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dcc for kato unitrack?

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  • Member since
    June 2008
  • 17 posts
dcc for kato unitrack?
Posted by Mr.F on Thursday, June 19, 2008 1:17 PM
i am working on my first laryout.  it is 5x10 with kato unitrack and more than one line.  i am considering switching to dcc so that i can connect all the lines and operate with a single controller.  i need some advice about which direction to go?  does kato make dcc or is there another brand that will work with it.  i have many oc the kato switches and all are connected with the kato clips and kato switch controls.  thanks
  • Member since
    May 2008
  • 880 posts
Posted by Last Chance on Thursday, June 19, 2008 1:33 PM

I run Kato Unitrack with the Super Chief System from Digitrax.

I use Power Distribution Boards to feed the Kato Track Feeder Sections divided evenly around my small room.

I insulate my switches with insulators on the two small frog rails and run feeders to all three possible routes.

I drive my Kato switches with a Digitrax DS-64's in groups of 4. Some switches will recieve momentary center off switches for faster work when switching gets deep.

I dont have reversing sections or any wyes. That will be later.

I make sure to look at each of my 8 inch feeder (Or was it 9?) tracks, remove the plate and find which side the blue wire feeder goes to. I write that side "Blue rail" on the underside of that feeder track and try to match it through out the layout to keep everything on the same rail.

Several parts of the layout are double insulated joiners to create thier own power areas so that if I short in the industrial switching, it wont halt the town work on the other side.

I rely on the loconet to run the layout. The switches have thier own power and wiring, the rails have thier own power to run the choo choo and everything else is isolated as well so that one short somewhere wont nuke the entire place.

I write the radius of each curve section underneath with a marker. That way i can tell which track Im working with at a glance. 31 inches for the mainline, 28 and change for the runaround and 21.5 for the industry.

Track is track. No matter who makes it.... atlas, kato, peco etc etc etc. Two metal rails on plastic ties in HO scale any way you want to slice it.

Cheers.

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