Looking for advice and to see if anyone else has had the same problem.
I have several postwar/newer (not modern era, I don't think) accessories that use special contactors to the track to activate the operating car parked at the accessory, such as cattle stock yard, horse corral, etc.
Most of my layout is FasTrack, except for the yard where these accessories are, where they are connected to old postwar O tubular track that allows the use of the special contactors. I did not want to spend US $45 per accessory activator FasTrack (you know, with the extra two rails that ride into the operating car's shoe). Hence the old O tubular track.
Well the other day I rolled a modern era (circa 2007) Lionel rather large steam loco thru this yard, and with much sparks, the loco stopped dead, the ZW hummed loudly, and popped its breaker, displaying the red warning light (rather quickly, I might add, much to my surprise).
Checking the loco for derailments, of which there were none, I manually pulled it back, and got it to roll thru again. Sparks galore. I pushed it a bit further thru, to reach the tender, and same thing. I pushed it past the contactor, and backed the loco thru it, observing the tender's rear roller short to the grounded extra control rail in the tubular track.
Now I installed the accessory according to the instruction which said to raise the platform, insert the taller ground control rail on the contactor for the car, and that should be it for tubular O track.
Except the larger loco won't roll slowly thru it. At speed, the loco did make it thru, but I didn't look for how many sparks it was generating.
I have another loco, circa 1994 from Lionel, pulling a string of passenger cars with lights, and thus rollers, and no problem.
My dilemma: 1) buy 4 Lionel FasTrack accessory activator tracks at US $45 per pop and hope they work with postwar operating cars,
OR 2) try lowering the platforms to 027 track height and adjust the contactors and see if the car on the O track still works (as well as the large loco slowly rolling thru)
OR 3) pulling the O track out, and going back to 027 track (and platform heights) in my yard.
I have the adaptor tracks for FasTrack that directly connects to O tubular track.
Any similar experiences? Any ideas?
As always, Thanks to All!
