OK I have a wiring question and I hope you can help or at least point me in the right direction. I am using bachmann ez track for my layout. I am to the point where I am ready to start wiring the switches. I plan on using minatronics Momentary 3 pole switches for the 12 switches we have. I plan on using a bachmann beginner set DC power supply to power my lights and switches, as I am using a Digitrax Zyepher for my layout. SO I get the two outer positive and negative wires…they control which way the switch is thrown. What about the common wire? I understand it daisy chain’s through each switch but where does it begin and where does it need to end? Does it need to come off the ground? Or does it just connect between each saith and that’s it?Please help. Thanks Dana
I did wire switches like you are doing about a year ago and had the same questions like you have. Here is a good diagram that I used. http://www.building-your-model-railroad.com/solenoid.html
Dana,
[#welcome] To The Forums.
Eric’s Link Made Clickable:
http://www.building-your-model-railroad.com/solenoid.html
Any other questions you may have about Electrical issues, try to post in Electronic’s and DCC Thread. You will get a better response that way.
Frank
Yeah… I was thinking that too, but then I seldom look over there, it being mostly DCC and being mostly NOT DCC.
There is a common post on the switch machine, and a wire for each of the two coils that are inside of the machine. The common post is common to all of your switches and goes to a single terminal on your power supply (Or it can go to ground if that single terminal on your power supply also goes to ground.)
The other terminal on your power supply goes to your buttons or switches, and it matters not if it is DC+, DC- or AC (although your switch machines may have a requirement for either AC or DC, or maybe will do either) So one pair of buttons (lets say they are buttons) connects to a particular switch machine and will drive the switch points right or left according to how you have wired it.
Now the LION (being a LION) has used a single wire for this and can send a +12v DC signal to move the points to the right and a -12v DC signal to move points to the left. This single wire connects to a pair of rectifiers at the switch machine routing the power to the proper coil. LION did this to be compatible with the rest of his switches which are of course Tortoise machines. Be that as it may, the main reason for doing this little traick is to cut down on the amount of wire you use. On your layout, who cares how much wire. On mine with 14 miles of track and over 200 conductors in my cables one wire is a big deal. That stuff is expensive.
Now that I have so throughly confused you (for that is the way of a LION) him can have you over for dinner.
ROAR
Since you are using EZTrack, I assume you are using twin coil snap switches. If that is the case, then the diagram Eric posted is the simplest and clearest answer to your question. Don’t be confused by any of the many overly complicated naratives that I’m sure will be offered by well meaning members. As you gain more understanding of how electricity works, you will find many people in here have developed very efficient short cuts that can teach you a lot.
If you are using slow motion machines or single coil machines then let us know and different advise will be offered.
[#welcome]
You don’t even need switches. a cheaper way would be to install brass screws on the panel at the turnout locations (two at each turnout) and a test-lead probe wired to the power supply. Just touch the screw with the probe to throw a switch, or just quickly brush it over multiple switches to line up a route.
Thanks! The mobile version of this forum is not very clickable friendly. Dana, hopefully the info on that site works out for you!
Ok so following this diagram which wire from which terminal point would get daisy chained to the next switch in my layout? I plan on running a “BUS” line for power to my switches and I need to know which would be the common and where it begins and ends. Lookinig at this I would connect one side to the bus to the middle terminal on the switch and the other side to the switch it self and make the last connection direct from the toggle switch to the track switch… so what gets daisy chained to the next 10 switches?
This is probably simple to you guys but I just dont want to make sure I am doing this correctly.
Thanks Again
Dana
I looked it over and thank you very much…but I think I might be a little more confused now… I know one of the points needs to be daisy chained to the next switch but looking at the drawing I am not sure which one it is. I dont want to go trial and error that can get expensive…any thoughts. Thanks Dana
I have always, since the mid 60’s, used the old screw and test probe switch system on a layout diagram board. Works fabulously! Saves a lot of money on formal, momentary switches and indicator lights. Oh I also used a 40 volt capacitive discharge supply to the coils. That really slammed those puppies home and never burned out a coil due to my own custom design for the discharge system.
Now that I am DCC I am using standalone decoders and Tortoise machines. I only have about 10 switches on the entire layout. Saves you from having a rat’s nest of wiring, all streaming back to the big board.
have you read the following thread on the electronics forum cs.trains.com/mrr/f/744/t/226913.aspx. (why can’t this link be made clickable)?
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Striped
I don’t think you want to daisy chain them. I have a power bus lines from my AC power source and one side I have the ground of my track switches wired too. For the Atlas switch is the black middle wire. So each of those go the bus line. For the SPDT switch I have the other side of the bus line wired to each of the middle pole of switch. The two outer poles get wired to each of the side the track switch. So now when you flip the switch the current comes through the middle pole, through the SPDT switch, out one of the outer poles then travels to the track switch, moving the turn out, and then through the ground wire back the AC source. Once you can picture how the electrons flow it just clicks but trust me, I was beating my head against the wall trying to figure this out when I started wiring up my switches even though I had the diagram.