Last year, I upgraded to a Lionel GW-180 transformer for my Christmas Tree layout. I had previously used a BW-80 for 14 years, but it failed on me. Anyway, everything lights up properly when I turn on the transformer, but if I increase the throttle to a certain point, the lights on my buildings all go dim. I noticed it last year, but some of my terminals were not getting power as well, so I assumed I had a short somewhere. I ran down all of the wiring after Christmas, and tightened up some bad connections. Forgot all about it, until I hooked it up last night. The layout is only 6x6, and there are less than a dozen buildings on it right now. They are all wired to barrier strips, which are connected to the accessories terminal on the GW. I understand my accessories output is adjustable, but from what I read the default is a constant 12v. Why would it go down when I hit the throttle? By the way, the train does not seem affected by this problem, it runs just fine no matter how much throttle I give it. I admit I am no electrical engineer, but since the layout itself has never been changed, and only the transformer is different, I can't figure out what is happening. Nothing in the owner's manual addresses this specific topic. Anybody have a guess?
Original Post
