In this post, YouTuber Kuylendam shows us how to add lighting to LS Models' double-decker cars.
Since LS Models has not offered lighting sets for some time, we would like to show you how to add lighting to your cars with other available lighting sets.
This tutorial can also help you install other brands and models of lighting.
About Kuylendam
Kuylendam is a fictional town in the Netherlands in 1:87 scale. The builder of this town, Amar, specializes in building and lighting fairground models and has already built an impressive fairground for his town. This fairground also features trains that are all illuminated.
To light up the cars, Nightjet cars from LS Models were chosen for this post, as these models are a MUST for every model railroader.
LS Models Nightjet double decker car lighting
You will need:
For the realization the following materials are needed:
The cars:
Nightjet Double Decker Car Set from LS Models #47069
LS Models set #47069 consists of two beautiful double-decker cars
First, prepare the lighting, which will be installed in the cars.To remove the cover of the wagons, LS Models' special tools for opening wagons (LS #89000) were used.The interior of the car is detailed and cleanly finished.The next step is to remove a bogie from the car. You can do this easily by turning the car upside down, holding the wheel set and gently turning and tilting it until it comes off.Now that the wheel set is loose, it's time to attach the sliders. One slider goes on each side (DC version).The plastic part can be easily removed from the base by pressing it out of the 4 feet with tweezers or a thin object.Then the sliders are inserted so that they have good contact with the wheels; this is important for the power supply to the lighting. The plastic piece from the previous step can be reinserted to hold the sliders and cables in place. Make sure that the cables come out of the housing at the right place.The cables of the sliders are led through the wheel set into the already prepared hole in the model. If necessary, this hole can be enlarged slightly with a small drill or file. Then click the undercarriage back into position. Note that the undercarriage can only be reinserted in one way.
Install lighting on the top floor
The model is already provided with cutouts for attaching the LED strip. In some places, it may be necessary to make the cutout slightly larger to fit the LED strip: Use a sharp knife or small saw. Here the Wondercutter was used to cut away some of the plastic.The LED strip is cut with a good side cutter (e.g. Faller #170688) shortened to the desired size. Refer to the instruction manual of the LED strip to find out at which point you need to shorten the LED strip so that the last LED lamp will continue to work. When shortening the LED strip, make sure that the bridge connection is soldered in the right place. This is clearly indicated in the instruction manual of the LED strip.Since the capacitor is located in the hidden space between the carriage, the recess was enlarged slightly to allow the LED strip to pass through to this space.First, we check that the capacitor and the LED strip are seated correctly. This will also allow you to determine the length of the two terminals of the capacitor and then cut them. Pay attention to the positive and negative terminals of the capacitor and the strip: these are indicated on both the LED strip and the capacitor.After the connections of the capacitor have been cut to size, it can now be soldered to the LED strip.Route the cable attached to the wheel set until it is the right length to be able to solder it to the LED strip. A little slack (2-3 cm cable length) is good to get to it at a later time.When connecting the cables, you do not need to pay attention to + or -, the LED bar is set to automatically select the correct setting here.It is recommended to check if the capacitor and the cable fit into the gap. If not, the cable must be shortened slightly. The LED strip does not need to be glued in place, but remains in place with the help of the capacitor and the openings in the partitions. Another practical feature is the ability to remove the LED strip again for maintenance purposes or for attaching additional lighting, such as tail lighting.The strip on the top floor as a whole.First test whether the LED strip works. The steps for the lower level follow later.
Install train rear lights
Then we will mount the tail light in the car. For this the Digikeijs DR60040-Set used. Not every car needs tail lights and the following steps can be skipped if necessary.The LED is placed where the red plastic part of the tail light is visible on the inside of the car. Make sure that the LED is placed as well as possible on this red part.Both tail lights are glued on.Then the wires are soldered to the right place on the top floor led strip. Please refer to the instructions of digikeijs led strip where to solder this so that it can also be switched separately when used digitally.Then it's on to the LED strip for the first floor. This is also cut to size first and then the cables are soldered on. The upper floor is carefully pushed out of the model so that you can easily mount the LED strip.When shortening the LED strip for the first floor, make sure that the bridges are soldered together in the correct place. This is clearly indicated in the instruction manual of the LED strip. This will ensure that all LEDs in the shortened LED strip will work. This must be done for the lower floor because the LED strip is shorter than the upper floor.A capacitor is also attached here, but in the smaller version so that it fits in the stairwell and does not stand out too much.Once it is in place, the cables can be routed upwards.The cables of the LED strip from the first floor are soldered to the LED strip on the upper floor, at the same place where the cables of the wheel set are soldered.When everything is connected, it is time to test it on the track. It may happen that the lighting does not switch on immediately: When using a digital control unit, the central unit of the respective system must indicate that the lighting must be switched on. The DR80010 manual indicates which function codes can be used for this. In my case, all lighting is switched on by default with function key 4, with the decoder set to address 3. With the function keys 5, 6, 7 and 8 you can switch on and off different parts of the lighting separately.Close-up of the lighting in the cabins.Once everything is working, the cover can be put back in place.The car is now ready to drive.
The completion
Each subsequent car can be equipped with lighting in the same way, but you need to install a slider in each car. If you don't want to do that, you can put special current-carrying couplers in the NEM shaft and run the current to the next cars. Please note that this means that the wiring must be run through the entire car and each subsequent car to the couplers.
Video Tutorial
On YouTube, the complete tutorial is available as a video. Follow step-by-step the installation of the interior bulb lighting in the LS Models double-decker cars by Kuylendam.
Have fun installing the lighting Kylendam and the model railroad shop-Lippe wish you! We hope you enjoyed this post. Feel free to leave a comment!
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