Strip led connectors

These?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/20PCS...?hash=item2a8082ae48

Solder works best for me!   I solder a short length of wire from the strip to connect to the lighting regulator that I've positioned on the roof of the car near the AC power connection.  I also solder the wires to the lighting requlator, then stick it using double-sided foam tape.

Thanks GRG, I know I can solder them, but that takes effort! LOL! Thanks CJACK, I might order a set.

I have a bunch I can send you. How many would you be looking for?

Marty W. posted:

Thanks GRG, I know I can solder them, but that takes effort! LOL!

Marty, meaning no disrespect, how does one do this hobby without having basic soldering skills?  I'm always baffled by folks that can produce magnificent scenery, beautiful paint jobs on locomotives and rolling stock, and then they balk at soldering!  The skill set is not nearly the same, soldering is a piece of cake compared to some of the artistry displayed for model trains.

Ha Gunrunnerjohn! I know you meant nothing by it. That said, I had pretty good soldering skills until I lost the ability to use all my fingers all the time. I still solder bigger items all the time. Now, the small stuff not so much, it depends, some days better than others. Some days I'm lucky not to drop the soldering iron! My friend Arthur is moving in, you know Arthur I Tus.

I agree though, most of the soldering we do for this hobby can be done by anyone with a decent soldering unit.

John H. Thank You for the kind offer. I ordered some. If I need more, I'll email you. I should be ok for quite awhile.

Marty, sorry to hear about that, I guess if I dropped the soldering iron regularly, I'd have a much different outlook!

As soldering task go, attaching wires to the LED strips is very easy.  Pre-tin the solder pads on the strip and the wires, and the job is quick and positive.  I hesitate to use the mechanical strip connectors based on review negatives.  (this assumes you have a decent bench-top iron with a pencil tip)

GRJ, do you have a link for that converter in the previous picture?

Hi guys. I know i’m late to the party but is there one place I can get an LED roll and the connector that I would need to make it work for some LED strips I can make myself?  I’m running DCS and 18v most of the time. 

Chris, I just ebay search "5m led roll", and a giant selection comes up. That's what I use on all my buildings and cars, the warm white LEDs.

I've purchased buck converters off the bay before, but was wondering if GRJ had a better unit that he was using.

I’ll check that out.  I just don’t know what to use to connect the strip to. GRJ. Is way more versed in the type of thing than I am. 

solder it

I taught myself via youtube. Now that I can solder, I'm going to try my hand at brain surgery. I'm sure there is a video on that...

I have no problem soldering I just need a short laundry list of components.  

GRJ helped me out with the converters and the "precoverter" power chip thingee. 

Sorry for getting all technical here. lol

If there was an OGR Forum Guru of the year award, GRJ would get my vote. He has helped more schmucks like myself without being condescending or making you feel like an idiot for asking. Hats off to John. He has done his share to promote the hobby, but more importantly, the electronic experiment side of things.

rogerpete posted:

GRJ, do you have a link for that converter in the previous picture?

rogerpete posted:

GRJ, do you have a link for that converter in the previous picture?

You should check my signature line, this is there...

JW&A Enhancement Products at Henning's Trains

That's a link to my products on Henning's site, scroll down and you'll find these.

As far as the LED strips, I've had good luck shopping at AliExpress.  You can get them in all colors, Yellow works well for heavyweight cars, and Bright White for modern cars.  For most others, I use Warm White.

5 Meter LED Reel Warm White 60 LEDS/meter, $3.33 shipped free.

rogerpete posted:

Chris, I just ebay search "5m led roll", and a giant selection comes up. That's what I use on all my buildings and cars, the warm white LEDs.

I've purchased buck converters off the bay before, but was wondering if GRJ had a better unit that he was using.

The GRJ convertors are current regulators. They are a great product.

LED intensity is best adjusted with a current regulator. A nice smooth range of adjustment and very stable. With some of these buck convertors which are voltage adjustable, the proper voltage is very touchy and can change easily over time giving a very different intensity other than what was desired.

gunrunnerjohn posted:

rogerpete posted:

GRJ, do you have a link for that converter in the previous picture?

rogerpete posted:

GRJ, do you have a link for that converter in the previous picture?

You should check my signature line, this is there...

JW&A Enhancement Products at Henning's Trains

That's a link to my products on Henning's site, scroll down and you'll find these.

As far as the LED strips, I've had good luck shopping at AliExpress.  You can get them in all colors, Yellow works well for heavyweight cars, and Bright White for modern cars.  For most others, I use Warm White.

5 Meter LED Reel Warm White 60 LEDS/meter, $3.33 shipped free.

Just bought some LED’s   I’ll order some converters next.  Thanks John.