Battery power

[Rene Schweitzer]

Battery power has its pros and cons. Do you use it on your railway?

[Anonymous]

FOR ME IT'S AN ADDED EXPENCE, I'M RETIRED ON A FIXED INCOME, I'M LUCKY I HAVE TRACK POWER .

[cacole]

I run everything on battery power because I have AirWire900 Wireless DCC systems in all of my locomotives. The biggest advantage is that I will never have to worry about cleaning track or intermittent rail joiners.

The primary reason I selected battery power, however, was because the Arizona caliche is impossible to dig into to lay power lines.

[grandpopswalt]

I use Aristo's On-board Train Engineer and Nickle Metal Hydride batteries. My choice was made because I didn''t want to deal with all the well known track problems; 1- poor contact because of dirty rail, 2- conductivity problems because of faulty rail joins, 3- complicated wiring/block control. I could have gone to track powered DCC but I'm concerned with items 1 and 2 presenting a problem with DCC.

Frankly, I don't have much experience with track power except for a few temporary layouts but common sense and everything I've read suggested that battery/RC operation would be the least troublesome.

Walt

[Curmudgeon]

We tried track power for 2 months and gave up.
Been ONLY Battery/ RCS for 11-1/2 years.
Never have cleaned the track.
TOC

[Anonymous]

I have one battery powered thing to pull a track cleaner.Everything else is DCC track power.The trains run all day whilst I'm gardening with no batteries to charge.Each to their own eh!

[kstrong]

Yes, but not exclusively. The rest is steam. [:)] Electron-free rails since 1984.

Later,

K

[Anonymous]

Go go Kevin-
and Kevin's wife's teapot !
It was curious.

[Curmudgeon]

What's a track-cleaning car?

[Anonymous]

All AirWire 900.

Might in the future add power to one of my loops, just so others can come visit and run with me.

[Anonymous]

It's what does the job being push/pulled by a loco that I have just spent half an hour doing, saying that, for me it's a good time to check the track, do a bit of pruning and re ballast here and there. A labour of love.
Cheers,
Kim
[tup]

[bobgrosh]

After a year of battery I tired of running out of juice before the day ended, having to swap batteries to make it through the day, making excuses for not having a loco charged, dealing with the cumbersome joystick controls, trying to fit 4 or 5 pieces of hardware in small locos, wiring up all the components, lugging battery cars around, loss of control at key moments and dealing with accidentally overcharged batteries their corrosion and explosions. For those with four or five locos it might be fine, but for 20 locos it's insane and insanely expensive. Switched to DCC 6 years ago and eliminated all the hassle.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: What's a track-cleaning car?

A flat waggon with abrasive pads on it.
What's a day lasting battery(he he)
[:D]

[Curmudgeon]

I don't know.
We run all operating session (2PM to 8 or 9 PM) then later in the week, drag it out and run it some more......
Of course with AuxBatts, we can go all weekend......reverse loops and all.
No wiring.
No clamps. No bonds. No feeders. No power packs. Even during power outtages.
No cleaning cars, either.
No track cleaning, no wheel cleaning, no worn out "skates", no "floating" track because we clamped it and it grows....
I guess yer right.
I must be missing something.

TOC

[bobgrosh]

I don't know.
We run all operating session before dawn, (best to view all the lighted cars) till dusk and sometime till midnight. Then, the next day, we do it again. Don't have to wait till later in the week when the bats are charged......
We sold our AuxBatts, to an RC car guy and bought 3 more locos. Run them on.. reverse loops and all.
No wiring.
Clamps keep our rails straight. No bonds. No feeders. No banks of chargers. No uncharged batteries after power outages.
No jumpers between locos and trailing cars, no trailing cars either.
No track cleaning, no wheel cleaning, two sets of worn out "skates" (12 bucks, big deal), no clamped down track because it floats just like the real thing.

I guess yer right.
I must be missing something.

B0B

[Curmudgeon]

Do you even know what an AuxBatt IS?

[Curmudgeon]

Second, Bob, do you want to tell these wonderful folks or you want me to?
How 12-15 LGB engines a year die on your rr?
How it's been "abandoned" and won't run for 18 months?
About home-brewed battery stuff where you burn your shed down?
I have it all saved, if you want me to post it, but I'll give you first crack at it.
TOC

[BudSteinhoff]

An 'AuxBatt' is probably a 30 amp Bridgewerks power supply.
Batteries work for some but I don't need any more battery powered equipment and chargers.
Keeping them charged and replacing them is a pain.
For me track power with on-boards is no problem.
I have all the power I need and can run as many lights, smoke, sound as I want for as long as I want.
Track cleaning is no big deal it only takes me about 15 miniutes for the 1200 ft of track with my cleaning rig which is really fun to sit back and let the loco do its work.
To each his own for their situation.
Bud[8D]

[Curmudgeon]

AutBatt is a Product Name for RCS Auxilliary Batteries.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: I have all the power I need and can run as many lights, smoke, sound as I want for as long as I want.
Track cleaning is no big deal it only takes me about 15 miniutes for the 1200 ft of track with my cleaning rig which is really fun to sit back and let the loco do its work.
To each his own for their situation.
Bud

I hear you !
Use what you want to use.
After the initial clean,they run all day.

[Curmudgeon]

Really.
We have had running, at one time, 20 working wayfreights with a passenger run or two interspersed, on 4% ruling.
Want to calculate the current requirements and blocking required to do so?
Plus (big plus) we can run on the same railroad, at the same time, with non-insulated steamers, even those who spew stuff all over the rails...

I had a dcc advocate tell me on the phone he had calculated an A-B-B-A with 15 streamline cars on 2% grade......and stated there wasn't a dcc power supply available that would provide enough power, PLUS you'd have to block the railroad out into "power districts" so heavily you might as well have a blocked railroad.

I've been through this argument before.

Those who still use track power haven't a clue. And that's not a put-down.
Those of us who HAVE, sometimes for more than 40 years, and have lots of experience with it, and now have battery r/c, can speak from both sides.

If you've never tried it (and making up surplus batteries with home-made chargers that blow up really don't count), can't address it.
You can try, but you really have nothing to say.

Lie you tell me about your new SUV, and my reference is my Flathead.

TOC

[Anonymous]

Weeeeeellll.
I'm 40 years old.I have track power.
I also have a life!!!!
You win.
If I reach the age when I want to argue the toss,everything would have changed.You would be dead and I may not be interested any more!
Let's leave it there!
For me,track power works.Enough said.

[kstrong]

TWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Time Out, folks!

TOC, Bobgrosh, back to your corners. Neither of you will win the other over. You've answered the poll question, and stated your case for your chosen method of propulsion in the garden. Let's leave it at that and let the readers decide for themselves what works for their individual situations.

There's not a power system in existance that you can't find fault with. We just have to weigh the good against the bad, and decide which attributes we find acceptable vs. the ones we don't like.

It's a personal choice, but let's try to keep the discussion from getting too personal.

Later,

K

[Anonymous]

Got into the garden at 9.30 this morning, train running at 9.31, walked round with it for a track inspection and it's still running now even though I can't see it from the PC. Had a night run last night and will be having one tonight after it's run all day. If only the batteries in the TE control last out................

Cheers,
Kim
[tup]

[Pagardener]

Question for those with track power?????[?]
My layout runs through my woods which means birds and [:(!]tree sap. Is it really that easy to clean off bird droppings and tree sap??[?] Since I am still building I use track power for testing but have been considering battery power for my engines because of the track cleaning hassle. Just wondering[?]
Barbara

[BudSteinhoff]

To add to my choice of not running battery power and to eliminate charging/battery malfunctions I even eliminated all my sound system batteries and run them from track power.
Until I have any problems I will stay with the combination I have and what works best for me.
Bud[8D]

[Rastun]

Good morning All,

I would really have to say about the choice of track power or battery is all a personal opinion. Do you want to spend part of your time cleaning your track? or almost no time at all? Some things that get onto the track are always going to have to be cleaned off no matter what you use.[:0]
For me it is the probably going to come down to the simple fact, "is it worth it to me to pay X amount of dollars to not have to clean track for electrical reasons? Or should I use that money on other things and go out into the garden with the morning cup of coffee and clean the track a bit as I look over the garden and greet the day?"
That being said I am leaning toward my layout being track powered with on board remotes for control and placing switches into some of the engines so they can operate on either.

Have a good day everyone [:D]
Jack

[Curmudgeon]

Kevin- I have no intention of winning him over to anything.
All this is doing is "filling in the gaps".
If he wants to come here and tell everyone he runs for days at a time, yet on another site he complains about killing 12-15 LGB locos in a year, the inability to keep trains on the track (even with track secured and cross-levelled), and then that the railroad hasn't run in 18 months.

On the SubNets we have a term we have developed for referring to PAST history......"On the Ustafish"....older Subs being named for fish....


So, maybe, on the "Ustarailroad" we ran all day and never had any problems.

Just tell it all.

TOC

[cabbage]

I only use battery power (with the exception of the suicidal Mamod!!!) This is because my source of batteries is plentiful and cheap. They are high capacity and heavy and are designed for high power drain. In short -they are UPS batteries.

I design my locos to take them -the only mistake I have made with them was the first one to be built -that takes 36 hours to recharge -yes it uses NiMH technology. The rest use Lead Acid.

However with the arrival of Sodium Sulphur Batteries at a price range I can afford I am beginning to experiment with them. The charge characteristics are DIRE!!! the discharge characteristics are WONDERFUL!!! They are lighter than SLA and there packing power is far higher -a 4.2AH 6V SLA weighs 2.4Kg and takes 90minutes to charge. A 8.6Ah 8.3V SS weighs 0.5Kg and could take full charge in 5 minutes -but at the end of it the *** thing is far too hot to hold and has to cool down for at least an hour!!!

However it STAYS charged -the 'tail off' is negligable. I have a couple of SS on test (borrowed) and the charger would have to be specially made -plus the fact that they are an 'odd' shape -a multiple of inches rather than centimetres...

I am happy with my batteries and would never go to track power -the rain and mud would see to that. I also like the fact that my small son, nieces and nephews plonk a train on the track and pu***he switch forward to go forward and back to go back.

N.B. some of my operators are still mastering the Alphabet...

regards

ralph

[Anonymous]

Barbara, You will get all sorts of grunge on the track, I have a bird friendly garden and to be honest not one has cr**ped on the track yet. Ian in oz runs an LGB track cleaning loco, which I think is probably the ultimate in track cleaning and something to consider if you will have some inaccessable places after the undergrowth grows back. If not, cleaning is not that big a thing at the end of the day, we do it with houses, pots etc, why not track.
Cheers,
Kim
[tup]