Running Bear's November 2025 Coffee Shop

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Kusojiji said:
I don't run sound, so I bought the DCC ready version and installed the decoder. Didn't want to pay the extra for the sound decoder.

Scaletrains does provide the configuration file for the GP30 to be used on the ESU decoder on their website and I downloaded it, used the ESU program to take a look at it and exported a CV list file that JMRI could use. I imported it, wrote it to the ESU decoder and everything seems to work. What I wanted to do was get the red classification light to come on when I go to shunting mode. From what I saw in the configuration file, AUX10 is where the red lamps are connected, but when I tied AUX10 to F3 (shunting), nothing happened and F5, which cycles the classification lights between white, blue and red, no longer had control of the red.

I explained what I was trying to do to Scaletrains, but that went down a different path for some reason.

From my understanding, AUX port is the term used to identify a wire or solder pad on a decoder. That AUX port is then assigned to a function and can be turned on/off manually or automatically in conjunction with something else. I have a headache...

Thanks for the responses and sorry for getting back late. Am rearranging the room to fit the track layout. :)
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Yes, those are the basics of an AUX. The problem with trying to program without a Lokprogrammer, is that many times there are dependencies on other operations for what you are trying to accomplish. If you have programmed an LED to do this or that, you have to check if some other function is also controlling that LED to do something else when another separate function is commanded.

ESU decoders can seemingly be infinitely programmed, and I won't even get into sound file alteration and programming.
 
Kusojiji said:
I don't run sound, so I bought the DCC ready version and installed the decoder. Didn't want to pay the extra for the sound decoder.

Scaletrains does provide the configuration file for the GP30 to be used on the ESU decoder on their website and I downloaded it, used the ESU program to take a look at it and exported a CV list file that JMRI could use. I imported it, wrote it to the ESU decoder and everything seems to work. What I wanted to do was get the red classification light to come on when I go to shunting mode. From what I saw in the configuration file, AUX10 is where the red lamps are connected, but when I tied AUX10 to F3 (shunting), nothing happened and F5, which cycles the classification lights between white, blue and red, no longer had control of the red.

I explained what I was trying to do to Scaletrains, but that went down a different path for some reason.

From my understanding, AUX port is the term used to identify a wire or solder pad on a decoder. That AUX port is then assigned to a function and can be turned on/off manually or automatically in conjunction with something else. I have a headache...

Thanks for the responses and sorry for getting back late. Am rearranging the room to fit the track layout. :)
Click to expand...

PL, sorry. I was off on another planet about what your problem was.

I think you are understanding it correctly and Scale Trains should be able to tell you which port each light is one?

I've never worried about all the various functions on my stuff. As long as the headlamps and tail lights work ;).
 


RhB Michael said:
Yes, those are the basics of an AUX. The problem with trying to program without a Lokprogrammer, is that many times there are dependencies on other operations for what you are trying to accomplish. If you have programmed an LED to do this or that, you have to check if some other function is also controlling that LED to do something else when another separate function is commanded.

ESU decoders can seemingly be infinitely programmed, and I won't even get into sound file alteration and programming.
Click to expand...
That's what I'm finding about ESU. The JMRI programming page is crazy hard to understand. The ESU program was a bit easier, but I still need more time to figure it out.

Train-o-matic/JMRI is much easier, but it don't do backflips like ESU, I guess.

chadbag said:
PL, sorry. I was off on another planet about what your problem was.

I think you are understanding it correctly and Scale Trains should be able to tell you which port each light is one?

I've never worried about all the various functions on my stuff. As long as the headlamps and tail lights work ;).
Click to expand...
Ah, no worries! All feedback is good, just in case I missed something. Yeah, N-scale is good in that respect.
 
What up Coffee friends from all over the world.

Well my vacation is over and iam already working again (need vacation damn..)
last week i did not have that much time for my modelrailroad, to much work in the garden and at the house, but we took a night off and went to a mountain spa near where we life.

here is the view from Rigi Kaltbad (Switzerland)

IMG_0928.JPEG


not bad i would say?
the Lake you see down there is Vierwaltstädtersee.

This friday i will be at a wworkshop from the Master himself Marcel Ackle. He will teach me andd others, how to create your own trees! Iam really looking forward to this. of course i will shot some pictures and will record also some video shots.

cheers
Marco
 


Good morning all!

A soggy Northern Illinois morning. Its currently raining and a cool raw 38F but with the wind it feels like 19F. High is only suppose to
reach 41F. I'm dreading taking the garbage and recycle bins to the curb this morning.

Not much on the agenda for today other than the usual Tuesday household chores.

Wife got excused from jury duty yesterday. The case got continued for some reason and no other trials requiring jurys were scheduled
so they all got let go around 10:00am. She got thanked and is now good for 3 years.

Nothing much else going on.

Have a safe day everyone!
 
Well, howdy there internet pooches and those with hoomans

It's Troy again

Well, the rogue pooper struck again. This time right in front of our unit.

Maybe related, I spotted another resident with an elderly dog. Looks like a husky mix of some sort. I thought the dog was squatting, but nope. As I got closer, it was some wonky hip condition. The human was patient and just let the dog set it's own pace. They stopped often and usually parallel to me when we got close enough for me to discern details.

The husky mix makes two elderly dogs in the complex. And I suspect the elderly dogs as the rogue pooper, since they lose control while walking.

My wife was the one who spotted it today. She came downstairs to the Troy cave waving the plastic sack to let me know she'd cleaned it up.

In other news, got 800+ words worded this morning. I'm about to head to the Toyota dealer to get the 80K oil change and service check over. It's getting close to brake time. So that wouldn't surprise me. The originals are still on the car.
 
56°F and a thunderstorm this morning. Good morning folks.

The thunderstorm has passed now, but that's what woke me 45 minutes ago. I was going to stay in bed for another 45 minutes and rise at 0700, but the storm had other ideas about my sleeping in.

Another chance or two of further thunderstorms late this morning, early afternoon, and late afternoon. Oh, and I can't forget the 2% chance of a tornado all of the Talking Heads keep reminding me of. Actually, they are not saying 2% for any random point within a 25 mile radius as stated by the Storm Predicition Center. They are just hyping it up to the public as a general statement for ratings. And St. Louis isn't even included.

I'll start landscaping the new area today for the feed store. Extend the road from behind the Litzirüti Bahnhof, put down some dirt and grass and a tree or two. Maybe run an abandoned rail spur near the building. I've decided against installing a turnout on the line since it is dual-gauge and I don't feel like fooling with it at this point in time.

Have a good day folks and drive safely if you're getting rain today. Roads will be slick at first.

Servus!
 


traiNscale said:
What up Coffee friends from all over the world.

Well my vacation is over and iam already working again (need vacation damn..)
last week i did not have that much time for my modelrailroad, to much work in the garden and at the house, but we took a night off and went to a mountain spa near where we life.

here is the view from Rigi Kaltbad (Switzerland)

View attachment 248221

not bad i would say?
the Lake you see down there is Vierwaltstädtersee.

This friday i will be at a wworkshop from the Master himself Marcel Ackle. He will teach me andd others, how to create your own trees! Iam really looking forward to this. of course i will shot some pictures and will record also some video shots.

cheers
Marco
Click to expand...
Here is the video that got me started on making my own trees from Luke Towan now known as Lucy but the videos still come up under Luke Towan. I have literally have made 2500+ trees using this method


Not complicated and is very straight forward. At one time I was a regular follower and occasional supporter with $$$. However, he really went heavy into Patreon and his really great stuff went behind the paywall. He/she has at least 15 videos on trees. Easier way to find them is in a YouTube Tube search type in Luke Towan does trees and his tree list will pop up. One of the best producers of content on YouTube Tube at one time in my opinion. His Patreon favoritism just pushed me away.
 
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