LED Lights For Your DCC Locos (268)
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- Опубликовано: 5 сен 2024
- When it comes to adding lights to your DCC locos it's hard to beat LEDs. They are easy to use, produce little heat other than at the resistor, and are relatively inexpensive. In this video I'll show you how to use tiny surface mount device (SMD) LEDs to replace the light bulbs in your locos for a new decoder install or simply to replace burned out bulbs. So let's get started!
By the way, I purchased the Uhu black putty on Amazon. If it is not available then search for “black adhesive putty” or in the UK “black tack”. As I said in the video I got the LEDs from eBay. Search for Golden White SMD 0805 LED. The Kapton tape came from either Amazon, eBay, or a DCC vendor such as Streamlined Backshop.
Excellent video. I always learn something new from you. I went back and viewed video 92 again, too. Great content.
Really good video.
I use 3mm LED's for HO gauge and 5mm for Lionel 027. Don't forget the ballast (current limiting) resistor. I never use an X-acto knife; I always use an A-proxo knife. Cheers from eastern TN
Very helpful, Larry. Many thanks!
Good as always. As they have been installed with long lengths if they are lighting up going the wrong way it is easy to ensure that the right one is at the correct end rather than changing wires.
Larry, Good video! Now do a steam engine with flickering firebox for us steam fans, please. Preferably a firebox light that runs off the motor leads to cut down on wires going back to the tender.
In this video you were dealing with 4 wires. Yet, a decoder like the Tsunami 2200 has a lot of wires. Stuffing wires into a shell can be a pain when there are a lot more wires trying to escape. My solution is a product called Glue Dots. Same sticky stuff that bank cards come attached to on heavy weight paper. I can place a glue dot anywhere, press a wire or more into it and it will hold the wire(s) in place. If I need to work on the decoder, then it is easy to pull the wire from the glue dot. Wire management where you need it. Glue Dots are available on Amazon.
The easiest way to do that is get a flickering LED off eBay and wire it across the track power pickups with the proper dropping resistor. These are becoming very common in new steam locos in the UK so I am expecting the US makers to follow suit down the road.
Many decoders have a lighting effect so that you can just use an ordinary LED (with resistor). Quite a few UK locos have 2 LEDS (red and orange) so that you get the steady glow and the flicker.
Thanks for these ideas!! I got the LEDs you were talking about. Finished off 3 units since friday
Nice work!
Great video! Will be changing the lighting in a bunch of engines soon. This will help a lot!
Great Video Larry trust you and yours are keeping well.
I trust you Larry!!! 😁. Another great video. Thank you for sharing!
Excellent info. I have an older Proto2000 switcher that I need to install a decoder in and this makes the process of adding LEDs for the head and tail lights way easier to understand.
If it is the SW9 be aware that NCE makes a direct replacement decoder that fits in place of the existing board although right now they are out of stock due to a lack of parts.
@@TheDCCGuy I saw that! I'd back-ordered one from one online retailer, but then found it in stock at another. I have it in hand now and just need to work up the gumption to unpack the soldering iron. Without a layout to run it on currently, it's a bit lower priority!
This is great...I have a roundhouse rs3 in the making...rewired and awaiting decoder install...Thanks for the info.
I wholly agree with your comments regarding “common” electrical tape. Two of my most recent Atlas N DCC locos had a LOT of it inside, and it also made removing the shell in this case quite a challenge. Needless to say it is long gone now…
Thank you for sharing.👍👀
Another excellent tutorial! For my part, a little bit of colored electrical tape applied at the time of soldering to tell end-from-end helps keep me straight.
Larry I have the same LEDs I used them on my engines too. Thanks for the tip on how to test what wire is positive and negative The 9 Volt Battery is a good idea.
If only I had seen this video before I did my light fitting it would have been a lot quicker. I worked it all out though and it works well, only my lights are cool white as that is all I had. I may open it up again to fit something more suitable sometime, but I am happy enough to have it working.
I have found that a light coat of Tamiya transparent orange paint will compensate for the blueish tint.
Also, cooling is better on the bottom side as the flywheels and draft from the rail ties move some air, nice vid ☺️
excellent video Larry. I will add that to the HO scale RS3 I have. I also was wondering what type of SMD to use for a few projects and you helped me a lot. Thank you!
0805. led
Nice job, Larry! Pre-wired SMD's are great, aren't they? One thing I would recommend is to use a bit of flat black paint and go over the area where the light tube sits, and the exposed interior parts of the tube. It really reduces light bleed.
I'll disagree on electrical tape failing, at least in model railroad applications. I have some three decade old installations of constant lighting circuits wrapped in electrical tape that were still good when I went to upgrade those locomotives to DCC. Of course I was using a quality tape that didn't get stiff or dry out with time. That testors clear cement looks a lot like canopy glue, which I tend to use a in a variety of applications. Looks like white glue when wet, but dries as a clear strong flexible bond.
Great video as usually. How about a review/install video on the new Blunami decoder and app?
Coming soon, it’s in the mail.
Great video. Have you ever done one about adding ditch lights and strobes?
Not a video but I did do an article in MR a few years ago. There should be a number of companies offering ready to install ditch lights and I have a rotating beacon on one of my switchers. I will add these to the list of projects down the road.
Hello again Larry, Unfortunately the DH142 decoder is no longer available. What would be the step up from this model I can use on my relics??
Check the Digitrax website-they should have a link to the decoder that replaced thenDH142.
Many modern motherboards like the Decoder Buddy or the Loksound Direct have onboard resistors for LEDs so externals won’t be needed on them
Yes, I mentioned that in the video.
Larry, the last 2 videos were really good. Good simple instructions. I hear so much about can motors, I thought a loco, (especially the older loco's) that was going to be a dcc loco had to have a different motor. The original motor had to be switched out. Can you comment on what type of motor can be used? Does a can motor have to be used if it is going to be used in a dcc system?
It all depends on how old the loco is and the motor, that’s why I did a video (#89) on how to measure stall currents. At any rate since about 2000 manufacturers have been using motors that are generally DCC friendly. Even before that the Atlas locos made by Kato have low current demands. However those made by Roco are a different matter. And this changed over time as the late run Alco S2/4 switchers they made with a skew wound motor are low current. So if you are not sure, measure the stall current and use a decoder that can handle the current. Replacement motors can be difficult to obtain in most cases. First check with the original manufacturer ti see if they sell replacements. Athearn does but most others do not. Then check with companies like NWSL and MicroMark. You might have to get innovative and buy generic motors and cobble up a connector-NWSL used to sell universal, etc. for that purpose so check their website. I have even used small diameter vinyl fuel line to connect motor shafts to gear worms.
Larry: as ever entertaining. Some ?s: What about permanently lit engine room lights? Can we connect more than one 'bulb' to one set of solder tabs? All but universally, youtube presentations exhibit 'jackrabbit' starts with DCC. Real diesels are a masterclass in creep starting. With good mechs, can we replicate? Finally, as a scratchbuilder with default influence from years of 2 railing Marklin, I would be looking at the migrainous procedures of placing everything on the chassis. No wiring looms. Modern locos, at least those I have seen, are not made to work on. Oiling is a pleasure when the top can be simply laid aside; the whole thing dismantling with one M3 screw, and sometimes the removal of one coupler.
I realise time might disallow reply; any comments appreciated. Peter T
Peter-yes you can attach multiple LEDs, just make sure you check the specs to see how many milliamps a function can take. They can be wired in parallel or series. Some decoders have several lighting functions in addition to the forward and rear headlights. You can adjust the speed characteristics of the locos using the accel and deceleration CVs 3&4, and also by adjusting the 3 or 28 speed step curves. After watching a lot of videos I am amazed at how fast a lot of these locos could accelerate as single units, both steam and diesel. Another option is to use the switching or shunting speed function button available on many decoders, which cuts the speed range in half when activated. Enjoy-Larry
Larry: thanks for that; shall ponder.
PT
Step number 1 .... buy your LEDs with wires already soldered to them. You will thank me.
Yea, I did a couple of those myself then discovered these prewired ones on eBay and haven’t bothered with the individual SMDs since.
Larry, what kind of solder are you using and would it be good to use on the rails as well ?
Either 60:40 or 63:37 and I use it on almost all my MR soldering. Make sure to never use an acid flux.
Really enjoyed the video Larry. Learned a lot . Could you spell that tape name for electrical isolation -“ Kapton”?
You got it right. Look on Amazon, eBay, or dealers who specialize in DCC products. Mine is 5/8”.
how wide is your kapton tape?
5/8” and I got it from either TCS or off Amazon or eBay.
Another great video I do have a question off topic of this video. Is there any type of control on the market where you can run DCC or DC on the same layout? Thanks and love the channel
Video coming soon!
Larry, what brand is that solder and what gauge is it ?
Very good video Larry. What are your thoughts on mini connectors between the decoder and shell? I am going to install a sound decoder, two leds and a speaker on a Athearn GP7. I thought I'd use a 5 pin connector. 2 pins for the speakers and 3 pins for the 2 leds, 1 pin front, 1 pin rear, 1 pin common ground. That way when I take off the shell I can unplug the connector and set the shell aside. I realize I'll need to give plenty of slack to make the plugging/unplugging easier but I like the idea of the shell isn't tethered to the locomotive. What do you think? Thanks.
Also, do you use mostly 30 gauge for decoder/speaker installs?
I often use connectors as I have shown in some previous videos. I like those from TCS as they are small and the wires very flexible. I didn’t do that this time just to keep it as simple as possible. When you make your connections do it so reversing the plug won’t create problems. For example with 5 wires, put the speaker wires on pins 1 & 5, the blue common on pin 3 and the light negatives on 2 & 4.
Thanks
Hi Larry, My name is Ed, I have a few Athearn Locomotives that DON'T have those circuit boards on them. They're about 50 years old, can I still install LED bulbs in my engines? Thanks!
Yes, shouldn’t be a problem.
@@TheDCCGuy would you do a demonstration on how to do this?
Are you going to use them with DCC decoders? If so it would be the same way.
@@TheDCCGuy They're basic stripped engines without decoders or circut boards.
I just want to add LED's in the front as well as the cab side.
I’m trying to convert my old Proto 2000 E7 (dcc custom fitted, TCS T4-LED). What kind of LED lights should I use?
Watch video #184.
@@TheDCCGuy thank you. I’ll give it a watch.
I have bought leds and have installed in a couple of my locos. They are great. Do you have a video with more complex led installation wiring using f3, f4, f5 and f6. I have a loco that has a rotary beacon on top and then running boards and cab light that these can turned on and off independently. It's a little confusing !
Thanks again.
Chuck
I did an article in the Sept 2019 issue on doing that kind of lighting but since I don’t model modern locos I have never done it to that extent. There are a lot of companies that make nice light fixtures but in a number of cases you’d have to do your own with the surface mount LEDs. Check out these nicknixtrainz.com/elementor-497/
Ok, thanks for the link. I will check it out.
Great video. In my decoder settings, it has settings for neon or LED lights. What's the difference? Do i still need the resister if I change the setting to LED?
Neon lights are probably providing a flickering light when it is turned on, just as it is, when you turn on an overhead light fixture
I have never seen a decoder designed specifically for neon lights and have never used them-what brand is it? They should say in the manual what the output voltage is for those and you will need to adjust your resistor for the LEDs accordingly. It is possible that the neons use the full voltage output and a resistor would definitely be needed for the LEDs.
@@TheDCCGuy So for the Digitrax - DH126D it says in the manual the passage below. So would this influence how you would pick an LED and resister? Or is it still just 12V?
"8.7.2 LED/Lamp Algorithm Selector
Beginning with Series 6 decoders, Digitrax FX effects are optimized for either
LEDs or incandescent lamps. Since these two types of lighting devices have
different characteristics, Digitrax has set up two selectable algorithms for
operating the devices. Some users like lamps better than LEDs and vice versa.
Many new production locomotives have been produced with LEDs. You have
the option to use either."
What size drill bit did you use to make the holes?
At time stamp 11:27 I said 1/16” bit.
Was the 1/16 bit the second one you used I seen 2 bits you used what was the size of the second bit?
Same bit, different drill.
@@TheDCCGuy ok thank you
What temperature do you set you’re iron at?
800 degrees, but be careful at that temp. You have to work fast so as not to overheat your parts.
@@TheDCCGuy I have mine @ 650 right now
Maybe it's not enough
My suggestion is to start just above the melting point of the solder and work your way up until you find your sweet spot where you can get the job done without cooking anything.
@@TheDCCGuy I guess the melting point is on the label?
You’re typical,looking at something around 360-370 degrees F but that is for 60:40 or 63:37. Other mixes will vary though so do a Google search and it will give you temps for various other types.
Kinda like locomotive surgery.
Anyone else worried he was gonna drill his fingers? 😧
I wasn’t!
@@TheDCCGuy lol… yeah, it looked like something I’d do, too 😉
No body can do this ....must be expertise !!! As him
I dislke this failure advise !!! Given only for the very smart people
I just went back and re-watched the video and I can’t see where I could have made it any simpler. I suspect you need to stick with DC ready to run locos and avoid DCC.