Good sound & a suggestion

That sounds pretty good, Luis.  It makes me want to look more into some of the Loksound decoders.

I have a suggestion about the headlight.  You may want to set it (or wire it, since there's presumably no reverse headlight) so that it's on constantly instead of being directional.  I don't know how a Gyralite was controlled (manual or automatic), but if it was anything like the modern era ditch lights, it might have been tied in with the headlight switch.  In any case, the headlights would be controlled by the engineer, and usually either both would have been left on, or both turned off at the same time.  I often leave my headlights on at night when making a reverse move (provided there are no oncoming trains, of course), because the additional light makes it easier to judge my speed.

Very Nice!!

Say what you want about Athearn Blue Box units, I find them to be bullet proof!  Can't wait to hear it with the shell on and the sound install complete!   Sounds very nice as is! 

Hi all. Thank you so much for

Hi all.

Thank you so much for the answers

REgarding the headlight, I know that Loksound has the ability to leave the headlight on when the loco is going in reverse (and this is what I want), but I can't find the correct CV to do this.

I prefer to have the Mars Light in a separate function, so at this time it's the F6 that turn on this light.

BTW, I am using Warm White 3mm LED's, with a 470Ohm resistor.

Do you know which CV should I change to keep the headlight always on?

Thanks again for the replies.
 

Agreed - nice job and great sound and headlight effect!

What is your plan for painting the shell?

Skip the CV

I cannot comment on the ESU decoder, but others I have seen require the use of a different function wire in order to keep the headlight on constantly.  At least, that's how I read the instructions..

Since there's only one headlight, you could try putting both the forward and reverse headlight wires on the same LED.  That way, no matter which way the engine is running, the headlight is still on.  Some of my older DCC books suggest the technique, with diodes in each lead to prevent one function backfeeding the other function output.

Rog.38, I am going freelance,

Rog.38, I am going freelance, so I'm still making some tests, about the colors I'll use.

My son is 4 months old, and I want to "start" a new RR company, using his name. The best I have at the moment is Duarteville & Indiana RR (his name is Duarte, in portuguese). I want to have something to do with Indiana, because I love the colour of every layout I saw based on this state, specially the one from Tom Johnson (INRAIL - L&IN).

I am thinking on a green/blue/black, but I also like darker red's...

Best wishes.

Looking forward to updates!

You certainly have a great start with your grain bins, and I agree - seeing Tom Johnson's work inspires me, too!  Please keep the updates coming.

Rog.38

You can see here the discussion on my railroad here:

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/19213

Thank you!!! b

detail kit

If you have the opportunity, Walthers still has available a F-unit detailing kit for the Athearn blue-box F's.  Windshield, wire grabs & port holes:

http://www.walthers.com/exec/search?quick=933-822&x=9&y=11.

Bob, I already ordered the

Bob,

I already ordered the detail kit last week. It's on it's way to Portugal as we speak!

Thank you for the tip.

LokSound CV

For LokSound decoders: to keep the headlight on while in reverse, first set CV 32 to "2" and then set CV 282 to "3". Then, if you want to keep the back-up light on while going forward, set CV 266 to "3". After you have made the changes, set CV 32 back to "1". A lot of my clients like to have both lights on all the time.

.....Tom

Headlight working

Hi Tom.

Thank you so much. Now I have the headlight always working!!

Thank you.

Nice job on the decoder

Nice job on the decoder install, it also looks like you have it running well also. One thing you can add to the bluebox items to help them out is one of the detail kits or window kits if you are worried about handling of your units. Really sounds nice. Good luck with the rest of your project.

May I ask what CV values you

May I ask what CV values you used to get such nice low speed performance?

Thanks,

Herman

Herman, I just made the

Herman, I just made the automatic fine tune that LosoundV4.0 have. I don't know if Loksound Select does this.

CV54 = 0

CV56=255

After this is done place the loco on a straight free track, and press F1. The loco will run at full speed for a while and then stops. The, if you read CVs 54, 55 and 56, you will see that the decoder fine tunned itself for a optimal performance, Normally this should work the first time you try it.

 

Meanwhile, I started to put the handrails from the Walthers detail kit. They are not on the final position. Also sanded the imperfections on the shell after drilling it.

Best wishes.

Athearn F7 weights

What did you do with the weight. I tried to put mine back in but would not fit. I even milled some of it with no success.

Hi Dennis. Sorry for the late

Hi Dennis. Sorry for the late reply.

I wont puti back in place. The loco is eavy enough to get two or three hoppers running in switching.

BTW, I have updating the thing with some Details West parts.

I also ordererd the the diesel tank detail part, but I am not sure if I am going to use it...

I looks a lot better now... SInce I am going freelance, I wont stick to a prototype. Just need to make it realistic!

Just need to check the handrails alignment!!!

Best wishes