I know this has come up before but I wanted to discuss swapping LEDs between locos once again, specifically so white LEDs could be installed in the front end of more locos. It seems that some have said this is no problem while others warn there could be trouble . What's the thoughts and experience out there? Can you trade-out LEDs between Kato and Atlas? How about Kato and Bachmann? How about between newer Kato and older (yellow LED) Kato? Russ p.s. I successfully relocated the LED to the nose in my Kato ATSF SD40-2 "snoot" (S.E. light housing). Looks great ! [ 11 May 2001: Message edited by: tehachapifan ]
Yes, I have all my DCC engines with white LED's. The Kato C44s look great as the ditch lights really stand out (Opportunity for a pic GATS). I have also changed an SD60, it works fine. I started by removing the rear white LED from my SD snoots. White LEDs are expensive and in OZ and are hard to get at the moment, our large electronics chain has sold out of white 3mm LEDs. I have not tried one on anything else (L^2). I can however see no problem on an engine with a lighting board such as Kato or Atlas. Your power supply may however, be the limiting factor as to fitting one. Pulse supplys may be a problem.
I have removed the white LED's from the rear of my C44's and SD40-2's, to give more white lights at the front of other locomotives. Yes, white LED's are fairly expensive, but I regularly order other stuff for my business use from a company here, and add a couple of white 3mm LED's to each order, then the cost does not seem so bad, and I can build up a stock of them ready for fitting
I paid 11.95 cdn for a package of 2.The light looked really blue,so i'm not sure whats worse,a bluish light,or a yellowish light.
We don't have any information on swapping White LED's however you may be interested in knowing this "fun fact". Technically, there is no such thing as a White LED. A White LED is "created" by taking a Blue LED and putting a coating of phospher around the junction. The Blue light given off at the junction (where the anode meets the cathode) excites the phospher giving it a white glow. Unfortunately, White LED's have a limited lifespan as compared to standard colored LED's. The phospher coating wears out after approximately 500 hours of use so as the White LED ages, it starts to turn back to Blue. We once calculated that 500 hours could be as much as 4-5 years of use for a typical model railroader and these White LED's have not been out that long, well . . . at least in the Engines, they have been used in other products of course. If you look at a White LED even when it's brand new you will still notice a Blue carona (halo) around it. The less noticable the carona, the higher quality the LED and the longer it will last before turning back to Blue. Anyway, we thought you might like to know about this. [ 16 May 2001: Message edited by: swissrhb ]
Expensive I suppose is relative, they are around $5-$6 each in Australia, depending on where you get them. I have been removing the rear LEDs from my SD40-2 Snoots, I have not purchased many. I posted a photo a few weeks ago of a C44-9 CN engine with a white LED and the ditch lights and headlight looked fantastic.
Whether they look white or slightly blue, they are certainly a great improvement on the yellow ones. They are so bright, I need my shades
