Probably a familiar story but I will never learn. Got me a very nice pre owned n gauge lay out 8X3 which ran very well on Kato track with three Kato controllers (two outside tracks and a central branch line) 10 points connected to Kato controller by Kato plugs. All was well, trains ran smoothly and then it happened. I was seduced by the Roco z21 and rushed out to buy DCC CONCEPTS decoders which I fitted myself, connected the Z 21 and router and only one train runs out of three with more jerks in it than the government. And why? Because I am a complete tit who does not know what he is doing and is now in a complete pickle. If anyone knows of anyone who charges a fee to give my system the once over and get it running please let me know..
Many thanks for your time.
Sorry, the layout is in Cheam, Surrey.
Might sound silly but have you cleaned the track and the loco wheels recently?
A little bit of dirt on either will not normally affect DC running unless it's bad, after all how many of us cleaned track and wheels as kids when track was laid out on the carpet? :no: DCC relies on digital signals as well though, and it only takes a tiny bit of dirt to give the symptoms you describe - jerky running. Run a bit of kitchen towel along the rails and if it's black, it needs cleaning, and so probably do your loco wheels ;)
As for the now-non-running locos are you sure the decoder is in the right way up? (easy to put it in upside down - lights usually work if fitted but no movement). Have you programmed them all correctly?
A simple session of Q+A on here and some advice from others should have you up and running without having to pay out :thumbsup:
Paul
Very nice of you to post that, it's much appreciated, will do as you suggest though I thought I had cleaned the track but probably not vigorously enough, as to the wheels the locos are only a few weeks old and as to putting decoders in wrong, highly likely on current form!
sorry to butt in but what would the track be cleaned with
thanks phil
If your track was set up for DC and you had 3 controllers for 3 different sets of track then there could be a wiring issue, you need to check that the blue and the white wires are wired the same on each track, you also need to join the 3 sets of track together through wiring, if the track only has one power source then you could have issues as dcc needs plenty of power sources all round the track.
The next thing is to put the loco where the power source is, does it run smooth there if so then we are etting to the bottom of the problem, as could mean you do need more dropper feeds in for your track, if your train still runs erratic where the power source is try another loco, dcc has a learning curve and it could be some cv's need to be changed to get your loco's running, I find Kato track is ok with just a peco track clleaner the one that looks like a rubber.
I understand your frustration but maybe taking your loco to a model railway shop might help as well before anything else to make sure it runs smooth on there track, a good shop will always be willing to help they want your future trade.
Goodluck and keep us informed.
Quote from: Only Me on September 23, 2014, 12:19:30 AM
Hi Phil,
You need to do an Ebay search for isopropyl Alcohol (IPA)
I use cotton buds to clean my track with it... You can buy a litre for about a five
Paul
Ps jerky locos could be a sign of needing to "fettle" the chip settings...
Also if the layout was built for DC originally it may need some minor wiring adjustments to make it work on DCC
On another note is the layout mobile?
thanks for the advice on isopropyl, i will look into it, £5 for a litre of alcohol ;D it could be a cheep night in
phil
If the original track has several controllers, one for each loop then they are going to be isolated from each other, so you will need to wire them all together. (The tracks not the controllers)
I would suggest you buy a length of flexitrack and hook that up to your z21. Test your locos on that, at least that way you'll know if your looking at a loco issue or a track issue.
I've got a z21 so if you need any help with that then PM me.
Cheers
Chris
Many thanks for all the advice and encouragement, what a grand site this is. So here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to take out the Roco Z21 and store it, then I'm going to connect the Kato controllers up again and run the kit on DC and TAKE MY TIME to learn more about this fascinating hobby, when I feel I have mastered the intricacies I will attempt another switch-over, in the mean time, thanks once again.
Why not take a picture of your layout and take another picture of the wiring underneath, put the pictures here on the forum and members on the forum might be able to give you some encouragement to go over to DCC, seems a great cost to lay out for a controller and not being able to use it.
What ever you decide please enjoy this great hobby and do not let these things get you down.
Quote from: Geoff on September 23, 2014, 10:28:18 AM
Why not take a picture of your layout and take another picture of the wiring underneath, put the pictures here on the forum and members on the forum might be able to give you some encouragement to go over to DCC, seems a great cost to lay out for a controller and not being able to use it.
What ever you decide please enjoy this great hobby and do not let these things get you down.
I'll try and do as you suggest but the last thing it will do is get me down, this was started as a semi retirement project to occupy me and it's certainly doing that!