Simple DC wiring help

[Schooner]

Pre-amble: I work away from home, but would like to get back into modelling (and achieve a little something positive to take out of this god-awful year). To this end, I'm trying to put together a 'super-kit' to enable a simple 00 layout to be built in a period of leave I have coming up in the new year. This will require effective planning to pull off, for all intents my first 'proper' layout since adolescence, and leaning on the experience of others will continue to be essential.

 

My eletrical knowledge is minimal, and practical skills rusty, so I'd like to highlight my ignorance and start my learning with an appeal to RMWeb for help.

 

Request: Advice on how to wire up an Inglenook track plan, for DC, using

•  Gaugemaster DS Controller (pre-existing and the best part of thirty years old, but apparently fully functional) x 1
• DCC Concepts' Cobalt iP Analogue slow-acting point motors, x 3
• DCC Concepts' S-Lever control switches, x 3+ (if advised, there's budget to get a pack of 6)
• Heathcote motorised gate, x 1 (servo motor)

 

Signalling will none-existant, I believe, and I'm happy to leave lighting etc as a follow-up project unless advised otherwise. I think all requirements can be met with 3 switch-levers, but I'm open to alternatives. 

 

Trackplan: Harlequin's Inglenook (vertically flipped), presented as a canal wharf at the turn of the last century. Current plan below:

 

PECO long uni-frog points, Code 75 BH (for inset track, what was I thinking?!)

 

First attempt: Trying to follow the diagrams in the linked manuals, above:

 

I appreciate the information must be lodged around this forum somewhere, but I'd appreciate any advice to help me on my way.

 

Cheers,

 

Schooner

 

PS. Layout planning thread here

[John ks]

Schooner

As shown the cobalt's wont work

If you want to use the Gaugemaster to power the Cobalt's the the point lever will have to be wired as a DPDT switch 

(if the point doesn't move when the lever is thrown then chance the wires to terminals 4 & 5 on the lever IE black to 4 & red to 5. 8 & 9 remain as shown)

OR

You can get a Cobalt CDU2 power supply & wire as shown

 

Quote from DCC concepts 2 posts down

The CDU2 is totally unsuitable for operation with an analogue slow action point motor.

It is a capacitor discharge unit and designed for use with solenoid motors and will damage the Analog IP 

(You may be thinking about the PSU2 - which is a +9v/0v/-9v unit - however - no longer available and replaced with the SPS12 unit as a split voltage supply.)

 

Regarding the crossing gates . I've only looked at their webpage & I think you will need to wire the servo something like shown

 

 

 

John

 

 

Edited December 17, 2020 by John ks

[Brian]

In addition to the corrected drawing above.

A Servo control board needs just two wires to operate the Servo one way then the other. So one wire will connect to the Cobalt motors common change-over switch contact tab 6 from the Heathcote Servo board and depending on which way the point/motor is to operate the servo the other wire will be on tab 4 or 5, not both.   So in the drawing remove the Brown wire and connect pink wire to either 4 or 5 

 

[Schooner]

Thank you both, much appreciated. It'll be helpful to have the parts in my hands to suck it and see, but even better is have some good advice on how to make a success of it beforehand

 

No promises not to darken the doorway again in the new year, but you've given me a cracking headstart. Thanks again,

 

Schooner

[DCCconcepts]

On 10/12/2020 at 22:56, John ks said:

Schooner

As shown the cobalt's wont work

If you want to use the Gaugemaster to power the Cobalt's the the point lever will have to be wired as a DPDT switch 

(if the point doesn't move when the lever is thrown then chance the wires to terminals 4 & 5 on the lever IE black to 4 & red to 5. 8 & 9 remain as shown)

OR

You can get a Cobalt CDU2 power supply & wire as shown

 

Regarding the crossing gates . I've only looked at their webpage & I think you will need to wire the servo something like shown

 

 

 

John

 

 

 

John,

 

The CDU2 is totally unsuitable for operation with an analogue slow action point motor.

It is a capacitor discharge unit and designed for use with solenoid motors and will damage the Analog IP 

(You may be thinking about the PSU2 - which is a +9v/0v/-9v unit - however - no longer available and replaced with the SPS12 unit as a split voltage supply.)

 

We would also suggest that the accessory output from the controller is not used.

They are often unregulated/unsmoothed. (Usually "rated" at 12v and typically measuring 14-16v with no or minimal load and higher voltage spikes unseen with a multimeter)

The Analog IP requires a regulated DC supply.

 

Best Regards,

The DCCconcepts Team

 

 

[John ks]

39 minutes ago, DCCconcepts said:

The CDU2 is totally unsuitable for operation with an analogue slow action point motor.

It is a capacitor discharge unit and designed for use with solenoid motors and will damage the Analog IP 

(You may be thinking about the PSU2 - which is a +9v/0v/-9v unit - however - no longer available and replaced with the SPS12 unit as a split voltage supply.)

Thanks for correcting my mistake

John

[Schooner]

Thank you @DCCconcepts - I had wondered about the mix of CDU with non-solenoid motors. Great to get info straight from the horse's mouth, as it were. I'll get a new wiring diagram together in the coming days for review if I may, and then check baseboard construction with the electrical system in mind.

 

Cheers all,

 

Schooner

[Schooner]

Updated plan, reflecting previous advice (I think!) and the purchase of a dedicated 12V supply, for critique please:

Thoughts?

 

Assuming that's okay, the remaining question is whether the addition of 2 more servos to the system, each linked to a point motor, and left off for clarity, will bring any issues?

 

The wiring would be simplified by the use of an alternative power source (DCC Concepts DCP-SPS-12) but this just seemed overkill for so small a layout. Might it be worth it though?

 

Thanks, as ever  

 

Schooner

[John ks]

Looking at your current drawing I see nothing wrong

 

One thing i would considering changing is the way you feed the DCC from the tracks to the cobalt

Instead you could feed the cobalts directly from the DCC bus

 

The top drawing is yours with the modifications

The lower drawing shows a simplified DCC bus wiring

 

The Optional IRJ's. the gaps(X) in the DCC bus & the switches etc in the shaded area are optional & 

are there to make fault finding easier

The switches could be replaced with a terminal strip

If there is a fault on the layout then disconnecting ( or switching off) part of the layout will help narrow down a short to part of the layout

 

If you  get a DCP-SPS-12 you should be able to power your servos from it (IF DCC concepts reads this then please confirm that this is OK)

Ensuring the total load drawn from the DCP-SPS-12 is less than its rating

If you already have the power supply then this is an unnecessary expense.

 

John