Hi folks,
I seem to have myself in a wiring mess. I have a section of track that is connected to two switches that run the train across my loop to reverse the direction of the train. I know it worked before but somehow I now have a short circuit problem. The only thing I can think of is the U leg of the wiring switches from the outside rail which turns into the inside rail of the track headed back the other direction. Since it is the U connection I don't think that should be a problem but I shorting something out somewhere. Any ideas?
What kind of track + switches are you using ? If you have switches with the non de-railing feature such as Lionel O-22 switches, do you have the insulated fiber pins in the correct location on the switch ? How many power leads do you have to the track ? Are you using Lionel CTC Lock-ons ? Make sure wire connections are the same to all track connections. Also - you might check that the center rail insulators that insulate the center rail from the metal tie are not loose or missing.
Steve
I have o22 switches on both ends. The 3 ft of track is gargraves. I don't have a seperate power feed. I think I have the ins pins correct but I am not sure.
Can you be more specific on what is happening? The outer rail on 3-rail track is common. That eliminates any shorts on a reverse loop that would be a factor with 2-rail track.
Are you referring to the insulated pins on the outer rail? One is required per side with O22 switches to properly activate the non-derail feature. Here is a link to a thread I posted on another site that explains further the placement of insulated pins. http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?t=21118&highlight=crossover
I have insulated pins on the outer rail of the curved section of the switch. I will take a look at the link as see if that matches. Thanks for the help.
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