Thanks for all the help. I finally got it to lightup using a variable supply off amazon. https://www.amazon.com/NES-350-12-Switching-Power-Supply-110-240/dp/B007K2H0GI
I probably should just pull out all the bulbs and sockets and wire for standard 100 wall outlet huh? Hindsight is 20/20. I also just recieved this Union signal switcher relay and have NO idea what to do with that.
As usual, the best advice is to start at the beginning.
Take out the lights, test them with an ohmmeter.
Validate that the operating voltage is 12 volts... often marked on the bulb base.
Test the lights with a 12v supply that has AT LEAST 1 amp.
Report back.
Greg
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I connected a 12V power supply (same one used for my railroad bell ;^) and nothing happened. Tried it on the bottom inner posts. No lights. The bulbs "appear" to be intact - all filaments complete. Seems unlikely that all 4 bulbs are toast. But maybe. With direct power (no flasher) they should all light correct?
Thanks Greg. Someone scared me once saying one side of the terminals "had top stay neutral" or somethign like that so I didnt want mess it up. On that image below Im assuming the connections are the same two posts indicated by exisitng blue connection wires?
Thanks EVERYONE. Success. At first it wasnt ringing well but I had it on its side. It has to be vertical to work correclty. Here it is in working order ;^)
Thank you all for your knowledge, passion (and pateince!)!
Now can you help me with the 4 way lights? Ha ha. Will start new post for that.
Thanks Greg. I did find a basic wall wart 12v power adapter in a drawer (1.5 amps). Will cut the plug ind off, slit the wires, and put aligator clips on the wires and use that on the posts. Hoping my battery chargers and trickle chargers just werent powering because they didnt detect a battery. If this fails I will begin figuring out how to isolate coil using a voltmeter (not my specialty ;^)
the only thing I could think of for polarity was that the bell "motor" might be more efficient in one polarity, depending on the steel core used.. but I agree should not make a difference.
Again, the first thing I would do is apply power directly to the coil and make sure it pulls the armature down.. if that works then test coil and contact, then "further out".
Step one seems to be getting a reliable 12v supply... ha ha.
Yes, it is marked for polarity, but as far as the majority of the components are concerned, it really should not matter. EXCEPT for that capacitor because it COULD be polarity sensitive, so I agree... follow the schematic's markings.
The paper in the photos also states "600 milliAmps" for current, so a wall-wart type supply might work.
Semper Vaporo
Pkgs.
according to the schematic, the left post is positive, and the middle post negative, do NOT connect anything to the right hand post.
You will notice these are the 2 posts that had the "wires to nowhere" attached and how the previous owner powered the unit.
Also, get something with at least 1 amp... if you have a little wall wart, the output current will be specified on it.
Polarity should not matter, unless the capacitor is an electrolytic. I can't tell from the schmatic whether it is or not.
Yes, I suppose I have one laying around for soemthing. Just cut off the adapter plug end to expose the two wires? Does polarity matter in this case?
I'm starting to wonder if basic speed chargers aren't enough to pover it. I ought a Stanley 8amp speed charger and it also didn't do anything. The metal band on that tubular ceramic part is on tight with good connection.
Contact look good on the L shaped connection. I started doubting my speed charger. I* turned it on and put volt meter on its red and black clips and got nothing. MAybe my charger is bad. Charger is turning on when plugged in but voltmeter shows nothing coming out on the red/black clips end. Going to repalce today and report back.
I just remembered another weak link in the circuit... the variable resistor has a sliding contact that could be loose or corroded such as to interrupt the current flow.
It is the large tubular, brown ceramic component on the extreme left center with the wire from the left most binding post connected to the bottom of it. That metal band/ring around it also with a black wire that goes up toward the top of the housing to the mechanical switch. It can slide up and down and must make good contact with the bare metal wires on the right side of the tube shape.
Make sure that metal band/ring is tight around the body of the component.
Wow. I cant thank you enough for the info and careful detail. Im just now learnign about volt meters and will try to figure out testing the compoents with the Voltmeter.
At first I used a small trickle charger for my motorcycle (Battery Tender). I switched to a small battery charger that you see there.
Dont mind the warnings at all. I dont know much about electricty let alone these more complex low voltage items. Trying to restore a 1967 Rock Ola wallbox and learnign a little more. Any info helps me learn.
AQll components move freely and easily - in very good shape. Will go check the switch and learn how to use this Voltmeter on the various compoents. Will report back!
Now what can you tell me about the 4 way railway light?
How'd I miss this posting? Sorry to not get back to you much sooner.
From the looks of the cables you have connected, I'd say you are possibly using a battery "trickle charger" ??? Those are usually good for 4 to 8 Amps, so I'd assume you have enough power to operate the bell.
A possible cause (other than a power supply that is not capable of providing the power) would be that there is an open circuit somewhere. Some quick checks can be attempted with just the power supply you have. Just be careful to not short the power wires to each other... that includes touching the big aligator clips to each other... AND... touching them both to something that has very low resistance (no "load" to limit the current flow); such as having one connected to one of the binding posts and then touching the other one to the other end of a wire directly off of that binding post. If you are using a car battery as the power source, it is capable of dumping several hundred amps and the sudden rush of current can weld the aligator clamps to each other or what they are touching... amidst lots of sparks and flying molten metal. If you are using a trickle charger, you could still get some major sparking so be careful where you go poking around.
Sorry to be so safety minded, but I worry about offering advice to others without at least some 'scare tactics' to TRY to keep people safe.
Ideally now you would have an Ohmmeter, Voltmeter, or some other circuit tester to test that there is not a lose connection or a burnt out component. It is possible that the unit is broken and that is why it was sold to you.
Primary components to check would be the switch that breaks the current flow when the coil pulls the armature down to ring the bell and the coil itself. Bells usually work by energizing a coil to make a strong magnetic field which attracts a metal object (the armature) that in turn pulls something against the gong to ring it, but at the same time, that moving metal pulls a mechanical switch that breaks the circuit so the coil loses power and the magnetic field goes away and releases the metal and a spring (or gravity) moves it back to the starting position, which allows the mechanical switch to make contact again to re-energize the coil to again pull the metal part back... this repeats as long as the external power is supplied.
If the coil is bad (broken wire internally) then no current will flow, thus no magnetic field and the bell doesn't work. If the switch is bad, then the same thing... no worky.
Not much you can do if the coil is broken internally. Maybe (really MAYBE) you could unwind the miles of wire inside it and find the break, repair it and then wind the wire back. (ha ha ha... not worthwhile to try, even if you could do it neatly) Replacing the coil with a good one is the only "good" fix if it is bad.
If the switch is bad, it is possible that you could fix it, if it is just maybe bent to the point where it won't make contact when the armature is in the relaxed state, you might be able to adjust the bend to put it back in contact. It is also possible that the contacts are just very dirty and a good cleaning will fix it.
I think the first thing I would try is to connect the power source as you have it, and then with a stick (pencil, etc.) push on that curved piece of metal that constitutes one of the contacts of the switch to make sure it is in contact with the other contact on the armature.
The switch is shown in the bottom photo of your Nov. 20 10:20 AM posting in the upper center. That long thin curved strip bent over the bronze piece that has the white and black wires connected to it.
It should, with the armature in the relaxed state, be in contact with the reversed 'L' shape metal contact on the black armature.
The armature should be free to move up and down, too.
There are other things that might be repairable, such as the resistor being bad, or a loose or corroded connection someplace (but it looks fairly clean inside so is probably not a problem) Let's see if it is the switch first since it is the most probable problem and the easiest to test by just pressing on it. There are other things to try, but that is the simplest and quickest.
You might need to clean the contacts. Get a fingernail emery board and lightly "sand" the surfaces where the curved strip contacts the "L".
Sorry for delay. So busy, so many projects. I tested it and it did not work. I had it hooked up as per Semepers desciption and in the pictures. 12v maybe not enough juice? I did it with the black and blue wires attached and without. The black and blue wire go nowhere so wasnt sure there were important. They go from thier respective post down and out the bottom and are connected to nothing.
BluPete the words 12 VOLT WALL PLUG just scared me! I hope that was a typo or you misspoke, there is no way you can get less that 120 volts from a wall socket. good luck with the project and keep us up t speed on the results, Pete
the words 12 VOLT WALL PLUG just scared me! I hope that was a typo or you misspoke, there is no way you can get less that 120 volts from a wall socket. good luck with the project and keep us up t speed on the results, Pete
Refers, methinks, to a wall wart. Sort of thing that we used to use to power an old answering machine. Or possibly charge certain things.
They have very poor current ratings, so probably take more than that to drive these units.
I havent had a chance to try it yet! Sorry! Will try it this week and report back. REALLY appreciate all the help.
So? It's been a week... any noise from the bell? Can you still hear? Have the neighbor's filed noise complaints for testing it at 2 AM?
Have you done any investigation of the wiring of the crossing lights?
When I got my "real" crossing lights, there were NO wires, so I don't know what RR practice is with regard to how they wire them, but all that is needed is 2 wires to each bulb and one of those wires from each light can be connected together such that only 3 wires total are needed for connecting up 2 alternately flashing lights. (Even if there are multiple pairs of lights, they can be wired in parallel such that only 3 wires are required from the flasher circuit to the pole the lights are mounted on.
The idea is that the common wire from the pair of lights goes to one side of the power supply and the other side of the power supply is alternately connected to the other two wires by the flasher circuit.
Are the bulbs in your fixture, LEDs or Incandescents?
I have a simple flasher circuit that you can make from easily obtained parts (cheap automotive turn signal flasher) if they are incandescents, and another similar circuit that can be used if they are LEDs (but it requires a hefty resistor to draw enough power to make the flasher device work, which will be a bit harder to get if you don't have some sort of electronic component store in your area... but, well... easily obtained from on-line mail-order places).
I can supply a schematic of the circuit and explain how to assemble the parts if needed. Easy and simple.
I was thinking something more on the line of the white lithium grease we used to use on the distributor cam for the breaker arm of the points. Thin enough to be applied through a thin needle point, yet thick enough to stay in place. But PB would work, at least for a while.
Tom Trigg
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