ColinB

I hate to say it but forwards or backwards uses the same wires it is only lights if fitted that are separate wires. It is either a mechanical issue, like a wire jammed in the mechanism or possibly a fault with the decoder. If you have an issue in the future fitting the decoder, Zimo make a MX617 that is incredibly small that will source 0.8 amp.

Yes, I eventually found the menu option, perhaps it would help if the extra 3 options that appear at the head of the page were deleted. You have the Forums, Gallery and then 3 options that are non relevant and take you away from the Forums page. The Shop option has no relevance in the Forums part if you wanted that you would have selected it before entering the Forums. The same could also said of Community and Support because you actually got into Forums by initially selecting an option within the original Community menu and Support again has nothing to do with Forums.

They may well have, but that doesn't mean a lot as the Post Office enquiry is proving extremely well. When ever you release software you are supposed to give it your best shot, I should know, I did it for the best part of 30 years. People of my age will remember the London Ambulance fiasco where they did the same. Now please answer the question how do I get to the main menu ? I take the view that software is invented to make things easy so you don't put people off by making a package difficult to use. They should have Beta tested it on a remote platform and got some non knowledgeable users to test it. Either way as I have said many times, membership of this forum is optional, if you don't want any users then carry on with this approach. I must admit if it was my design I would make sure my first draft did the basics, so in this case took you to the sub headings as a must, then add the clever stuff when you are sure it is working properly. It isn't my design so I suppose I will just wait a few weeks for them to get it right.

Well I don't know if it is because the software is incomplete, but there again if it isn't it shouldn't be here. When I first enter the forum and select Hornby, it telling what the latest posts and things are but it doesn't give me the list of sub topics, remeber the checkboxes on the previous version. Now if I select a latest post to display and then go to its web address and go back one on the web address I get a nice menu with all the sub topics in it. Now obviously there must be an easier way to get to it, so what am I missing?

I am of the view if you are going to change something only do it if you can make it better. On the new setup I can't find the references to the individual forums. When they changed it last time I thought it was a bit of downgrade. Perhaps I am in the minority.

I don't know about these but the old Hornby ones used to distort bodies.

When I designed anything in electronics I avoided those edge connectors like Hornby use, like the plague, they gave so much trouble on old equipment. I tended to use the pin and socket connectors just like Hornby have moved away from, because they were so much more reliable. The other thing is, should the 4 pin socket break for someone like me, it is relatively easy to fix. From what I gather the new connection arrangement is not. I always said, if you are going to change something, whatever you replace it with, must be better.

I have tried lots. I found other than Hornby ones, the LaisDCC ones and the Train O Matic ones work really well. The old DCC concepts ones I used in the past had issues when I wanted to program on DCC but they might have improved them, I don't know. LaisDCC do run out but generally in a short period of time they are available again. I use them with Zimo decoders and they are wonderful. They also come in different sizes.

Here are some photos from my HD A4s which should be of some help

Here is what I do. Wrap the spare wire around the other wires (Zimo decoders come with it like that) and snip off the end so no parts of the inner conductor are showing. Seal the end with nail varnish (it is cheap and dries quickly). Obviously do not use metallic. You can then basically in bed the wire inside the bundle using the previous wrapping to hold it in. Now you can either loosely cover it with sleeving or alternatively just insulate where it is going. The tender is plastic but the weight is metal so just put a couple of strips of insulation on the tender where it will sit. Use a small piece of black tack to hold it there, to stop it falling out as you try and get the tender top back on.

I think they should press back on, I think it is an interference fit. So you need something like a vice to do it. The biggest issue is getting them on squarely. I had never thought of the glue issue but I think you are probably right.

Interesting fault, I have had the separate capacitors that Hornby fit round the motor fail but I would never suspect one soldered on the PCB. You say it works on DC but not DCC, to me it sounds like they fitted the wrong one with a higher value which is filtering out the DCC motor signal. If had failed short circuit it wouldn't work on DC. It is meant to filter out high frequency spikes that interfere with old analogue TV signals.

When I had light bleed on a Lima diesel I painted the inside area around the lamp matt black. I don't know if this will work in your case.

I bought this loco and yes it works straight out the box on DCC. I can't remember whether I updated the software but I don't think I did.

I don't think Hornby has any, Zimo has a little but it is only good for a short period.

I was talking to my Zimo decoder supplier and they were saying on some of the newer decoders that don't shrink wrap them, these being the smaller ones. Most electronics needs a way to dissipate the heat so tightly wrapping them in heat shrink is not going to be a good idea, especially if they are the small variety. It is what you are happy with. I tend to insulate where they are being fitted, most times it only needs to be on one side and if it is an 8 pin variety the PCB side with the hot components uppermost.

Actually I doubt the development of the dongle was that expensive, we had a contractor that we dealt with for radio software design who designed his own. He was a one man show but managed to develop a dongle and produce it on his own with very limited resources. The main investment is in the HM7000 end and the Elite/Select software. The Elite/Select software was already there. Basically the Dongle is just an interface, USB to serial interface with the necessary logic to convert to the Xpress Net logic levels which hardware wise is equivalent to an industry standard. The clever bit is in the App. Either way I don't which way Hornby will go, software resource is limited and expensive and Hornby is a cash limited company. They probably have got a fair bit of their development costs back on the ones they have already sold. Then you have the marketing bit develop the dongle so more people use the App and get used to it, then hope that every one uses HM7000 devices in the future.

Not that I am expert on how Hornby works, but if HM7000 becomes the norm, why would you want to use an Elite? Perhaps Hornby is thinking the same way, if HM7000 works properly then the Hornby future is bluetooth and the Hornby App. Now we all know that most people have a combination of DCC and HM7000 decoders so an Elite or Select is the only way to run both, but perhaps Hornby management doesn't think like that. Therefore there would be some logic in running the design out.

Yes, the good old bathtub curve. In my experience one of the big cause of failures is overheating so covering them in shrink rate is a no. I did have one fail, which I definitely couldn't explain. I had lots of TTS just die, I haven't got enough HM7000 to comment. Trouble is a lot of people that probably use them don't use this Forum.

I know I would say the same. People on this site get very protective when you mention prices.

I only noticed just now. When I submitted it, it didn't look like it had worked, so I thought there was something in there it didn't like but no it appears it was just that it took ages to catch up. It reminds me of working with computers based in the US, in the morning no issues after lunchtime if you pressed the delete key, the computer took so long to respond you would find it had deleted the whole line rather than one character.

I was asking the same question. I have the same connector on my P2s, A4s and A1s. I obviously tested them when they were new but I wonder whether they will still work in 6 months time. The only consolation is these locos only use 4 wires so if the worst comes to worst revert to the old tender connection. With the Black 5 I don't know what you do. I keep meaning to look at my Manor and see if they gold plated their connector to the tender.

I was asking the same question. I have the same connector on my P2s, A4s and A1s. I obviously tested them when they were new but I wonder whether they will still work in 6 months time. The only consolation is these locos only use 4 wires so if the worst comes to worst revert to the old tender connection. With the Black 5 I don't know what you do. I keep meaning to look at my Dapol Manor and see if they gold plated their connector to the tender.

I was asking the same question. I have the same connector on my P2s, A4s and A1s. I obviously tested them when they were new but I wonder whether they will still work in 6 months time. The only consolation is these locos only use 4 wires so if the worst comes to worst revert to the old tender connection. With the Black 5 I don't know what you do. I keep meaning to look at my Dapol Manor and see if they gold plated their connector to the tender.

I was asking the same question. I have the same connector on my P2s, A4s and A1s. I obviously tested them when they were new but I wonder whether they will still work in 6 months time. The only consolation is these locos only use 4 wires so if the worst comes to worst revert to the old tender connection. With the Black 5 I don't know what you do. I keep meaning to look at my Dapol Manor and see if they gold plated their connector to the tender.