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          Anyone have experience with this car. It's definitely older technology from circa 2004 and even nowadays quite pricey at about $250 but what do you think of it? Although not HD, is video decent under various lighting conditions? Though no sound, was a sound adapter ever made for it? Also, was camera capable of being remotely controlled for direction, etc. or was it fixed? Was it just an expensive gimmick or did you find it to have wothwhile uses? It only appeared in K-Line catalogs for three years. Anyone know how many units were manufactured during its lifespan?

          Any of you forumites experiment and try kitbashing your own less expensive version of a video car that's more than just a compact digital camera somehow affixed to a railcar or engine? Am I correct in that the major shortcoming of simply placing a digital camera on your train is that while you can record for later playback, you unfortunately can't transmit live?

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I have a tiny 2.4ghz camera that I've mounted on a flatcar and pushed around, you can receive it on any TV with video inputs, it comes with a receiver.  $40 is what I paid for it, and it's color and has sound.  Not HD, but sufficient for the price.

 

I think $250 is an absurd price for the capability for anyone other than a die-hard K-Line collector that wants that specific model.

Ask and you shall receive.   I'm not sure I totally agree with their description, but it does work.

 

Worlds Smallest Longest Range 2.4ghz Radio Remote Control Wireless RC Camera

 

Here it is mounted on a flatcar.  I actually want to mount it in a locomotive at some point.  It runs on a 9V battery, but it's somewhat of a current hog, so you really want to power it from track voltage.  I believe it draws about 100ma, so it'll suck a 9V battery down in a few hours.

 

WirelessCameraonTrain

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Wow. Really nice job. The camera's size and shape loes offer all types of possibilities such as mounting/concealing it inside a box car with lens at one end of box car, on the inside front of an engine (or dummy engine) below the headlamp, on a searchlight car similar to what K-line did, etc. Wonder how simple or complicated it would be to run it off track voltage? Is the antenna removable so it could be mounted elsewhere on a railcar? What have you found is the optimum transmit/reception distance for to TV for good video quality? So, so many possibilities for using it on a layout!!!

The antenna isn't removable, but it being a 2.4ghz item, I'm sure you could rig an antenna to run it.

 

Running from track power is pretty simple if you run command.  A bridge rectifier, large electrolytic cap, and an LM317T regulator to provide the 9 volts.  You can do a similar thing with conventional, but when you interrupt power to reverse or stop, the camera will doubtless wink out for a spell.

I think it's fabulous! Has wireless tech, so you could see the view on a TV. Feels like your riding around your RR, great view. I run it behind a flat or gondola, with a peek off to the side, going slowly. When train enters curve, you see the turns like your looking out yourself. Tunnels are obviously dark, you can light them up or just experience that you are emerging from one. You can also place it in the front of an engine, which is also a nice effect. Passing by you would see all of your detail scenery or another train going the other way. Should come with a wireless receiver that attaches to TV & power pak. Car itself is track powered. Well worth it!

The K-Line camera car does have sound. This camera is a version of the X-10 series of wireless cameras that were populalr some time ago. Do a search for X-10. The problem with the sound is that the receiver furnished with the camera does not have the sound cercuits. If you got a regular X-10 receiver with the sound you would find the sound available. Again you get a lot of track noise so you don't get much but the sound capability is there.

 

Other problems come from dirty track. The unit does not have much standby time so any time it looses power momentarily the picture goes out.

 

All things considered it works very well.

 

Al

I have one of these TV Camera Cars I bought from a forum member. It works great and it is a neat item for the kids. Question: The Helicopter that comes with this set seems to have a cab top light on it. When I take the helicopter apart it looks like one can put a battery inside and with push of bottom on bottom of helicopter light the light. Does anyone know what kind of battery this takes?Cannot seem to find nay user manual specific for the helicopter. Thanks.

My club has a couple of the K-Line camera cars and the kids love them when we run them at our show.  Having said that, they are old tech, bulky, and with frequent dropouts. 

There are wireless cameras that are slightly smaller then Gunrunnerjohn's.  I have a couple of them and am installing one in a dummy GP-20 looking out over the short hood.  When I tested one on another diesel it was a lot of fun running the train that way.  I even went upstairs, hooked it to the living room TV and ran the train with my Cab-1.  I found these at a R/C helicopter store online - on sale for $30 apiece including receivers.  I also have some other cameras....a X-10 and a couple of wired surveillance cameras.  I have those installed trackside and they give a nice standing-by-the-tracks sort of view.

Originally Posted by gunrunnerjohn:

Care to share a link to the cameras you are using?  I'd like something that will fit into an engine.  I found this on eBay and have one of those coming, but even smaller would be better for a couple of applications.

 

 

 

Hey John, I'm on my ship right now and don't remember it off the top of my head.  I won't be getting back home until October, but I'll try a search for it when I get the chance - so you won't have to wait so long!  It is smaller than that one you have - about the same width but a lot shorter.  It uses the same receiver.

That's not smaller, that's the same one I have, I even bought one of them at the same location, Nitro Planes.  The long skinny one I have coming will fit in places that one doesn't, so maybe it'll have to do.

 

This is the picture of my camera from the previous post, the camera detaches from that post in the picture and is the same camera as in the last two posts.

 

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