Recent content by Orange Irish


  1. O

    BLI J1E Hudson

    Late response, as I have been off the forum for a while. I have used aluminum sheeting, cut small to size with a small hole drilled for the screw which connects the truck to the chassis. One end fits the screw, to connect it between the truck and chassis, with the overall shape being long and...
  2. O

    Steamer only gets electrical pick up on left side drive wheels

    Yes, the wire was loose, but not enough to be an obvious cause. I can't say for sure now that the wire is the cause, but TSD apparently didn't bother to check very hard for anything.
  3. O

    Steamer only gets electrical pick up on left side drive wheels

    Yes, the decoder is in the tender and I have all original packaging. Problem is, I sent off this loco a year ago to BLI's repair shop TSD, and they sent it back saying it worked fine and didn't do any work or diagnostic on it (as far as I know). If I contact BLI directly instead of going...
  4. O

    Steamer only gets electrical pick up on left side drive wheels

    I see that there is a loose wire in the tether plug coming out from the tender. It's on one end of the plug, is in place but wiggles back and forth as if it's not soldered in securely anymore. Would this wire likely control one side of the drive wheel pick up? It's such a tiny place that I...
  5. O

    Steamer only gets electrical pick up on left side drive wheels

    A BLI 4-8-4 kept stalling at mid to slow range speed going through a couple #6 turnouts. I placed it over some plastic to test the electrical pick up and realized that the entire right side does not pick up electricity. It is described as having all drive wheel electrical pick up, except for...
  6. O

    post your model RR tips........

    The lead trucks on my steam locos are the most susceptible to derail...which then leads to a short or worse derailment within seconds. Adding weight was not an option due to limited space. Instead I cut pieces of aluminum sheeting to match the profile of the lead truck and drilled a hole to...
  7. O

    HO Steam locomotive smoke?

    I switch off the smoke option via the button, since I don't trust a CV command to reset somehow by accident. If I want to show off to a visitor it's simple enough to switch it on and run it a few times around. It's just too much to worry about to have it on all the time.
  8. O

    What Do You find to be the Most Enjoyable Aspect(s) of Model Railroading

    I'm still working full time and have a kid, so my time is limited. I've only completed two layouts as an adult (a couple very simple ones as a kid), and my latest is about as large as I can fit in my basement - 138 sq feet in an L shape with about 170 linear ft of track. The planning of the...
  9. O

    Favorite model railroading ERA -ERA's 1800's- ?

    I prefer 1930s-early 1950s. East coast steam both freight and passenger. Lately though I've been wondering about switching over to modern freight with ES44ACs/DCs. I kept my layout fairly generic in case I wanted to add on in the future...or rather catch up to the present. I won't box up the...
  10. O

    DCC BLI Reading T1 causes short on track and stops

    I removed the rear truck, tried nail polish (clear top-coat, to be precise :)), it still shorts. I run it slow so when it shorts I get a snap shot of exactly how it's positioned and can't see any metal-on-metal. I only saw a spark once but I'll keep trying and looking for flash spots...and...
  11. O

    DCC BLI Reading T1 causes short on track and stops

    With the nail polish solution, besides the inside of the side rods, is it bad to coat the outer perimeter of the drive wheels? Without knowing exactly where the contact is I might coat each one. If that will leave a terrible, over-shiny look can I use black paint and get the same effect?
  12. O

    DCC BLI Reading T1 causes short on track and stops

    This loco picks up on all drive wheels, but not the leading or trailing truck. I've confirmed that the truck wheels are not touching metal...the inside frame is actually plastic. If I push on the drive wheels as it's moving nothing happens, but when I rotate the loco to the left, the two left...
  13. O

    DCC BLI Reading T1 causes short on track and stops

    Well, I now see that the loco causes a short when the body gets rotated over the wheels counter-clockwise (when looking down on it from above). None of the rods or valve gears are bent, and the drive wheels are covered by plastic pieces that mimic the outside body of the wheels, except for the...
  14. O

    DCC BLI Reading T1 causes short on track and stops

    This weekend I will have time to look. Thanks for the tip and I'll let you know.



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