dimming railyard lights

[Anonymous]

Hello, i reciently bought two small lights for my layout, that i wanted to put inside my two stations, but my problem is, is that since my light is hooked up to my power pack, in the ac slot, the light is always on, and always at full, which seems to make the whole station glow up, what can i do to mask the bright lighting to that it looks normall?[|)]

[Anonymous]

Well, first off, you can put a on-off pushbutton or toggle switch that is able to handlee the amount of voltage/current you are using. That way you can turn the light on and off. If you wanted to go more complex than that, you can use a dimmer switch instead of the toggle/pushbutton. That way you can dim the light. If the glowing station is still a problem, you might try painting the inside of the building black except for on the windows. I don't know if that would stop the station from glowing entirely, but it would be a start.
Reed

[cacole]

Depending on your knowledge of electronics, you have two options. One is to install a potentiometer in the circuit, which will allow you to vary the voltage to the bulbs. A potentiometer, also known as a volume control, is fairly easy to wire into a circuit. If you don't know how to wire one, an electronics store that sells them should be able to explain it to you. Sometimes, there may even be a wiring diagram on the back of the package.

The second choice, which is not nearly as effective, is to put in a set value power resistor, but knowing what value to use can get to be very complicated. Unless you already have a lot of resistors available of assorted values and can make up a quick test jig using a couple of alligator clip test leads, it could take a lot of time and effort to get the right value for the effect you desire.

Actually, there are three possibilities -- the most expensive of which would be to purchase a small step-down transformer with a 16V primary winding and something like 8V secondary, to cut the voltage to the bulbs in half. But here again, finding such a transformer would be difficult, and you would need to know ahead of time, through experimentation, what your output voltage needs to be to achieve the desired light output.

[Fergmiester]

Lights in structures are always a problem. The options above are good but will not solve your problem completely. Most kits are made of styrene or whatever and will not stop the light completely unless you paint the inside of the walls and fittings with a neutral colour like beige ( good thick coat or even two coats will do the trick)

Another option is to put two light bulbs in the structure and put them in series (one wired to the other in a straight line) This will half the voltage and make the lights dimmer. Be careful as the voltage drop is lessened the amperage is increased which may require a heavier gauge of wire. I don't think this will be a concern if only running two lights in series but will become an issue if you run multiple lights in series.

For lighting in my buildings I use mini Christmas lights. They're cheap!

LED's are fast becoming another option.

Hope this helps

Regards
Fergie

[dano99a]

I bought a lot of 5 cheapy power packs (tyco etc. etc.) and I have them all lined up in a row on the side of the layout each power pack has enough for a several bulbs (as long as they are not the 12volt kind). Wire the lights to the throttle (DC points not the AC points).

So, I can control the intensity of the lights just like controlling the speed of a train, the end result is I can control the lights in certain districts, some are brighter than others.

Hope this makes sense.

[Don Gibson]

ILLUMINATING BUILDINGS:

1. Paint insides black so light does not show through sides.
2. use smaller bulbs and place them strategically.

3. A separate power supply simply puts a finishing touch on it.

[Anonymous]

thanks, my problem is that there is only a little hole in the bottom of the two stations that is about the size of a quarter so i really cant get insie the station, can i open that hole up??

[Anonymous]

For lighting in my buildings I use mini Christmas lights. They're cheap!

LED's are fast becoming another option.

Hope this helps

Regards
Fergie



christmas lights arent that evenly spaced, what type do you use, and where can u get them so that they work?

[Don Gibson]

Can I enlarge the hole? ... Either that or remove the roof.

WHO makes a station that you cannot access the inside or take apart?

CHEAP solution if you are not a modeler: use 24 volt bulbs - they glow on 16 volts.

[cwclark]

you can score the floor out with a hobby knife and a straight edge ...hold the straight edge in place for a guide and with the hobby knife, make an the original cut, then go over and over the cut again and again until the plastic is cut thru...the lighting is not a big problem..you can put in a potentiometer to act as a dimmer switch..or a fixed resistor to dim the lights...the resistor will get hot and you don't want to touch it after the lights have been on for any period of time...it is good to cut the power back a bit anyway with a resistor...it makes the bulbs operate cooler and they will last longer...Chuck[:D]

[Anonymous]

Even if your bulbs are designed for AC current, you will get longer life by using DC current. Also, most commercial HO powerpacks generate excessive voltage, especially through their AC accessory outputs. I once measured 28v on one popular model (identity witheld to protect the guilty). A fairly easy way to solve both problems while still using your AC accessory outlet is to get a bridge rectifier and a 12v voltage regulator from Radio Shack. Both parts are inexpensive and include usable instructions on how to wire them.

If you want to get a bit fancier, its also a relatively easy project to buy a variable-voltage regulator. This little package allows you to specify the output voltage based on the value of the resistors wired into the circuit. This is much more effective than using trial-and-error to find a suitable fixed-value resistor (as Cacole says above, while there is a simple formula for determining resistor values, in the "real world" there are other issues, especially at low loads, that in my experience mean that the simple formula does not deliver the expected results; also, if you add more lights and thus alter the load on the circuit, your original fixed value is no longer the suitable one). The formula for choosing your two resistor values was printed on the package the last time I bought one. For bulbs rated at 16v, I find that 12v works well; for bulbs rated at 12v, I use 9-10v.

Regarding light blocks in buildings: I find that cutting black construction paper to fit, is much more effective than painting the inside walls and certainly no more difficult.

[Fergmiester]

QUOTE: Originally posted by nscaleboy

For lighting in my buildings I use mini Christmas lights. They're cheap!

LED's are fast becoming another option.

Hope this helps

Regards
Fergie



christmas lights arent that evenly spaced, what type do you use, and where can u get them so that they work?

I normally chop them up into individual lights. These lights are sold in Walmart, Canadian Tire, etc. the more bulbs to a strand the lower the voltage, you can also buy replacement bulbs for these strands. and I can't see why you can't make the hole bigger providing your not taking out a tie beam or a critical component .

[Anonymous]

What if i put masking tape over the light, would that dim it down?

[cwclark]

masking tape will not allow the heat to dissapate from the bulb and will burn it up quicker...you can get a pack of 5 resistors at radio shack for under $ 1.50...start with a 25 ohm and work up until you get the glow from the bulb you desire...

[Noah Hofrichter]

Dano, what a great idea! I've got to go look for old power packs on e-bay now.

Thanks and kudos,
Noah