Question for Craig !

Oh god of deisel detailing,show me the light!
I installed some ditch lights in my SD 40-2's and they work!However,i would like them to be as bright as the headlights,but they aren't.They don't show up as well as i would like on the brighter parts of my layout,whilst you can see the headlights fine.Any suggestions?Are yours as bright?I used.020 fiberoptics,made by plastruct.I made little lenses with my soldering iron,and the optic cables line up with the l.e.d. about as well as i could hope.Do you think if i formed lenses at the l.e.d. things would improve?Did you have to mess around with yours to get them satisfactory?I can live with them,but would prefer if they were brighter.Thanks,DB.

 

Hi DB

Im not Craig of course, but Id like to offer some help. One reason why they might not be as bright is because Plastruct's "fiber optics" are not fiber optics at all, only a clear plastic. This has a considerable effect, because fiber optics work by reflecting the light at steep angles inside the tube, and not allowing it to refract out. The plastic tube, which is what your using doesnt have as great properties as the FBs, hence they dont pass as much light out. So I would start to use realy FBs. However, since the optic is pretty short, it really shouldnt matter whether its a plastic tube or FB, but stick to the FBs as they do give some more light. Some ways you can improve the current status is to paint the cable a bright silver color or a very glossy black. You might consider changing the LED into a brighter one, like the new white LEDs, as the brightness depends on the light source in the first place. Dont form lenses at where you will be getting the light, as that will destroy the optics ability to acquire light. And also keep in mind that if you have alot of bending on the optic it can dramatically lose light, so see if you are having some pressure points anywhere. Craig?

Mike

 

Hi DB,

I hope I can help you on this, but it is difficult to when I am not actually looking at your work.

First off, I heat one end with a FLAME to make it into a mushroom. Next I file the front of the LED flat, then drill a hole right down the center of it about 3/4's back in the LED. The clear plastic of the LED is just the casing, and drilling into it will do nothing. I insert the fiber optics into the head light or ditch lights skinny end first, as the mushroom end will not fit through the holes in the shell or castings (which ever it may be). Next, when all fiber optics are in place and resting right on top of the LED, I take my exacto and cut them off so they physically stick inside of the LED.

Also, locos like the SD45, SD40-2, SD60, etc. have a little black 'C' shape thing to keep the LED from shineing in the winddows of the cab. I modify this but cutting a v right in the center of it, but I do NOT go all the way through. I then put a peice of wire at the top of it to span over the V....this keeps the fiber optics right where they are supposed to be, in line with the lED. To get rid of the LED light through window problem, simply paint the windows black from the inside (only the middle two).

I think Mike has a good point, I have not worked with the plastruct fibers and they could very well be just clear plastic and not fiber optics. My ditch lights are just as bright as the LED (and sometimes is seems brighter!).

Hope this helps you out, and if you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask.

 

Can you bend FB's?and i don't think i have any sharp bends,I tried to avoid that.I will try painting the optics gloss black or silver and see what happens.I think my models have white L.E.D.'s in them.(didn't the new kato's have them?) The L.E.D looks white but when you light it up,it looks yellow to me.I don't know.....

 

I thought abut drilling the led,i'll try that before i look at changing fiber optic cable.thanks

 

Yes you can bend FBs, but dont but enough strain on it to cause it to actually put pressure on the optic itself. So that means no direct 90-70 degree bends. You can have tight S curves, but the most important thing is that everytime you make a bend, some light escapes. Not a whole lot, but to easily see our lights, more is better than less. White LEDs are the same color LED (clear), but shine a different light when they are powered. No new locos have yet the white LEDs I think, except for the upcoming SD90s. Have fun experimenting, its what this is all about.

Mike

 

thanks guys,the expirimentation continues.....i'll keep you updated,though i won't have time to try anything for a few days.DB

 

Mike mentions no new locos as yet have "white" LEDs. Actually the last two Kato releases, actually rereleases, the E8/9 and the C44-9w both have "white" LEDs. To me they are not mistakeable for the older "yellow" LEDs as they are MUCH brighter and have a bluish tint to the light. I am unaware of any other N scale manufacturer that has released anything with white LEDs, certainly not Atlas or Life Like. The new Kato SD80/90s are due with "white" LEDs but noone else has announced it to my knowledge.

Vandy

 

Whoops, your right. I was going to say the same thing when I was reading Kato's latest releases with the -9s that had the white LEDs. The most ongoing problem with them is of the bluish tint they have, but I think manufacturers are working on that to produce a pure "white" light. The obvious brightness still is a big improvment over the yellow ones right now.

Mike

 

The Kato SD40-2 "snoots" also had the white LED I believe these were the first to have them. I switched bodies with the earlier SD40-2 so it too would have the bright LED head light.

 

Well,i filed the led down a bit and drilled holes for the optics to fit in.This brightened things up alot.I am going to get some white leds tomorrow and some silver paint to paint the optics.I don't think my hobby shop has anything other than the Plastruct optics,but i will keep my eyes open.Now to convert the rest of the fleet....