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An expensive mess

richbrummitt

Entry posted by richbrummitt

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I've lost count of how much I've spent on wire, and yes it looks almost exactly like last time you saw it. It is however fully wired up. Unanswered questions still include: Why does it all take so long; and is it possible to make it neat? Here's a gratuitous picture from the other end of the layout.

 

4622180397_bd824800df_b.jpg

 

I have used 3PDT switches (a 4PDT in one case) to allow the track to be double isolated unless the correct route is set. This should, in theory anyway, work just like insulated turnouts - only better. When I built a previous layout with live crossings using just a SPDT switch for the polarity I regularly ran into a short circuit. The idea for the arrangement as described is to remove this as a possibility! The catch points are operated by a SPDT switch which knocks the feed out to one rail so you have to change these too.

 

The cross baseboard connection is permanent (the boards are permanently connected. I made four four core cables up with lengths of heatshrink. Two for these and one each for the PSU and controller connections. The latter are plugged into DIN sockets on the underside of the small central piece with the middle legs on. Hopefully it will still fold up correctly!?

 

I haven't tried it out yet, but am looking forward to playing trains on my own layout. Then it will be back into the garden for further woodwork, basic landscaping and some initial colouring.

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Dave Holt

I can only agree with your bafflement. Experience so far with my first layout wiring is that it just eats wire! An experienced layout builder said he bought wire in 100 m reels but I thought I wouldn't need anything like that on my small branch terminus layout, so ordered 10 m coils - big mistake. I've only wired the smallest of 4 boards (5 including the fiddle yard) and already had to order further supplies.

On the question of neatness, I've tried hard to be neat by running wires together in sort of trunk runs, bound with cable ties - you can see if I achieved this on my "Delph" blog. One drawback is that wires don't just run fron A to B but have to detour to follow others in the trunking, so this adds considerably to the amount of wire used.

 

I'm also using multi-pole swithes for points to swith crossing and rail polarity and to provide some limited interlocking with signals and track power feeds. I hope these will prove more reliable than relying on the change-over contacts built into the point motors (Tortoise, in my case).

 

Are you keeping records of which wires go where - wiring diagram or terminal lists, etc? Might help fault finding later.

 

Good luck!

 

Dave.

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  • RMweb Gold
Donw
  • RMweb Gold

Wiring always takes a long time. For best results each piece of rail needs to be fed. Most layouts have a lot of bits of rail. The only way to speed it up is to be methodical and plan ahead. When I first started with telephones we used to tie up all the cables with lacing twine. When I went back years later they had abandoned it and just run them anywhere. Provided you know where the wires start from and go to it doesn't matter how they run. It you get trouble just replace the wire. I find vine eyes or large cuphooks make usefull wire guides. Its easy for other wires to branch off or join rather than trunking. I also leave enough slack to re-terminate if the wire breaks or I need to disconnect for testing.

Wiring is just a means to an end like baseboards. The layout itself is looking good.

Donw

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