S-CAB uses radio control, which, when combined with on-board battery power, enables model railroading on layouts with full, partial, or no track wiring, sometimes called "dead-rail". Where present, track power may be DC, AC or DCC. The benefits are simpler layout wiring and elimination of rail contact problems.
Two technologies are required; radio to control locomotives and batteries to provide on-board power supply. This combination is often the choice for larger scale layouts, especially garden railways, where track wiring is best avoided entirely. However, S-CAB is targeted at smaller scales; primarily HO, On3 and On30, where available space makes on-board battery power much more challenging.
Stanton Radio CAB
Radio
There are numerous ways to implement radio control and no standards exist for its application to model railroading. S-CAB uses open-source technology and complies with standards, wherever applicable. Rather than try to introduce model aircraft RC, or WiFi technology to model railroading, S-CAB builds on existing model railroading standards and products. S-CAB is compatible with DCC and adds DCC functionality to layouts that are not equipped with DCC.
About This Website
As a device for controlling model trains, the Stanton Radio Cab has been available for several years and during that time has acquired S-CAB as its abbreviated name. In choosing S-CAB.com as the name of this website, I wanted continuity with S-CAB as a wireless controller while including more discussion of battery power in small-scale models. My objective is to create a modeler-to-modeler website that explains S-CAB as a way to implement radio controlled, battery powered, HO-sized model trains. I hope to address both the why and the how-to of radio control and battery power from my perspective. I've developed a number of products along the way and am happy to sell them at low margin to fellow modelers. However, selling merchandise is not the primary objective of this website.
Batteries
Given the space constraints of HO sized models, our on-board energy source will be rechargeable lithium-polymer batteries (LiPo, for short).
Cab
In real locomotives, cab is the compartment which accommodates crew and is the location from which they operate the locomotive. Planes have cockpits; locomotives have cabs. Hand-held controllers used to operate model trains are generally called either Cabs or throttles. I'll use "S-CAB Throttle" when specifically referencing the Stanton Radio CAB.
