Engineer-Joe posted:Ryaninspiron posted:
The TIUs are powered by smaller power bricks and those get switched on via a master DCS power relay. Then the main and branch lines each have seperate switches and relays that connect the TIU output channels to the tracks when the club has a DCS day. (The club has issues running DCS and Legacy at the same time so only one system is ever on at once now. That should be a thread of it's own.)
I also do not know the exact reason yet. But I imagine one benefit is that they are subject to derail spikes a third of the time. These design choices were made long before I joined and I haven't asked why yet.
I have to ask, just how many TIU channels are connected?
2amp total/.2 amp draw per channel = 10 TIU channels?
I'd guess 75' per channel max for 3 rail so maybe = 750' total track?
I am amazed at the posted differences with signal problems. I run an outside layout of G scale around the yard. I have maybe a couple hundred feet of track on each TIU. I only use the 2 fixed channels right now as it's powered by DC. I added a second TIU when I added another mainline.
I also run 2 rail O scale inside and have a good length of track per TIU channel.
I know some clubs have a ton of track. I wonder if signal loss is more a function of power dips? If the layout is stationary I would believe optimum wiring practices would be easier to achieve here.
these readings were only taken with a the meter on the Z4000 so far (so not quite a precision current meter) and the setup (based on my observations so far) is 4 TIUs with 8 channels each for the 2 mainlines (they take up the bulk of space in the 4000sqFt warehouse space) The 5th TIU handles the two branch lines with 2 channels each.
I personally did not know about that 75ft limit per channel you just mentioned. but you are close on the estimated track length. But I also was not in the club during the construction of the current layout.
Interestingly the branch lines like the subway that runs the perimeter of the layout has the worst issues. In testing on Monday you could hit a horn and it would either not work or get stuck on.
