So has anyone tried lighting up your locomotives with step lights, ground lights or pilot lights? I’d like to try this with a couple of mine but don’t really have the skills to try it or even know really where to start. Any ideas? I’m thinking for lights that small you would almost have to use fiber optic strands…
Chad
For those kind of lighting projects, your best bet would be to go with SMD LED’s. The 0402 size is about as small as they get measuring only 1mm X 0.5mm.
They are available with or without wire leads, but I’ll tell you, if you aren’t a very well accomplished solderer, attaching leads to these little LED’s can be very daunting !
For the price, I find it very worth the cost to buy them with the leads already installed. I use these from Railflyer …
http://www.railflyermodel.com/collections/frontpage/products/smd-402-led-10-pack
Mark.
If Railflyer doesn’t have them in stock (which he often doesn’t) then you can get them at www.richmondcontrols.com for $3.00 a piece for the prewired ones and buy as many or as few as you want You can also try www.litchfieldstation.com
Have to agree with Jay on the sources. I only order from Railflyer because they are only four hours up the highway from me. However, the last batch I ordered from them still took three weeks to get here !
Mark.
How do you plan on controlling them? May need to add a function decoder?
Richard
Rich,
That’s also what I was thinking another decoder or hook them up along with when the number board get turned on. again I don’t have the skill or know how yet to do this so any advice on doing this little project would be great.
Chad
I would minimize the wiring needed and consider using “light pipes”–basically rods of clear plastic from plastruct–where you can. I’ve used them for class lights, etc. They can be bent and glued. It’s normal in using them to have one LED work with multiple light pipes.
Richard