Hello all,
I am getting back into this hobby after a hiatus of around 20 years when I had a layout in my bedroom as a child and young teenager. Back then I had a very simple DC setup, a couple of controllers for a couple of loops... you know the story.
I have started to construct a medium-sized depot layout. This also includes two main lines, which whilst mostly useless on the layout at present, will give me an excuse to expand at a later date. I decided early on that I wanted to use DCC, as it seems to give a lot more flexibility and just seems to be the way the hobby has gone in recent years. All I can say is wow! Things really have moved on!
After doing a bit of research, on YouTube and elsewhere, I have gained a rough understanding of the best way in which to wire up the track, electro-frogs and point motors (almost!), although I still have a lot of questions regarding the power source, controllers, point and signal control and probably more! Please understand that I am very new to DCC and am mostly useless when it comes to electrics, although I can solder etc. I will probably be using DCC Concepts components where possible.
I do hope that this is the correct place to post such questions, please correct me if not and I can move it to the appropriate section!
1. Do I connect the point motors to the same bus as the track? If not, what's the best way to do this?
2. How do I power the layout? Is it simply a case of buying a controller?
3. I understand that I can control points from a handheld controller the same way I would control locos. If I was to start out with this setup is it easy to upgrade to a system that has a mimic panel, individual levers etc, or is it best to start with the system I ultimately want?
4. When I come to extend the layout, can I have multiple mimic and control panels for different areas?
I apologise for the rather novice questions, and many thanks for taking the time to read.
Best wishes,
Ben