[Paul W]

Hi guys

I'm very much a new boy in this hobby and undergoing a steep learning curve. I've taken the plunge and jumped into DCC boots and all'!! These last few months I've been reading many of the post here and have been helped a lot by members' contributions. Thank you.

I've just brought the Brawa V320 - a beautiful mode .. very heavy with much metal in its construction. This one has twin sound decoders to simulate the twin motor prototype. It runs very well ... no complaints at all ... the sound of the diesels was very 'raucous' until I learnt how to reduce the volume

I've noticed that the upper centre of the long body becomes warm after only a short time of running: not hot, but warm to touch. Would this be expected in this type of model? This question no doubt reveals by novice state but I don't want to risk any damage over the long term. Without the sound, the loco also has a quite audible hum.

Thanks for any comments.
Regards
Paul

 

[zmil]

Hi Paul

Welcome to the forum

I have not had much experience with the Brawa Loks , But I have had a few of My Fleischmann and Roco Locomotives
get a bit warm. The Roco BR290 I bought , had not really been run by the previous owner . We ran it and it got quite hot and stopped working (on DCC) after much messing around I un-soldered the decoder and got it running on DC , The decoder was OK so put it back and its been OK ever since. I think it may have needed some running in.

With one of my Fleischmann Loks after new brushes the same thing happened

The Humming sound does not sound to promising though , unless it is the background noise of the sound decoders - sounds are switched off but Volume still on. Try turning the volume right down and try again

Hope this helps

Regards Zmil

 

[Brian Considine]

Hi Paul & welcome to MRF.

I have three Brawa loco's all running on DCC & they do get a little warm - on these locos there is very little air space round the motors as they are virtually encased in the heavy chassis, so I would not worry too much, however, one source of excess heat often overlooked is the lights (unless they are LED) if the loco is left standing for longish periods with the lights on full they can generate too much heat - most decoders have the option to "dim" the lights so this could be worth looking at.

Two of the Brawa's "hum" a little, the other if virtually soundless.

Hope this helps.

 

[Paul W]

Hello Zmil & Brian

Firstly, thank you for your welcome - much appreciated.

I've been running the V 320 for around 2 hours today ... I'm using the Viessmann Commander (which I'm gradually getting the hang of!!). With both sound decoders and lights off the warmth is negligible ... with all functions happening then the warmth is palpable, but it doesn't build up over time, ie, the longer the engine is running (if that makes sense?). I will investigate the light type and dimming, if applicable.

Zmil, I did turn off the speakers (CV 63 = 0) without any difference, so it is the motor hum - of course you wouldn't notice it with either or both of the sound decoders doing their thing Brian, I put my other Brawa on the track, the BR 06, and it too hums, though a little less so than the V 320.

Thank you both for your replies - very helpful.
Regards

Paul (very much enjoying this 'hobby' ... the motto of the RAAMC comes to mind here: "little by little"

QUOTE (Brian Considine @ 15 Oct 2008, 16:10) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Hi Paul & welcome to MRF.

I have three Brawa loco's all running on DCC & they do get a little warm - on these locos there is very little air space round the motors as they are virtually encased in the heavy chassis, so I would not worry too much, however, one source of excess heat often overlooked is the lights (unless they are LED) if the loco is left standing for longish periods with the lights on full they can generate too much heat - most decoders have the option to "dim" the lights so this could be worth looking at.

Two of the Brawa's "hum" a little, the other if virtually soundless.

Hope this helps.