newbie

[Aceman]

hi im a lil new to the dcc world i have a dcc system now and im getting better at it and plan on up grading soon but i have some questions

 

  1. what are bus lines and what do they do

 

  2. how many power feeds should i have on one layout,right now my layout is going to be about 7x14 with muliti loops and im using e-z track

 

  thanks for everyones help and im sure there will be lots more questions coming soon

[Scarpia]

A bus line can be considered the main power line that runs around your layout, and supplies power from your power supply, to the track feeders. This should be a heavier gauge wire, and you can think of it like the power lines out side your home that run from pole to pole. On my HO layout, which is a small one, I am using a 16 gauge bus line.

Feeder lines run from the bus to the track itself. They are normally a smaller gauge wire than the bus, and are similar to the wire that runs from the power pole, to your house itself. Again on my layout, I have 18 gauge feeders.

Per quantity, that's a bit different. It's not dependant on the square footage of your layout, but the track plan. Most recommend a feeder at least every 3 feet, but even that can change depending on if you use  blocks, or insulated turnouts.

I just added two turnouts to my own yard, and realized that due to the fact that I used insulated turnouts, I need to add at least 4 more feeder drops to the bus to fix what are now "dead" spots on my layout. 

I hope that helps.
 

[superbe]

Hey Aceman,

As previously stated the bus lines are the main power lines for your track. Of course there are two, one for positive and one for ground so you will want to buy perhaps a red and a green or black to differentiate them. The size of your layout determines the gage. Generally the gage runs between 12 to 16 gage with 14 being the happy medium.

As for track feeder wires they usually run from 18 to 22 gage. As for the number the general rule is that every piece of track should either have soldered rail joiners or a feeder wire. 

I'm still working on my first layout and have found it to be challenging but fun. Problems crop up and when I work them out (usually with help from the forum) I feel good about it.

This forum will help you more than you can imagine.

Good luck,

Bob

 

 

[Aceman]

im using ez track so my power lines hook right up to the rerailer track so im guessing i have to use more then one power line to the track

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Aceman

im using ez track so my power lines hook right up to the rerailer track so im guessing i have to use more then one power line to the track

I use EZ-Track also but I used the connection on the rerailer in only three locations. Those are in blocks 4, 7 and 10. In the remaining thirteen blocks the feeder wires are soldered to the rails and all rail joints are soldered with the exception of the gaps between blocks. Why do I have blocks? The layout was originally wired for DC operation and having the blocks allows me to localize a short circuit should one occur.

[Aceman]

what are blocks and should all layouts use them

[fwright]

Blocks are electrically isolated sections of track, usually on the order of a train length long. Blocks are used for DC block control so that a throttle controls selected sections of track. By changing which blocks are connected to which throttle, a given throttle can control a given train anywhere on the layout.

DCC does away with the need for block control and the associated wiring. With DCC, each locomotive has a decoder that responds only when selected by the throttle. Hence the saying, with DC you control the track, with DCC you control the locomotive. The requirement for DCC wiring is to deliver a sufficiently strong signal to every part of the track.

Fred W

[Aceman]

how do you go about wiring these blocks and what do you need to do this,and my layout right now is about 8x8 with 3 loops and im running 5 trains at once with no problems so far