I've now made a handful of turnouts with the FT fixtures, and they're coming out generally OK.

I have two issues, possibly related.

I have a Broadway Limited NS SW-1500 switcher(jitem 3343) with a Paragon 2 sound decoder.  I have a Digitrax system and was using a UT4 throttle to run the engine.  The engine is 4 years old and has been running great until yesterday.  I was switching cars when I reversed the engine.  The engine did not move.  When I reversed the engine again it started running in the other direction at a high rate of speed.  The throttle knob was at 0.  I tried other throttles I have(DT500), DT602).  I turned system off and tried again.  Same thing.

I guess I am biased once in a while.  I think that doing DCC without a multimeter is like walking in the dark in the woods at night with no moon.  If it beeps, even softly, tells me when the wire is connected, tells me that I’ve got power, tells me how many ohms an unreadable resistor is, or checks to see if I’ve burned out an LED, then I could be happy.  If it costs one tenth of what mine cost maybe it could make someone else happy too.

Ebay collecting Sale Taxes on our USED Hobby Items

I had heard that this was coming, but just the other day I experienced it first hand. I bought a loco from a fellow in AZ and got charged the sales tax for FL where I live.

When I paid for the item with Paypal, it seems as though the purchase price went to ebay, with subsequent payment to be made to the seller.?? Thus ebay ended up being the middle-man, and required by law to collect the tax.