# passenger cars



## dangell (Jul 15, 2012)

I am building 8 passenger cars with lights. I am also trying to figure out what control system I want to use on my trains. I had thought of through the track command control, but I see where power in a problem, and control outside is a problem, so many are going to battery and Air wire. Not sure about that, but let's get back to the light in the cars. I want to be able to remove the roofs to see the inside, and can't run wires through the floor and still remove the roof, anyway, if I don't power through the track, just how do I run these lights? I have been thinking of batteries in the roofs, but how can I control them through Air Wire? I even thought of "head end power", with a wire between the cars, but that's a real pain, and it requires wiring the lights to the ends of the cars, and then I can't remove the roofs again. ARUG. any thoughts?


----------



## steam5 (Jun 22, 2008)

You could place batteries in each car and turn them on and off with a switch. If you put all the electronics on the bottom of the inside of the car you could put a plug to the wires on the roof where the lights live.

Another method would be to have a battery in one car and daisy chain two wires through your consist to distribute the power. Between cars you would have a plug, but this could become a pain if you do a lot of switching.

Alan


----------



## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

You will find all kinds of arguments here battery vs track power of any kind. But many do use DCC outside. A small lighting decoder can be installed in each car or just leave on all the time. Very little power needed for LED's. A two wire plug going to the roof for removal.


----------



## SteveC (Jan 2, 2008)

Dan

Maybe the following will provide some ideas.









Winn Erdman - AMS Coach to Parlor Car, page 5 (PDF 1.13MB)[/b]

'Doc' Watson - Doc's Privated Car "The Mary Alice"; pages 33, 55, 87-92 (PDF 25MB)[/b]


----------



## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Steve thanks for posting the info about that PFD! I didn't even know it existed. I was dumped from first class status with no notice and all of my photos went with it. Not sure I want to re-up, but it would nice to post pictures when answering somebodies questions. It really would have been nice to have had some notice that my membership was running out.


----------



## SteveC (Jan 2, 2008)

Winn

I make copies of many topics that interest me and put them into PDF format, especially those where the individual takes the time and expends the effort to do a good job of documenting what they've done and/or how they went about doing it. That way I've got both the text and pictures in one container that's not dependent on anything outside the file.

I sent you an eMail, please let me know if you received it.


----------



## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

if I don't power through the track, just how do I run these lights 
As Doc Watson showed on the oter thread, it is possible to place a 9V battery in the toilet area, which I do on modified Accucraft coaches. I also stuffed a 9V battery between the frame members using some judicious heat - see "Battery Box for Accucraft Coach" http://www.mylargescale.com/Community/Forums/tabid/56/afv/topic/aff/8/aft/118381/Default.aspx [ or google site:mylargescale.com Battery Box for Accucraft Coach. ] 

I use a small connector - the one that Accucraft supply works fine - to disconnect the car from the roof lighting.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Posted By dangell on 01 Aug 2012 07:27 PM 
I am building 8 passenger cars with lights. I am also trying to figure out what control system I want to use on my trains. I had thought of through the track command control, but I see where power in a problem, and control outside is a problem, so many are going to battery and Air wire. Not sure about that, but let's get back to the light in the cars. I want to be able to remove the roofs to see the inside, and can't run wires through the floor and still remove the roof, anyway, if I don't power through the track, just how do I run these lights? I have been thinking of batteries in the roofs, but how can I control them through Air Wire? I even thought of "head end power", with a wire between the cars, but that's a real pain, and it requires wiring the lights to the ends of the cars, and then I can't remove the roofs again. ARUG. any thoughts? 
I run track power outside--my layout runs on DCC. There are advantages and disadvantages compared to battery, but I'm extremely pleased with DCC outside it and it works perfectly well. 

I have a bunch of aristocraft heavyweight cars and some kitbashed bachmann cars made to look more like standard gage. In all of the cars, I converted them over time to ball bearing wheels with power pickup and LED lights. I run the wires up through the "bathroom" and can tuck enough slack in there so the roof comes off. Aristo has some bent metal contacts on the body of the car, which bring power from the wheels up to the roof piece, which has it's own set of contacts. Sometimes I've kept that in place. I usually add a large uf 35 volt capacitor in the circuit, to eliminate flickering in the LEDs. For LEDs, I just cut up strings of "warm white" christmas lights.

If I was slick, I'd get some little DCC lighting controllers, so I could switch the lights on and off remotely. You can find those for $25 or so. I might do that, but really, I just leave the lights on. They'd be on all the time in the prototype anyway, and only visible when the sun went down. 

I think that if you went to battery and airwire you could put an airwire accessory decoder in each car:

http://www.cvpusa.com/othersys_accessory_decoder.php

Aristocraft's "Revolution" system works well with batteries and I THINK they have an accessory receiver that could switch lights on and off, but it's about $90.

I have one caboose I lit using batteries, 4 AA cells driving six LEDS. I find it kind of a pain--I have to throw a switch on the bottom of the caboose and always remember to turn the lights off.


----------



## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks Steve, I just re-uped and am back on line. As you said in your E-mail, all my files are still there. I' glad you were watching.


----------



## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

Post some pix of your car building as you go along.


----------



## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Re-reading the original post... make your mind up on your control system and get that decision done. Then proceed on how to power the lights. 

Clearly you would do things differently between battery and track power since the batteries have to go somewhere, and in those choices, if the cars are independently powered, or strung together. 

Figure out your power system, and then your questions about powering the cars will be cut in half.... 

Greg


----------

