Tuesday 9 October 2012

Speeder Details and Electronics (1/35)

Work on the speeder continues among the other modelling tasks at my desk. On the body I have primarily been working on the interior (bench, instrumentation and levers) and getting the roof started. 
Something you don't see too often: The wiring and fitting of decoder in the tight condition inside a 1:35 model. The Black Beetle out of focus to the right. The decoder is an ESU Lokpilot 4.0 Micro. I really like ït's small size!
I have also mounted the ESU-decoder and fitted lights with their associated wires. The grain of rice bulps are from a batch I bought from Micro-Mark in the US a few years ago. The bulps had a very powerful light at 12 V, so I fitted resistors to bring down the voltage to about 6 V. That took the light level to something more in line with my idea of dim lamps rather than floodlights on a super tanker. The speeder is my first model with lights and I can't wait to see it trundle back and forth on the gravel line in darkness. The decoder, resistors and wires are hidden under the central bench and is accessible by removing two screws and lifting the upper body of the model.

Testing the speeder after fitting of decoder and lights. Trundling round my portable test track in prototypical Decauville style the Black Beetle behaved well in cooperation with ESU-decoder. Not at all like a Tenshodo! Two bolts and nuts give weight to the assembly. When finished the speeder will be weighted down by more invisibly placed weights!
In the coming weekend I will touch neither knife nor glue, as I will be attending the '22. Internationales Feldbahntreffen' hosted by Waldeisenbahn Muskau. I am looking forward to nothing but narrow gauge trains for four days - and a beer or two in between. I love the wooded landscape around Muskau and Weiswasser and I really admire the work done by my German colleagues so I can hardly wait...

See the finished speeder.
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4 comments:

  1. Unknown25 April 2013 at 03:01

    Hi Claus,
    More questions from the Canadian! By the way, I worked on the Jung this evening, applying primer and first coat of paint. Hopefully I'll have pics to share in a week or two. The Bull Ant fits nicely but it will be a challenge to fix it in place. The resin is fragile.
    Thank you for the follow up on my track question. What Black Beetle unit did you use for your speeder?
    Thanks,
    Pete

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  2. Claus Nielsen25 April 2013 at 09:17

    Pete:
    Just a standard 27:1 reduction Black Beetle. Can't remember the wheel base or wheel diameter.

    Claus

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  3. Unknown25 April 2013 at 11:17

    Thanks Claus.
    I'll try and go easy on you with the questions:>) Really appreciate your help. As you can probably see, I check into your blog "often". It's a great diversion during meetings! You do great work and I like your approach to model building. I'm not as tight for space as you but at times I wish I had less. I'm currently building models in five scales/gauges. Less space would help me focus on one or two.
    Cheers,
    Pete

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  4. Claus Nielsen25 April 2013 at 15:26

    Don't worry, Pete. Answering questions is basically my work - sometimes answering a different kind of question can be quite refreshing. You are right; less space makes for tough choices, but consequently more satisfying decisions.

    Got round to ordering some of James Coldicott's track panels yesterday. Looking forward to see and handle them.

    Best regards

    Claus

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