Fastrack uncoupling and CW 80

It says to not connect the uncoupling track to the accessory terminals on the CW80. Track terminals are OK. 

I'm not exactly sure why but I'm sure it has something to do with how the uncoupling track is powered by the track. 

Might have something to do with getting the U terminals the same on both.

What I have is one CW80 providing track power and a separate CW80 for powering my buildings these are connected to a 12 post MTH terminal which is connected to the acc side of that transformer.  I wanted to connect the track to this transformer too through the terminal but now am unsure about doing this...

Because if you connect the uncoupling track to the CW-80, it will start blinking it's light and indicate an overload every time it's triggered.  I just tried it.

Any suggestions as to what kind of reasonable priced transformer a person could use to power 3-4 buildings, the uncoupler and a couple of fastrack switches? 

Hmmm, I have an fastrack uncoupling/accessory track and have had it working on the CW-80 without any problem. Not sure what the scoop is....

I've got 4 of them all wired to my ACC port on my CW-80 and never have had a problem.  But then I also rewired them for the uncoupler to get it's power from the ACC port and not track voltage.

Also, is this a new thing as one of those uncouplers came in a RTR set with a CW-80!

One end of the uncoupling coil is connected to the outside rail. The other side of the coil is supposed to be connected to the "A" terminal briefly for power. So I don't get why it matters what you use for a supply as long as you make sure that the track and the accessory supply are in sync. You can test this by hooking the U terminals of each supply together, set them to the same voltage, and connect a bulb between the two "A" terminals. If the bulb stays off or very dim, you're good. If not, reverse one of the supplies and try it again. If you're good then, dim or off bulb, then re-label one of the supplies so you know.

Interesting. I measured one of the uncoupling coils and it is about 9 ohms. Maybe the regulator in the CW-80 doesn't like a purely inductive load. Maybe I'll try it with a 5 ohm resistor and 18 vac if that's enough current for it.

Actually my CW-80 just handles it without an issue, just the coil. Gets pretty hot though and draws about 2.25 amps ac.

THE REAL ANSWER:

The directions were correct when originally issued with the first version of the CW-80 in the marketplace, which had the flawed wiring scheme making the red "A" and "B" posts common instead of the black "U" posts.

The reason for the caution on the CW-80 from this 2008 manual excerpt is because of the improper orientation/relationship of the "A" post(s) to the "B" post(s) on early transformers.  The first versions of the CW had "A" common to "B", and the "U" posts were variable.  The later versions with "U" posts common, with a "G" prefix date code, will work fine with the uncoupling sections wired for constant voltage from the accessory "B" post.  Program the accessory voltage to give satisfactory operation.

When the manual was printed, Lionel was aware of issue with the binding posts, but was in the midst of a fix for it, which resulted in the modified CW.

Continue to heed the warning about extended operation - the wiring for the Fastrack section heats up pretty fast in addition to the plastic on the track itself, and the new controllers, while looking like the old original 1938 style RCS versions, are not nearly as robust.

Makes sense. 

And yes, they do get hot fast, and the button likes to stick down.