I have about a 4 foot section of layout that is on wheels. I am looking to wire this section up so I can roll this section away when I need to get into the layout. I was thinking about maybe using phone line for this, so I can easily disconnect/connect things back up.
This section is double track in HO and I will have no more then 4 loco’s at the most on this section at one time.
Will the phone line be safe to use or is their another solution you can recommend?
Thank you for your input.
LION would not use a phone jack. It would not really be able to carry the required current. What you will loose the slow speeds. If all you need are four conductors, the LION would pick up a pair of heavy electrical plugs at the home depot or such place. I would look for something like this. It would really not need to be such “heavy duty” but these kinds of shapes are usually only heavy duty, and you certainly would not want to use a plug that could be installed in the wrong place. If more conductors are needed I’d look through All Electronics (An MR advertiser) catalog to see what I could use.
Whoa there kitty-cat, that 30 Amp plug you recommended is way overkill and will be way over-sized for the application, not to mention expensive! I do however agree that the phone jack is not going to work either as the cable and connections will not be heavy enough to handle the current, IMO.
Better would be something like these automotive interconnects, available from Mouser Electronics. They are available in 2-14 pin configurations and in four colors so knowing which goes where is a matter of matching if you have more than one connection to make/break. You can probably find something similar at All Electronics or Jameco, etc.
I’d go with something like the automotive connectors, too. You don’t need the power-handling capacity of a large plug unit. You want them to be easy to connect and separate, so avoid the ones with awkward locks and latches. Make sure they have some strength, though. If you’re going to be removing the section frequently, you don’t want something like a circuit-board connector that’s designed to only be used occasionally, if ever.
You could use a terminal block and spade lugs to attach the wires, but that will be awkward whenever you want to remove or re-attach it. Spending a bit more for a decent plug-and-jack system will be well worth it.
Great idea JS, thank you.
My removable layout pieces are wired with electronic D-connectors purchased at The Shack. Don’t get them pre-wired - the supplied conductors are too small for model locomotive power (especially if you might have a couple of old juice-hog open frame motors like mine in a single catenary motor.) They are easy to solder wires to and will easily accept #22 wire, which is adequate for short runs.
Since my removable frames are yard throats, I needed 25 and 36 pin connectors. 8 pin connectors are available for lesser requirements.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
While you’re doing this…
Consider isolating a few feet of track on the fixed part of your layout on either side of the removeable part. Run the power for that track through the same plug that you use for the removeable part. This will prevent you from running a train over the inevitable cliff. As a “modeling opportunity,” think about adding signals to show the status of the track, too.
Careful is good, but protected is better.
You might look at an automotive trailer connecter wiring harness. I believe they have 4 wires.
Good luck.
Lee
When I built a removable section earlier this year, I wired mine so that the power is wired to THAT section, and it feeds the section that the approach is on. That way, the approach is unpowered until the removable section is in place. PS, I used an automotive bulkhead connector (the one that transfers power from the engine compartment to the inside of the car).
Automotive connectors will be more than adequate and simple enough to find (wrecking yards) or you could go with the mulit plugs that the shack sells they are not too expensive and they have many options for pins. Another thing I have to agree on is having dead track before the removable area. I did this on my layout and it works great. I made the interlock by feeding the bus into the removable section through a plug and then back out of the plug again to the track’s feeders. This will only power the track when the liftout is plugged in. When the lift out is not plugged in, even my fastest engine will stop in plenty of time. No Back To The Future 3 train wrecks for me!!
Massey
I used A/V RCA connectors(Radio Shack) that I wired with 20 gauge speaker wire (stranded) over 20 years ago for one lift out section, never had a failure with it and it still plugs and unplugs easily. Bannana plugs would also work.
I’ve had good luck with 1/4-inch phone plugs - the large stereo headphone plugs at radio shack are three-conductor, which would give you a common ground and a hot wire to each track.
They snap positively and are sturdy enough to handle alignment duties on a friend’s O-scale layout.
I used bits of Athearn steel freight car weights as panels to attach them to the layout.