Electrical planning for Hackney

For a couple of years (I'm very slow) I’ve focused my efforts on the electrical needs of the layout to support the operational aspects I envisage.   Virtually every aspect has been learned from scratch by reading much of what I’d archived from magazines, articles on the web (Brian Lambert’s electrical tutorials are fantastic!) and from checking various aspects with EBMRS club members, as I’ve been a complete novice.  I’ve now graduated from complete novice to simply knowing a little bit, and I’m sure my approach would well be considered naïve! But I’m enjoying the journey and have a far better understanding now.

Having constructed a plan, I’ve drawn it all out – all 60 pages of it – and this helped identify aspects I’d not considered, or focused my mind so that I came up with better solutions. I spent ages looking through various electrical suppliers’ web pages for their ranges of switches and so on, and I’ve finally got confident enough that I recently ordered all the wire and connectors I’m likely to need.

When I finally finished the electrical plan I started thinking about the control panel requirements.   The layout could - could! – get 6 or 7 trains moving at once, but I’ve planned for 4 controllers.   There’s only one of me (at the last count), but I’ll be able to simply set up 3 trains to keep circuiting whilst I shunt or organise the fiddle yard with the 4th controller.  

The fiddle yard has 13 through storage tracks and 7 dead-end tracks, the controls for which are organised into 4 eastern and 4 western groups through 2-pole 6-way turret switches.   The scenic side is also divided into 8 sections, up and down main, up loop, up and down tube lines, branch, reception yard and coal yard, again with turret switches.    The principle I’ve planned is that each turret switch is split, one pole for the positive track feed and the other pole to control LEDs, with positions being ‘off’, then controllers A, B, C and D in turn.  The LED side will show on a panel of LEDs to demonstrate that a particular controller and section are in use.   This all means that I can assign any section to any controller, with the LED display helping to avoid any confusion.   I hope. 

Then there’s the switches.   There’s a lot of points, most will be Seep motors so need a CDU, but the scenic side are constructed from C&L components and I opted for Cobalt Omega motors for these; the wiring is therefore different for the two types.  I’ve designed the system to light LEDs on a track panel to denote which route each point is set for, through the turret switches so the LEDs are only illuminated when a controller is selected for the various sections. 

I haven’t decided on how I’ll operate signals yet, but have considered the need for a switch on the control panel for each one; and so far, so good…    

Up to this point I have a need for a control panel that will have 4 controllers, 16 rotary switches, 64 LEDs to show control/sections in use, 34 switches for fiddle east, 17 switches for fiddle west, 50 switches for the points and signals on the scenic section, 25 isolation section switches,  2 track diagram panels and 160+ LEDs on them to indicate routes set.     The original intention was to include all the track and signal switches on the diagram adjacent to the part it operated.    Then I planned it all out and realised the control panel would, if done ‘properly’, fill over half the operating well in the layout with little room for me. Hmmm, I thought. Or maybe something a little more pithy, so I had to re-jig the idea. 

I considered dividing the panel in two, having them on wheeled stands, or having them on drawer runners beneath the layout, but no, it still wouldn’t work.  

The picture attached shows the draft plan for the control desk for the scenic section, and you will see that I have colour coded the switches to match the colours used on the track plan, picture also attached.

My solution was helped by a question from a fellow club member.  He asked me if I knew of any signal box diagrams so that he could produce something for his layout, and I found a fantastic one of Gowhole Goods Junction on the Midland Railway, dated 1964.   The link is www.lymmobservatory.net.  Ping!  If I separated the controls from the plan, I’d have one desk for the scenic side and one desk for the fiddle side. The fiddle track diagram would go on the wall, opposite the control desk, and the scenic side diagram on a frame opposite the control position, much like a real signal box, hurrah!  All it needs is a bit of trunking to take the wiring for the LEDs, and all the switches will be in numerical order on the control desks, in similar vein to a ‘box.    All it needs is a bit of route learning to help it along, and as I’ve devised it, no problem.

I’d always wanted the track diagrams to look ‘the part’, and if you look at box diagrams you’ll see the tracks are often drawn in a number of colours or simply black.   I’ve determined the coloured tracks represent the track circuits, for which the signal will have a Rule 55 white diamond plate on the post.   So, as with Bob, I’ve taken that principle for my own needs and applied a colour for each of the 8 section switches.

My drawing for the scenic track diagram is attached.  I don’t have a CAD program, but I used Excel spreadsheets and the drawing objects within it to produce lines, curves, shapes and so on, and coloured them accordingly.   You’ll see (if you enlarge it) each point and signal is numbered, and each track is named, using Gowhole as my inspiration.   I’ve a few tweaks to make to it, but when I’m ready I’ll see about getting it printed in one piece and laminating it between one clear and one white sheet of acrylic.  I’ve already found one company that can provide cut-to-size sheets, and I reckon the two diagrams can be built for around £70 in total.   The acrylic should be able to take the LED bezels ok, and I’ll build it into a slim frame to protect the electrics.  In all, I’m very pleased with the progress I’ve made and very much looking forward to having a working diagram!