I have fitted a 1.55" QSI Solutions high bass speaker to an outside frame Baldwin using a Tsunami sound decoder. The recipeint of this loco was quite impressed with clarity of the sound over the old speaker.
This link should take you to the pictures i took while fitting the speaker and the decoder.
http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p18/Ozzie21trains/
I have also fitted a Micro Tsunami to a new 4-4-0 with a 1.22" QSI high bass speaker. Unfortuneatly I got carried away during the install and for got to take the pictures. Maybe I'll remember next time.


Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

I buy a fair bit of gear from the US and the UK and I too live in Queensland. I have found that when ordering from the UK what you save in not paying the VAT is transferred to lousy packaging and in one instance one loco was wrapped in plan brown paper. In the US you get your locos well packed so the extra you pay I feel is well worth it. I have noticed that the shipping and handling costs have gone up. I usually only order from three dealers and in all cases I don't get charged the US taxes and in all instances I can get the items sent via US mail rather than UPS  which in my case isn't worth the effort as it doesn't get here any faster and I have to go into town to pick it up as the courier doesn't deliver out here. I have also found from the three dealers I deal with that the cost of airmail postage is usually the same whether it be one item or three. This could be because I'm a regular customer and have been dealing with these guys for the last twenty years.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

Quote from: Sunshine Express on May 24, 2008, 06:39:25 AM
I have bought from some British Hobby Shops,and their policy was postage at cost.
Is there any U.S.Dealers that would give you an option of this.?
$22 and $52 International Postage for a medium envelope of Decals is a bit stiff.
Any help here ?

I though I  might have had a picture of comparable locos in HO and OO scale to show the difference. In reality the UK loading gauge is a composite to allow most rolling stock to traverse most lines  in the UK. There are some restrictions where rolling stock has to be special  built to suit the the restricted loading gauge in some places. Overall dimensions of rolling stock when compared to US rolling stock is reduced roughly 2ft  in height and width allowing for a US average of 16ft by 11ft.

This picture while showing two HO scale locos shows roughly the difference in size. The C&O Allegheny is 16' 6 and 31/32" high and 11' 1 and 1/2" wide the NSWGR AD 60 class Garrett 14' high and 9"3" wide. The Allegheny weighs in at 600tons approx, the AD60 380Tons similar locos did operate in the UK during the forties and fities. The last NSW Garrett in 1972.

Ozzie21

I agree with Roger on the over springing on most model locos. The Bachmann light and heavy mountains  I have have had their springs removed and extra weight added to the front and rear truck if required. Most brass locos are the same so they get thiers removed as well. I've got about 8 consols and 6 decapods that I'll have to get out and start fitting them up with sound but first I'll do a little machining to the chassis and fill them up with lead.

Ozzie21

Quote from: rogertra on May 25, 2008, 04:01:00 AM
My Spectrum 2-8-0 have a lead filled airtank on the pilot deck, as do almost all GER steam.  On the 2-8-0s, this is the only added weight.

On both the Athearn 40602 and 2-8-2 I stuffed weight everwhere there was an opening.  In the lead filled airtank added to the pilot deck, in the hollow steam dome and sandbox, in the smokebox saddle, inside the cylinders, behind the smokebox door, everywhere except in the cab as these locos are already cab heavy. 

I also removed all springing from any pilot and trailing trucks, as I do on all steam locos.  Afer all, it's basic physics at work.  "For every action (The spring pushing down), there is an equal and opposite reaction (The spring also pushes up)  So the spring pushing up will reduce traction by lifting a small amount of the loco's weight from the track.  Remove the springs on the trucks pushing up, and all the loco's weight is now pushing down.  Result, more traction. 

I also filed open the hole in the tender where the wires pass between loco and tender as the harness isn't that flexable and its stiffness reduced loco's tractive effort.  A little lead weight over the leading tender truck was added, something all steam get.

My Athearn 4-6-2s and 2-8-2s will now pull what my Spectrum 2-8-0s will pull and also track better than they did out of the box.  This is 16 cars up a roughly 3% curving grade.  Dunno how much they pull on level track as that wasn't my goal, the goal was 16 cars up the grade, which has been achieved.

what all of them or just the US locos. All up I have 160 locos. 60 US steam and diesel , 80 British steam and diesel and 20 Australian steam locos. These are the ones that run. I have another 25 locos in the display case and 17 in the dead row.  One day I'll amass enough rolling stock to make it all worth while.

Ozzie21

Quote from: Paul M. on May 23, 2008, 10:44:01 PM
Ozzie, how many locos do you have?

Rich, I think you were half lucky. The 2-8-2 was okay but a little on the light side. A couple I worked on had springing problems. Adding weight was pain as you needed more than two hands to get the body off the chassis. In general it wasn't a bad model. The pacific was a mongrel from the start. Both of mine would run intermitantly  then after I got them to run well they both decided to split the drive gear almost at the same time. They have sat in their boxes since then. Athearn didn't seem interested in my numerous requests for replacement gears so they have not seem the light of day till a couple of weeks ago when i shopping for some detail parts fot something unrelated and I noticed some NWSL gear parts for the Athearn steamers. Well one is going but the other has a missing eccentric screw and after 8 yrs I wouldn't know where that is.


Ozzie21

Quote from: r.cprmier on May 23, 2008, 02:01:09 PM
As long as I have owned them, I have had no problems with either the two Pacifics or the two Mikes I own by Athearn.  Did I get lucky?

Rich

Steamfreak, this is the web address for SWD http://www.southwestdigital.co.uk/

They use ESU Loksound decoders and they come pre programmed with the appropriate noises.

Or you could order a Bachmann Branchline 20 class diesel that comes factory fitted with sound.
Another supplier of British sounds is oddly enough Digitrax. They list in their soundloader menu the following British sounds; Class 108 DMU, BR Yorkie, Class 37, light prarie tank and BR std class 5. Seems odd but they must have a market  in the UK or they wouldn't have listed them.

Ozzie21

Quote from: Steam Freak on May 22, 2008, 07:56:11 PM
Can anybody help me with the question I had about Southwest Digital?

I have noticed that Athearn are redoing the old Genesis pacfic under the the Roundhouse label. It's supposed to have new drive system and chassis. I hope so because the original, of which I have two in B&O, are deplorable. They are difficult to get apart and difficult to add weight to plus they lack paint for the most part. Still it was fun to try and make a B&O President class pacific out of one.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

I've been fitting my C&O Kanawah's with Soundtraxx Tsunami's. I had used the basic Soundtraxx 40mm oval speaker but I decided to try something new. I purchased some of the new QSI high bass speakers and fitted one undec loco with a pair of 1.1" square speakers and Wow! the clarity of the sound is amazing. I dispensed with the accessory sound box and just sealed any holes in the tender and used it as a sound box . I've just ordered another twenty to retro fit some more locos. Pity they don't make some long ovals  to fit in diesels.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

Did you fit a decoder from day 1 as the GW set was only DCC ready which means you supply and fit your own decoder.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

Quote from: terry train on May 18, 2008, 09:34:54 AM
I had nothing but problems with my George engine from day1. It would not run on dcc, even after being sent back to Bachmann 3 times. They even replaced the engine and still had the same problem. Well I fixed what they could not. I remove the factory wire and board and built on myself and added sound to the engine. I can now run the George on my layout.
I wish to thank everyone for the suggestions and advice. I just wish Bachmann would have solved the problem in the first place

Now as a Scotsman this was debate I'd rather not enter into. Sufficed to say all of Europe should speak french according to one country and I wouldn't want to be called a european. It's like calling a Canadian an American.  Bring back imperial measure.


Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

Quote from: tac on May 18, 2008, 03:56:01 AM

Quote from: Steam Freak on May 16, 2008, 03:45:21 PMIs it possible to order Bachmann European engines across seas? I want a Class 37, but I don't know of anywhere else to buy a British engine in the US. Help anyone?

Mornin', Steam freak, just picked this one up off the forum - you are correct to call it British - there are no Class 37 locomotives in Northern Ireland [part of the United Kingdom, but incorrect to call it European - there are no Class 37 locomotives on mainland Europe. 

The three countries making up the 'big island' of Great Britain are England, Scotland and Wales.  The province of Ulster, also called Northern Ireland, is physically part of the island of Ireland.  The 'Great' of Great Britain is not a boast, but a description - it was once called 'Greater Britain', to distinguish it from 'Lesser Britain', a part of Northern France that is still called Bretagne [Brittany in English].
 
Many Brits, myself included, do not care to be referred to as Europeans, BTW.

There are a few H0 scale British locomotives [note that I call them locomotives and not engines], in particular, one maker produces an H0 Class 59 and 66.   The Class 66 is very common on mainland Europe as well as here in UK.

Good luck in your quest!

tac
www.ovgrs.org

Thanks, I had just had a similar thought  but I wonder for what reason?
Lucky I now have two CD's , the Bachmann one and the Intermountain one.  If you want to see a loco that had it's electronics installed in hurry by a 6yr old using a 100w soldering iron buy an Intermountain Cab forward. I bought two of them at different times. I can understand one having a fault but to buy a second with the same fault! Now that really shows that quality control is a hit and miss affair. It's a shame really as the model as it stands is an excellent reproduction of the real thing.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

Quote from: r0bert on May 17, 2008, 06:52:43 PM
ozzie,
there is a cd rom included with the loco under the box lining.
the back emf/load control on the tsunami is all out of wack for some reason on the J's, and has to be adjusted, resetting won't get it done.

Stephen, the Bachmann Kanawah is a reaally nice model of an Alco supplied loco not the Lima one it purports to be. There are a few subtle differences between the two builders and it's nor really that hard to change them if you can find the parts. Get hold of the CD the C&O society puts out, it's on the J-2 as well as the k-4, as it has some really nice high resolution shots of builders pics of the four building groups plus a whole heap of in service shots.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

Quote from: Stephen D. Richards on May 17, 2008, 11:05:47 AM
Gene,
I received my Class J twp weeks ago (the freight version, non sound) and it does fine.  I am running 22" curves and none of my 4-8-4s pull really well on those curves!  However the Class J does better than the rest.  By the way, also received my Berk (waiting on me when I returned home).  Really nice loco and it pulls well.  Kanawha version of course!  I only see very minor differences between it and the Spectrums!  But then again I don't know that much about Berks!  lol    Stephen

Ahh Gene I am still a C&O fan. I now have 9 Kanawah's, 4 H-8's, 5 H-5's 3 H-6's, 5 T-1's, 3 J-3's 3 J-2's 2 k-3's and a lone Hudson. But I like a bit of colour so add to that a few SF, N&W and SP steam locos. Just got two Intermountain Cab forwards and I'm having a ball with those. It's just this damn J that's disappointing as it won't pull nor track worth a damn. I don't really want to send it back to the US supplier I got it from as that makes postage costly. I guess I'll have to break out the screw drivers and the 5lb hammer and fix it.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia

Quote from: SteamGene on May 17, 2008, 10:58:00 AM
Charles,
I thought you were C&O forever!
Gene

Hattons in the UK is a good place to buy from.
www.ehattons.com

Unfortunately you can't buy an HO 37 class. All british models are made to OO scale which is 4mm.

Charles Emerson
Queensland
Australia