Playback mode runs great but ends about a foot short of where it started.

It's normal to have a little variation, you're talking about 2/3 of one percent, not too bad I would think.

Since there are no track sensors I think that's pretty darn good.  Did you try looping the recording just for fun?

Loop..yes, gotta love it

I use the feature frequently and find some variation. With a dozen engines involved, 2 or 3 may miss their starting spot. I must say though that I run a program where I load and unload multiple cars on multiple trains and it always seems to perform very well. You know how tricky it can be to get a car positioned correctly on an unloading track. It is a great feature!

I used to run a session for my guests with two trains; a Santa Fe ABA 10-car passenger train, and a double-headed BNSF freight train with 24 cars. The SF ran two times around one of the mains (275 ft x 2 = 550 feet), switching mains and sidings along the way, and always returned to the starting point within three inches. The BNSF freight train started while the SF train was doing its thing, ran one time around one of the mains (275 feet), and returned to the starting point within one inch. I ran this session for about two years, and one time the SF was short about three feet, and that was because one of the engines was not running properly, sometimes not at all, and was being dragged. I sent the engine to GGG for repair, and after I received back from him, the SF train was back in business and arriving on schedule.

I had another session involving six engines (two as multi unit) through a series of operations in the yard. One session took the engines to a new location, the next session returned them to where they were initially.

You can watch the action here. The engines repeated the arrival points within a 1/4-inch. 

The DCS record-playback feature is the best. The only drawback is that there are only three sessions available, and once they are overwritten, they are lost, which is what happened to mine while trying to improve them (adding more operations and including operating accessories.)

Alex

Alex,

The only drawback is that there are only three sessions available

There are 3 sessions available per TIU, as long as the session's activity is restricted to that one TIU and the TIU is in normal TIU mode. However, if running in Super TOIU mode, all sessions are written into all TIUs and then three sessions becomes the maximum number for the layout.

This and a whole lot more is all in “The DCS Companion 3rd Edition", available for purchase  from many fine OGR advertisers and forum sponsors, or as an eBook or a printed book at OGR’s web store!

Barry,

"However, if running in Super TOIU mode, all sessions are written into all TIUs and then three sessions becomes the maximum number for the layout."

Yes, I do run in Super TIU mode, so I have been restricted to three sessions. It would be great if somehow the sessions could be stored elsewhere, but as far as I know this is not possible.

Alex

Alex,

When the session spans multiple TIUs, it is mandatory that Super TIU mode be used. Consequently, for the session to work, it must be recorded in all TIUs.

I've been running demo's for our Museum for a couple years and had the same issue.  I found that it is almost always caused by engine wheel slip, especially on grades or curves, or dirty track. 

Good luck improving your results.

Gentlemen,

   Actually for the cost, the inch per inch running control is just outstanding on our toy remote control trains.  Understanding 1st that everything Engineered & Built has a + or - tolerance factor, including electronics and gears, you get a tolerance factor build up on every different piece of gear needed to complete the engineering function.  In order to repeat actual inch per inch movement with a + or - tolerance factor of less than 5% it costs many millions of dollars, in no way would you be able to afford this exacting NASA type engineering in our hobby.  The travel of each toy engine will vary each and every time, some a little and some a lot, remember we are dealing with toy tolerances here, not a NASA Computerized Welding Machine package with almost zero tolerance levels, which cost many millions of dollars.  The longer the run the more the travel will vary + or - just due to the tolerance level build up of our toy train package.  The shorter the run the more repetitive it should remain, however there will still be a travel tolerance even to the shorter run.

PCRR/Dave