# Need help planning reverse loops/circuits



## Sunsanvil (Jan 25, 2017)

Here is one I'm helping someone with. It has several reversing sections which we need help panning for.

The top right one is very strait forward. He can put a Digitrax AR1 there.

The other two, especially the Y at lower left are not as clear to me how they will need to be wired up.... or what sort of practical operating problems he might run into.

Any input would be much appropriated.


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## BigGRacing (Sep 25, 2020)

So much fun track planning....lol.

I have changed my plan so many times in the last two weeks, my head is spinning get in circles non stop.....lol


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

I like your track plan. I think there are many ways you can handle your reversing sections. I'm going to give you 2 ways. The first is the most straightforward, but perhaps not the best. The second is what I would probably do.

Here's the first simple way:









Here's what I would probably do:









In both of these plans, the red marks are about where you'd put the insulated rail joiners. The yellow highlighted reverse loop is the one you recognized and is straightforward. The green and blue reversing sections are where these 2 plans differ. The advantage of the second plan is that the reversing sections are longer so that you can handle a longer lighted passenger train. The rule of thumb is that you want the reversing section to be longer than your longest electrically active portion of your train, which in the case of a lighted passenger train is the entire train. In the above plans, its best to have a separate AR1 (or equivalent) to feed each of the 3 highlighted sections.

Hope this helps.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

Here's yet another way it could be done that could allow you slightly longer reversing sections than plan #2 above:


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

The suggestions in Mark's post # 4 is by far the best solution. It affords the longest isolated sections.

Don


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