Electrical
This section deals with the various aspects of using electricity in models and layouts and assumes that layouts are 2 rail with nominal 12 volt maximum traction motors. Some (mainly older) layouts use 3 rail or Stud Contact but these systems are now obsolete and will not be covered here.
Modellers interested in developing the electrical side of a layout beyond just running trains are advised to join Model Electronic Railway Group . “MERG (Model Electronic Railway Group) is an international, UK based society for people interested in the application of electronics and computing to all aspects of railway modelling. “
The Society has a very comprehensive knowledge base, special interest and local area groups, a quarterly Journal and a range of electronics kits ranging from a £0.42 train detector to a £97.98 4.5 amp DCC control system.
Various MERG kits have been built and described in these Gazettte articles
Layout Power Requirement.
Amperage required by different types of locomotive, cable sizes, voltage drop, connectors and hardware.
Powering Locomotives and Layout Control
DC Cab Control, DCC, Bluetooth and wireless systems
Point Operation
Solenoid, Stall Motor, Servo, wire in tube and others
Layout Control buses
Cbus, LocoNet, XpressNet and others
Control Panels
Physical and virtual control panels
Train Detection Systems
Block and Proximity systems
Signal Operation and Control
Mechanical and Electrical systems
Computer Control
JMRI, Itrain, TrainController and others
Environmental Control
Sound and lighting systems
