Layout Update - June 2020: Athearn 90MAC-H Loksound Install, Autoracks, Coil Cars, Switch Stands...
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ส.ค. 2024
- Hey Everybody! Here's what we've been up to this past month on the layout:
- Athearn Genesis SD90/43MAC-H Loksound V5 decoder install with iPhone 4S speaker. Had to do a bit of milling on the chassis to get it to fit. Absolutely stunning detail from Athearn Genesis. LED lights all around and ground lighting on its own function. A far cry from the incandescent lighting that used to come standard just a few years ago. Full throttle installed with the EMD12-1010J soundfile from ESU:
SD90MAC-H Phase II
While not exactly the same, The EMD 12-1010J prime mover sounds very much like the EMD GM16V265H used in the SD90MAC-H Phase II locomotives. While the prime mover has been discontinued and mostly scrapped in the US there are a few operating examples in China and Australia. Hopefully someday a true recording can be acquired but for now this is quite close!
As no models have been created for the SD70ACe T4 at the time of this file release we have set up the function mapping and horn and bell sounds to work with the Athearn SD90MAC-H Phase II locomotives.
- New Rolling Stock: Atlas Masterline Gunderson Multimax Autoracks. Very nice models from Atlas but the sticker shock that comes with them is real. Around $112 CAD including my dealer discount, yikes! They are very smooth rolling and appear to come with Kadee #58 couplers which is fantastic. Good bye Accu-mate, don't let the door hit you on the way out! The underframe brake piping was the only dissapointment with these as it is injection molded plastic and is very warped and wobbly. Atlas, time to switch to brass wire if you are going to do long runs of piping like this that needs to be arrow straight to look right. Just my 0.02 :)
- New Rolling Stock: Scaletrains.com Thrall/Trinity 42' Coil Steel Cars. Very nicely detailed cars from Scaletrains. Again, major sticker shock with these landing at $72 CAD each including my dealer discount! Yowzaa! Some of my observations:
+ Roller Bearing caps, very nice. Some black, some Timkin blue.
+ Road number printed on trucks as per prototype
- Every car had at least 1 warped walkway that the glue had let go on, no big deal some CA and a few small weights and i had them all arrow straight again.
- Hood guides installed by the modeller, very finicky and have a tendancy to fall off when the hoods are installed/removed because the clearances are so tight.
+ Not enough stickers in the packaging to wrap all 5 coils. Scaletrains.com mailed me some replacements - thank you!
- The largest of the 5 coils didn't fit under the hoods in any position. Scaletrains recommends sanding the sprues inside of the hood to gain enough clearance to put the large hoods in at one end.
- Couplers are unreliable, no matter what I do I can't keep them coupled. The slightest misalignment and they uncouple, not sure if they need to be worked in a bit or what. Stay tuned.
- Rapido Trains Inc. 12 pack of switch stands. Fantastic product with many different options to customize. Not 100% correct for CP but very close.
- Underground Fibre Optic marking posts. Custom designed with Corel Draw from prototype pictures and printed on printer paper.
Thanks for watching!
Like your little details with the fibre optic cable marker. Extra good!
Thanks!
I’m a simple man. When I see a BA railsystem update, I click.
I thank you for your simplicity. Your support is appreciated.
Exotiv Gamings Grow up kid.
Bad ass!!! I haven't checked into this chanel for a while but your layout looks amazing .
Thanks!
Those coil cars and auto racks
are nice Ben, also that loco sounds
good with that speaker!! I would
ditch the factory couplers on those
coil cars and go with the KD 58s on
them. Nothing like a false uncoupling to tick you off!!
Oh before I go, I was watching a
show on the science channel called
Paranormal caught on camera and
I thought of you, some people in
the Branff British Columbia area
caught a Bigfoot on video so to
add realism to that area on your
layout you have to add a HO
scale Bigfoot to that part of
your layout!!😀😀😀😀😀😀😀
Thanks Scott! Who knows, Bigfoot might make an appearance in the tree'd area around Banff on my layout too!
The best thing to do with the scale trains couplers is to throw them away and install Kadees
There's a consensus on that haha
Awesome update. Also got 2 sd90mac H. Absolutely love them. Thanks for sharing as always. Always giving me something to strive to
Thanks! Nice!!!
Hi Ben. Hope you and your family are safe and well 👍🏻 Always fantastic watching your updates on a fantastic layout especially the attention to detail 😄 Cheers Stevie 😎🇬🇧
Hey Stevie! All good over here "across the pond", thanks for the comment and have a good summer! -Ben
Love this display love this video enjoying every moment of it always!
Glad you enjoy it! Thanks for the comment Harold.
I can only dream! This is simply crazy fabulous! Beautiful!
Thank you so much!
The ditch lights are wired that way because some roads have the flashing ditch lights and Athearn just wires them all the same way regardless of what shell/road is on the unit.
Yes and if you have the loksound programmer, just assign the two output to the on function button
Well that makes sense. Thanks for the info.
I don't' have the programmer so I just rewired them to be on one function.
@@BArailsystem If you ever need to know what CVs to change to do this via direct CV programming let me know and I'll help you out.
Your level of detail and backdrops make this layout look stunning. Your SD90 looks awesome too
Thank you very much!
I have Ben patiently waiting for your next video. I hope you are enjoying a hail free summer so far.
Thanks, so far we've been lucky and no major hail or flash flooding. I feel bad for the folks in NE Calgary, looked like a really bad one a couple weeks ago.
Those Rapido switch stands really add realism to the layout. Another great video and hope you're enjoying the summer. Cheers
Thanks D! Summer has been fantastic so far, really trying to enjoy every hour of non-windy sunshine that we get.
You have done an awesome job with your layout again my compliments sir
Thank you very much!
Thats a very nice train buddy, beautiful layout too, Ben your the man my friend, thanks for sharing
Thanks 👍
Sometimes the coupler height being lower on one car can cause uncoupling. Also check the track to see if it dips anywhere, that will cause it too. I have the same problem sometimes. I like the layout.
It could be, but there seems to be something with the way these couplers work mechanically.
Great layout update Ben. I also have the MAC-H 9301. Installed the V5 as well and custom dual cell speakers. Love your track work. Looks as real as it gets!
Great minds think alike! Thanks Al, have a good summer!
You're right..... I have SD90MAC H2 and the headlights are dim compared to the brightness of the ditchlights. I have ho scale mth ES44AC's and the dash 9s, it's amazing how bright the ditchlights and the headlights are. In the dark they can almost light up a room.
Great looking engine and great detail progress!! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for watching!
Very nice! I got three Atlas racks - two CNs and a CP, and I think they may be one of the nicest freight car models I've ever seen. Save yourself a headache and put Kadees on the coil cars instead of the crap ST ones. You won't regret it.
Thanks! Nice!! I wish I would've ordered a couple more of the CN/CP ones but the finance department gave me a dirty look. Yes I will be swapping the couplers out. Can't have them uncoupling 6 different times going around my layout.
Fantastic my Friend Ben...
👏👏👏
Many thanks!!
This layout will be one of the best layouts ever.
So will railfan220’s
Thanks Jacques
Agree!
Thanks Ben, great update. The SD90 looks so tempting. I guess you just can't beat good old Kadee's for coupling. Cheers, David.
Absolutely, use what works well and is proven. No wheel reinvention needed.
That horn sounds amazing! Way to go loksound.
I thought that too! Sounds just like the K3's on the AC4400's too.
Whoa that backdrop is special. great video.
Custom made by me using my own photos of the area.
Looks great!! Love the attention to detail. Thanks for sharing - Josh
Thanks very much Josh!
I have been using Iphone X and Iphone 7 speakers lately and they seem to fit pretty well in four and six axles. As usual it is inspiring to see your work. I am exclusively using decoder buddies because I hate having a bunch of different manufacturers light boards to figure out how to solder to. You might give em a try. I just installed four today on my day off. It looks like athearn is fixing issues with their newer runs. Makes me think we have gone from metal handrails to crappy celcon handrails to these. I wish manufacturers would all figure out how to make decent handrails. Dont have that problem with Rapido or Scaletrains tho. I think i am going to standardize on Loksound V5 21 pins with a few TCS wowsounds for odd ball locos that I don't care about programing to specific prime movers. Also thank God they went to good scale kadees! I replace any plastic couplers on my rolling stock with scale kadees and have so much better time of keeping them coupled on grade! I pull long heavy trains and its a problem.
Nice! Where do you get them from? Ebay? Yeah, I would like them switch to brass rod on anything that is straight. You look at the prototype and brake piping, handrails, grabs; that stuff is arrow straight. So on models like the Atlas autoracks when you see brake piping that droops in between the supports so badly that it actually looks like hose it is visually jarring.
Kadees are the only way to go. All manufacturers need to accept this and just put Kadee's on their products.
@@BArailsystem Yeah I get them from ebay seller named
gab-li4 . I like the iphone 10s slightly more because they are more compact. Totally agree about kadees man! I just got 36 pairs of #58s to add to all the cars in my collection. Mind you I don't exactly know how many cars I actually have. I think its around 200ish but I seem to have them multiply like rabbits and thats not even counting the resin kits I have yet to build and the Kaslo Shop kits (HR616, GP9u, SD40-2Fs etc) that are sitting waiting to be built and painted. I don't have a problem cough cough.
Those couplings drive me nuts - you are not alone with the frustration. Nice new stock though - love that CP white autorack. Mark
The service department told me they haven't had many reports of this...umm somehow I doubt that.
Great video BA! These SD90MAC-H IIs sure sound unique.
Thanks!
You even have a Brewster bus!
A must if your modelling Banff!
I love this layout and your attention to detail.
Thanks!
Sounds like Scaletrains needs to do some re-thinking- and I'll leave my iphone speaker in my iphone lol, thanks for the info.
:D
You have inspired me to build a N scale Canada layout
AWESOME! Are you going to model a specific location?
I'm going try to model between Jasper and Edmonton
Love the new additions Ben. Almost makes me want to build a side Canadian layout haha - Sean
Go for it!
Great layout update! The mac looks really nice!
Thanks!
Scale Trains does have coupler height issues.
Have you thought of purchasing a Rocky Mountaineer train? I think that would be such a cool addition to the layout!
I have the Gold Leaf domes and an engine. I would like to get the whole train eventually but RMR protects their brand closely and have only ever offered the coaches and the domes.
Hey Ben it’s your buddy Taylor her say just got my new cars in the mail they really good pullers my centerbeams pull good my tank cars are awesome I will doing video as soon as I can my layout I have other train working making take while longer good work my pal
That's awesome Taylor! Thanks for the comment.
Good update. Fair comments.
Thanks Patrick!
Awesome models! That Athearn Genesis SD90MAC-H is an absolute beast of a locomotive and that CP paint job really pops! I hope you swapped the McHenry couplers for Kadee couplers because the McHenry couplers will not hold up long pulling really long trains, trust me, I found that out the hard way a couple of years ago on the club layout! One more thing about the couplers, when I started putting Kadee couplers on my equipment, I had to end up trimming the trip pins to keep them from tearing up the pilots on the locomotives! Just thought I would give you a little heads up just in case you start having trouble with yours. Take care!
Appreciate the tips Randall. Thanks!
@@BArailsystem no problem!
I have the ScaleTrains Conrail coil car, same road number. I also have to glue the walkway down. Beautiful model though. They'll blend in well with the coil cars from Red Caboose and Atlas as well as gondolas modified for coil service.
I also noticed at the end you play guitar. I play bass guitar.
Have you seen any of the coil cars from Exactrail? Nicer than the Scaletrains ones in my opinion. That's awesome, I've played for a long time but not much anymore. Life and other hobbies are always in the way. I leave it out now so it's accessible and encourages me to pick it up and play more often. I've got a little Marshall 50 watt amp down there too.
Outstanding layout
Thanks!
Cool video and layout coming on well. Kevin
Thanks 👍
Sounds Iike a clapped out old gp. Alot of top end tapping. Nice work and look. --Dieseldog!
Thanks!
I’m starting to use SERGENT COUPLERS- they are scale in size, look awesome, tough as nails, but they are not for everyone.
I admire your patience!
Awesome update
Thanks Chris!
Coming along very nice Ben! That SD70 sounds a lot like a GE ?? There were a few 6000HP GE's running down here in the PIlbara, but I think they're all gone now? I remember walking down to the station at Banff, and a huge Moose was eating grass on the small hill behind the car park!
Cheers Gregg.
Physics humbled the engine design engineers I think, 4400 horsepower seems to be the magic number to fit on that chassis which is constrained by the width of the rails. Which was set all the way back in the Roman empire due to the width of two horses asses side by side pulling a wagon. Fascinating stuff!
That's awesome, what a great experience for you when you were there. I was there last spring and a little black bear was just strolling down track 3 in the yard. Love that place.
i have same sd90mac-h2 locomotive 9300 and i added loksound v5 and athearn dual suger cube speakers in it and it awesome. the one thing i find little disappointed is the front and rear headlights. they are very dim the ditch lights are bright. but over all awesome locomotive.
Yeah mine is the same, was hoping they were on the dim function. Nope.
@@BArailsystem also loksound v5 movement is a lot smoother and slower then loksound v4 decoders. so speed matching might be tricky. i invested in lok programmer and investment is well worth it in long run.
I have cut the I phone 4 speaker shorter and the sound is just as good
Good to know that works Bob, I thought about that but was worried I would wreck it somehow.
I have had the same problem with scale train couplers
Yeah, and when I contacted them about it they told me they haven't had many reports of that. Somehow, I doubt that.
Well for the ditch lights you can model a broken light
Haha there's the silver lining! Choose which ditch light is burnt out. Totally accurate for CP!
The only way I found to fix Scale Trains couplers is to install Kadees. For me it’s automatic. Before trying to run the car, I change the couplers.
That's what I will be doing.
Those Gunderson autoracks have a super tight hole pattern on the side panels, you can barely see inside the prototype cars.
Good to know! Keeps the spray paint off the new vehicles I bet.
Hi love you lay out I am big CP rail fan that sound file definitely is not sd90mac I would recommend using SD 75 St 90 is turbo unit that sound file songs more like a GE 4-stroke
Thanks! This is what Loksound said is the closest they have, hopefully they will be able to track down one of the few remaining prime movers and get a good recording.
I do need to ask. When the day comes when you build the CN side, will you then run VIA Canadian on the correct route, or will you still use modelers licence and run the Canadian on the CP even though CP Rail successfully lobbied to get as much passenger trains off their system as they could in 1990 I think it was.
The 2010-2020 era Canadian and Rocky Mountaineer will be regular trains on the CN side. The track work on the CP side is accurate from the early 80s to modern day so can run all kinds of different stuff if we so chose.
I thought the entry door is usually on the opposite side
Love your layout and I have the same CP SD90MAC in road #9303
Thanks!
I have the CP and the UP SD90MAC H 2 no. 9302 and 8559.
AWESOME!!!😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁🎈😁
Thanks! 😄
As for the coil cars, contact Scaletrains and they will send you additional decals for your steel coils.
Yes I did contact them and additional decals are on the way.
Nice Video Ben, Looking Good,
Thanks Ryan 👍
Any plan on modeling some of the new CP ACUs?
Nah, by the time I finish one Athearn will produce them ready to run. I'll wait :)
Who makes that VW Jetta or whatever it is at the platform?
Checked the bottom of it for you, it's a VW Passat, made by Herpa.
So you have advance models of the coil cars?... they're not even in the factory yet... lol...
Haha no, these are from the previous run.
When are you sending it in to Progress Rail for SD70 ACU rebuild?
MAC-H forever!!!
No bent frames or blown motors on this railroad!
The Rapido switch stands are awesome. Is there a way to connect them to the switch so they move when the switch is throw? Either way they are really neat. Nice video. Stay well. -Wil 👍
I think you could if you were very careful, the fact that the brass wire goes right through the base would allow connection below. But it would be very finicky to attach linkage.
Would be nice if you told new people what scale you are running. No mention of it in your description.
Apologies, it's in the channel description but I've been getting lazy and not putting it in the video description.
Scale is HO.
Whoa, I'm first! Nice video and layout!
Hey, thanks!
@@BArailsystem Sure!
Great update! The SD90 MAC-H are an awesome locomotive! I have 1 and definitely going to get more! The autoracks are also a great item! I got the 4 BNSF and going to get the 4 CP. Do you have any recommendations for CP locomotives?
where do you buiy?
Athearn is coming out with CP GP38-2's right away, and also the Tri-Clops SD60. Looking forward to those!
I buy all my new stuff exclusively from Hobbytech in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
@@BArailsystem Thanks for the help! Athearn makes some great locomotives. I have a lot of them in my roster now. I will be adding more of them in the future. I will look in the GP38-2 and Tri-Clops SD60. Be sure to watch and subscribe!
Brian
Do the wheel bearings move on any of the new cars
The coil cars have the roller bearing caps.
@@BArailsystem ok I was just curious
Scaletrains is turning out crappy work with some of their locomotives. I have 2 that I'll be getting next month. If any of them come with steps missing...... I will send it back for a replacement. For the price that i willing to pay, there should "be no missing parts" on any of their products.
I have to agree with you.
You can't say anything against Scaletrains!! Blasphemy!! ;)
Great video, love the new engine and rolling stock. For your speakers, check out SBS4DCC.com, it is a website for speakers for installing into engines, they have various sugar cube speakers with enclosures. I used them a few times and like the sound they give. Thanks for sharing and stay safe. Ken
Thanks I will check it out. I have used sugar cube speakers before, but I really like the sound from the iPhone 4s speakers and they are super cheap.
Hope you got the auto-racks for less than $150 each. The SOO CP car # is 519090, but towards the side end, it says SOO 9090.
They were just north of 100 CAD each. Hmm I didn't even notice, I'll have to take a closer look.
On the prototype the rack and the flatcar are considered to be separate pieces, so they each have their own number. On the CN cars for example, they used the same number as the TTX flatcar beneath, but with a 'GTW' prefix.
I absolutely do not like scaletrains couplers. I will be changing my scaletrains locomotives couplers out to kadee 153 whisker scale couplers.
You and me both!
@@BArailsystem A few months ago, I bought my first ST cars& just expected to just simply change them out fot KD #5s.NOT ON YOUR EFFIN NELLY!!.After taking out a couple of those super fine stirrups,I managed to put the complete #5 installed.They take the whisker coupler in to the ST coupler box,which is a LOT easier.I just didnt have any,at the time. BIG letdown on a (supposedly) high end model.
Love those big beasts,eh.
Regards, michael NZ
Jesus Loves You
Just found your Channel today. Awesome work! I'm sure you're well aware of most of them, but if you're ever looking for the latest in HO scale vehicles, check out my channel. Cheers!
Thanks! Will do.
scaletrains really annoys me. Anyone who does a review on any of their product hints they're upset at the quality of crap work. Scaletrains says they have nothing but "model railroaders" that love trains working in their factories. BS lying company.
Model trains are not an easy thing to manufacture. Atlas has had bad couplers for pretty much three decades and they only just switched to Kadee now.
Now these cars from Scaletrains are at a price point I've never seen before, and they are not a big model or overly complex. I passed along all my feedback to their service folks. That's all I can do besides taking a pass on purchasing their products.
@@BArailsystem I agree 100%. I think it what bugs me is when a company claims they're superior and the people have proven they aren't. A coupler is a coupler, each company seems they invented their own at one point. But the quality / craftsmanship of scale trains is hyped by the owners as being #1 and not in one review has that been true. Furthermore, if you gander at their catalogue photos you can see they screw those up really bad also. The people have pushed me away from scale trains by all the fantastic reviews. Thank you