Full Version: I think I am done with headlights.
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I model 1920, give or take a few years. Locomotives weren't required to light their headlights during the day during that era - and I am guessing that without the requirement, most railroads only switched on the lights at night. Despite that I have known that fact for awhile, I've always put working headlights on my locos. I think it stems back to my youthful days in the hobby when I considered a working headlight a pretty cool feature (especially directional lights) , and I would be upset when the bulb burnt out. And I figured it would be easier to add a working headlight while I was detailing the loco, rather than deciding later I wanted a headlight and tearing back into it. I also thought that when or if I ever convert to DCC, a headlight would be one other thing I could control and make the DCC seem more worthwhile (considering I'm not a fan of sound).

But here's the reality - I'm not going to add all kinds of intricate bulbs into my buildings so I can run trains in the dark. I'm not going to add special blue or dim bulbs to my layout room to simulate night. And I am not going to switch the lights off completely in my layout room - because I want to actually see my trains and the way my switches are thrown, etc. In other words - night operations are never gonna happen.

And adding an LED to a steam locomotive headlight also means running wires to the LED, and those wires are almost impossible to hide completely. So this next loco I am finishing - I'm doing without the working headlight. Just a clear lens in front of the headlight casting.
Sounds reasonable to me. I do believe that DoctorWayne also shuns the headlight. As he does DCC.

I like the LED lights on the few DCC equipped locos I just got, but my DC stuff doesn't have headlights. Not sure if I will add them upon DCC conversion or not.

Dave
I haven't done this but I have seen it. Put a jewel in the head light. The one I saw was very impressive, it looked like the headlight was lit up.
Yeah, I gave up on lights quite some time ago. I used to do a lot of locomotive rebuilds (mostly re-motoring, re-gearing, and paint jobs) for others and many wanted working lights. It was always a hassle to install them, yet still leave the loco easy to disassemble for servicing, and, of course, bulb replacement. New locos using LEDs were equally bad, as they're usually accompanied by a printed circuit board, another space-eater where I'd rather add extra weight to make the loco perform better.
Like Kevin's modelling era, headlights weren't normally used in daylight in my late '30s era, either, so one of the first things I do to a new loco is remove the lights and all associated circuitry. Since I run DC, I usually re-wire the loco and tender, too, either making them all-wheel pick-up or at least, for steam locos, capable of running without their tenders. This is very useful for maintenance and fine tuning.
I like MV Products polymer lenses - they look like an unlit reflector-type headlight (much better than an empty casting where the bulb or LED used to be), and for those who prefer working lights, can be illuminated using a bulb or LED.

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Another benefit of doing away with headlights is that it also permits you to eschew passenger car and caboose lighting, and ditto for structures. This minimises the amount of work needed to detail interiors - not that there's anything wrong with doing that kind of work if you enjoy it, but I have too much other stuff I want to complete to bother with that kind of detail. The shop at Lowbanks once had full interior lighting, but I removed it when I re-did the roof. It added nothing to daylight operations, and like Kevin, there's no way I wanted to stumble around in a darkened layout room, unable to see most of the things into which I've put so much effort. Misngth To be totally realistic, one would need to put working lights in the vehicles, too, and that would draw attention to the fact that they're not moving. Eek

Wayne
A well-lit structure is definitely an accomplishment, and looks great when done. But it's also extra work, extra expense, and it means putting more detail in buildings, sealing the inside of walls and cracks in the foundation to make sure light does not get through. And then there are street lights and all the other lights needed to make an effective night scene. I'm just not wanting to put forth that trouble, but I certainly appreciate those that do!
I'm like you - I'm not running anything after dark so it's needless work.
I did a rebuild/re-motor on some MDC/roundhouse box-cabs away back - Look under jewellery suppliers/semi-precious stones and pick up some suitable size cubic zirconia brilliant cut rounds - fairly in-expensive and really give reflected light

jwb

I guess I'm a contrarian in general -- first, if the loco comes with lights and DCC, who am I not to turn them on? Second, the really bright blue-white style LEDs give what to me is a really prototype appearance, and I like to see it. DVDs with archival footage show steam in the 1940s sometimes with headlights on in the daytime, and by the late 1950s, it was pretty common. By the "modern" era, the rules say that the presence of a headlight on a track means it is occupied, so on the main line they're always in use at all times. Certainly in my lifetime (a boomer) and even more by the time I seriously watched trains, headlights were always on. I put lights in many buildings, too, though.
Been using jewels for headlights for years.

Until I tried this:

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