MTH Smoke units

Ps1 uses track power to the smoke unit.  Ps2 and PS3 use 5vdc

So the smoke units on ps2 and 3 only use 5 volt to make smoke unit puff smoke. Thanks

Actually, PS2/3 uses PWM for both the motor and the smoke element.  The motor is electronically controlled, and the max it'll see is an effective 5V.  The smoke element is also PWM controlled, and it's seeing a waveform of around 18-20V PP.  The RMS voltage that it sees is in the 5-7 volt range.  By the time you get to around 7 watts in the smoke unit, there's a lot of smoke coming out.  The reason for the electronic control is so you can vary the smoke amount with the remote settings and also the effects from the remote, labored smoke for instance.

John, I was going to use items from Bangood. I was going to use a bridge rectifier using the track power to make DC power then a timer that's able to change the amount of voltage also. I was going to put into a Williams GG1 since there is a lot of room inside and maybe an older P5a the older version with non operating pantographs.

For the PS/2 smoke unit, you'll need a regulated DC source.  Since I'm assuming you're trying to simulate the steam heater pressure release function, you'll also have to pre-heat the smoke unit before running the fan to get the proper effect.

I test the PS2/3 smoke units on the bench with a couple of bench DC supplies, one for the fan and a separate one for the heater.  Obviously, they have meters so I can see what is happening.

John would it be better to use a proto 1 smoke unit or another smoke unit. Thanks for your help. Joe

Well, whatever you use, there is some custom switching involved.  For the steam release feature, you need a smoke unit that will warm up it's heater in advance, and then fire the motor to do the steam release function.  Of course, for added realism, it's nice if the steam release is timed with the sound.

The PS/1 smoke unit just run whenever it has power, so unmodified it won't do what you want.

Perhaps I don't understand what you want to do, but for a GG-1, the only smoke feature I can think of is the steam release.