LEDs also are cooler. I work in HO & when my club changed over to DCC, since now the grain of wheat bulbs were at full brightness, the heat from them was starting to discolor or melt the plastic shells. Took a while for us to learn about the bulb heat & why. Also the bulbs burned out quicker since they were at full power constantly. The LED solved the problem, but created a new one. A lot of us didn't know electronics. This was in the late '90s when the internet was just coming to be, yes the internet was that new. That's what is great about clubs, there is someone that has a hobby. We had a member, whose hobby was electronics, figured out how to install LEDs in his engines. All our yard engines have working strobes, since DCC decoders have these circuit built in now. I discovered a LED replacement bulb for my outdoor F scale trains that replaces the screw in bulbs in my passenger cars, that at 5v they're at full brightness, where before at low speed bulbs were a dim amber.
I recently just got a helping hand that holds your soldering gun has a tray built into it magnifying glass with a light but I don't have a soldering gun yet so I'm watching this video so I can learn how to solder I know how to weld but I don't know how to solder at all. I do plan to at some point in the future to put led lights in my different 0 scale and 0 27 scale train stuff and HO scale stuff for a friend of mine and my different diearamas
Awesome tutorial! This mod will also add constant brightness to the headlight. Always bugged me that the light dimmed with the throttle. Going to try this today!
Nice video Sid. Quick question: as LED don't work when the power is reversed, and they don't like AC, how do you handle that? I would normally add a bridge rectifier to guarantee the LEDs don't get the wrong polarity.
LEDs will work fine off of track power as long as you have a resistor. The life span is reduced, but they will still work. In passenger cars I usually install a rectifier and a capacitor.
LEDs also are cooler. I work in HO & when my club changed over to DCC, since now the grain of wheat bulbs were at full brightness, the heat from them was starting to discolor or melt the plastic shells. Took a while for us to learn about the bulb heat & why. Also the bulbs burned out quicker since they were at full power constantly. The LED solved the problem, but created a new one. A lot of us didn't know electronics. This was in the late '90s when the internet was just coming to be, yes the internet was that new. That's what is great about clubs, there is someone that has a hobby. We had a member, whose hobby was electronics, figured out how to install LEDs in his engines. All our yard engines have working strobes, since DCC decoders have these circuit built in now.
I discovered a LED replacement bulb for my outdoor F scale trains that replaces the screw in bulbs in my passenger cars, that at 5v they're at full brightness, where before at low speed bulbs were a dim amber.
Nice, clear, well-paced video. Good topic
Well don Sid. Great how to do video. Good info. on the type LED and resister. Thanks for all the links. Nick
Thanks for sharing, I’m sure I will reference this video in the near future.
Anytime
I recently just got a helping hand that holds your soldering gun has a tray built into it magnifying glass with a light but I don't have a soldering gun yet so I'm watching this video so I can learn how to solder I know how to weld but I don't know how to solder at all. I do plan to at some point in the future to put led lights in my different 0 scale and 0 27 scale train stuff and HO scale stuff for a friend of mine and my different diearamas
Sid was using a soldering iron, not a soldering gun! 😮 There's a difference. 🤔
Cool stuff! I love LEDing my trains.
Same
You had a slope back tender on the thumpnail! But the slopeback wasn't what you worked on!
The slopeback was why i watched the video!!! 😮
Like & well done demo 😎
• Cheers from The Detroit & Mackinac Railway 🚂
Awesome tutorial! This mod will also add constant brightness to the headlight. Always bugged me that the light dimmed with the throttle. Going to try this today!
They do make L,E.D.'s that ghow green,red for reverse polarity,and yellow when a.c.is applied
Great job. Enjoyed.
Very cool I will look up to doing this one day
Cool
I always thought that LEDs on an AC powered train will last longer if you put a couple of diodes or a bridge in the circuit
How did you add the light to the tender?
Can you send link for the led light strips for passenger cars
I might be able to buy some legacy in the future because I’m going to get a job when I’m fourteen in august.
Where can you find the prewired with 300 ohm resistors? All I could find online were 1000
Helpful video thank you. What size LED are you using? Is it a 3mm or 5mm?
I use both.
Specifically for headlights?
They can be used for anything.
Nice video Sid. Quick question: as LED don't work when the power is reversed, and they don't like AC, how do you handle that? I would normally add a bridge rectifier to guarantee the LEDs don't get the wrong polarity.
LEDs will work fine off of track power as long as you have a resistor. The life span is reduced, but they will still work. In passenger cars I usually install a rectifier and a capacitor.
I'm new to soldering I thought all less were dc power how do you get around using dc power
Could you put a capacitor inline it's sort of a keep alive mechanism if so what would you recommend
Are you saying to prevent flicker? If so, yes.
Yes they are like a small battery that will keep it lit between dead spots
I would like a condenser I need a spark plug with points system
What do you mean? What do spark plugs have to do with trains?
How does this work with A/C?
Practice this solo etude is not letting me play with trains :( Plz help
On the cover photo of this video you show a slope back tender with a light. Is this also a 5mm led that you added? Thank you for your time.
Yes
How do you keep the led from bouncing around in the housing since it is smaller than the bulb and socket ?
I would think that a very small 'dot' of hot glue (hot glue gun) would to the job, no?
Wait, I thought LEDs were DC only? Are your trains running on AC, or DC? 🤔