I am just starting a new layout with DCC (first time wiring for DCC). I have 18 G wire for the bus & have tried the wires that come with Atlas switches to run from the track to the bus & have 22 G bell wire to connect from the bus to the NCE cab.
1. Are there any suggestions for connecting to the bus wire? I have been cutting & splicing with wire nuts but am wondering if there is a tool to remove the insulation mid wire & could then solder the track feeds to the wire.
2. the engine I bought was DCC equiped & in the store had a designation to the number on the engine. Does that remain consistent or does it revert to some other number when I put it on a new cab system?
3. I haven't yet soldered the joints & track wires because I wasn't sure if the the wires I used were too small.
At this point I am basically not getting any activity from the DCC locomotive. I am about to try the system with DC power & a DC locomotive to look for shorts & gaps but I basically wired every gap.
Any other beginner suggestions on track wiring?
In my view you are way light. safe bet is 14 ga for the bus (some would say 12 ga) and 20 or 22 ga for the feeders. Also 14 ga from the cab to the bus minimum.
heavier gage wire for sure, also solid rather than stranded.. rather than using capnuts I would use a suitcase connectoror terminal block to hold the feeders to the main.
as for soldering the wire to the rail, make sure to tin the tip, the rail and the wire are tinned . 2 seconds should do it with a tinned iron.
For a small layout - 18 gauge bus wire is fine. Make sure you have a 'drop' from every piece of track to the bus, and use the 'Quarter' test when you are done. The 'Quarter' test is holding a quarter against the rails woth the power on. It should force a shutdown of you DCC system immediately. Try this all over the layout to make sure you do not have a high resistance connection.
If you are going to solder - Use a 'Stripmaster' were stripper. You can open a 3/8" section in the middle of your bus to solder to. Very quick, and easy. Use insulation 'paint' to seal the connection. I picked up mine at a local home improvement store in red/black. It is also used for marking tools by dipping the handles , so it comes under several names. Here is a link to the Stripmaster:
http://www.lowes.com/pd_34029-12704-45-292_0__?productId=3095867&Ntt=stripmaster&pl=1¤tURL=%2Fpl__0__s%3FNtt%3Dstripmaster&facetInfo=
Jim
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
Hi,
1 Ditto, wire gauges are a bit different over here, but the above goes, it's continuity that counts and no crossed wires(we've all do it), I did use me teeth but they're knackered now.
2 Once a chip(decoder)'s CVs are set they can only be re-programed to change them, or shorted out with a big screwdriver maybe.
3 Set up a test-track, a yard of flexi on a bit of T&G with a block of spunge at each end'll do, to checkout new aquesitions, unless it's AC12 or a Bigboy, then you need a bit more room.
After being at it for over 40yrs you start to have problems, but I'm still enjoying the hobby, don't know when to give up.
Be in touch.
pick.
My self, never smaller than 14 gauge again! I burned up $200.00 in decoders before I found that was the problem. What fooled me was it would take 10 to 40 hours before the decoders would BBQ.
Make sure you do the quarter test as you add track!
Ken
I hate Rust
Thanks for all the suggestions. looks like i need to buy different wire.
I have been laying the flextrack with caulking to keep it stable. Would you all recommend soldering the connections before caulking or would it be reasonable to solder to the outside of the rail after the track is down?
If you are going to solder to the outside of the rails, I would wait until the track has been laid, that way you can drill the hole for the wire as close to the outside rail as possible, and everything is stable. Using caulk is a good idea,
I think before you go out and buy new wire, one question should be answered. How large is your layout? Bus length will determine the size of the bus wire needed. 22ga for feeders is fine if you have enough of them.
Martin Myers
At this point I am basically not getting any activity from the DCC locomotive.
You might want to check the address of the loco. New locos usually come with an address of 03. You might also want to reset the entire decoder and start from scratch.
I mindlessly run 12 gauge solid buss feeders on my medium sized layout and tend to follow the center of the most dense trackage pattern beneath the layout runs. My layout is a ceiling mounted affair in the form of a long U shaped shelf with 24" shelf depth all the way around the 30 foot long run on each side. About 80 feet of 12 gauge feeder is used. I have two large supporting cross members at 10 feet and 20 feet along the 30 foot shelf runs on each side. Being an electronics engineer, I link across these cross members with more 12 gauge buss to each side at these points, thus further lowering the electrical resistance of the entire system. The "belt and suspenders" mentality.
As I lay 36 inch sections of Code 70, HOn3 track, I tin the rail at the joiners, then solder the joiners well. Only then do I flex any curves into the new 36" section. After tacking down only about 18" of the new section, I go back to the joiners just soldered and drill holes for #20 "pre-tinned" solid feeders. I solder them to the outside of the rails at the already tinned joiner area and finally take a very short run of the through-table 20 gauge feeders to the 12 gauge buss. (often under 4-inches.). I then form the last 18" remainder of the flex track and trim the ends with a Dremel moto-tool cut off wheel. Before spiking down the last 1 foot section, I tin it and yet another 3 foot section as well, put on the joiners and solder as before, continuing the process as I go. I often have to put a tie or two under the joiner/solder/feeder area. These I obtain from moto-tool sawed off short-end pieces.
Things progress smoothly, more or less, following this policy of the largest wire for the buss and rather heavy 20 gauge used as very short feeders. Electrically, the train is running off 12 gauge copper and not N.S. rail which is a terrible conductor of electricity being less than 20% as conductive as copper. with all the feeder shunts along the line and 12 gauge connecting those, the resistance to the engine off the rails is minimized tremendously.
Example: Let's say that you are in the middle of a 30-36" run between feeders, thus, your Loco pickup wheels are about 15"-18" inches from a copper bussed feeder in either direction. This forms a parallel circuit such that your wheels are seeing only half the N.S. track resistance of the 18" distance. So....Nickel silver- electrical resistance wise, you are never farther than 9" of nickel silver resistance to a pure copper point and most of the time, much closer.
Richard
If I can't fix it, I can fix it so it can't be fixed
I use a wire stripper to slide the insulation back so that I have about 1/4 inch bare wire on the bus. I then wrap the feeder around the exposed bus wire, solder it and cover the area with liquid electrical tape. Seem to work so far. .
hankm I use a wire stripper to slide the insulation back so that I have about 1/4 inch bare wire on the bus. I then wrap the feeder around the exposed bus wire, solder it and cover the area with liquid electrical tape. Seem to work so far. .
That's how I do mine, fast and reliable. Offset the two connections slightly, so there's no chance for them to rub together. In fact I haven't done the liquid electrical tape step yet, and there are no shorting issues.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
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