When you select on your transformer (here a Lionel 1033) which post will serve as the "Common or Ground Post", then:
1. Is this wired to the center rail or the outside rail?
2. Is this considered the "hot" wire or the "neutral" wire.
3. Is this typically done with a red wire, or a green wire.
Reason I ask, is that I am very confused. I thought that on a 1033, the U post was always by definition the common or ground post, and then you just selected post A or B as the variable post, depending on what level of voltage you want. (The tiny printed wordings on the top of the transformer seem to indicate or steer you towards this.)
But, I have a reviewed a thread from last year on this board, where someone posted a chart from Lionel, showing that on ae 1033 transformer, you can if you want select post A or B as the Common or Ground Post, and the U as a variable.
Right now, I have the U post connected to the center rail, using a red wire. (Does that mean I selected it as the Common or Ground Post?). I have the A Post connected to the outside rail, with a black wire. The face of the transformer says that this is giving me 5 to 16 volts variable AC. My trains run fine. Am I hooked up wrong?
Here is the big picture to all of this. I am installing two Lionel 022 switches in my layout, and I want to run a fixed voltage AC line to each switch separately, using fix voltage plugs. BUT, based on the chart that was posted, my current hookup (which I "think" is the U Post as the Common or Ground, and the A Post as the variable) does not seem to allow the B or C post to serve as a fixed voltage provider. If this is true, then I can't supply a fixed voltage line to the switches using my current wiring set-up.
I am a total idiot when it comes to this stuff, so I appreciate all advice.
My OVERALL question, I guess, is this: How do I adjust my wiring on my 1066 transformer, to supply 5 to 16 volt variable current to the track, and a fixed voltage line to each 022 switch (hopefully high enough to make the switches operate smartly, but not burn out.) The wires attached to the track are currently red in the center rail (soldered) and black in the outer rail (soldered).
(And Geez, how did 12 year- olds and their white collar Dads figure all of this out on Christmas morning when they tried to hook up a train set in the 1950s?? I would imagine that fires and burn outs were common.)
Thanks for all advice.
Mannyrock
