First time ZW-C / Legacy Set-Up Questions...

I hope it's not this simple(or maybe I really should say I hope it is), but you need to first dial up the handle manually to what you want the max voltage to be for the handle you are trying to control.  Then you can address your TMCC/Legacy engine as normal by addressing the engine.

 

If the handles are down at zero volts, you will get nothing, no matter what you try to set the voltage to with Legacy (or old TMCC).

 

For ZW-C, the behavior for the 4 handles (dependent on if they are powered with a brick or course!) is that the handles must be set to the desired max output.  The outer handles will start at zero volts and you can turn them up with the knob on the remote.  The inner handles will start at max and you must turn them down if you wish (which is very important if you were to set up a conventional loop on an inner handle).

 

Hope this helps.

 

Final thought (that should not have any impact on your current setup):  I am unsure if the jumpers will provide power to C and D the way you have it set up(only one brick).  I was always of the impression that the jumper only worked to split power from a brick on A or D to power B and C.  Others can confirm or refute.

 

-Dave

 

If you're running a tmcc or legacy engine you must first address tr1 and turn on the power with the boost or red dial and then address the eng number and power it up. If  a conventional engine run it from tr1.

Ron - That was it!!  Thank You! 

If you hit emergency stop, how do you bring up the voltages without turning off the ZWC and back on?

You have to go through the startup procedure Chuck. Once the stop has been executed the ZW-C returns to the startup state with nothing on waiting for a command.

Ron

I hesitate to say this to anyone because I am bad about not doing this.  I have a ZWC & I read the manual & played with the settings to find what went best for my layout & I didn't have any trouble.

Good Luck

Ken M

Yes I read the manual but finding it not saying what I wanted it to say, I thought I'd ask . What I'm missing is how a TPC will restore full voltage using boost without falling back to zero when you let go of boost.

Page 12 of the manual describes how to set the ZW-C for remote voltage control with the cab 1 or cab2.

 

It appears that you set A handle to TR#1. You need to address TR#1 and spin the velocity dial to control voltage. Perhaps you are not addressing the TR# first?

 

Also, the maximum voltage that you can dial up from the cab 1 or 2 is limited by the position of the handle. Push A to full and see what you get when you dial it up.

Edit(sorry, Dave explained this already)

 

You also have to set TR#2 for B.

 

Do you want to run conventional and command mixed or command only?

 

 

Check out the video for ZW-C Lionel 6-32030 Start at around 10:30 and watch for 5 or 6 minutes.

 

Boost will always fall back down when you let go.  So the only way to get the ZW-C to stay at max voltage in command is to turn the red dial.  I have the ZW digital meters on my ZW-C so that I can see when I have it at full voltage before I address my locomotives.  And I moved my loop for command locomotives to the B terminals so that I didn't have to dial it up as often (Although sometimes B and C also start up at 0 volts in command.  A and D always start at 0.).

 

As for the jumpers, they send power to the next set of terminals.  I use one 180W brick for all 4 of my handles, which isn't a problem since it's just 2 small loops on the floor.  If I understand how you set up the jumpers, then there is no power on your D handle at all since the jumper spot is open.

 

My question is there are times when I address my ZW and turn the red dial, and the power doesn't start to go up at all until the dial has been turned fulled around 5 or 6 times.  And being it has worked with my Legacy base, I'm guessing it doesn't need the Legacy compatible mod (What were the signs of needing the mod?).  And what's the best way to program it into my Cab-2?  I know I had read instructions for it at one time, but now I can't seem to find it anywhere in the ZW-C or Legacy manuals.

As far as the legacy upgrade, the symptom is that certain commands can be misunderstood by the system and trigger a full emergency shutoff (as if the red emergency button was depressed on the legacy remote).

I had that issue. Not frequent but it did happen. The swap of the chip was fairly easy.

What the boost control does is turn on the addressed track. Any tmcc command will turn on the track I believe. If you hit tr1 and then the whistle I think that work but I can't try it as my zw-c is packed up right now. What boost does is turns on the power to the addressed track. If it is a tmcc track it goes to full voltage or as high as the handles are set. On a conventional track it turns on the power and sets it to zero volts. The red knob will vary it. Once the locomotive is under way the boost works just like it does for any command engine. Also the emergency stop shuts off every output on the zw-c.

Ron