# Wire questions



## Box Car Steve (Feb 21, 2011)

Is it ok to run all your wires to your accessories on your transformer? Just not sure how to go about this....... or can I use just another transformer for the accessories? I did noticed that when you blow the horns attached to the accessories it slows the train down.......... good or bad? So much to learn! Keep umm running!


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## Zeus-cat (Feb 5, 2011)

As long as you don't hook up the same things to multiple transformers you should be fine. I have a DCC setup and my main transformer runs the locomotives and my three DCC turnouts. I also have 4 remote controlled turnouts that I run using a seperate transformer. The DCC power runs through all of the track to power the locomotives, including the four remote turnouts. However, the DCC power does not power the actual switches in these turnouts; the other transformer does that. In my case the two electrical systems are completly seperate and it works fine.


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## jzrouterman (Nov 27, 2010)

As a general rule it is usually better using a seperate transformer or power source for accessories. You've already seen the reason why each time you've operated your horn while running your train, and that's only using one accessory. Powering more accessories with the same transformer would make your train run even slower. 

Routerman


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## cabledawg (Nov 30, 2010)

I run a seperate 12v 10 amp power supply for all my accesories. City lights, building lights, and turnouts all run off that one source. As more stuff gets added, I'll build a fuse box so if one circuit shorts, it doesnt kill the whole thing, or worse yet start a fire. But I only have a few lights and the turnouts dont draw power until they are used.


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

I use separate supply for all the accessories, That gives you a steady supply for lights and such and doesn't rob power for the trains. Just get a a cheap second supply, I use an old charger from a cellphone.


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## concretepumper (Jan 2, 2011)

NIMT said:


> I use separate supply for all the accessories, That gives you a steady supply for lights and such and doesn't rob power for the trains. Just get a a cheap second supply, I use an old charger from a cellphone.




Really Sean?? A cell charger can power lights and crap? Tell me more please Sir. :worshippy:


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

Anton suggested this before, to interupt.

I use 9 or 12 volt DC output to power lights or electronic boards.
You find them for a buck at sales. It would cost me 12 or more to build one from Radio Shack parts. 

I first started using them on the auto reverse ciruit board.

DC output is getting harder to find.

For normal lighting you need to find one with a larger output something in the range of a printer may have .5 amps to spare.

You need a meter to determine the positive wire because I cut the plug off before use.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I've heard it said that DC is harder on incandescent lamps than AC, is there any truth to that?


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## concretepumper (Jan 2, 2011)

Man I have a ton of used power packs!


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

Transformer technical question. HA! Beyond me. TJ should know, boats have DC lighting systems.
Anyway, AC chargers can be found. The DC I need is for the circuitry.


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## sstlaure (Oct 12, 2010)

NIMT said:


> I use separate supply for all the accessories, That gives you a steady supply for lights and such and doesn't rob power for the trains. Just get a a cheap second supply, I use an old charger from a cellphone.


That's exactly what I do....I've got half a dozen old adapters wired for my powered turnouts, lights, etc. They stay constant voltage that way and the powerpack is used solely to run the trains.

I have them all plugged into a powerstrip that I turn off when I'm done playing to make sure the power doesn't stay on all the time.


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

I'm powering 30 5mm LED lights from one little iddy-biddy 12vdc power supply fed into a terminal strip. Just like Scott, it's plugged into an AC power strip and I switch it off when finished playing with my trains.
The three track transformers are also plugged into a power strip which is switched off when not in use.
Safety will electricity is never old-fashioned 
Have fun,
Bob


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

Cp, Yea there are a lot of chargers and power supplies to be had for cheap or free. Printer power supplies and laptop power supplies are the best, High amperage and very stable outputs. Just read the specs and look for 12 volt to 18 volt works really well, you can get a really simple voltage regulator chip to take any supply to 12 or 5 volts. If you solely want to power LED's you can get Supplies that run 3 to 5 volts and LED's Require very little amps so a really small supply will power a lot of them. 
gunrunnerjohn, AC is better than DC if the DC supply is unbuffered, or poorly filtered.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Actually, my question about AC vs. DC for incandescent lamps relates to lamp life, assuming a constant voltage for both sources.

I decided to test Google, this is what I'm talking about:



> *DC vs. AC operation*
> As tungsten atoms evaporate from the filament, a very small percentage of them are ionized by the small amounts of short-wave ultraviolet light being radiated by the filament, the electric field around the filament, or by free electrons that escape from the filament by thermionic emission. These tungsten ions are positively charged, and tend to leave the positive end of the filament and are attracted to the negative end of the filament. The result is that light bulbs operated on DC have this specific mechanism that would cause uneven filament evaporation.
> This mechanism is generally not significant, although it has been reported that light bulbs sometimes have a slight, measurable decrease in lifetime from DC operation as opposed to AC operation.
> In a few cases, AC operation may shorten the life of the bulb, but this is rare. In rare cases, AC may cause the filament to vibrate enough to significantly shorten its life. In a few other rare cases involving very thin filaments, the filament temperature varies significantly throughout each AC cycle, and the peak filament temperature is significantly higher than the average filament temperature.
> Ordinarily, one should expect a light bulb's life expectancy to be roughly equal for DC and AC.


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## Box Car Steve (Feb 21, 2011)

*power supply*

So I can use a seperate power pack for the accessories! Ok how many things can you hook to the seperate power pack? I've got 2 cheap power packs and one tech 2 for two train setup and one Athern power supply which I hope will cover two layouts!:thumbsup:Oh does the thickness of the wire matter?


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

T-Man said:


> Transformer technical question. HA! Beyond me. TJ should know, boats have DC lighting systems.


Uhh ... err ... ahh ...

"Boats are pointy in the front, and not so pointy in the back."

(Four years of naval architecture school for that one!)


Boats typically have DC lights and accessory systems (lights, etc.) simply because they run off of the "house" DC battery banks ... usually 12V or 24 V DC. Most small boats don't have a generator, so it's easier to run the "house" on simple DC. The batteries get charged via an alternator when the engine is running.

TJ


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## gc53dfgc (Apr 13, 2010)

they don't teach to well at architecture school do they TJ? :laugh:
http://www.canoeing.com/canoes/choosing/design.htm

Some boats don't even have a hull. :laugh:
http://www.toxel.com/tech/2008/07/06/transparent-canoe/

and soon there will not be a difference between a boat and a city. :laugh:
http://qualityjunkyard.com/2009/03/22/city-at-sea-plans-for-the-worlds-largest-ship/
That one ought to make your mouth water TJ do to your love and nautical career.

Union Pacific and GM/EMD have teamed up and discovered how to make train boat's as well. :laugh:
http://www.worth1000.com/entries/334503/train-boat

Though the technology has been around for ages.
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:9,s:15&biw=1131&bih=613

Did I mention they have also created boat cars as well?
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:30&biw=1131&bih=613

and car boats? :laugh:
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...ngQfnj_mvDQ&page=1&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0
All I can say to the last one is I want one!


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

Box Car Steve said:


> So I can use a seperate power pack for the accessories! Ok how many things can you hook to the seperate power pack? I've got 2 cheap power packs and one tech 2 for two train setup and one Athern power supply which I hope will cover two layouts!:thumbsup:Oh does the thickness of the wire matter?


Yes use a separate power supply for all your accessories, The amount of accessories that you can run depends on the size of the supply and the draw of the accessories.
The thickness of the wire does matter, again the size of the wire depends on the draw of the accessories that have you hooked up 18-16 gauge wire should be perfect!


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

For lighting most bulbs we use are for DC power. !2 volt for cars and the others are just flashlight batteries. I am just glad they work on both.

TJ must be a hull designer then?


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

tjcruiser said:


> Uhh ... err ... ahh ...
> 
> "Boats are pointy in the front, and not so pointy in the back."
> 
> ...



Ed's 2 cents for the day,

Proper terminological name for a "boat" should be Vessel.
They are all vessels, some more different then others.

In Navel terms , a boat is a vessel if it is small enough to be carried aboard another vessel. (a ship) Another less restrictive definition is a vessel that can be lifted out of the water.


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

ED, it's Naval. 

I can't let it ship, er slip after that inspiring post.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

GC,

Very fun links in your post above ... I especially like the train boat ... way cool!

I just did some ship model tow tank testing in a large government facility outside of Wash DC. The "carriage" that tows the models down the basin (over 1/2 mile long!) is essentially an electric RR engine running on rails that are positioned (extremely accurately) on either side of the basin. Speed can be controlled to about +/- 0.003 knots. Now THAT's some serious DCC control, huh!

TJ


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

Cool stuff, TJ,
During my working days with Motorola Communications I was in on some neato testing along those lines. One day I even got to drive an Abrams M1 main battle tank :thumbsup:, but there was no track to follow, just an ungodly rough road that shook all the fillings out of my teeth 
Cheers,
Bob


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## gc53dfgc (Apr 13, 2010)

raleets said:


> Cool stuff, TJ,
> During my working days with Motorola Communications I was in on some neato testing along those lines. One day I even got to drive an Abrams M1 main battle tank :thumbsup:, but there was no track to follow, just an ungodly rough road that shook all the fillings out of my teeth
> Cheers,
> Bob


What was Motorola doing with an M1 Abrams? Are they planning an all out war between the phone company's?


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

gc53,
That's probably what they should have done :laugh: but, seriously, I was conducting some two-way radio tests at the General Dynamics plant in Warren, MI, which is where they built those little gems.
I conned the CO into believing the only way I could conduct a thorough and accurate test would be with me driving that behemoth. They drank 4 gallons of gas per mile :thumbsdown: ....no joke, 1/4 mile per gallon!
Bob


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## Box Car Steve (Feb 21, 2011)

*wiring*

OK I used a second transformer which is now doing my accessories, so far so good! This has made a big difference in allowing power to my engines plus alot more power!:thumbsup: Thanks guys!


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

BoxCar,
No need to be noivice, 'cause we're happy to be of soivice 
Keep trainin'
Bob


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