I have been doing it without problems, other than normal problems associated with the black roadbed track.

I have, over the last year, been changing all of my black roadbed steel track over to grey roadbed NS track, so

I've had a lot of mixed sections. All  that is left now are the rest of the turnouts.

My recommendation would be to start going to all NS grey roadbed track.

In my experience, it has better conductivity and is more resistant to corrosion.

Will

Quote from: pacuccaro on December 06, 2011, 06:52:55 PM
i bought a dcc set for my son but was  told there was no way to hook up switches and buildings so we traded that in for the Alaskan train set - i remember ho trains going much faster - what am i doing wrong both the dcc and now this set the engines go very slow

I bought the Alaska DC set for our youngest grandson last year. While not as fast as some locomotives that I have, I would not call it unusually slow.

If I understand you correctly, your local hobby shop told you that with the DCC set, you can't add buildings or switches. This is not completely accurate.

If you were to add switches and LIGHTED buildings, you would need a separate  power supply, as the DCC EZ Command has no accessory  output built into it.

This is not an expensive purchase. A basic  supply, that will  power  any lighted buildings and  switches you add, would probably cost less than $20.

Quote from: Jim Banner on December 04, 2011, 10:56:06 PM
If you prefer to reset the address to 03 from the comfort of your favourite chair, follow the instructions REPROGRAMMING DECODERS WITH PREVIOUSLY ASSIGNED DIGITAL ADDRESSES on page 3 of your E-Z Command manual.  As always, remember to press the #3 button and while holding it down, press the STOP button.  This does not reset the decoder - it only reprograms its address from an unknown address to address 03.

Jim

Jim,

Have you used this procedure to reset a decoder's address when you didn't know the assigned address?

I tried it on a locomotive that I did not know the assigned address and could not get it to work. That's not to say I didn't do something wrong, it just did not work for me.

Will

Quote from: ONTRAX on December 04, 2011, 01:57:45 PM
Yes they say DCC on board on the bottom.  If they were not DCC they would work with the DCC control er on position 10. That is why I am frustrated. I had not used my trains in years but my grandson is interested and that is what got me started again so I have some knowledge. I know the difference between DCC ready and with. Since the EZ command only operates DCC engines I am at a lose on what to do.

Since they both appear to be DCC and both run on DC, as the newer Bachmann DCC locos should, I would guess that  the assigned DCC address(which comes from Bachmann as 3) has some how been changed. You can first, if you haven't already, try all the addresses available on your controller. If it still will not run, your best bet is to take it to someone who has a DCC system that will read decoders and have it checked. If the address is other than 3 have it reset to 3 and go from there. Or if the address is one that you can use with your controller, just try it that way.

There are no instructions for programming the DCC Turnouts included in the Dynamis manual. At least not in the copy I have or the on-line manual.

A paragraph at the top of page 16 refers to the instructions that come with the DCC Turnouts.

Sorry, I didn't know about the variation with the Altlas DCC units I only have one and it came new set to 3.

I have several Athearn locomotives, all came new set to 3.

I don't worry about it as I test all new locomotives on a program track and read the Decoder with JMRI.

Here is the manual for the basic Bachmann decoder.

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/ez_content/1_Amp_Decoder_Instr.pdf

I believe this is the one used in the DCC on Board RS 3.

That is the industry standard, so to speak.

Unless the assigned number has been changed by some one, it SHOULD be #3.

Not just Bachmann EZ Command, but all DCC systems.

O.K. having said that, some one will likely come up with an exception. >gr<

Quote from: florynow on December 02, 2011, 06:38:08 PM
Of course, Will, model railroading is fun, that's what The Magazine has said for 50 years or more now.  But at some point most peoples' ideas and visions refine and some things that used to seem OK aren't any more.

If you want your railroad to look realistic, minimize the equipment count and size, and maximize curves and switch number.  If you don't care, who else cares?  Do whatever you like, it's your railroad.  I do put my 2-10-2 on my home layout with less than one scale mile of track once in a while just to see it roll and to blow the whistle between its trips to the club where it pulls 30 car freights over the 6 scale mile mainline with 36" radius curves.

One other thing some one told me.  If you look at large equipment running on sharp curves at eye level, you don't see the overhanging so much.  I have one 22" curve and the 2-10-2 runs over it OK and at eye level it sort of looks OK. But the 4-4-0's and 4-6-0's look so much better there, to me at least.

PF

No problem.  If that's what you want to do(take your larger locos to a club layout), fine. Not everyone has access to a club layout and not everyone has a large layout with 36" curves. But some  may want to run a larger locomotive on what they have available to them. I, too, am fortunate enough to have several options.
But, I would be the last person to tell  someone not do it, unless they will damage their equipment. And even then, it's their equipment and their money.
I've witnessed a guy deliberately crash an RC model plane, just to video the crash. I don't have that kind of money, but it was his plane and his money.

Quote from: florynow on December 02, 2011, 06:02:24 PM
Branch lines and short lines with small steam engines are so much better suited to the limited space of model railoads than trying to run Big Boys and such in cramped quarters.  Small equipment and a small amount of it on-track makes the layout look bigger too. 

But.  It's an attitude that seems to get grown into over time.  It took me a long time to disconnect from huge thundering mainline stuff and get into teakettle engines on weedgrown track.

I do have a 2-10-2, 4-8-2 and (4) 2-8-2's, but I only run them at the club on 36" min r. and use 4-4-0's and 4-6-0's mostly at home, along with a couple of 2-8-0's and 2-10-0's.

PF

I have been resisting commenting on this thread, but here goes.

If the locomotive will make the circuit without problems, then it comes down to appearance and preference. And as long as I have been in (and out) of model railroading, I have yet to meet two members of the hobby that totally agreed on this subject. Soooooo, why not just leave it up to the individual.

Respectfully,

Will

Quote from: en4cer on November 20, 2011, 10:16:10 AM
I sell new and used model railroad products at Model Train Shows in our area for the hobby shop I work for. So I get to visit with hundreds of customers on a given weekend, their input is priceless whether it's positive or negative. It helps you as a seller understand what customers are looking for and what they have experienced with products they have purchased. Yes I agree that negative comments are hard to hear but its still important if you want to improve your products or provide quality products to customers. As far as Bachmann products are concerned I hate to say that most seasoned model railroaders tend to steer away from Bachmann and venture over to other manufacturer's products. I hear this over and over at the shows, I myself love Bachmann products but I have to also understand that it's not what I like but it's what the consumer wants that's important. I think Bachmann makes great engines, whether steam or otherwise. I do think their EZ-Track products need improvement especially the turnouts. Anyway thats my input if it helps.

I most certainly  vigorously second your comment on EZ Track turnouts. I have a small sized layout(5 x10) and every problem that I currently have is directly associated
with the turnouts. It is very expensive to send defective turnouts back to either Bachmann or the source that from where they were purchased. This has become such a problem,  that I am very seriously considering breaking down my entire layout and replacing all the track and turnouts with another brand. This would be an expensive and time consuming process.
BUT, the poor quality of the turnouts may make it a necessity. I hope someone reads this and can get the message to Bachmann's management.

The Reset CV and Value varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Unfortunately, the Bachmann decoder manual that I have does not provide this information.

I probably would consider calling Bachmann Service on Monday morning.

Having said that, the link that was provided, if you have not already found it, has a check list

included within titled "Loco doesn't move".

You might try that.

BTW, I printed that page and attached it to hard stock as I found myself referring to it VERY often.

I too, do not understand what your post was asking.

I have one 2-10-0 and am very pleased with it.

Enough, that I am considering ordering another.

I wish you would describe the problem you are experiencing so that:

a.  We would all know what the problem actually is.

b. So that someone could help you solve the problem.

Quote from: Jim Banner on September 22, 2011, 10:17:30 PM
hawaiiho,

Is one of your other two DCC turnouts the same as the one giving you problems?  If so, have you tried swapping turnouts to see if the problem follows the turnout or stays in the same place with both turnouts?

No, it is left and the other two are right.

Did that particular  Bachmann locomotive come with factory installed DCC or does it have an after market decoder?  If after market, what decoder?

There are two of them, both with factory installed DCC.

Is the loop that has the turnout in it a return loop?  If so, is the turnout fed by the output of an automatic reverse module?

No, it is a turnout to a dead end siding.

I apologize for all the questions, questions and more questions but this is an intriguing problem and one that I have not heard of before.

Jim

Quote from: Jim Banner on September 20, 2011, 04:46:28 PM
I am wondering if you gentlemen use power buses under your layouts or do you rely on just the tracks to get power to the turnouts?  Solenoid type switch motors, DCC controlled or not, take a fair shot of current to throw the switches.  Without a power bus, they may not be getting all the power they need.  And the turnouts farthest away from the command station are the ones most likely to be affected.  Bottom line, I don't think it is a power problem so much as a power delivery problem. 

Jim

I am certain that my problem is not power related. I have worked over this for months. The problem is always resolved by removing a particular locomotive from that one loop. The loop that has the problem turnout in it.