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Train pauses then resumes when going over Kato double crossover

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  • Member since
    May 2024
  • 1 posts
Train pauses then resumes when going over Kato double crossover
Posted by janda on Sunday, May 26, 2024 5:48 PM

All of my locomotives pause and then resume when going over Kato double crossover. The Zephyr Express doesn't detect any short circuits and AnyRail 6 doesn't find any reverse loops. It only happens when the locomotives are crossing and not when they go straight through the crossover.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

  • Member since
    February 2002
  • From: Mpls/St.Paul
  • 13,892 posts
Posted by wjstix on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 3:59 PM

Sounds like the frogs are dead (a common design) so the engines are losing power going over the diamond. You may be able to add power connections to the frogs so that they are powered. The other option - harder in N than in larger scales - would be to use engines with a decoder with some type of "keep alive" attachment that would provide power to the motor during the brief power cuts.

Stix
  • Member since
    September 2004
  • From: Dearborn Station
  • 24,281 posts
Posted by richhotrain on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 4:39 PM

I did a little research on your problem and here is what I found in similar situations. The problem with the Kato double crossover is somewhat common. The solution is to wire all four ends of the double crossover to ensure that power is continuous throughout the crossover. I cannot say for sure that this is the solution to your problem, but it can't hurt to give it a try.

Rich

Alton Junction

  • Member since
    December 2004
  • From: Bedford, MA, USA
  • 21,481 posts
Posted by MisterBeasley on Saturday, June 15, 2024 4:42 PM

I kind of agree.  When I expanded my layout, I decided to get away from short Atlas turnouts to Walthers turnouts on the main lines.  This also involved changing to Tortoise machines which gave me the opportunity to power my frogs for no additional costs.

I discovered that a lot of engines performed better with live frogs, not just the short wheelbase ones.

It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse. 

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