tortose switch machines

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
1

I have installed 40 tortose switch machines on a walkabout layout . Total mainline trackage is 320 feet.

What guage wire should I use as a conecting buss and how many transformers would I need to power all these machines. I’m new at this.

Thanks!

2

The electronics guys will weigh in here with more exacting info on power requirements, but I can tell you this. I have 60 Tortoises on my layout and 4 MRC Railpower 1370 transformers. Each transformer is rated at 18 volts and handles 15 Tortoises and 15 Tomar Industries signals without a problem.

Rich

3

A 1 amp 12V power supply will handle those Tortoises and be only about 75% loaded. An 18 guage bus wire to your control panels would be sufficient, from the toggles to the Tortoises you can use telephone wire.

Each Tortoise draws about 18ma, that’s 0.018 amps per.

–Randy

4

I have 36 tortoises and they draw less than 1 amp in total. My layout is smaller and I use one power supply for all. I have a 16 gauge bus and a use 20 or 22 gauge for my switches. I also use a bicolor LED for each tortoise so that adds slightly to the draw.

MIke

5

Oops, forgot about the wire. I use 22 gauge copper stranded wire.

Rich