Maybe if you stomp your feet louder then…
Yes you are correct, but it probably would have been nicer to send the OP a message. Just saying.
Happy Easter
There’s more history to this specific issue and vendor than you know, and we will leave that offline.
Greg
(and happy Easter to you out there, looks like good weather, 84 degrees now…)
Well, the Piko diesel has hit the shelves in the UK, and have some pictures of the track cleaning version…
Battery box in the front:
Note traction tires on apparently all 4 wheels:
Note drywall sandpaper on holders that slip on skates (the replacement cleaning pads are apparently 18 pounds in the UK
Pretty small, but looks kind of perfect for 1:29:
18 pounds???
On my railroad, those pads would wear out before the batteries died.
Replacement pads cost 18 pounds in the UK… not weight… almost $24
Yep, that seems precious little area, I have asked the new owner if he could replace the sandpaper himself.
Greg
Price comparison USA/UK:
A well known Stateside dealer says his will be $183.99 (£140 app)
A well known UK dealer has a price of $282.63 (£215)
It does look a small loco - almost 1:32 if the comparison with the Stainz is anything to go by. I wonder what consist it is capable of hauling? although it appears to be a switcher in the first instance. I guess when someone has one they might post some photos. I have no need for one, but I do like the battery operation idea and it seeems to be less of a ‘grinder’ than the more expensive LGB version.
Greg Elmassian said:
Replacement pads cost 18 pounds in the UK… not weight… almost $24
Yep, that seems precious little area, I have asked the new owner if he could replace the sandpaper himself.
Greg
Of course cost! That thing couldn’t drag 18# worth of weight under it nor could those small pads weigh in at 18# (unless maybe radioactive).
Sorry, I guess the “18 Pounds???” did not decode properly.
We’ll have to see how it lasts, but I’m very familiar with that type of “sandpaper” and I agree seems an awfully small patch… The guy in the UK tried it a bit, but said he did not notice a lot of cleaning, but he had just run his LGB “grinder” the day before…
Good move on the traction tires though… also for Alan, I disagree on the 1:32… it may not be tall, but look at the proportion of the cab, the windows etc, clearly larger than 1:32, in fact the cab might be a bit tall for 1:29…
Greg
I am also very familiar with that “sandpaper” and I’m betting that many who run track power are also familiar with it:
https://www.amazon.com/3M-99436-Drywall-Sanding-220-Grit/dp/B000CP0QWU
BTW, it takes me at least three of the full sized sheets using both sides to clean my track. No way could I afford to run that thing.
Yeah, will be interested to see how it lasts. A guy down here makes a lead piece to weight down a drywall sander. The extra weight makes so much difference. It does not take much time at all to knock off all the silicon carbide from the sandpaper. The remaining mesh is pretty clearly fiberglas, and it is not bad at all for “polishing”, but after most of the grit is gone, the oxide removing action is quite reduced.
Does this match your experience?
Greg
Once the grit is gone, polishing is all they are good for. BTW, quite often the rail joints will tear the pads up before all of the grit is worn out.
I have an AristoCraft U-boat that I fitted with an articulated full drywall sander between the trucks that uses a sheet of lead for weight. This engine is also fitted with a 12 volt gel pack for “powerless” running (switchable to track power) and reed switches front and rear so that it will automatically run back and forth between any two magnets placed along the track.
I also have an articulated pipeload car with a full drywall sander head (fishing weights added for weight) as well as several of my own design drywall sander attachments for AristoCraft FA/FBs. ,And of course both a drywall pole and hand sander.
And…, I do have an LGB flatcar pipeload that uses a scotchbrite pad attached to the truss rods using “sock hangers.” Some of the pipe are filled with sand, with hot glue at the ends, for weight so the car doesn’t continually derail. I remember doing an LSOL article on the “sock hanger” attachment.
Yep, we have the same experience…
Since my track is stainless, I do run a bridgewerks car with the green scotchbrite to knock any foreign matter off the rail, then I spend 5 minutes with a swiffer on the mainline wiping up any black goo from the electrical arcing and I’m good to go.
I remember the sock hangar article!
Greg
I’m curious about the small battery ie: 9v std or 7.2 rch, while on the bottom of the loco I see 24v which I assume is the max.
How long and far will that pack go? How many batteries? What’s the stall voltage on the down side?
Those pads are so short, seems like they can only bounce stuff off rather than scrub the rails clean.
I’d say save your money…unless you road is real real dusty!
So, it takes 6 AAA, they think it will run for a couple of hours…
Not sure what you mean by the stall voltage on the down side… pls clarify…
The advantage of the open mesh is that it does not clog, and that works well for dust and big stuff, but I agree the contact area is small, but of course that makes sense with a small, relatively light battery powered loco.
We’ll see as the reviews roll in… what is interesting to me is the traction tires, which I believe are only on the cleaning car… if people wanted to do a battery conversion, and bought the track powered one, it would probably have a lot less pulling power, but to get the traction tires you have to pay more for the cleaner version…
Greg
What the minimum voltage required to move the loco?
Do not batteries lose voltage as they decline? Flashlights get dimmer … is that not voltage vs amperage? Less juice same push?
Ahh… yeah I see how that would be the stall voltage… never heard that term before but makes complete sense…
Really no idea, since this was a track powered loco originally, running up to 24v and now on 9 or less…
Yes, the voltage drops a bit, but very dependent on battery chemistry… your alkaline cells hold a bit over 1.5 until pretty close to death… nicads have a pretty sharp decline too… i.e. hold most of their voltage until they get very close to “out”… nimih has a more constant decline…
Incandescent bulbs are VERY sensitive to voltage, and humans can detect even a minor drop in voltage…
Actually the other way around less push (voltage is more analogous to pressure)… but light bulbs are weird animals since their resistance is very dependent on temperature. Current is more analogous to gallons per hour in a hose, if you use the water analogy, voltage is pressure.
It will be interesting how this little loco pans out… If I got one, I would most likely put a prismatic LiIon in that battery space and get more capacity (amp hours)…
Greg
Heres a video of PIKO actually making the train
Ken Bianco said:
Heres a video of PIKO actually making the train
Added the “S” (https://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)
Greg Elmassian said:
Good move on the traction tires though… also for Alan, I disagree on the 1:32… it may not be tall, but look at the proportion of the cab, the windows etc, clearly larger than 1:32, in fact the cab might be a bit tall for 1:29…
Somewhere on thread on GSC you are taking your information from Greg it states that Piko have scaled this model at 1:24 from the prototype - but I could not see any size information on the handy PDF booklet one is pointed to about the model itself.
As to its economic viability on my line I think I will stick to my existing battery loco trailing a 4 wheel 5 plank wagon fitted with LGB’s 50055. A lot cheaper on consumables and probably just as effective. Just so long as you have a battery loco lying around to start with.
Is it allowed to post a picture of a rival’s product on a trader’s post ? I hope I have not offended.
I don’t really see the need for the traction tires. It’s not like you’re going to be pulling a load, at least for long, and dirty track tends to be rougher and provide more traction than clean track. I can’t imagine that those two small drywall contact patches can provide much resistance to the engines progress. (http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-undecided.gif)
