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Post by trainsintheattic on Oct 4, 2020 17:11:19 GMT
Briefly, this little darlin' was purchased from Tom (4dogsinjersey) a few months ago. With ambition high I immediately got to work figuring out how to shoehorn ERR cruise into her. I had progressed only a few days worth of work, as far as what I will describe here today, before getting distracted with other stuff. I am now primed to resume the installation by again re-familiarizing myself with previous progress and figuring out how to proceed. Work starts again tomorrow.
Here's the pride and joy of the ladder tracks.
Beginning with the addition of coil couplers once the engine was disassembled. The couplers are those sourced from ERR. To adapt them onto the chassis took a bit of sheet brass bending and drilling to fabricate pivot plates able to retain the coupler centering action. The couplers protrude from the pilots too much for my liking but I didn't have the patience, and still don't, to correct the issue. I have bigger fish to fry, as they say.
Here's the first fish....adapting what ERR offerings they currently sell so that they fit within the shell of the docksider. Since ERR no longer sells the Mini Cruise Commander, squeezing all the bells and whistles into shifters becomes a problem. A regular CC kit was just too large to fit within the cab and removing the huge weight inside the boiler to fit it there was out of the question. On the left is it's original reverse unit. On the right the mounting of a Cruise Commander M board together with an R4LC using styrene and double sided foam tape. Wiring from the appropriate pinouts to be used remain unconnected at their opposite ends. This is the preliminary step to fabricating the wiring harness needed where a motherboard doesn't exist.
Working with a pinout schematic of the R2 / R4LC I soldered leads to a double ganged male plug, compatible in number with the female side of the R4LC. Where wires between the 2 boards are connected I color coded them to simplify latter stages.
Of course, all this effort is for nothing if the assembly doesn't fit within the shell. Trial fittings are a constant and will continue as leads begin being connected to the chassis, motor, etc. Fortunately the harness doesn't need to have the flexibility of the usual tether found on engines with separate tenders.
This is where I paused before and now that I have cleared other matters I am prepared to begin again tomorrow. By the way, I am foregoing the addition of sounds to my docksider for now, but am working to accommodate that feature at some later date.
Bruce
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Post by trainsintheattic on Oct 5, 2020 23:53:45 GMT
In pursuit of the most convenient method in which to wire and mount new electronics it is important to consider how accessible your assembly will be in case you need to go back in. As stated, I plan to install ERR Railsounds at some future date so I'll be wanting my sweetheart to open easily again without a spaghetti mess of wires spilling out. To accomplish this I chose to cut the L brace located in the lower front of the cab. In this way a wiring harness needn't be threaded through a closed opening. Instead this allows the shell to lift off easily, wiring harness to tuck neatly along side the motor and utilize the space forward of the motor inside the boiler for major power connections.
Fully expecting some sort of springing expansion when the brace was cut I was happy to find the shell still sturdy. Pointy edges were angled out which will help prevent wire pinching and chafing. The switch location under the cab hatch help the former reverse lockout. It will remain switchless because any open terminals here might interfere with valuable electronics.
After the appropriate connections between the CCM and R4LC are made, paying attention that all lengths aren't too loose or too snug, the electronics assembly looks like this. Multiple fittings were made to assure the electronics slip easily inside the cab and exiting wires shaped to roughly conform to their as installed position. Finally, a skin of black styrene covers both sides of the assembly to keep the guts somewhat hidden through cab windows. the brown and red wires poking out of the boiler connect to another switch which will serve as the Run/Prgm
Trial fitted, you can see how the wires are routed. The 4 threaded holes hold the cab to its floor and the shell rear to the chassis. Space on either sides of the electronics will fit a crew and handily the future Railsounds board. That's about it for today although I continued working on adding glass to the cab windows to prepare for final connections. Installing headlights will come next. I'm totally winging this upgrade and reporting on it so don't be shy if you have questions or comments. It always feel as if I've left something out after posting.
Bruce
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Post by Adam on Oct 6, 2020 3:07:04 GMT
Very interesting to follow your progress on this engine. Thanks for sharing your work.
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Post by harborbelt70 on Oct 8, 2020 17:14:34 GMT
Very interesting to follow your progress on this engine. Thanks for sharing your work.
I'd be interested to know your attrition rate with ERR stuff in terms of blown or failed boards. My experience, and no doubt my fault, is that they are all too easy to short.
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Post by trainsintheattic on Oct 9, 2020 20:42:24 GMT
Well, I've fried my share over the past 5 years. Those sound boards show off my clumsy workmanship ( to the tune of 3 so far) usually caused by being in too much of a hurry. A few Cruise Commander's along with their accompanying R4LC's have gone poof when the cramped quarters of metal engines make contact. I have repaired 2 CC's by jumpering fried board tracers.
There was more progress made today which I'll post on later. It passed an initial track test.
Bruce
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Post by harborbelt70 on Oct 9, 2020 22:37:19 GMT
Well, I've fried my share over the past 5 years. Those sound boards show off my clumsy workmanship ( to the tune of 3 so far) usually caused by being in too much of a hurry. A few Cruise Commander's along with their accompanying R4LC's have gone poof when the cramped quarters of metal engines make contact. I have repaired 2 CC's by jumpering fried board tracers. There was more progress made today which I'll post on later. It passed an initial track test. Bruce
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Post by Deleted on Oct 10, 2020 14:21:45 GMT
This is a Great tutorial. I also have a ROW dockside and was curious if anyone else had attempted this project. I knew the Cruise Commander board wouldn't fit. I was fortunate enough to purchase three Mini Cruise Commanders for specific engines this being one of them before they were discontinued. If the Mini Cruise Commander doesn't fit, I'm thinking about the Mini Commander 2. My only concern is that the MC2 is only rated for two amps. Would you happen to know the current draw of the ROW motor?
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Post by trainsintheattic on Oct 10, 2020 14:43:40 GMT
Headlight bulbs are being replaced with LED's. The fine tip of an exacto is used to pry off the lens then the bulb is extracted. Note the fluting on the lens' that are positioned at top.
An inexpensive source for LED's are the warm white string types offered for miniature Xmas trees. Cut from the string the clear coating is scraped from the leads, tested to determine polarity then fine color coded wire leads attached to assist in final connection. The solid core wire can be bent to position the LED facing forward and retain that position.
The rectangular recess inside the headlight helps align and hold the LED centered and facing forward as this out of focus picture shows. In real life a headlight had a silver coated reflective lens behind the light source but many railroads also painted the remaining inside surface white to promote visibility. A headlight wasn't used to light the way, rather to be seen as a warning. It's a trick us old car guys use to promote visibility to otherwise poorly illuminated tail and brake lights.
With tester attached to check on operation, leaking light reveals a headlight casting with open number boards. I will take advantage of this when cosmetic improvements happen.
Returning to electronics, a beginning is made in permanently attaching wiring. Leads to track power, chassis ground and motor brushes are made in prep for initial track testing. Couplers are next, each having one lead to ground and the other to the appropriate pin out on the R4LC. Go ahead and connect chuff wire to the ROW chuff switch. It's a plunger type producing 4 chuffs per, seen in the lower left with a C clip attached. Taped blue and red wiring are for lighting connections to come plus the connector is for future sounds. The light blue wire heading skywards is a temporary antenna. To track test the assembly I temporarily short the Run/Program lead to ground for initial programming then disconnect to run. Trials of the assembly determine that the engine starts in forward and both couplers work.
With the board assembly in it's semi-permanent position the shell is trial fitted in place to determine if any further shuffling is needed. I'm now ready to make final connections of the lighting, etc. Back again soon.
Bruce
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Post by trainsintheattic on Oct 10, 2020 14:51:45 GMT
This is a Great tutorial. I also have a ROW dockside and was curious if anyone else had attempted this project. I knew the Cruise Commander board wouldn't fit. I was fortunate enough to purchase three Mini Cruise Commanders for specific engines this being one of them before they were discontinued. If the Mini Cruise Commander doesn't fit, I'm thinking about the Mini Commander 2. My only concern is that the MC2 is only rated for two amps. Would you happen to know the current draw of the ROW motor? You are fortunate to have purchased ahead of time. The Mini Cruise Commander will definitely fit within the cab of the docksider and serve the purpose better than a basic Mini Commander. The small can that ROW uses shouldn't draw much but I have no figures to back that up.
Bruce
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Post by 4dogsinjersey on Oct 12, 2020 2:23:06 GMT
I didn’t know you started the project already!
Nice to see the engine has a good home. Your work is enviable! I wish I was more inclined electronics wise.
Tom
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Post by trainsintheattic on Oct 12, 2020 14:16:01 GMT
Thanks Tom. Had ERR continued offering their Cruise Commander Lite, I'd have no qualms about recommending an upgrade of their dockside to anyone. The CCL has a footprint small enough to mount flat to the cab floor. This would simplify things immensely plus free up the vast majority of space inside the cab.
The other compact alternative is a Mini Commander but they only provide basic command control for individual functions and no cruise for motor control.
For the above reasons I went with the custom wiring and upright positioning of the Cruise Commander M. The standard Cruise Commander kit was just too large to adapt and I wanted the ability of cruise.
Bruce
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Post by 4dogsinjersey on Nov 1, 2020 15:36:06 GMT
I will send you one of my 0-4-0s! Just return it when it is ready...lol!
Tom
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Post by trainsintheattic on Nov 3, 2020 21:40:38 GMT
Hey Tom, we may not live long enough to endure another shipping experience, let alone the snails pace of my upgrades.
The computer issues I am having come to an end tomorrow and first on a list of tasks will be to finish this upgrade documentation. Everything relative to email and photography became impossible on obsolete Windows 7. So, when the Geeks get through transferring stuff into my new fangled Acer I'll be good to go. I will also dig up the B6 upgrade topic again and finish that off.
Bruce
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Post by trainsintheattic on Nov 7, 2020 16:09:14 GMT
Well, I appear to have survived a new computer transfer relatively intact. I hope the switch over delay doesn't accidentally make me leave out any important info. Please ask if these final steps need clarification. With connections made to lights, run/program and Seuth smoke generator it's time for final reassembly. My styrene cradle holding and protecting the electronics were strengthened with thicker sides. Many trial fittings and cuttings were made to arrive at a suitable cradle shape that easily slips inside the loco cab. I left the cradle assembly unattached to the loco frame, relying on the heat sinc alone to take care of any heat generated. As long as the engine isn't overworked, which probably isn't possible due to having no traction tires, I feel safe leaving the assembly free floating. the Kapton tape helps keep stray wiring somewhat organized and out of easy sight through the cab windows. Difficult to see is 2 cab lights also held in position by the Kapton tape. Wiring lengths were left generous so that shell removal and reassembly were as convenient as possible. Unlike a diesel, where the motor must be free of binding obstacles, the stationary motor in this case can accept any loose wiring that surrounds it. Just make sure you're not packing anything tightly inside the shell and you're good to go. Note that the 4 motor adapter screws allow the adjustment to the armature shaft worm gear and axel gear. Make adjustments and trial runs here before final assembly, but again, having convenient access to readjust makes the chore less tedious. I chose not to try installing sound for simplicity's sake but will leave that for another day. I even made up a speaker enclosure to fit forward of the motor against the loco weight. Install the smoke box front now and attach the shell to the frame. The large screw through the steam chest takes a bit of fishing to align it in it's boiler hole. Leave it loose while you align and install the 4 tiny screws that hold the cab then tighten all when they're seated correctly. Proper screw installation is critical so nothing should be forced to the point of stripping threads. Any resistance felt while tightening a screw means backing off the screw to totally disconnect then lightly trying again. Second try is usually the charm. I used slide glass to glaze the window frames, held in place by a drop of CA and 3M automotive tape. I am not pleased with the glazing results and will redo things at a later date. The haze left by the curing CA is unsightly.  Here we are on a test run with a few light cars in tow. An easily forgotten but critically important step in fashioning some form of command control antenna where none existed before. Here was another experimental exercise that fortunately came about easily. That black dot attached to the bell crank arm is a very fine, solid core wire lanyard, fed through the cab roof vent opening. Again, the sliver of light through the headlight housing shows that the number boards are open but blocked with styrene from ROW. The Kapton covered LED's inside the cab give off a faint glow of reflected green light.  The project has now come to a point of completion where I can return to running the engine. It now enters functioning tests in hopes that all modifications remain sound for a long time. Adjusting the gear play helped quiet operation to an acceptable degree to where the faint click of the chuff switch can be heard. As run in time progresses there is a noticeable improvement in smoothness of operation but is limited by the lack of a precise gearbox and flywheel. Still, the gearing allows for slower speeds than comparable vertical motored engines and consequently low top speeds. That's desirable in my books. Thanks for following along. Bruce |
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Post by trainsintheattic on Nov 12, 2020 21:03:57 GMT
  Bruce
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