Choosing a Garden Railroad Contr

Choosing a Garden Railroad Control System.

Whether you are contemplating starting a railroad empire outside or you want to change the way that you control locomotives that you already have, there are a number of choices.

· Track Power

o DC Track Power

§ Manual Throttle Control with variable track voltage

§ Radio Control with constant track voltage

o DCC

§ Hand-held throttle control

§ Radio throttle control

· On-Board Battery Power

o Radio Control with no track voltage

§ Batteries in each engine

§ Batteries in towed battery car(s)

· Any of the above can be set up with or without sound

If this looks like a lot of choices, it is. There are a lot of different ways that you can go. Each way has advantages and disadvantages involving a combination of:

· Cost

· Compatibility (between systems)

· Control Range (how far away will it be?)

· Reliability

· Availability (can it be purchased now?)

· Endurance (how long will the batteries last?)

· Complexity (learning curve?)

· Automatic Control Options

I will try to provide enough information here to guide you in your choices. I will discuss the options and include information about each of the above considerations.

First, I’ll define a few of the terms.

DC = Direct Current, generally provided for garden railroads at up to 24 volts.

Variable DC = A method to control the track voltage from zero volts to the maximum voltage. A stationary power pack is normally used, with a control knob or lever to control the output. Positive voltage is supplied to go forward and the polarity is reversed to reverse the direction of the locomotive. Any and all locomotives on the energized track in the same DC wired block will behave the same way. That may be good or bad.

DC Throttle = A manual device that controls and amount and direction of the DC voltage and current applied to the track for variable DC control.

Most equipment that you buy will come out of the box ready to run on variable DC track power. Conversion to any other mode usually requires some electrical modification to the locomotive.

Variable DC is simple initially but can get complicated when the track work gets more complicated, such as with sidings, reverse loops and wyes. The polarity of different sections of the track must be controlled properly in order to avoid short circuits.

DCC = Digital Command Control. This sounds high tech and it is – at least for the people who design and sell it. When properly installed it can be easier to use than variable DC, particularly if you want to run more than one locomotive at once or your track plan is getting more complex.

Most equipment will not run on both DC and DCC. LGB is an exception. Some LGB equipment comes configured to run either way. Some LGB equipment is intended to be easily modified to run on either.

Decoder = A device that can be installed in a DC locomotive that will allow it to respond to DCC signals.

Most equipment, initially purchased to run on DC, can be modified to run on DCC with the installation of a “decoder” in the locomotive, a device that reads the digital control commands that ride on the rails along with the motor power. The decoder decodes the DCC control signals that are everywhere on the track. It looks for signals intended only for the locomotive in which it is installed. When appropriate it interprets the signals to the locomotive and controls the speed, direction, lights and even sounds for just that locomotive. The advantage here is that virtually any reasonable number of locomotives can be independently controlled anywhere on the layout, at any speed, in either direction, without interfering with each other and without worrying much about reversing loops, sidings, wyes, etc.

DCC Throttle = A device, usually hand held and portable to some degree, that can control any DCC equipped locomotive on the layout, generally one at a time.

Booster = A device like a power supply that understands the signals from each DCC throttle and passes the signals along to the track as control signals and AC pulsed power which are applied to the track for all locomotives to listen to.

A DCC layout requires at least one throttle, generally one booster (until the layout gets big enough to handle many simultaneous running locomotives). You would generally need at least one hand-held throttle for each simultaneous locomotive that you want to run, but there are variations on this, where a single throttle may be able to switch between two or more locomotives or control two or more locomotives in a “consist”. How many different operators (people) will be running trains at the same time? Each person will require his/her own hand-held throttle.

The advantages of DCC are:

· Each locomotive can be controlled independently.

o Speed

o Direction

o Lights

o Sound

· The same DCC power is applied to the entire layout without the necessity for separate control blocks and on-off switches. This keeps layout wiring simpler.

· Once learned, it is simpler and more intuitive than DC block control.

The disadvantages of DCC are:

· It generally requires some modification to the locomotives. Each locomotive must come with or have installed a decoder to understand the DCC signals.

· It takes a little more time to get used to (to operate) than a simple DC power supply. You have to learn to operate a hand-held throttle.

· It requires special boosters and throttles to create and control the DCC.

The above choices of DC or DCC would seem to provide all of the options that one might want. So why would you do anything else? Most equipment will run very well and reliably on DC or DCC track power. Power supplies, throttles and boosters are readily available from several manufacturers, including the manufacturers of the locomotives.

Both DC and DCC require that power be applied to the rails and that the locomotives be able to reliably pick up this power from the rails and pass it on to the decoder and/or motor(s) that drive the locomotive. The enemy here can be dirt and/or corrosion on the rails and/or wheels of the equipment. When you run trains outside, the rails and wheels will have to be cleaned periodically. The climate in which you live, the frequency of operation, and the materials from which your rail is manufactured will determine how often you have to clean the track.

One consideration might be that you don’t want to have to clean the surface of the rails in order to ensure good electrical contact and smooth operation. Maybe you just want to be able to start right up any time without first cleaning all or most of your track.

If you live in a climate or location where the rail surface will corrode or get covered in a layer of dirt or dust, then you might want to consider battery power. Battery Power can be either on-board the locomotive or provided by a towed battery car, so that your locomotive(s) receive their power not from the rails but from a remote controller of some kind by which you control the speed and power that is taken from a battery or batteries and fed to the motor of the locomotive. Radio control is the logical method of controlling a locomotive that does not rely on the rails for power.

Battery Power = A system for carrying the power for the locomotive along with it. In a relatively large locomotive or tender, there is usually room for enough battery power on board the locomotive or tender. For smaller locomotives a designated freight car can be towed behind the locomotive with wires running from the battery car to the locomotive. With a battery car, any of your locomotives can be configured to run in front of the same battery car simply by using standard jumper wires between them. Typically, a battery-powered locomotive can run for several hours on a charge.

Wireless Receiver/Decoder = a decoder with a radio receiver built in. Several manufacturers make decoders that are also wireless radio receivers. In stead of monitoring DCC signals on the rails they monitor radio signals from a radio throttle and then control the locomotive in a way similar to a DCC decoder. This is not unlike model airplane remote control. Some wireless receiver/decoders even create their own DCC signals for the locomotive in which they are installed so that DCC-aware sound systems can react to the DCC signals.

Wireless Throttle = A device, like the hand held DCC throttle, but wireless. It transmits control signals directly to a wireless receiver/decoder.

So how do you control the locomotive from a constant voltage battery car? Generally this is done with radio remote control.

There are choices here too, as you might expect. Suppose you decide on a radio receiver/decoder. You can employ it several ways.

You can put a receiver/decoder in a towed car along with the batteries. The receiver/decoder will then control the voltage that is sent from the battery car to the locomotive, through the jumpers. The locomotive can be any DC locomotive. Some locomotives come with the necessary jumpers for a battery car already installed, such as Aristocraft, so they are virtually plug-and-play with the battery car. The advantage here is cost savings because you only need one receiver/decoder and battery set to run several different locomotives, but not at the same time.
You can put a receiver/decoder in each locomotive and tow a simple battery car that just provides a constant DC voltage through the jumpers to the locomotive. In this case you could have a small fleet of rechargeable battery cars that would work with any locomotive receiver/decoder equipped locomotive. You can even tow multiple battery cars behind one large locomotive if you want very long endurance, more than a few hours. This way you can swap out and recharge depleted battery cars without losing the ability to run any locomotive.

Another alternative to consider is putting a constant DC voltage on all of your track and putting a radio receiver/decoder in each locomotive to pick up the constant voltage from the track and control the locomotive with the “wireless” throttle. You still rely on track pickup for power, but not for the control signals, and you can run multiple locomotives on same DC-powered track.

Are you interested in automating your railroad? Would you like trains to go automatically, stop for passengers, change tracks, slow down & speed up? There are providers who can help you with this.

So you can see that there are many different configurations available and possible with today’s equipment.

You should consider the conditions under which you want to operate before you make final choices.

Have a look at this list to see what different manufacturers can provide in the above categories.

Call me if I can help you decide.