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 Posted - December 24 2013 : 03:57:34 AM
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Hello Tyco friends. I have been at this for while. It started with a Bicentennial C-430 set that I got for Christmas one year back in the 1970s and I have been at it ever since. I got away from Tyco for some time but still held on to most of my older stuff and rarely if ever got rid of anything. The prices of new DCC stuff drove me back to collecting Tyco and I have really enjoyed hunting for those affordable hidden gems that many HO modelers scoff at. Best of all, I can collect all those items that were on my wish list as a kid without breaking the bank. Its like having all the fun without the guilt of spending the price of a car payment on a new locomotive model. Over the years I have picked up quite a few tricks in repairing old Tyco drives and re-powering those that are suitable. I cant wait to share what I have learned with the forum.
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Posted - December 24 2013 : 07:31:31 AM
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| Hello and welcome the the forum! There is a lot of knowledge here and a lot of Know-it-all's, but this site is the best on the web if your a TYCO collecter. Once again, WELCOME!
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Posted - December 24 2013 : 08:06:59 AM
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Welcome Steven to the Tyco forum. I hope you enjoy looking, reading, and posting here. Have a nice time.
frank
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
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 Posted - December 24 2013 : 08:46:57 AM
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heh Price of DCC has gotten waaaayyy out of control 
Why pay $300++ for ONE loco when you can get old DC as discount prices? 
Welcome aboard 
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Posted - December 24 2013 : 10:00:49 AM
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Welcome, Steven ! 
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Posted - December 24 2013 : 11:42:05 AM
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quote:
Amen, Bro, and then there's always (dare I say it) String. I'm from Ft. Madison, IA, myself. I should know where Glen Carbon is, but I've forgotten
String Bob
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Posted - December 24 2013 : 3:50:37 PM
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Welcome, Metalsmith. Yes, the prices and even detail lever have reached a level of near ridiculousness. I find it hard to enjoy something I'm afraid to even touch. There's is a debate these days amongst modelers about how much detail is too much. We enjoy everything here, from the beautifully prototypical to the "what were they thinking?!"
quote:
Why pay $300++ for ONE loco when you can get old DC as discount prices?
Originally posted by microbusss - December 24 2013 : 08:46:57 AM
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Especially if your $300 & up pride & joy turns out to have a glass jaw drive with no replacement parts available? Ouch!
The Tyco Depot
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Posted - December 24 2013 : 4:47:07 PM
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Well Nelson; if you weren't a clumsy klutz you would not worry about touching and dropping stuff. Merry Christmas and Happy New year to you and yours.
Keep on train-in.
frank
PS. C U in Sommersetttt. well I seenmm I spelt it wrong so I added more Ts and spent it wronger.
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
Edited by - toptrain on December 24 2013 4:56:02 PM
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 Posted - December 25 2013 : 12:49:25 AM
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Don't worry, Frank. Whenever I drop one of your locos at a show I nonchalantly brush it under the table with my foot. I'm considerate like that.
Merry Christmas, and see you in January.
The Tyco Depot
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Posted - December 25 2013 : 03:20:53 AM
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| Thank you all for the warm reception. Glen carbon was actually located on the old Nickel Plate Road mainline to St. Louis to refresh everyone's memory. Does anybody have tips on how to best load photos to the forum? I have been trying to post photos of my latest acquisition, a presidential seal C-430 that I picked up at a recent swap meet. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!
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Posted - December 25 2013 : 08:24:00 AM
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| hi steve,i will never switch to dcc due to the cost of it,i have all the bits to make a great layout in dc,thats not to say dcc is not the best way forward for the new modeler though,its all down to how deep your pockets are ken
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Posted - December 25 2013 : 11:03:30 AM
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quote: quote:
Amen, Bro, and then there's always (dare I say it) String. I'm from Ft. Madison, IA, myself. I should know where Glen Carbon is, but I've forgotten
Originally posted by String boBÂ -Â December 24 2013Â :Â 11:42:05 AM
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Forthose who worry about bidirectional control with string power
![]() 
Alao handy for tunnel work and rattlesnake hunting
String Bob
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Posted - December 25 2013 : 1:22:33 PM
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Bob, that looks like a good idea but, having gotten my start at Allis Chalmers, I think that the tractors should maybe be orange.
Of course the name Waterloo Boy might sound pretty good to an Iowan.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - December 26 2013 : 12:35:33 PM
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quote: Yes, the prices and even detail lever have reached a level of near ridiculousness. I find it hard to enjoy something I'm afraid to even touch.
quote:
Why pay $300++ for ONE loco when you can get old DC as discount prices?
Originally posted by microbusss - December 24 2013 : 08:46:57 AM
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Especially if your $300 & up pride & joy turns out to have a glass jaw drive with no replacement parts available? Ouch!
Originally posted by NickelPlate759Â -Â December 24 2013Â :Â 3:50:37 PM
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I know I was very upset when I got my BLI J engine and it smoked the Decoder in the first 5 minutes of usage. ARGH! At least they fixed it quickly, AND I won my first engine pull contest with it a month later. I haven't run it much since, but hopefully it'll be more reliable, and it's not an orphan, I can get it fixed and find parts for it readily.
Anyway the problem with DC is, you can't enjoy it in a mulit-train environment. In other words, you can't take an entire layout to a show, and run multiple DC trains on it. You need DCC for that. If you are an individualist you are OK, but sharing trains doesn't work in public with DC only. And if you build a huge layout, you either have to wire your tracks individually to run separate trains, or only run one, or use the old-fashioned, clunky block wiring method. There's a place for each method. I'll be running DC at home on a small scale, but if I ever wanted to go for full realism or a huge layout, I'd want DCC for sure. The cost is an issue, but in the end, if you are running trains in public like I do, or want more sound realism, DCC is about the only way to go.
At first I didn't have much money 7-8 years ago, and I joined a club in my area with DCC modular layout shows. I got a simple UT-4R throttle, and my first DCC loco was given to me by a club member, so I was rolling. I've expanded my collection of DCC locos, built a few myself by adding decoders to some, and then last year, I bought a Super Chief DCC set-up since I got some inheritance money, so I could run DCC at home, and have a way to change my decoder addresses, as my club programming track seemed to be constantly broken.  I probably wouldn't have gone DCC if not for joining a club running it. I just gradually eased my way into it, I now have at least 10 engines with decoders, none are expensive engines ( other than that BLI J engine with sound ). Like any new hobby, you just gotta start off small, and expand when you can. While I have a fleet of 100+ engines at home that are just DC, some will eventually get DCC'ed, from Tyco to Atlas to Lionel HO. But I will enjoy most as DC only, as I don't intend to run all as radio controlled. I can enjoy both as much as I want to and how I want to.  Welcome, Metalsmith1, look forward to your future contributions.
Jerry in Virginia, USA
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
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Posted - December 26 2013 : 2:51:51 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by String boBÂ -Â December 25 2013Â :Â 11:03:30 AM
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Bob, you can also use that string with some soup cans for communications during operating sessions.
Btw, what is that building foundation in the background?
The Tyco Depot
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Posted - December 27 2013 : 04:49:44 AM
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| I have been playing with the idea of using DCC in a slightly different way. I do own a Dcc system but I don't use it due to the cost of decoders and the amount of locomotives that I have collected. When the price comes down to about ten bucks per decoder, I will install one in every piece of my collection. Problem is , I just keep collecting! Of late I have been toying with the idea of rebuilding my current layout but pushing the envelope of layout design vertically. It seems to me that layout design has become very cookie cutter and predictable. My plan is to drop the bench-work to the floor and to stack my layout wedding cake style to about six feet in height with trains at intervals of about 8 inches of vertical separation. this way I can maximize the square footage of the layout in a minimal footprint.That said, I have been toying with the idea of installing a dedicated decoder for each level of track and simply wiring them in permanently since there wont be any connection of the track between levels. That way I can run the whole shebang on perhaps ten decoders tops using a single Dcc system and throttle with he benefit of being able to run my current straight DC locomotive collection and simply swap out motive power when the mood strikes me. Anybody out there have any experience with dedicated stationary track DCC decoders?
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Posted - December 31 2013 : 02:23:09 AM
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quote:Hello and welcome the the forum! There is a lot of knowledge here and a lot of Know-it-all's, but this site is the best on the web if your a TYCO collecter. Once again, WELCOME!
Originally posted by GG-1 Guy - December 24 2013 : 07:31:31 AM
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I would love to learn how to get some of my "wall queens" back on the rails into revenue service. Lately I have shied away from vintage Tyco locos because those motors and drives are so awful!! By the way, how do I post photos to this forum of my Tyco work?
JMcNeal
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Posted - December 31 2013 : 1:22:14 PM
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quote:Hello and welcome the the forum! There is a lot of knowledge here and a lot of Know-it-all's, but this site is the best on the web if your a TYCO collecter. Once again, WELCOME!
Originally posted by GG-1 Guy - December 24 2013 : 07:31:31 AM
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Hi Metalsmith, I'm just like you. I get as much pleasure from a $1 Tyco boxcar as a $40 Kadee masterpiece. I'd love to get some ideas how to repair the split gear on my Tyco GG1. I have shied off using Tyco motive power, because as iconic and gorgeous it may be, prolonged running wears the stuff out in a jiffy. I will be looking for postings of your work and will listen to any "know it all" because I am pretty much a "know nothing" except that I like Tyco, Mantua, and old Life Like in that order.
JMcNeal
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Posted - December 31 2013 : 1:24:59 PM
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quote:Bob, that looks like a good idea but, having gotten my start at Allis Chalmers, I think that the tractors should maybe be orange.
Of course the name Waterloo Boy might sound pretty good to an Iowan.
Originally posted by scsshaggy - December 25 2013 : 1:22:33 PM
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LOL! Tyco heads know how to see the humor in all this! When that tractor gets done pulling that sweet Alco out of the way, I have a couple of Tyco locomotives that need a pull also!
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Posted - December 31 2013 : 10:33:15 PM
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I have had some extra time off work this past week and I have been completing some projects that I had put on the backburner. I found a used electronics store in St. Louis that sells used computer motors. I bought several of different sizes and embarked on fitting some in to some old basket case locomotives for which I didn't have any viable spare parts. the first one I fitted was in a Tyco Santa Fe F-9 that I had been using as a dummy. I bored out the power-torque motor block and fit the little computer motor right in the hole. It now runs! I was so pleased with the results that I did the same with an old AHM trolley with a burned up old three pole motor. The trolley now runs smooth and quiet and will creep at slow speed. I installed a Kadee coupler in the hind end to pull a bread trailer and was amazed to see the little thing pull a four car train with ease. I would encourage other owners of Tyco's to get them off the shelf and start having some fun with them. I prefer the Mu-2 powered ones as I have yet to find one that I cant get to run, but if you are running P/T s, just limit the train length and number of laps that you run ( I'm assuming on a 4x8 layout) to keep the heat down and you should be fine.
Edited by - metalsmith1 on January 14 2014 6:03:01 PM
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Posted - December 31 2013 : 10:55:02 PM
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| Hello Chops 124, Sorry to hear about that split gear on your GG-1. They are pretty easy to replace if you can find a spare drive. Also, blue box Athearn drives are cheap and make great transplants for Tyco shells with a little finessing. It looks like a U-30-C chassis would be a good pick for a Tyco GG-1 if you wanted to go that route. One of my more recent projects was finding a suitable chassis for the infamous Tyco C-430, a model that I adore. U-boats are to short and geeps are even shorter, the C-430 is nearly the same length as an SD-40, so that was the chassis I used. With some grinding and chopping, I managed to fit type B trucks in to the chassis for type Cs. The length of the fuel tank is a also a good match for the lengthy C-430 tank. I have some GE floating bolter side frames on the thing right now, but I am planning on casting some Hi-Ad side frames of my own design when I can get the time to make some master molds. I am also going to make some to fit on factory MU-2 and P/T drives just because I have so many with original drives that run well. Keep that old GG-1, it is a great looking model!
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Posted - January 01 2014 : 12:40:59 PM
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quote:I have been playing with the idea of using DCC in a slightly different way. I do own a Dcc system but I don't use it due to the cost of decoders and the amount of locomotives that I have collected. When the price comes down to about ten bucks per decoder, I will install one in every piece of my collection. Problem is , I just keep collecting! Of late I have been toying with the idea of rebuilding my current layout but pushing the envelope of layout design vertically. It seems to me that layout design has become very cookie cutter and predictable. My plan is to drop the bench-work to the floor and to stack my layout wedding cake style to about six feet in height with trains at intervals of about 8 inches of vertical separation. this way I can maximize the square footage of the layout in a minimal footprint.That said, I have been toying with the idea of installing a dedicated decoder for each level of track and simply wiring them in permanently since there wont be any connection of the track between levels. That way I can run the whole shebang on perhaps ten decoders tops using a single Dcc system and throttle with he benefit of being able to run my current straight DC locomotive collection and simply swap out motive power when the mood strikes me. Anybody out there have any experience with dedicated stationary track DCC decoders?
Originally posted by metalsmith1Â -Â December 27 2013Â :Â 04:49:44 AM
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You have an interesting idea. The main risk with using a DCC decoder for the track is shorts. A short on the track can easily blow out and destroy the decoder. You could use a heavy duty decoder and a fuse, but I think a better alternative would be to use A/B wiring for each track. That is what I did when I transitioned my fleet from DC to DCC. I have an MRC throttle on A and DCC on B, and I just switch the track to whatever I'm running on that track. I found that I pretty much started using DCC 95% of the time and rarely use DC anymore. I just find it easier and more fun. Also, you can get 4-packs of DCC decoders for about $13 per decoder, so it's almost there pricewise.
-Thomas
Edited by - Redwoods on January 01 2014 12:42:01 PM
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Posted - January 01 2014 : 12:43:50 PM
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quote:I have had some extra time off work this past week and I have been completing some projects that I had put on the backburner. I found a used electronics store in St. Louis that sells used computer motors. I bought several of different sizes and embarked on fitting some in to some old basket case locomotives for which I didn't have any viable spare parts. the first one I fitted was in a Tyco Santa Fe F-9 that I had been using as a dummy. I bored out the power-torque motor block and fit the little computer motor right in the hole. It now runs! I was so pleased with the results that I did the same with an old AHM trolley with a burned up old three pole motor. The trolley now runs smooth and quiet and will creep at slow speed. I installed a Kadee coupler in the hind end to pull a bread trailer and was amazed to see the little thing pull a four car train with ease. I would encourage other owners of Tyco's to get them off the shelf and start having some fun with them. I prefer the Mu-2 powered ones as I have yet to find one that I cant get to run, but if you are running P/T s, just limit the train length and number of laps that you run ( I'm assuming on a 4x8 layout) to keep the heat down and you should be fine.
Originally posted by metalsmith1Â -Â December 31 2013Â :Â 10:33:15 PM
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Wow, fantastic! Post some pictures if you can.
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Posted - January 01 2014 : 1:45:22 PM
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quote: quote:
Originally posted by String boBÂ -Â December 25 2013Â :Â 11:03:30 AM
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Bob, you can also use that string with some soup cans for communications during operating sessions.
Btw, what is that building foundation in the background?
Originally posted by NickelPlate759Â -Â December 26 2013Â :Â 2:51:51 PM
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That is the foundation for a walther's powerhouse still awaiting erection so I can unload those hopper cars.
String Bob
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Posted - January 01 2014 : 1:49:07 PM
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quote:Bob, that looks like a good idea but, having gotten my start at Allis Chalmers, I think that the tractors should maybe be orange.
Of course the name Waterloo Boy might sound pretty good to an Iowan.
Originally posted by scsshaggy - December 25 2013 : 1:22:33 PM
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As long as they say John Deere on the side, color is unimportant. I've been trying to get the local Farmall dealer to paint a Farmall red and paint "John Deere" on the side. He's got an Ace mechanic that helps me run SHABBONA during Santa Fe mini-meets here in Ft. Madison
String Bob
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Posted - January 01 2014 : 2:46:01 PM
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quote: quote: quote:
Originally posted by String boBÂ -Â December 25 2013Â :Â 11:03:30 AM
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Bob, you can also use that string with some soup cans for communications during operating sessions.
Btw, what is that building foundation in the background?
Originally posted by NickelPlate759Â -Â December 26 2013Â :Â 2:51:51 PM
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That is the foundation for a walther's powerhouse still awaiting erection so I can unload those hopper cars.
Originally posted by String boBÂ -Â January 01 2014Â :Â 1:45:22 PM
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Boy the power company must really be racking up some demurrage charges!
Glenn
I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, who said, "... I drank what?"
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Posted - January 01 2014 : 4:03:45 PM
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quote:| I've been trying to get the local Farmall dealer to paint a Farmall red and paint "John Deere" on the side. Originally posted by String boBÂ -Â January 01 2014Â :Â 1:49:07 PM
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Good luck trying. I think the red vs. green rivalry will make that job of persuasion a real feat.
So those tractors in your picture are John Deeres? They looked like the Waterloo Boy model "N" to me.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - January 05 2014 : 12:13:47 AM
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As promised, here is that photo of my freshly re-motored AHM trolley. It now has a can motor from a computer surplus store and runs smooth and quiet on my layout. With a scale sized KD coupler in back , it will pull a couple of cars with no problem. 
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Posted - January 14 2014 : 6:11:46 PM
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killer trolley!
The AHMs like that actually pulled a trailer behind them
How did you remotor it?
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Posted - January 16 2014 : 01:57:01 AM
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| I trimmed away the original mounting pads for the 3 pole motor and the new motor fit right in. I used a worm gear from a broken down old Atlas diesel. Don't laugh but the motor is mounted with hot glue, try it.
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Posted - January 16 2014 : 1:42:25 PM
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quote:Don't laugh but the motor is mounted with hot glue, try it.
Originally posted by metalsmith1Â -Â January 16 2014Â :Â 01:57:01 AM
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If it runs well, who's laughing? That's a nice looking street car.
You might want to add some kind of cow catcher, though. The thought of a pedestrian ending up under the streetcar should give your HO safety experts the cold squirmys.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - January 17 2014 : 01:17:00 AM
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| I hadn't thought of that but you are right. It was common for city cars to have a pedestrian guard device mounted on the ends of the car. That sounds like just the touch this model needs to make it a bit more (personal) ha ha.
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