ERR Cruise Lite Install help!

pictures as mentioned

It’s a very simple hookup. I don’t know about the fuses because I’ve never used them. Too many here try to improve an already well engineered product. Re-read the instructions several times. The instructions clearly tell you where the motor leads are to go as well as lights etc. 

Rod and I will have to agree to disagree about the "fuses".  When you're doing a dual motored locomotive with the CC-Lite, having a PTC in series with the motors is good insurance.  The stall current of those two motors will quickly take the board motor drivers out, and I know this first hand!

I am using 750ma hold, 1.5A trip models, Digikey: MF-R075-0-99-ND.  These go in either one of the motor leads.  I only use these for the Cruise Commander Lite, the full Cruise Commander is robust enough to deal with this environment.

The Red lead is center track, and the black lead is the wheels.  The yellow & blue are the motor leads.  Do NOT connect the track to the yellow & blue leads of the CC-Lite, or you'll surely need another one!

Good point John. I didn’t know they were that easy to wire to the  CCL. I’ll certainly start using them. 

Jeremy, please let us know when completed.

Yep, just stick it in one motor lead.  I burned up one of the beta test Cruise Commander Lite boards when my K-Line Interurban got hung up on a switch and stalled both motors.  It was only a few seconds, but the board was toast!  Since I started using those on any locomotive that has a motor stall current more than a couple of amps, I haven't lost another one.  I've even stalled one deliberately to see if it would cook, but the PTC did it's job and no damage.  Wait a few seconds and you're back in business.  Here's what happens with a stall without protection.

Those PTCs are "last time buy". These Bourns ones seem the same...half price.

https://www.digikey.com/produc...75/MF-R075-ND/259967

Yep, there are tons of similar specification PTC parts, so it's not hard to find a suitable replacement.

Sorry for the delay in an update.   I had to work late the past few nights.   So  I wired everything up as I have pictured above.   I placed the unit on the track applied about 3/4 throttle and no function no clicking no Electrical hum or feedback almost like power wasn’t applied at all both conventional and command connected.  So I grab my volt meter and check my track to make sure I am indeed getting power and I get a reading of 35 volts. 😳  I figure surely my cheapo harbor freight volt meter has failed me so I check it again same.  I quickly kill power remove the engine from the track and check it and I get 18 volts.😬. So at this point I’m like well I have destroyed everything here.   Boards prolly shot now.  It’s been a long day I called it a night.

 I get home tonight and start to investigate a little further.   Based of Johns comments I at least did not connect the track power to the yellow or blue I at least got those right.   I also did have the one tpc installed on the hot coming into the board so hopefully I didn’t kill it.   I removed all my connections and started to check everything and I have found that both motors seem to be inoperable now.   When power is applied to them directly they just vibrate.  They sound like there running but no movement.   I had tested both motors before I started the project as this engine hadn’t seen the light of day in 20 years and the both ran fine then.   Maybe the 35 volts took them out I’m not sure.  I will have to get two replacements off eBay and I need to figure out if my board is toast before I go any further.

Is there any way of testing it?  There were no big arcs or bangs or any electrical excitement whatsoever when power was applied.   It was literally like not having power at all.

  I’m not giving up.   I’m not even really frustrated there’s only one way to learn in life and that’s to do.  Thanks for all your help.  I m confident this project will have a happy ending.   Just maybe later than sooner lol.  

Did I read correctly that the motors just vibrate when you apply power directly to them? They are DC motors and will act this way if you apply AC to them.

RoyBoy posted:

Did I read correctly that the motors just vibrate when you apply power directly to them? They are DC motors and will act this way if you apply AC to them.

On my way out the door this morning I checked my power supply o think you hit it right on the head.   I have several of these power supplies I recently set some trains up for my daughter in her room and I used my cw80 for her setup and just grabbed an extra for the work bench.   I didn’t have time to check it  this am but I will dive back in tonight.    Thank you 

I really doubt both motors are bad, that would be a first, at least for me!

Alright sorry for the two month delay.   I was finally able to take a look at this again.    I found one connection issue that I had just missed.   Now I do have some function but I still have some issues.     Again the locomotive I’m upgrading is a basic mid 90’s alco A unit.   No sounds no horn.  When I address the engine it seems to come up fine in command mode.   However when I accelerate it in forward direction it just takes off at max speed and will only respond to  direction change command.    Now once direction has changed to reverse the engine seems to operate almost as it should.  I can accelerate and decelerate it with the cab-1 throttle.   However in forward as soon as I touch the red nob it just takes off at max speed and won’t respond to anything but a direction change command.  Any thoughts on what to Check?      I am somewhat confused on the feature codes.   I read in the directions it can affect operations but I am not sure which code to use since I don’t have any features?

First off, the feature code you should use for this one is AUX1/8, try that first.

romiller49 posted:

It’s a very simple hookup. I don’t know about the fuses because I’ve never used them. Too many here try to improve an already well engineered product. Re-read the instructions several times. The instructions clearly tell you where the motor leads are to go as well as lights etc. 

Rod,

some of us do carry spare tires in a car. 

gunrunnerjohn posted:

First off, the feature code you should use for this one is AUX1/8, try that first.

Tired this out tonight  with the same functions.  I tried the same setup with another  engine just as a test with the same results.  The engine will also not operate conventionally.   When the command signal is removed.   When the command signal is removed I get zero function not even a headlight.   

I currently have this setup. 

Yellow wire to one motor leg 

blue to one motor leg 

black to motor legs , common rail 

red to hot rail 

Well, it sounds like it has a problem with the driver FETs, but without looking closer, it's hard to be sure.

Quick question GRJ,

How does the PTC you cite work, when it has a "time to trip" of 6.3s?

Just wondering...

Look at the whole data sheet, and also the FET datasheet.  Check the trip curves for the MF-R075  The time to trip at the 4A design specified current of the FET's on the CC-Lite is around 2.5 seconds.  As the current goes up, the time to trip is even shorter, by the time it gets to 10A current, it's about .2 seconds.  What kills the FET's is the heat, the point of the PTC is to remove the excessive current before the FET overheats.  The IRFR5305TRPBF FET used on the CC-Lite actually has a max current of 31 amps, however that implies a REALLY GOOD heatsink, something that is not present in the small form factor of the CC-Lite board.  The object of the exercise for the PTC is to shutdown the high current before the FET overheats and smokes.  The 4A rating of the board is probably somewhat optimistic for continuous running, but I've run it with two RS385 sized motors and a dozen cars with no issues.  I don't recommend that as a general practice, I was doing beta testing.