Ahad, 6 November 2011
DCC Tender Modifications
Tender modifications are need to complete the Cab Forward for DCC operation also. I bought most of my Rivarossi articulated locomotives off E-Bay and most of them needed a lot of cosmetic attention as well as mechanical.
I purchased a Casting Kit from Micro-Mark and made molds for the Rivarossi details for future use down the road. Very few of the locomotives had whistles and few tenders had all four steps and grab rails. I made grab rails from .02" steel rod stock that I bought from Maximum Hobby.
The picture below is a Rivarossi Oil Tender with my DCC mods. I added an extra weight and glued the weights to the sides of the shell instead of the floor. The floor space is reserved for a speaker. I mounted the NMRA DCC connector on a 5/8" diameter styrene tube for easy access.
The DCC decoder is attached to the top of the tender shell with double sided tape.
I made the DCC pigtail 4" long so that it would be long enough for easy connection to the locomotive. I cut a 5/8" x 5/16" hole for the wires to pass through the front end of the tender to the locomotive. I started with a smaller hole but the wires would hang up and cause derails. The larger hole makes for an easier install too, the connector will pass through the larger hole. The wiring harness can be made in advanced then simply installed in one piece instead of soldering on a plug and having to hassle with the shell too.
I mounted all of my DCC connectors on my locomotives with the red wire terminal on the lower right and put a dob of red paint on the connectors for easy identification.
This tender had both rear steps missing, those steps are castings that I made with my casting kit. The Rivarossi tender trucks are not the best trucks in the world by far so I replaced them with Bowser 35107 Buckeye trucks with metal frames and brass wheels. DCC requires good uninterrupted power and the Rivarossi trucks leave a lot to be desired.
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I purchased a Casting Kit from Micro-Mark and made molds for the Rivarossi details for future use down the road. Very few of the locomotives had whistles and few tenders had all four steps and grab rails. I made grab rails from .02" steel rod stock that I bought from Maximum Hobby.
The picture below is a Rivarossi Oil Tender with my DCC mods. I added an extra weight and glued the weights to the sides of the shell instead of the floor. The floor space is reserved for a speaker. I mounted the NMRA DCC connector on a 5/8" diameter styrene tube for easy access.
The DCC decoder is attached to the top of the tender shell with double sided tape.
I made the DCC pigtail 4" long so that it would be long enough for easy connection to the locomotive. I cut a 5/8" x 5/16" hole for the wires to pass through the front end of the tender to the locomotive. I started with a smaller hole but the wires would hang up and cause derails. The larger hole makes for an easier install too, the connector will pass through the larger hole. The wiring harness can be made in advanced then simply installed in one piece instead of soldering on a plug and having to hassle with the shell too.
I mounted all of my DCC connectors on my locomotives with the red wire terminal on the lower right and put a dob of red paint on the connectors for easy identification.
This tender had both rear steps missing, those steps are castings that I made with my casting kit. The Rivarossi tender trucks are not the best trucks in the world by far so I replaced them with Bowser 35107 Buckeye trucks with metal frames and brass wheels. DCC requires good uninterrupted power and the Rivarossi trucks leave a lot to be desired.
Sabtu, 5 November 2011
November 5, 2011 Rivarossi Cab Forward Wobble
I found a fix to stop the "Rivarossi Wobble" in their Cab Forwards. The problem is enhanced because of the wear at the rivet that holds the yoke mounting bracket on the lead driver assembly.
I began by breaking the flange off the rivet with a small screwdriver between the yoke and frame. Next I removed the remaining rivet flange with a small flat metal file. Then I drilled a #60 pilot hole using the hole in the rivet as a pilot. I then used a #48 bit to enlarge the hole to 1.95mm so that it would pass the 2mm screw.
The picture below shows the rivet with the 2mm screw in place.
When tightening the screw make sure that the yoke will move freely. Use some #2 Blue Threadlock on the threads to prevent the nut from coming loose.
Make sure that the driver frame moves freely without side to side movement.
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I began by breaking the flange off the rivet with a small screwdriver between the yoke and frame. Next I removed the remaining rivet flange with a small flat metal file. Then I drilled a #60 pilot hole using the hole in the rivet as a pilot. I then used a #48 bit to enlarge the hole to 1.95mm so that it would pass the 2mm screw.
The picture below shows the rivet with the 2mm screw in place.
When tightening the screw make sure that the yoke will move freely. Use some #2 Blue Threadlock on the threads to prevent the nut from coming loose.
Next I pressed a 3mm washer on the shaft of the mounting screw of the rear driver assembly to give the screw more surface area to stabilize the driver frame and eliminate any slop there too. Again use the #2 Blue Threadlock to prevent it from becoming loose.
Make sure that the driver frame moves freely without side to side movement.
The wobble is caused by the slop in the driver rods on the wheels but the above modifications stop the engine side to side movement. The dual Canon EN-22 motors help a lot too, probably because the driver assemblies are no longer synced with the drive shaft and allows some freedom between the driver wheels.
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