What I would like to do is: build a DIY DCC using a old PC for Command station, decoder programming, turnout & signal control. I’ve seen stuff on the web but nothing that includes all. I’m sure someone’s got something like this running now. I know you can do that with commercial units but I must do this on the cheep, I’ve got kids in college and worse travel $occer!!!
thanks for your time
Pat
Have you been here: http://web.syr.edu/~mobrandt/dcc-mb/dccmbhom.htm ?
The expensive part is the booster. Here is one: http://web.syr.edu/~mobrandt/dcc-mb/941202_s.gif
The Cochise & Western Model Railroad Club in Sierra Vista, AZ has a home-made DCC system that was built for us by Dr. Terry Chamberlain in England, using an Atari 8-bit home computer as the CPU. The system has eight hand-held controllers that have all NMRA-designated functions, and the software is fully NMRA compliant. The biggest advantage to Dr. Chamberlain’s system is the ability to save decoder data to a floppy disk instead of relying on a backup battery. Unfortunately, only three such systems were ever built, and there is not much chance of more ever being built. Designing, programming, and building the systems was a 2-3 year effort, and they could not be marketed commercially because so few people still own and know how to use Atari computers. If our club’s system ever needs to be replaced, we will have to switch to a commercial product.
