Just wondering if anyone has tried hooking their Walther's Street Lights into the wiring for the Woodland Scenics "Just Plug" system? Just trying simplify things and also avoid running MORE wires under the layout if I don't need to...
As far as I know, all the Walthers street lights are 12 to 14 volt incandescent lamps. The W/S Just Plug system is all LED. There won't be enough current to drive the Walthers street lights from the Just Plug power supply.
Good Luck, Ed
The Walthers street lights are 16-volt incandescents. I run them at 12 volts, which gives a nicer, softer glow and helpts them last longer. The bulbs, unfortunately, can't be replaced so once one goes you have to get a whole new streetlight.
So, I too run a separate "street light bus" on each section of my layout, and each bus has it's own toggle switch for power. I only turn them on at night, which helps preserve the bulbs. I've been running them for years and have yet to lose one.
I think that a simple 2-wire bus is easier to deal with than the hub-and-spoke concept of the WS lighting system.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Thanks guys. Totally forgot about the WS lites being LED's. My bad. Thanks for your input. Street light bus it is then....
If you are running incandescents, you can use 12 volt ac transformers from Radio Shack, or I use a couple old Lionel transformers, which allows me to adjust the voltage to around 10 or 11 volts. you can pick up old transformers at train shows for cheap.
Yeah, cheap "train set" transformers work perfectly for powering and dimming incandescent lighting. I have two on my layout, as the amp draw of a whole bunch of 12 volt bulbs can trip the circuit-breaker of some "cheapie" controllers, but the dimming aspect can really extend the life of the bulbs!
Mike C.