The last route has been programmed, the layout is now fully operational.
While a nice milestone, I still hava a long way to go to meet my goal of having it running at the NMRA Train Show next month. But its good to know that it all works as hoped.
I'm your host, Tim Warris, a product developer in Port Dover, Ontario. Since March of 2007 I have been documenting the construction of the former CNJ Bronx Terminal in HO scale. For my day job, I design track building tools for Fast Tracks, a small company I own and operate. Fast Tracks makes it fast and easy to hand lay your own trackwork. Stop by our website to learn more!
All the DS-64’s are connected to the Tortoises and relays. Next up, programming in the 30 routes. I am about 3/4 the way through the job and while it takes a great deal of concentration to get it correct, it seems to be going well.
To keep everything organized and clear, I made up these Route Sheets. Each of the 30 routes has a corresponding sheet. I highlight the route on the sheet, and note the turnout settings for that route.
Also included on the sheet are the two crossings that are routed with relays. Each switched frog is identified with a 200 series number. These are set to either “Closed” or “Thrown” to set the frog to the appropriate power. I identified the North and South rails with red and black colours respectively. Each turnout has a unique number.
To keep track of what route information is programmed into each DS-64 I made these sheets. Since some routes require multiple DS-64’s it is easy to loose track of what is where. These sheets will help keep track of all the routes. Some routes require up to 20 turnouts to switch.
All the DS-64’s wired up and in an accessible location for programming. Once all the routes are programmed and tested, they will be mounted under the layout and all the wires trimmed to fit neatly.
The “quad diamond” in the centre of the layout requires special attention. Shown here are the additional latching relays to route power to the 7 switched frogs in the crossing. Each of the 4 routes through the crossing require a different configuration of the frogs. Lots of clicking goes on when the routes are switched.
To make things even more interesting, the tail end of one of the routes is a wye. To keep things working I am using a Hex Frog Juicer to control the reverse section created by the wye. It works 100% reliably. I am quite impressed with these little units.
Here are all the tools required to bring a model of the CNJ Bronx Terminal to life….
I'm your host, Tim Warris, a product developer in Port Dover, Ontario. Since March of 2007 I have been documenting the construction of the former CNJ Bronx Terminal in HO scale. For my day job, I design track building tools for Fast Tracks, a small company I own and operate. Fast Tracks makes it fast and easy to hand lay your own trackwork. Stop by our website to learn more!
Time for an update. I estimated I was about 60% through the wiring process on my last post. Now I am at about 50%.
I finally have all the components I need to finish the project. After scouring all of Ontario for some additional DS-64 stationary decoders I had to resort to ordering some online from Cincinnati. Fortunately I found a shop that had the four I needed on hand and could send them quickly. I am now up to 12 units, which is enough to get it all running the way I want.
It is much quicker to explain everything I am doing with video, so I made this update here. Its a bit long, but it explains in detail why I am using the method I am to operate the layout, which may seem complex and expensive, but in the end will offer the most flexible operation.
As of this morning, all the Tortoises have been connected to the DS-54’s. Next I will hook up the additional power routing relays, followed by programming the routes. Once programmed and tested, the DS-64’s will be mounted somewhere under the layout and all the wiring trimmed.
I'm your host, Tim Warris, a product developer in Port Dover, Ontario. Since March of 2007 I have been documenting the construction of the former CNJ Bronx Terminal in HO scale. For my day job, I design track building tools for Fast Tracks, a small company I own and operate. Fast Tracks makes it fast and easy to hand lay your own trackwork. Stop by our website to learn more!
