Hi, thanks for watching and getting in touch. Cheers. Dave

Many thanks. Sorry for taking so long to see your comment. Dave

Hi, sorry for taking sooooo long to reply. Just say this comment when I happened to look at this video again. Thanks for your kind words. Dave

@@DeanPark ha ha. No problem Dave. All the best. Ian.

Cheers.

Glad it was useful :-)

Great Video! Excuse me for butting in, I am interested in your initial thoughts. Have you ever tried - Januke Henatalie Formula (erm, check it on google should be there)? It is an awesome one off product for operating a model railroad without the normal expense. Ive heard some extraordinary things about it and my work buddy at very last got great success with it.

Cheers (sorry it’s taken so long to reply, just saw this comment). Dave

Cheers stu (sorry it’s taken so long to reply, just saw this comment). Dave

Hi Dave, no problem, the video was really helpful. Really enjoying your uploads, cheers, Stu.

Hi, they have an element of memory and start up how they were left upon shut down. :-)

Try my previous video, Dean Park 254, I look at them during that video :-)

@@DeanPark Thanks! I hadn't got that far through 254 as I got too excited about 255!

Hi. Thanks. LED are Dcc concepts dual leds. Green/red. Panel is 3mm acrylic My mate has a laser cutter for his home business, so he kindly cuts it. I’m lucky in that respect. Cheers Dave

APT-E :-)

John Whiteside Hi thanks. that’s great to know John. Technology is always moving forward to allow these things to be done, thanks for your assistance in getting this control panel to work. It looks great and is great fun to operate. Dave

Hi, yeah the solenoid decoders are just to link to solenoid point motors, :-)

I designed it on the pc and got a mate to cut it on his laser cutter.

Hi I designed it myself and my mate has a small laser he let me do it on. Cheers.

No. It wont physically stop the train. That’s up to the driver lol

Hi, I made it myself. I designed it and got it cut on my friends small laser.

I designed it. Mate has a small laser cutter.

Hi, designed it myself. Mate laser cut it on his small machine.

Cheers. I used the hornby elite and railmaster, which is good. But the ESU Ecos is amazing! Ok it’s not cheap, but you pay for the best. There’s so much capacity in it and it works really well with the dcc concepts equipment. It’s all down to what you want to spend. Lenz system is good too. As with everything.... there’s inevitably too much choice! Lol

Hi, it will only change the led when the signal has been sent to fire the solenoid. If a solenoid fails, it won’t detect it in the leds.. but hopefully you would hear that it wasn’t firing. :-)

@@DeanPark Hi Dave, Thank you for the quick reply, as you say hopefully you would notice if a solenoid didn't operate. I have subscribed to your channel and will be watching your videos. Regards, David.

Yes just use toggles direct to each point motor, but the lighting of the LED wouldn’t operate. I used serif draw plus, which I have had for years to design the board.

Hi. I use rapid electronics.

Hi. Treat the three way point as two separate points on the ecos. Giving them two different addresses. Don’t use the three way icon on the ecos. Use two normal point icons. Hope this helps. So sorry for taking so long to reply. I just stumbled across this comment when watching the video again myself. Dave

Cheers Stevie.

In all honesty I’m not 100% sure. Contact the guys at dcc concepts and they are excellent at helping you out.

Hi. No I gave it to a mate to use for his sons new layout.

Hi, designed by me. Cut on a laser cutter my mate has.

Hi only wires from led to mimic, there is only two wires from all of this to the ecos. That’s the Beauty of it. The holes are cut on the laser, so they are all Perfectly aligned and spaced. It’s wonderful technology.

DaveClass47 thanks Dave, sorry for so many questions but I’m just a the stage of best way to connect dcc controllers to mimic panel , cheers Darrell

Aston Napper-Woods hi it’s been designed by me and I’ve a mate who’s got a small laser cutter. But if you contact railway laser lines they might do commissions?

DaveClass47 Hi, Brilliant thanks I may give them a contact.

Erm; not cheap. Bit saved up the kit over a period of time to make it more affordable.

I saved up stuff over a period of time. It would be hard to give an actual cost.

Hornby elite does allow assessors and point decoders to be used. But you’d need to check with dcc concepts to find out specifics.

@@DeanPark thanks for you’re reply decided not to go for a system like this now lol fine manual because my layout isn’t too big! But thanks for the advice anyway.

Hi. No these work well with the ecos.

Hi. Sure the points operated before but not through the ecos. This way I can use the ecos to have control if I want, or the toggles. The lights are a more visual way of knowing which way the point is thrown. I can also see the route set up, Ie if they are all greens I know where the train is going and if it’s got all of the points set correctly. I like the more visual display that I get with the LED too. Yeah it does the same basic thing of controlling the points but now it’s higher tech and, well I like the look of it lol. I suppose.,as you say, each to their own. I just thought I’d go for a set up that had worked so well for the storage yard control panel. I do like to try new technology. Thanks for getting in touch though. Sorry I didn’t see your comment earlier. It’s great to hear you enjoy my channel. Thanks for watching my stuff. Cheers Dave

Tase I have bought from www.theplasticman.co.uk. I would never use DCC concepts equipment, too unreliable

Ian Owens thanks Ian. Out of interest why do you say that their stuff is too unreliable?

I could have done, but chose to keep it separate for a very good reason. A loco can cross point 14 towards point 12, but stop to allow trains to pass on the lines at both ends of the loco. It allows a bit of flexibility. It was all thought out during the design of this system. The same with points 7&8 at the other end using the due mind crossing. All thought out beforehand.

@@DeanPark Fair enough, sounds like a reasonable compromise, though in prototypical circumstances that would be Verboten AF! If the signals actually stop the trains rather than just being 'cosmetic' maybe it's possible to interlock with R9 as the loco straddles that line . . . (I been playing a lot of Simsig, see, and you get to know what's what in route-setting . . . sorry)

You have to treat it as two points. As it’s got two point motors

Hi, emailed DCC Concepts and sorted it, thanks!

Hi, the red and yellow ones?

Message me on daveclass47@gmail.com. I’ve the switch boxes too etc.

My totting up gets me to £2256 for both control panels. This includes £600 for the ECOS, boards, perspex panels (est), mass sequencers, sniffers and point motors. I'm sure I'll have missed some things (I've not included signals themselves) so if you say £2500 then you control your train in style too! Looks amazing but it's a shame no mention of cost was made and this pertinent question was ignored.

Stu Findlow i think you’re way out with the cost.

Hi. I just stumbled across this comment when browsing my own video. So the question wasn’t ignored. It’s impossible to be on top of all comments and to keep up with notifications (of they even appear). Sure you can work out the cost by going to the retailer of these products. But I saved and collected these over a period of time. Buying some of the stuff over several years. So the cost, while significant was spread out. I assume you were using current costs when coming up with that figure? But that would Likely be more as as I said I bought over several years when prices were in most cases be cheaper. In some cases significantly so. So just like a lot of things in life. From cars, new sofas and family holidays, the cost doesn’t seem so painful when spread out, it becomes more affordable.

KZfaq place these ads. I will look at the settings. Thanks.

Reality check: it’s a model Railway! It’s supposed to bring joy and fun to the person ‘playing’ with it. We are not operating a real railway. It’s not all about Cost, it’s about enjoyment from building this and seeing it operate model trains. Analogue… ok. Stick with that if that does it for you. Personally digital does it for me and I suspect a majority of others. At least I don’t have to worry about isolating sections etc while using dcc. I’ve done the analogue thing back in the 90’s. No thanks. I am in the 21st century now. And I like it. So no, not total waste of time and money. Yes I ‘understand how a real railway’s actually operate’. But why not following the ‘real railway’ means it’s a waste of money is slightly bizarre. Why post this?

So if your DC controlled layout works in a ‘realistic’ way, then so can a DCC system as you just replace the analogue circuits with digital ones. The only valid point you have is cost, which is actually down to the individual’s budget. My Trainset does run in a realistic way if I so chose, with correct blocks, and correctly operating signals, and workings. I’m also happy to demonstrate this at any show my trainset attends if you’d like to see your theory proved invalid?

@@mikebuick2332 Real railways use complex "Block signalling" systems to ensure safety, and control the movement of ALL trains. (A bit like a normal model railway controller, with safety added). Early systems were mechanical, such as the "Absolute Block" system, used in conjunction with semaphore signals on lines that included passenger trains. The fundamental safety rule of "Absolute Block" is that only ONE train is allowed on EACH "running line" within the WHOLE area of the signalbox controlling that line. Irrespective of how many signals that box may have along its running line(s). In other words trains are specifically forbidden to follow each other from signal to signal. Something few modellers can understand !!! The MINIMUM number of semaphore signals needed for an "Absolute Block Post" (the signalbox) is: A Distant signal, followed by a Home signal, followed by a Starter signal, for EACH "running line". So if it's a regular two track railway, you have three signals on each "Running Line", which may cover an area of no more than roughly three miles of route, due to expansion & contraction problems in point rodding and steel signal wires. . The Home signal and the Starter signal (both red/white painted stop signals) must first be pulled to indicate a Clear Line, before the Distant (the black/yellow painted signal) can be cleared, to indicate a Clear Line right through the Block. In other words the "Interlocking" ensures the levers can only be pulled inside the box in the correct order. To ensure only ONE train (and safety) can ever be on this roughly three mile section of route covered by this signalbox !! So how can DCC replicate this "Absolute Block" method, or for that matter any other method. Such as "Track Circuit Block" which is used in conjunction with multi-aspect colour light signals. As its name implies this method requires "Track Circuits" to detect the presence & location of all trains, at any moment in time. It also ensures that each signal returns to red automatically when a train passes. This added safety feature above and beyond the "Absolute Block" system, now allows trains to follow each other safely from signal to signal. And of course, also allows a huge increase in the number of paths per hour on any given route. DCC has no method available to replicate any of the Block signalling systems used, including the two just exampled. Why not ? For the simple reason that the commercial manufacturers do not know what your layouts track plan is. And every layouts track plan would require a different set of "Interlocking". Just as every real life signal box has to have either its own unique mechanical equipment or with a computer signal box, unique software to deal with that boxes, track plan and the necessary "Interlocking" for that layout. Fleischmann (German RTR manufacturer) went bankrupt having spent over €2.5 Million trying to plug the gaping hole in DCC by greatly increasing the systems capacity. So it was as great as a PC. But still could not find a simple way for users to implement their trackplan into this expanded system, even though a CD with the necessary software was to be included. Becuase the possible permutations were in the Millions. (Fleischmann were sold to Roco over 10 years ago as a result). But I can, and have been applying a number of British Block Signalling systems to my exhibition layouts for near 40 years, including the two examples mentioned. For the simple reason I am a Railway Engineer, who has worked with a number of real railways around the World, and understand the basic wiring necessary for the job. However knowing what electrical equipment is necessary is the easy bit. Relays being the most complex item I need. However it takes weeks of careful thinking to identify what interlocking will be needed for a point or a signal, and the more optional routes there are, dramatically increases the number of "Interlocks" between items. Relays are the mechanism used for each "Interlock" because that's what real railways still use. Relays being simply a number of switches inside a little case, actuated by an electro magnet. So using a cheap one penny "track circuit" (a piece of wire connecting a small section of isolated rail to a relay). I can get a train to actuate the relay, which changes the switches inside a relay. Each switch in the relay may illuminate the red on a signal just passed, or illuminate the yellow or green LED on a previous signal. Or change the feed from one signals relay to a different relay at the next signal because you just changed the points and set the train along a different track. Of course this cannot be done when you have 16v AC in the rails, because AC behaves in a different way to Direct Current. DC has an advantage in that you can feed a piece of track with supplies from many different transformers (via rectifiers) without causing short circuits, as would happen if you used AC. DC you see will only return to the transformer it came from !!!! Having added the real life type Block System to a layout, I can let a complete novice try and screw it all up. By driving his train where he likes in contravention of real railway rules. The fun is watching the novice, when he discovers he simply can't do this. Or his train won't move, because he has tried to crash a red signal, and the real life type AWS system has stopped his train before a crash can occur. In addition to the block signalling relays, track circuits and wiring, I also use traditional methods such as a single Common Return cable for ALL items on the layout including controllers, signals, relays, point motors, which reduces wiring by around 45%. Cab Control is also used to allow more than one train to be driven along a particular line, by different controllers. Very helpful when adding/detaching vehicles from trains standing in stations, and used in conjunction with Kadee magnetic couplings on all stock. NOTE to avoid interference problems between various electrical items and the train controllers, each type of equipment has a separate transformer ! Happy Modelling 😝.

@@JamesSmith-mv9fp After reading through your very long winded reply, you’re forgetting the fact that computer software can ensure absolute block. I’ll let you read up on it as I can’t be arsed to write another 5 page essay

@@mikebuick2332 Of course it can, and that's the current problem with DCC, it does not currently have the capacity to do this. Fleischmann tried & failed going bankrupt in the process. Indeed any manufacturer who wants to change the current fundamental electronics of DCC, has by default to get all other DCC manufacturers to agree to the changes. Which was the main reason for Fleischmann going bankrupt. The huge NMRA (American model railroad club/society with near 1 Million members) refused to give Fleischmanns new product their seal of approval, without which the retailers would not stock the product !!! So the one opportunity to fill the gaping hole in DCC was buried.