|
|
 Posted - October 21 2008 : 08:58:12 AM
|
I set up a light from a TycoKit building and it
seems way to bright. Buildings Light up in colors
which looks pretty but needs toned down a bit.
What about a dimmer switch?
What's needed for LED's
I plan on having over 50 Lights with all the buildings,
street lights and traffic lights. I have many Tyco pak 1's
I plan to use for power.
I hooked the light up to the AC side, is that correct?
If I hooked it up to the DC would it still light and could I
use the throttle as a dimmer?
What can be done?
|
Country:  USA ~
Posts: 66 ~
Member Since: September 17 2007 ~
Last Visit: January 19 2011
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 09:01:57 AM
|
| By the way, I didn't glue down the roofs yet.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 66 ~
Member Since: September 17 2007 ~
Last Visit: January 19 2011
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 09:46:56 AM
|
| hi with out some sort of converter to use ac (alternating current) in a dc socket is very DANGEROUS,ac is what most houses have and dc is usually battery power.ken
|
Country:  United Kingdom ~
Posts: 8294 ~
Member Since: September 28 2006 ~
Last Visit: October 20 2021
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 09:51:16 AM
|
to me it looks good,what is spoiling it is the light at bottom edge of buildings,to tone lighting down glue curtains to insides of windows and paint inside of roofs if you have light leakage,it looks as if you have lighting outside building as people do in my opinion ken
ps the hardest one to illuminate is the signal box,replace with a very dark coloured light bulb as it is it looks empty,best answer there would be detailing interior and dark bulb
Edited by - catfordken on October 21 2008 09:54:12 AM
|
|
Country: United Kingdom ~
Posts: 8294 ~
Member Since: September 28 2006 ~
Last Visit: October 20 2021
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 10:32:00 AM
|
a good link ken
http://newrailwaymodellers.co.uk/Scenery/lighting.htm
http://home.hccnet.nl/R.J.Heijink/Illuminating%20Buildings.htm
the marklin transformer is ac
http://cgi.ebay.com/Marklin-Transformer-6647_W0QQitemZ300265909415QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item300265909415&_trkparms=72%3A1209%7C39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14
Edited by - catfordken on October 21 2008 11:12:19 AM
|
|
Country: United Kingdom ~
Posts: 8294 ~
Member Since: September 28 2006 ~
Last Visit: October 20 2021
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 11:19:52 AM
|
Thanks for the link. I thought about painting the inside also.
The models I have done are all from opened boxes and I still have the same one's sealed,so I can start over again. I'm just trying some things out before anything is goes on the main layout.
Well I hooked the light up to DC and got results I like so far.
First of all the light stays off when throttle is off.
Next the tyco pak 1 works well as a dimmer.
With power on and on low
now on high
Am I dealing with such a low voltage that a bulb works AC and DC?
Are the light bulbs in the Engines the same as Buildings?
Anyway now I know the light can work either way, just to make sure
are track switches AC only?
I plan to use 5 pak 1's for lights(basicly 1 pak per area), 2 or 3 for switches, and 3 pak 3's for the trains.
Sorry for so many questions....Just don't want my TycoTown to Blind me or go up in flames.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 66 ~
Member Since: September 17 2007 ~
Last Visit: January 19 2011
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 1:16:05 PM
|
I had the same problem so now I paint the inside of my buildings with black or a dark grey, then I but a flashlight inside to see what it looks like, just in case I missed an area...garret
"Though amid all the smoking horror and diabolism of a sea-fight, SHARKS will be seen longingly gazing up to the ship's decks, like hungry dogs round a table where red meat is being carved, ready to bolt down every killed man that is tossed to them . . ." by Herman Melville
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 209 ~
Member Since: March 25 2008 ~
Last Visit: August 03 2012
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 4:35:48 PM
|
Painting the inside black is probably the best and easiest idea. On some of my engines and cars I put pieces of tinfoil inside. This acts as a heat shield as well as keeping light from bleeding through the plastic. If you're doing a lot of buildings though, the paint would probably be best, as cutting tinfoil to fit in can be a pain.
-cheez
|
Country:  Canada ~
Posts: 3429 ~
Member Since: September 22 2006 ~
Last Visit: October 30 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 8:15:31 PM
|
Thanks for the tips everyone.
I too plan on lighting some buildings, in fact right now I'm building a shipping warehouse kit. I plan to build a full interior and lighting system, a first for me. 
    
- Matt -
|
|
Country: Canada ~
Posts: 1021 ~
Member Since: August 24 2008 ~
Last Visit: January 05 2020
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 21 2008 : 9:53:32 PM
|
| I whole-heartedly endorse using a separate power pack for lights. I have an old Tyco pack with the light bus strip connected to the DC side. That way, you can use the throttle to control the brightness. In the future, you could always get bulbs rated a few volts higher than 12--they will be dimmer---but definitely, use your good powerpack for the trains, the junker for lights and accessories.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 874 ~
Member Since: October 15 2007 ~
Last Visit: June 09 2019
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
B 67
Switcher
Status:
offline
| |
Posted - October 25 2008 : 06:02:17 AM
|
Lights will work just as well on AC or DC. I understand they can have a longer life on AC though, but no idea how true that is or whether the difference is significant. By the way, switch machines will work on either AC or DC as well. The advantage of using DC is that they operate much quieter. The disadvantage is that you can't hear that they've worked. Also if current stays on, you won't know until the smoke starts coming out of the burnt-out solenoid. :)
Another method of dimming bright lights in buildings is to simply wire them in series pairs. In other words, wire them in pairs so that power flows through one, and then the other. The result is that each glows at half brightness. It will also significantly lengthen their operating lives. Of course like Christmas tree lights, when one blows, the other will stop working too - making it a little more difficult to find which one has blown.
|
Country:  Australia ~
Posts: 69 ~
Member Since: April 21 2008 ~
Last Visit: April 06 2022
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 25 2008 : 09:58:12 AM
|
| by the way my warning about ac/dc was done to warn a youngster about messing with electrics till someone with knowledge would put them right,the danger is not so much the ac.dc but the ampage,i am a firm believer in better safe than sorry,we all know what happens with little knowledge,and on reflection,i over reacted,uk systems are different to state side,and thought a warning was better than doing nothing,glad all worked out,and problem solved,but its safer to be cautious than flipant when it comes to electricity ken
|
|
Country: United Kingdom ~
Posts: 8294 ~
Member Since: September 28 2006 ~
Last Visit: October 20 2021
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - October 25 2008 : 10:36:07 AM
|
Thanks for all the replys
I'm going to stay with the lights on DC because on AC my street lights have a flicker. With so many lights the flicker hurts my eyes.
Also found that if I hook up the street lights to the same power pak as my blinking signs and traffic lights then the street lights blink too even
when wired seperate.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 66 ~
Member Since: September 17 2007 ~
Last Visit: January 19 2011
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
Home
Forums
Events Calendar
Forum Admins & Mods
Register
