad to hear it runs well for you. Can you tell if it has metal or plastic gears? I'd love to have one of the Heislers myself, but I'm hesitant to consider it because of the high price. Besides, I already have too many On30 locos with defective drive trains, so I'm afraid to take a chance on this one. Maybe after they have been out for a while, and their mechanisms have been proven to have a good track record, I might reconsider. They
are very appealing visually...
Bill in FtL
Hi Bill
The decoder is integrated in the PCB ( much the same of some of my LGB locos)
so there is no easy way of testing it with a different decoder. The PCB has a 21 pin socket to accept the Sound Module ( which I will fit when they are delivered over here)
As far as the gears are concerned I have not yet taken a look!,, but did I read somewhere they were supposed to be metal not plastic?
There is 1 gear box per bogie, cardan shafts take the drive to the gear boxes which are on the outer axle of each bogie the other axle is driven by the side rods.
As mentioned earlier I am impressed by the excellent running qualities this ugly beast has!!
Hi Steve,
With only one gearbox per truck, I would have some concerns about durability, especially given the recent history of On30 drive problems. I think that metal gears would be an improvement, but only if the gearbox is robust enough to take the stress and still keep the gears in alignment. I would love to see one of the Heislers in person, but that won't happen at any local stores, because the dealers around here are not stocking On30 due to previous quality issues that have resulted in less demand for On30 than either HO or O 3-rail. One local dealer here has a lot of Shays, Railtrucks, and Railbusses on the shelf that weren't moving even at half price.
If you should discover for certain that all the gears are indeed metal, please let us know...
Bill in FtL
Its a strange thing this gear problem, I have bought 0n30 from day 1 of its launch back in well I cant really remember the year but it seems ages ago, I have lost count of the number of locos I have bought, ( and then sold sometimes)
But I have only had 1 gear problem, that was with a shay which was faulty when I bought it, it was still sealed in its carton with the cellophane overwrap, it was immediately apparent it was faulty because when i took it out of the box I found 1 gear was loose in the box & split. So the loco went straight back to the retailer and its cost was refunded
I have had a look inide one of the gearboxes, the cover seems a little awkward to remove after removing the 3 tiny screws the cover did not come completely off, it just pivoted from one end \i didnt want to try to get it off by forcing at this stage!! Anyway I was able to look inside the gear does appear to be NON Metallic! It is white, not sure what the material is maybe nylon? It is approx 3/4 of the diameter of the loco wheels which are 12mm diametert
This will be the 2nd arrival of the Heislers.
From what my retailer told me, when the Heisler arrived the first time in the States, after test running a few, the entire shipment was packed up and sent back to China for redesign, or something.
The issues were not with the superstructure or detailing but were drive train related. My guess is gears. Of course, this is not "officially" from Bachmann but rather word of mouth from my retailer.
But it does make sense. Given Bachmann's issues with quality control with the Chinese plant, management may have said enough is enough - fix this!
If the Heisler has resolved the gear and drive train issues, this would be a step in restoring the faith of customers in the On30 line and Bachmann products.
This will be the lone geared locomotive on my little railroad and will serve as my yard switcher so I hope it run well and be durable.
There was no problem with the Heisler's gears or gear train. It was a totally unrelated issue.
Hey steve,
I've been reading through differant guides and have found something i missed before and it works on one of my decoders and that is setting cv49 and cv 50 to 146
NM-Jeff
Hi Jeff
Tried 146 but yes it dimmed the light but only in a flashing mode!
146 gave longish DIM then short bright flash!, I tried several other values from 125 thro' 155 some gave varius combinations of flash rates etc, 125 actually switched the light of completely.
incidentally re my previous comments ref nondirectional lighting (ie both lights are ON) I was able to assign different values via cv 40 & 50 to each light seperately so they did different flash sequences indepandant of each other.
This has now become a challenge, next move is to contact soundtraxx I think.
Quote from: Kevin S. on February 25, 2013, 03:00:44 PM
This will be the 2nd arrival of the Heislers.
The issues were not with the superstructure or detailing but were drive train related. My guess is gears. Of course, this is not "officially" from Bachmann but rather word of mouth from my retailer.
Bachmann officials said from day one of the Heisler return that it was
NOT gear or drive train related. They ran them for a substantial period without a failure.
The issue was something else altogether.
RESULT!!!
Thanks to information from Jamie at Soundtraxx I now am able to run the Heisler with working directional
dimmed lights!
Set CV 33 to value 1
Set CV 34 to value 2
This gives directional lighting.
The Functions 1 to 8 are NOT mapped for dimmable lights, so Functions 9or10 or 11 or 12 can be used.
For F9 set CV39 to 128 ..... For F10 set CV 40 to 128
for F11 set CV 41 to 16 ......or F12 set CV 42 to the value to 16
I used F9 on mine and it does work lights dim OK
I Hope this info is useful for those awaiting delivery of the Heisler. Which I have nothing but praise for :) :)
Hi Steve,
I think I am getting too old to keep up to all this "smoke and mirrors" stuff (DCC that is).
I assume there is a CV that has to be set to 128 to assign the dimmable lights to F9 or F10.
If so, could you pleae post the CV number. If this isn't the case, can you please explain what is set to 128 to acheive this.
Thanking you in anticipation of your response.
RGS Goose.
Quote from: RGS Goose on February 26, 2013, 04:49:35 PM
Hi Steve,
I think I am getting too old to keep up to all this "smoke and mirrors" stuff (DCC that is).
I assume there is a CV that has to be set to 128 to assign the dimmable lights to F9 or F10.
If so, could you pleae post the CV number. If this isn't the case, can you please explain what is set to 128 to acheive this.
Thanking you in anticipation of your response.
RGS Goose.
SORRY RGS I am gettin' old too!! But I have now edited the post above to nclude the CVs for Fs 9 to 12 for dimmin' the lights!! :)
Hi again Steve,
Thank you for that extra info. I have printed it out, and will put it away until I get to see my Heisler, which could be some time away yet, as I am in Australia, and it is coming via the USA.
My layout is still "a work in progress", so all of my locos are still in their boxes (along with everything else).
However my memory tells me the 2-4-4-2 has the same light issues. Do you know if these settings for the Heisler will solve the 2-4-4-2 problems, or, if not, do you know what the settings are for the 2-4-4-2, to achieve the same light settings as the Heisler?
Thanks again,
RGS Goose.
Not sure about the 2-4-4-2 but it mat be the same as the Heisler and the 2-4-4-2 are the same set up with an integrated decoder with a 21 pin socket for the plug in sound module, I think that a quick way of finding out would be to eMail the Soundtraxx help desk, support@soundtraxx.com that was where I got the info from for the Heisler earlier today, and they were very quick to reply!
Just for your info there is a UK retailer www.ehattons.com they are in Liverpool, an old established company going back to the late 40s, they stock Bachmann 0n30 and they do ship to Australia, they sometimes have good prices its a case of checking their website occasionally, I have dealt with them for years and the service is good, although we are only about 45mins drive from them I get all my stuff online as it gets delivered next day and costs less than the petrol would if I drove there!
Hi Steve,
I have contacted Sountraxx regarding the lights in the 2-4-4-2, and I received the same good response from Jaime that you received.
He has told me that the 2-4-4-2 lighting settings are the same as the Heisler, with the only difference being that, in Jaime's words, "Bachmann programmed the 2-4-4-2 with a modified rule 17 lighting effect where the headlight dims when in reverse and comes on bright when in forward. You can use the same settings that were given for the Heisler unless you wish to use the modified rule 17."
Regards,
RGS Goose.
Thats useful Information, according to the Heisler instruction sheet Rule 17 lighting is mentioned, but that was not working either digital or analogue.
for info when I tested the loco on analogue, the lights were both working front and rear at the same time I have not tried it since I did the CV changes, but when I get a chance I will do so just to see what happens!
Just a HEISLER update,
I have had mine around 2 weeks now, and it has been run quite a few times now, my impression is still positive, it is a very smooth running , controllable locomotive, its very powerful and will haul many more cars than I would ever need it to.
The only glitch when I got it was the non directional, non dimming lights ( the undimmed lights are far too bright!!)
I have already posted information from Soundtraxx to overcome the lighting problem, in case any one missed it here is the info:
\SET CV 33 to 1,CV 34 to 2, CV49 & CV50 both set to 129 and CV39 to 128.
This gives directional lights and allows dimming using F9 (NOT F1!!)
The sound modules have not yet arrived in the UK!
Thanks for updating, I was curious why the original setting of 129 did not work, i'll have to see what cv33 and 34 sre one the list.
NM-Jeff
Hello everyone,
I finally got my hands on my Heisler last week. I used Jamie's (Sountraxx) settings for the directional headlights, and that works really well. I also set CV 39 to 128, as Jamie suggested, to dim the headlights.
I couldn't see any difference in the light level, so I reset it again, but still no discernible difference.
I took the boiler front off and squeezed an 8.2K resistor into the headlight wires in there, and did the same in the tender, with the 8.2K resistor above the sound board.
The lights are now quite a lot less intense, and look good to my eye.
The loco, as a whole is a great little model, and runs, and looks, great.
RGS Goose.
I tried the same with the 2-4-4-2, CV 39 to 128.
Nothing happening.
I also tried to overwrite the excisting programming on function 7 , CV41 to dim (16)
The fuction does not change.
My suspicion is that the functions values are fixed!
Ton
When i altered the CVs on my Heisler all those weeks ago now the dimming function was clearly noticable, hard to define the amount of dimming but it was definatley dimmer!!
Actually I no longer have the Heisler I sold it a couple of weeks back! There was nothing wrong with it but it just didnt really 'fit in' with the approximate time period on my layout,