I tested it (all 4 photocells and the logic) and all was well. Then I installed the photocells properly (‘in’ the track), powered up and the sucker is ‘dead’…
All photocells check out ok, all the wiring has been checked, many, many times and I even switched the power input from DCC (on the AC inputs) to DC (on the DC inputs!) in case the rectifier had died. I even replaced the LM339
Whatever I do the ‘setup’ LED refuses to illuminate.
There’s no evidence of any magic smoke, and I’m out of ideas - Help!
Yes i have one, if you have a problem with logicrail, send an e-mail and Chuck usually will respond the same day. my problem was lack of light for the photocells, otherwise it worked great.
We use two of these on the Cochise & Western Model Railroad Club’s HO-scale layout to control signals and gates at a double-track road crossing.
I used infrared LED/detector pairs aimed diagonally across the track as the detectors.
The downside to the system is the timing, which cannot be changed. The circuits are timed according to prototype practice, which is not really good on a model. For example, there is a 3 second delay from the time the circuit is triggered before the gates start to go down, and then it takes another couple of seconds for the gates to go all the way down. Even with the first sensor nearly 8 actual feet before the crossing, this 5 second delay for the gates to get all the way down is too much, and most trains are into the crossing before the gates have responded.
After the train has cleared the crossing and the gates go back up, the bell continues to ring for 2 or 3 seconds after the lights have turned off. Why? Prototype railroad crossing signals don’t operate this way.
The timing should be shortened at both ends of the spectrum.
