How to phase 1033 transformer with Powermax

Consolidated Leo posted:

I believe that I've read everything there is about the 1033 transformer and how it has an unusual setup with posts U and A going to track power.

 Nothing unusual about it - that is the standard for 1-train transformers. You have the correct connections there.

Consolidated Leo posted:

 

I've tried to phase the two using every possible combination of wires between the U and A posts of the 1033 and the A/U posts on the Powermax. No matter what I do, I get a flashing green light from the Powermax. I've reversed the polarities of one of the plugs but that doesn't help. Is it at all possible to get these two to play nice together? I need the common ground on the outside rail to work to create insulated block sections.

Something is missing from your diagram, as you do have the common connection right.

What are you connecting the PowerMax red terminal to?

1. Connect the red wire to the U post on the 1033.
2. Reverse polarity of the plug to the 1033.
3. Connect the black to the U post and the red to the A post.
4. Reverse polarity again.
5. Always get a blinking green light on the Powermax.
6. Nothing else connected including the track shown in the diagram.

Your mixing two different sine wave forms together. You may not be able to use the outside rail for your aux. items ground.

Consolidated Leo posted:

1. Connect the red wire to the U post on the 1033.
2. Reverse polarity of the plug to the 1033.
3. Connect the black to the U post and the red to the A post.
4. Reverse polarity again.
5. Always get a blinking green light on the Powermax.
6. Nothing else connected including the track shown in the diagram.

This is all wrong.

However, your diagram is correct.

BUT, the red post goes to your accessory, NOT  to the 1033.  The accessory gets the common from your outside rail(or anywhere that a common connection is available - rail, black "U" post, 1033 "A" post, etc.).

Never connect the red to the 1033, this is where your short is. You will always get a short with any 2(or more) transformers if you connect dissimilar potentials directly together, and with the PowerMax, you only have 2 amps to work with(2.5 with the PowerMax Plus) and that green light will  flash right away.

The PowerMax & PowerMax Plus will struggle to operate solenoid activated accessories including switches as the "fold-back" feature(flashing green) will kick in almost all of the time. They will be fine with bulbs and DC can motor operated accessories up to their rated output.

Dave Zucal posted:

Your mixing two different sine wave forms together. You may not be able to use the outside rail for your aux. items ground.

That doesn't matter. It could even be DC current, we are just sharing a common here.

Rob: The connections that I listed were just an attempt to verify that I could get these two transformers in phase. This video from Lionel instructs that this is the way to check. I know that the diagram would seem to be right but my tests prove otherwise. You are right that normally the aux power would be connected to accessories such as a light bulb and the outside rail to complete the circuit.

Dave: I believe that you are correct. Let me dig up the schematic diagram for the 1033. The first of the secondary coils is a 5 volt winding for the whistle circuit. After that comes the A tap and the rest of the windings. Since this A tap begins further along in the secondary coil, that would offset the sine wave by some fraction that may not match up with the one generated from the Powermax. Is there some other way to rig this thing using the existing posts on the 1033? I think not. We are out of phase.

Consolidated Leo posted:

Rob: The connections that I listed were just an attempt to verify that I could get these two transformers in phase. This video from Lionel instructs that this is the way to check. I know that the diagram would seem to be right but my tests prove otherwise.

Again, your diagram IS  correct.The fact of the matter is that if you power up your accessories instead of dwelling on whether the PowerMax is in phase or not, they will work just fine. All you are doing is confirming that there is a potential by shorting the transformers together.

More important is that you are sharing a common return. The accessories will run from the PowerMax, the trains from the 1033. The phase is not important... in fact when you get to working with very large currents it becomes advantageous to have them out of phase. You can even share a common with AC & DC circuits.

Alright, Rob. I finally got around to tryin' this out last night and after fixing some other problems with the track I was using, I bench tested the two transformers together and they worked perfectly. I can't say that I understand AC very well but I'm happy to take good advice from the folks on this forum. The only thing I'm wondering about now is why phasing is even an issue. Certainly in this case there is no problem. I put a lighted caboose on the track and rolled it over an insulated outside rail section that provided common AC ground to the light of an old semaphore and it behaved as one would expect.

Once again I thank you for your advice!

  -- Leo

Consolidated Leo posted:

...The only thing I'm wondering about now is why phasing is even an issue...

It's very important when powering adjacent power districts for track power, and in the instance of the CW/PowerMax architecture, you need to establish a reference for the common.