Hello,
I am only theorizing. I am not doing it yet, and wont do it unless it is totally safe.
Image that I have one layout, with a big outer oval, and a smaller inner oval that is connected for entry and exit from the outer oval by two pairs of switches in standard configuration. In other words, in a regular layout, a train could run solely on the outer oval, solely on the inner oval, or switch into and out of the two. About as simple as you can get.
The Neutral post of the transformer is connected to both ovals at all times, with the neutral wires running to the outer rails.
The Center Hot rails of the two ovals are insulated from each other, by having the fiber pins inserted in the Hot rails at both the ingress and egress points of the switches. Just two simple power blocks..
IF one wire is run from the Hot post of the transformer directly to the Hot Rail of the outer loop, with a switch between the two points being turned on, a train on the outer loop will run at a speed designated by the throttle (voltage) lever on the transformer. But what if I also run a separate wire from the Hot post of the transformer directly to a rheostat, with a switch between those two points, and then a wire from the rheostat directly to the Hot Center rail in the inner oval?
With this arrangement, would I be able to turn on both switches, set the transformer throttle lever to a fairly high position, have a train running on the outside oval, and THEN put a second train on the inside oval, gently raise the rheostat handle from zero to up a bit, to allow less hot current to flow to the inner oval than is going to the outer oval by the direct hot wire, and have the second train run at the same time, but at a lesser speed, than the train traveling on the outer oval???
In other words: two track systems, sharing a totally common Neutral wire from the transformer, but with different hot wires running to the center rails of the systems, one straight from the transformer and controlled by the transformer throttle, and the second, running from the same hot post but with a separate rheostat inserted to reduce the voltage flowing from the hot post of the transformer to it, with the goal that the inner oval train will run at a different/lesser speed.
Or, does the sharing of the Neutral wire post on the transformer create something dangerous since two different amounts of hot current are flowing into the two track systems? Will something start heating up?
Thanks for any info.
Mannyrock
