The nail polish did the trick! No problems now. Thanks for the tip!
Thanks everyone for your suggestions.
I am getting walking o's, so I know it's a short. A new sound equipped mikado I run seems to have the most trouble, but a GP7 I ran before converting the layout to DCC does short on occasion.
I have narrowed the problem down to the front truck of the tender on the mikado, which seems to be the part of the locomotive on the turnout when the short occurs. I have looked at the tender wheelsets, but did not see anything that looked out of place that might contribute to a short.
First, it's important to determine if the problem is a "short" or an "open".
Why do you call it a short? You don't say. Are you seeing walking "o"s?
If it is a short, and your old power pack never indicated a short, it's possible that the new DCC system is more sensitive than your old power pack. So, if you had a small short, either in current flow or time duration, maybe the old system didn't react quickly enough. I am sure this is where the need for "DCC friendly" switches arose. Shorts (small ones) occurred on the old style power systems too, but the system just sort of powered through it.
Another thought is that you are running different locomotives on your new system. You did not clearly say that you were running the same ones before and after.
It's important to be very clear when you describe electrical problems, as you might end up going in the wrong direction.
Ed
That's a possibility. Snap switches should be DCC-friendly. I have the same problem with Peco turnouts.
The fix is easy. Get some clear nail polish and paint over the rails, just a short distance from the V so the wheels can't connect to both at once. Use black nail polish if you've got one of those Goth girlfriends who can let you have some, or if your significant other is going as Morticia this Halloween.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Look where the rails form a "V". A wheel is bridging this and causing it to short.
Jim
Hi all,
I recently converted my layout to DCC with a Digitrax Zephyr. I have noticed that, since installing the DCC system, my locomotives create a momentary short circuit when going through turnouts. It almost always happens when the turnouts are aligned straight ahead. The locos don't short every time they go through a turnout, but enough to make it frustrating. Also, while just about every turnout on the layout seems to have done this, there are 1 or 2 that seem to be more regular offenders. All of my turnouts are Atlas snap switches. Why is this only happening with DCC, and how can I fix it?
Thanks for any suggestions.