Hello all. I am wondering if anyone knows where I can buy handheld DC throttles that I can hook up to MRC Railpower 1370 power packs. Preferably corded. I am finding out that most suppliers/manufacturers have discontinued making them. Perhaps someone who has converted to DCC?
Thanks,
Matt
This is the source for my old DC hand held equipment before going to DCC. I'm not a fan of MRC beyond a basic level. Very good quality.
http://www.thegmlenterprises.com/index.html
Richard
I have two of these on my layout. http://www3.sympatico.ca/kstapleton3/851.HTM
I have four MRC Tech II Locomotion 2500 power packs on my layout. On the two that I primarily use for yard switching and traffic in and out of the staging yards, I have these hooked up. They come with four wires. Two go to the AC terminals on the power pack, and two go to the track.
When I initially set up my layout, I had a six-cab power bus going around the layout to each of the control panels to switch the power between cabs for each block. With the walkaround throttles, I disconnected two cabs from the bus and then created a second bus for the AC power from the two power packs. That bus goes out to the main yard and the two staging yards. There, I installed plugs like I'd used between my layout sections to bring the AC power through the plugs, to the throttle, back through the plugs, and to the original cab bus, allowing me to unplug a walkaround throttle (with the train stopped) and use it elsewhere on the layout.
They've worked flawlessly, and being about to be close to where I'm working in the yard and not having to run back and forth between my train and the power pack is a huge plus.
Kevin
http://chatanuga.org/RailPage.html
http://chatanuga.org/WLMR.html
Thanks for the info Kevin. My layout is a 4x8 with blocks for dual cab. Would I have to hook the hand held up to all the blocks?
Oops, I forgot to thank Richard and dschroeder83 for their input. Thank you! Richard, I was not able to open the link that you had posted.
Correct link:
http://www.thegmlenterprises.com/
Jim
Balloon Dude Thanks for the info Kevin. My layout is a 4x8 with blocks for dual cab. Would I have to hook the hand held up to all the blocks? Matt
No, if you have power going out from your power pack/transformer, the hand-held throttle goes between your wires going out to the layout and the power pack. Also, it connects to the AC connectors on your power pack, and not the track power.
On my layout, I already had the four cabs wired directly into my "power bus" (variable DC track power) going around the layout to the control panels. For the cabs that I converted to walkaround, I removed the connections between the two power packs and the bus. I then created a new bus to connect the AC connections for those two cabs into. I ran that bus to the three locations where I wanted to plug in the walkaround throttles. That keeps the AC power separate from the DC power that the trains run on since AC power can damage the motors from what I've read/heard. The AC power then goes down the cord into the walkaround throttle where it is converted into the variable DC power that goes back down the cord and into the power bus and the track.
Matt,
I have a Tech 4, 350 with a Tech 4 Walkaround Throttle. Don't know if that would fit your power packs or not. Found a second one on ebay at a reasonable price.
Good luck,
Cowman,
I don't know if that would work on a Railmaster 1370. Anyone out there have an answer?
The 350 hand held will not work with the 1370, only with the 350 power pack.
Balloon Dude Hello all. I am wondering if anyone knows where I can buy handheld DC throttles that I can hook up to MRC Railpower 1370 power packs. Preferably corded. I am finding out that most suppliers/manufacturers have discontinued making them. Perhaps someone who has converted to DCC?
The Railpower 1370 power pack is at the lower end of the MRC power pack lineup. As such, there was never a specific remote made for it. So what you have to do is use the 1370 as the power supply for a handheld DC throttle. This may sound limiting, but its not. You can use any complete, generic DC throttle attached to the the AC outputs of the 1370.
MRC made a couple of generic handheld throttles years ago - Model 44 and its successors. Some of those required DC input, and some worked off AC. I had one. I wasn't impressed. It had external screw connectors on the handheld, which seemed like a poor way to attach any cord. And it was a rheostat inside, not a transistor throttle, which meant poorer control of modern low current locomotives.
The alternative with MRC is to replace your 1370s with up-line units that have available handheld throttles. The MRC Tech 4 350, ControlMaster 20, and Tech 6 are all examples of such setups. The Tech 6 can also run some DCC locomotives.
A couple of other posters have given you suggestions for currently available DC handheld throttles. A DC throttle is a relatively simple device, and easy to build yourself. There are circuits and kits at http://www.awrr.com/throttle.html and http://home.cogeco.ca/~rpaisley4/Throttles.html. Here is an example of a very simple handheld DC throttle I built from a circuit in Model Railroader. I used an old AHM power pack with a broken rheostat for the AC power supply. The cord is a coiled, corded telephone handset cord. The cases came from Radio Shack, as did the 4 pole plug I used. I moved the rectifier, power transistor and heat sink, and direction relay to under the layout to keep train current out of the handset cord. Cost of all components was less than $20, even at Radio Shark prices. Yes, I still use this throttle today.
my thoughts, your choices
Fred W
Thank you all for all your help and information. Unfortunately I never received any response from the mfrs. But, with all your guidance I was able to find someone who will be able to make one for me.
Thanks again for all of your help. I do appreciate it.