Wiring turnouts and color lights - need Help!!!

[Sp1d3y]

I have started my garden railroad again from my 6 year break and move and what not. I want to do a couple of things and am not sure how to wire them correctly so shorts and fires etc will not take place. I basically want to wire a turnout and when it is switched certain ways a colored light will light up.  Example: I throw the SPDT center off switch to the top and the turnout then switches to the right making the train go to the left and a red light comes on indicating that the train is moving off the main line.  Then vise versa if I throw it down the opposite happens and the light turns green and I know the train will be on the main line. This is outdoors and I have a tight budget. Open to many ideas on how to make it possible and do not have very good wiring skills - made a few shorts happen before.  I am also looking for a drawing if possible. 

 I will be placing the switches in a rail side building where I can open the roof and have all the switches ready and beable to drop my transformers in  plug them up and run.

Thank you all for your help/

 

Jason

[lownote]

I've been trying to do the exact same thing. As far as I can tell, if you have an LGB switch you need the EPL supplemental drive. It's basically a switch that fits in the end of an existng drive motor. That's what I need. I believe if you have Aristocraft switches they have a conection built in.

 

I've been working on making a signal out of plastic tubes and something for a shade--don't know what yet--using LEDs for lights. Leds can be easily run from track power

[Sp1d3y]

I'm sure glad some one else has had the same idea.  I have LGB turnouts and was cleaning them all up one day, especially the motors that came in them.  So I hooked them up to the small little 1amp power pack and noticed if I were to turn the LGB dial to the right the switch would go one direction and them I would have to turn it off of course. Then when I turned it the opposite the turnout would turn the other direction.  Now I figured why not a rocker switch doing the same thing with the center being off and always going back to the center to take the place of the LGB transformer.    I have read a large amount on this EPL supplemental drive and am not to sure what it does? expand?

 

Thanks again - if you figure anything out that works good please let me know lownote.

 

Jason

[lownote]

The Epl thingy is a double pole/double throw switch that's activated by
the actual swith motor. It can actually do some cool stuff--I had one set up where it would
power a siding when the switch was throw to the right, and then when the switch was thrown to the left it would cut power to the siding. So I could park a train on th siding while aother ran on the mainline. If you click on this link

 

http://www.lgboa.com/data/downloads/00559interim.pdf

 

There's some pretty good info about the EPL switch. Here's a thread I started at aother forum that has a lot of useful info

 

http://www.mylargescale.com/Community/Forums/tabid/56/forumid/9/postid/26222/view/topic/Default.aspx

 

 

 

 

[EMPIRE II LINE]

 Example: I throw the SPDT center off switch to the top and the turnout then switches to the right making the train go to the left and a red light comes on indicating that the train is moving off the main line.  Then vise versa if I throw it down the opposite happens and the light turns green and I know the train will be on the main line. This is outdoors and I have a tight budget. Open to many ideas on how to make it possible and do not have very good wiring skills - made a few shorts happen before.  I am also looking for a drawing if possible. 

 I will be placing the switches in a rail side building where I can open the roof and have all the switches ready and beable to drop my transformers in  plug them up and run.

Thank you all for your help/

 

Jason

 

 

Yeah Jason,

That,s exactly the easiest and cheapest way to do it, I have a pre-built console with numerous SPDT switches mounted on it, and I use multi wire, color coded, telephone cable to hook to the different LGB type switch machines, that's if you plan to add more switches at a later date, than just add another SPDT to your console.

I use this system along with the LGB type switch machines, in my sheltered storage yard areas.

How ever, out-side on the main line, I use Slow-Motion, Tortiouse type machines, mounted under the rail lines, my layout is a raised plat-form type, allowing for under-side mounting of the switch machines, out of the direct sun light and weather.

Let me know, and I'd E-mail you some pictures if you'd like......

Byron C.   

[Sp1d3y]

lownote: I found a website with a goodwiring schematic take a look

Www.girr.org/girr/tips/tips1/lgb-1600.html

It would be easy to add different colored lights on either side and I do like the other idea where if there was a double pole then the siding could be thrown on or off too. I think most of my sidings will be placed between a switch and another transformer so I would only need one transformer for a few siding and can place power or cut it off. The other thing I read was to use a 16-24 vac source an a/c power. Hope I did by burn mine out-LOL I am going to stop by lowes or home depot and get a couple spdt switches

[lownote]

That won't get you the lights though. I've built a couple switch controls using that schematic, and it works well, but it doens't give you any options for controlling lights, because it's a "momentary on" switch

[Sp1d3y]

what if u used a double pole double throw and wire it to just give power to the light after the switch is thrown?

[Sp1d3y]

well I am just guessing now but I talked to two other people who are looking into it. There has to be a way to make this happen so the lights will always be on. I will post again once I know something about it.

Thanks again


Jason

[Sp1d3y]

I think I might have something now.

The switch will be a SPDT momentary on switch used to pulse the motor and make the turnout move from main line to the other line.  On the gear box housing the pulse motor there is an arm extending out the back, This is what we will use.

I am going to create another box with a pole coming out of it and will create a top and two lights: red and green. Each light will have a half cover so make them visible in the day light. Wiring for both lights will have a seperate micro reed switch.  The magnet will be made on a sliding swing arm which can be hooked up to the back of the turnouts arm. Power will be made seperate from the switch itself.  When we push the momentary on switch in a direction the arm will move which will move the sliding swing arm inside the black box with a mounted magnet and when close, the reed switch will either open or close the red or green light.  In turn the light will always be lit as long as there is power. Everything will be in a water tight box made for the outdoors.

 

 

Ideas/suggestions??

 

Jason