Thanks guys I appreciate you all taking the time to help me out on what I can use and where I can find them.
Jeremy
I have two of those. Used my PC power plugs to add a plug to the end of the cable and can unplug them and move them around to other layout locations as needed.
Kevin
They are more than just “still in business”, and it is a 75 plus year old family business. In fact they have just developed a new radio thorttle called the Train Engineer Revolution as well as still making their long popular original Train Engineer Radio throttles which I mentioned earlier in this thread.
Myself and several other HO modelers I know use the original 10 channel version. They provide great slow speed because they use full voltage pulse width modulation motor control just like a DCC decoder.
The transmitter/receiver combo is currently available at Trainworld:
It requires a seperate power supply. You can use your old HO power pack or I prefer simple filtered regulated 13.8 volt power supplies sold to power CB radios from 120V. These can be bought in 3-4 amp sizes for about $25.
Should anyone have any further interest in using the Aristo Train Engineer with HO, please feel free to ask any questions and I can offer some specific tips.
Sheldon
Sheldon,do you have a phone number for Aristo.
Aristo’s web site is:
Click on the “send e-mail” link and you will find a phone number.
Do you have a specific question I could help with?
Aristo will be very helpful, but underatand, they are mainly a large scale company and the knowledge base of most of the staff is large scale centered. They did design the Train Engineer for all scales, but as you get more to the details of small scale applications those of us who use the TE in HO may be more helpful.
Part of the reason for this is the whole operational concept of large scale is generally different than in HO or N scale. They think in terms of walking around the back yrad with the train, not walking around the basement full of benchwork.
I have also developed a walk around cab selection system for multi train operation with the Train Engineer. This is the kind of thing Aristo will have little knowledge of. Some of the people there will likely remember me as I spoke with them a lot several years ago while developing my cab selection system.
A search of the Aristo forum or the Bachmann forum for “radio control in HO” will provide some in depth reading about using the Train Engineer in HO. Unfortunately several such threads on this forum have been deleted, although there are a few discriptions of my cab selection system somewhere on this forum.
Sheldon
This thread has strayed a bit from the original question of adding walkaround capability to an MRC throttle. Since it has, I’ll add another walkaround throttle option which are the devices produced by GML Enterprises (http://www.thegmlenterprises.com/). I used one of these before moving to DCC a couple of years back. They can be configured with memory (unplug throttle and move to the next throttle jack without stopping the train), different options for variable pulse (so it can operate both can motors or older open frame at slow speed), variable momentum and braking. I know this sounds like an ad but I’m not on the payroll! This was just a really good throttle for me.
George V.
Thinks again Sheldon,went to their web site and looked up the Train Engineer saw the 10 channel,it said it has Momentum is their anyway to not use Momentum,I just wont to use it like my MRC 9500 without Momentum.
Russell,
The momentum can be turned off, in fact the momentum is preset at 4 or 5 differnt rates, one of those is “zero”.
I don’t use the momentum either, never did care for it on any throttle I ever tried.
The Aristo as you can see from the ohotos is a push button throttle. Even with the momentum “off” there is a preset rate (pretty fast) at which the effective voltage increases/decreases as you hold the “faster” and “slower” buttons. That is momentum enough for me.
Sheldon
A big thinks again,Sheldon will be talking to the LHS about Aristo.
MRC has a replacement announced for the Controlmaster 20 with handheld to follow http://www.modelrec.com/search/product-view.asp?ID=12154 - Throttlepack 9900
Enjoy
Paul