BLI Alco RSD-15

[spookshow]

Lone Star!!

[peteski]

I know! I saw a review of their stuff on Youtube and was like "Wha?".

First Rapido, now Aurora... what's next? A new IHC? I guess Con-Cor isn't technically dead yet, so I guess it'll be 5-10 years since we see a new one.

Some of you might already know this but Aurora was also big into plastic model kits.  When their molds for the plastic kits resurfaced, the new company is called Polar Lights.  Clever name.

[oakcreekco]

Maybe a Tyco in the future??

[Dwight in Toronto]

Aurora Miniatures is an upstart, and kinda reminds me of Jason Schron’s earliest days getting Rapido off the ground.  Both companies are physically located very nearby in my neck of the woods (greater Toronto area).

There’s a short bio about Ben Wang on Aurora’s site (with mention of Scarborough Model Railroaders … a long-established club with impressive N and HO layouts).  I don’t know Ben, but not long ago I saw a video of his (moniker “drunkbee”) where he does some interesting manipulation with ESU’s LokProgrammer flow charting regarding single function control of multiple lighting effects.  This inspired me to undertake a simplified flowchart to control the upper and lower headlights by toggling F0 repeatedly.  It’s a pretty cool little technique.

[C855B]

Maybe a Tyco in the future??

Doubtful. Tyco still exists in the industrial market, selling security systems and fire suppression gear. They're big enough to squash any attempt to capitalize on the nostalgia value of the name in their former MRR incarnation.

[nickelplate759]

I don't think that the Tyco industrial brand (seems to be part of Johnson Controls these days) has any relationship to Tyco Trains other than the first name.  Still, that's enough to keep lawyers well paid.

[C855B]

Hmm. You're right. Tyco International is the full name of the alarm, etc., company, originally created as Tyco, Inc. TYCO was the trade name for what became Tyco Industries, subsequently ending its life as a subsidiary of Mattel. Interesting how each used a graphic "Tyco" as their corporate identity. Mantua was apparently first in trademarking the Tyco d/b/a name.

But, yeah, Tyco International would squash any attempt to use "Tyco" as an identity for a startup model company.

[wazzou]

I've seen commercial Bathroom partitions and doors in the past that have "Life-Like" in the same font or typeface as the train company, so I assumed that they must have been diversified as well.

[peteski]

I've seen commercial Bathroom partitions and doors in the past that have "Life-Like" in the same font or typeface as the train company, so I assumed that they must have been diversified as well.

While I don't recall the specifics, Life-Like trains were part of a larger company which manufactured (and still does) Styrofoam coolers under the name Lifoam.  I believe the Styrofoam business came first, and model trains were just a side business.

[spookshow]

If anybody wants to purchase my RSD-15 (SP #251), I'm asking $190 (shipping included).

-Mark

[C855B]

Sort of a footnote on the RSD-15... after a couple of minor mishaps requiring a wait for parts, I have an RSD-15 running with a ESU LokPilot 5 Micro. Night and day difference in operability versus the stock Paragon 4. While the LokPilot may have hesitated on a couple of spots of really dirty track, it muscled through just fine making it 200 feet down the main versus the P4 stalling completely after only 40 or 50.

IMO BLI needs to man-up and acknowledge that their decoder design is << optimal, and build their chassis to accept other decoders on a plug-and-play basis.

[rrjim1]

My BLI RSD-15 seem to run pretty good.   

[Cajonpassfan]

Backing up a 52 car train is equally impressive!!
Otto

[randgust]

OK, I'll kick this zombie

A couple questions about these.....

1)  Has anybody attempted to take off the body shell and disassemble and/or strip it?   Is it glue together like something for Intermountain?    Reminds me of Intermountain, the Santa Fe shell is too 'blue', needs to be darker, yellow is off, I'd have to renumber it, and those handrails have to go, too, I'd do my brass wire treatment.

2)  Has anybody successfully replaced that Paragon decoder with something else?  I've been relatively blown away with the Tsunami I got, fully wired, but the performance/sound quality/installation was remarkable.

[C855B]

2)  Has anybody successfully replaced that Paragon decoder with something else?  I've been relatively blown away with the Tsunami I got, fully wired, but the performance/sound quality/installation was remarkable.

Yes, but not sound. Here are my ruminations from late 2022 over replacing the Paragon 4 with a LocPilot 5: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=55252.msg

I did the one, and still have the three others needing conversion. The solution I came up with for that one was essentially "I don't want to do that again," at least not as a hay-wired kluge. It needs a conversion board.