I am just getting back into model railroading after 30 years. I have 0 pre war and 50-70 , HO and N . the only layout I have at this time is a 4-8’ N set up that I built in Ohio 1970 when I lived there for a short time I know I could hit search and get this info but not with the understanding that most of you have. When did DSS enter the picture, what is the principal, and can you retro at all. I under stand data systems and worked in the instrumation field before I retired so I am not worried about picking it up with a little information. Thanks
Jim Miller
PS I am going to repair and preserve the O gauge stuff but run N gauge
I think you are talking about DCC - Digital Command Control. It started making the scene in the early 90’s and has grown quite fast. There are several major system manufacturers(Lenz, Digitrax, NCE, MRC, Atlas, & Bachmann) in the US market, and lots of decoder/accesories manufacturers. Most engines can be converted, but some of the installs can be tricky. You have to decide if the typical $20-$25/engine cost is worth it for an older engine.
Jim Bernier
Jim
Thanks for the info. DCC it is . Is it poss to add while retaining some of the old tech or do you have to make a one time complete switch? I live in Waterbury Ct. and I hope to model the New Haven North and west of Waterbury in Ct.
Thanks again for the info
Best regards
Jim
DCC does “allow” you to run DC locomotives, but most of us who have tried it agree that it’s a poor way to do things, at best. I came back after 40 years, and managed to resurrect only one of my 10 or so locomotives to the point that it was worth putting in a decoder. These were all HO, mostly low-end models. I de-motored two and now run them as dummy engines.
The good news is that you can get new engines for very reasonable prices if you shop around. I’ve bought some very nice Proto 2000 (or P2K as they are usually abbreviated here) engines on-line for $40, brand new. Add in a decoder, and I’ve got a terrific engine with very nice detail for under $60. I could also take my old engine, add new wheels, motor, headlights and decoder and maybe get something that works for about the same price, but it wouldn’t look as nice.
DCC, though is the greatest thing since sliced bread. In fact, I would buy a bread knife and a cutting board before I would give up my DCC system. Within a half-hour of installing my first decoder and putting the engine on the tracks, I was grinning like the 15-year-old kid that I was a long, long time ago. Now, my philosophy is that if an engine is worth running, it’s worth getting a DCC decoder for and doing it right.
Your old rolling stock, by the way, will still work just fine. I’ve slowly been converting all my horn-hook couplers to Kadee knuckle couplers and restoring the cars to the layout. The one thing you will want to toss, in case you saved it, is your old brass track. Use it for templates when laying out your track plan, tear it apart and use it for gondola loads or drop it in a fishtank and use it for decoration, but please don’t waste your time putting it on your layout. Nickel Silver all the way. (Been there, done that, undone that, redone that the right way.)
Oh, welcome back to the hobby. I hope you’ll have as much fun as I have.
Jim, welcome. The principle behind DCC is that the motors retain their DC current sensitivity, but everything else is off the books. With DCC, you have a sophisticated controller that sends signals you input, through a handheld paddle with several banks of buttons, out to the locomotives, each of which has a brain (a decoder). If you call Sally, she will look at you. The same applies with DCC, only you call them addresses, and each decoder (locomotive) has an address that you give it. Most of us use the cab numbers on the loco. So, you dial in the loco address, it listens for further instructions, and does what you tell it to do. The best part is that each loco can go in opposite directions on the very same stretch of track! I’ll bet you never had that happen in the old days. They all went the same way, no matter how you had them pointed, unless you had complicated block systems.
Also, DCC requires the same wiring as DC, pretty much…except for 240 miles of block control wiring and the same number of toggle switches. Even better, the decoders can be programmed to launch a given loco until it reaches the speed you set for it by building inertia and momentum that you program into the decoder. For example, you can tell #501 to run at scale 30mph, and it will begin to accelerate to that speed while you address another loco and get it to back into a siding.
Believe me, it is a gift that keeps on giving.
Mister Beasley
Thanks much for the reply. That was just what I needed to hear. I hope to get started in ernest in about a month. I remember working with my dad on an old O gauge layout in the 40’s-50’s It was fun and as you can see It has stayed with me all these years. Unfortunatly the ) gauge was stored by the family in a wet area of the cellar so now I have a major restoration project with all of that equipment but the pre war (2) stuff is a hoot and fun to work with. Thanks again for the info.
Jim Miller
Selector
Thanks for the info. It was really helpful Im glad I became active with Model Railroading
Mag.
Jim