This page is intended to provide as much information as possible on the Gopher XPT sets, and hopefully answer any questions you may have.
FAQs
What formats are the XPTs being offered in?
They are available from the factory as either DC (analogue) or DCC sound fitted (exclusive to Buckambool Model Trains, 5 car sets only). They are being sold in ‘1 car’ or ‘5 car’ sets from factory, however there is also single passenger car packs available for purchase. Each set whether 1 or 5 cars is supplied with a motorised and un-motorised power car. Buckambool Model Trains is also offering an exclusive ‘Deluxe’ set which features 7 passenger cars and two motorised power cars.
Should you wish to fit a non-sound DCC decoder, you will need to source a non-sound Next18 decoder for the power car, we recommend a ZIMO MN180N18 decoder ($75). A function only Next18 decoder, generally cheaper than a regular decoder, or budget priced Next18 decoder can also be fitted to the un-motorised power car to control lighting, we recommend a ZIMO MX689N18 ($45).
Should you wish to upgrade your anlogue or non-sound DCC XPT set to full DCC sound, all that is required is a Next18 sound decoder, as speakers are pre-fitted to all XPT motorised power cars. We recommend a ZIMO MS591N18 sound decoder pre-loaded with an XPT sound file and function mapping specific to this model ($225). Please see the above paragraph RE fitting a decoder to the un-motorised power car.
Do I need two motorised power cars?
The Gopher XPT sets are designed to operate with only one motorised power car, the rear power car being un-motorised. It will also work reliably in this format with the motorised power car either pushing or pulling. If your layout has little or no gradients, the singular motorised power car will have no problem hauling the whole set. We have tested a ‘5 car’ set on a large layout with varying gradients, usually no more than 2%, and we have found the performance to be also quite good, particularly after some extended running, allowing the very shiny coating on the motorised power car wheels to be ever so slightly worn off. This process can be sped up with a rotary tool fitted with a wire brush (at low speed) or a tool such as the Minitrix wheel cleaner (wire bristles). As the whole train picks up power and shares it down the length of the train, the surface of the wheels on the motorised power car does not need to be perfect for optimal power pickup. Should you run into traction problems, we recommend carefully following these suggestions, as we have found substantial traction improvement following these processes.
We also recommend lubricating the axles of the un-motorised power car to give it optimal free-rolling performance. Unclipping the base keeper plate of each bogie allows best access to the bearings, which the axles pass through – lubricate this area on each side of all axles.
The motorised power car is fitted with extra weights in the fuel tank, and in the top of the body shell. The un-motorised power car shares the same design, however without these extra weights and a motor, in order to reduce the load of the entire train set.
Should your layout feature very significant gradients, or you just like to have untapped tractive effort, it is possible to safely and reliably operate the XPT set with two motorised power cars. We have tested this configuration, and found it to be extremely powerful. The passenger cars within the set are very light and roll very freely, and with the rear power car motorised, which is reasonably heavier than the passenger cars, there should be very few situations, if any, where two motorised power cars couldn’t pull the entire train with ease. You will however need to purchase another XPT set (either the 1 or 5 car set), to obtain a second motorised power car, and you will need to swap over the couplers. You will notice that the coupler on the un-motorised power car features a female 2 pin socket, whereas all power car couplers will feature a male 2 pin socket. All that is required is a small screw driver and a soldering iron to re-solder the two wires. Please contact us if you’re unsure of how to swap them over.
My XPT keeps jumping a wheel off the track on one or more bogies!
Due to the design of the couplers, there is limited ability for the coupler joint to flex up/down as the XPT rolls over a hump or a dip in your track work. We specifically designed some slack in the coupler joint to allow for some flexibility, however large humps or dips may cause a wheel or two to jump off, which may either fix itself running through a point, or not and cause an unwanted short circuit. This is caused by the coupler not completely flexing over the large hump/dip, which causes a wheel or multiple wheels to lift off the track momentarily. We recommend fixing any major humps or dips in your track work.
Can I couple up locomotives or other wagons/passenger cars to my XPT?
Unfortunately not, the Gopher XPT uses a custom made kinematic coupler with a 2 pin electrical connection embedded within, making it not compatible with Micro-Trains style knuckle couplers or ‘Rapido’ type couplers. It is only designed to couple to items within the XPT consist; passenger cars and the power cars.
Can I fit sound to the un-motorised power car?
Yes, you will simply need to plug a Next18 sound decoder into the Next18 socket, we recommend a ZIMO MS591N18 sound decoder pre-loaded with an XPT sound file and function mapping specific to this model ($225). You will also need to fit a 15x11mm speaker driver into the speaker enclosure in the top of the body shell, we recommend a 15x11mm Knowles speaker driver, and select ‘no enclosure’ required.
General Information
Electrical Specifications:
- Every wheel of the XPT set picks up power, this power is sent down the entire train via 2 pin connectors within the couplers
- All passenger cars supplied in all set variants are lit with LED lighting, powered by the track. If there is track power present, they will illuminate
- Next18 DCC socket in both the motorised and un-motorised power cars
- 15x11mm speaker with enclosure pre-fitted to all motorised power cars
- Separately controlled lighting fitted to all power cars with function output assignment as follows:
- Triple headlight (F0 forward)
- Red marker lights (F0 reverse)
- Front ditch lights (Function output 1/Auxiliary 1)
- White marker lights (Function output 2/Auxiliary 2)