might be a daft question to some but ........I have single line railway with a couple of passing loops,and use a analoge gaugemaster 10LGB controller.will the T.E work with this controller and allow me to walk up and down the garden and controll the train instead of stood in the shed at the controller...I assume to run one train at a time you dont need to chip the trains.. hope i have explained this properly..many thanks Mick..
Advice about Aristocraft train engineer
- Thread starter the mickster
- Start date
With NO engine on the track, set the speed setting to maximum on your Gaugemaster, then press the fast button on your Train Engineer and hold it down for quite a while as though you were getting a train to run flat out (this will give you maximum voltage on the track). Next, use a volt meter to measure the current on your track and then begin to turn down your Gaugemaster until you get the current you want, such as 18, 20, 22 or 24 volts. Then press the emergency stop button on your TE hand unit, put your loco on the track and use your TE to control the speed.
Forgot to say to you in Crooked Spire land, don't forget to programme your Train Engineer first before you try to run a train with it. If your hand unit has an on/off button they can be a bit of a problem to programme - you just have to keep going through the process ! Also, if your's has the on/off button and you don't press any buttons for a while, the thing will turn itself off, which is a bit of a b****r if you have to do an emergency stop. You can tell if this type of hand unit (the transmitter) is still on because the light above the channel/frequency number will be flashing - Best of luck,
John
John
E
Elmtree Line
Guest
Maybe someone one day will work out how to program the handset not to turn off automatically after a short while 
[align=left][font="arial, sans-serif"]This is what I wrote for the GSM website - it may be useful[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]ANALOGUE CONTROL[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]MY SET-UP[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]There are many options for providing power to the trains on a garden railway and it is a difficult decision which has to be made early on when the builder of the railway does not have much experience. This is a description of how I have set up my analogue system. This is not the only solution, even for analogue control, but it is one that works satisfactorily for me.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]In order to get started I built my own controller but quickly found that a garden railway really needs some form of radio control so that trains can be operated from wherever you are in the garden. Controlling trains from a controller in a fixed position is not really satisfactory for a garden railway as you miss out on being able to watch trains from different viewpoints and you can guarantee that if you move away from the controller something bad will happen. I bought an Aristocraft Train Engineer which I use to control the track and five sets of points, all from one handset.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]POWER SUPPLY[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]The diagram below shows the equipment required to get power to the track and point motors.[/font] [/align] [align=left]
[/align]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]ANALOGUE CONTROL[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]MY SET-UP[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]There are many options for providing power to the trains on a garden railway and it is a difficult decision which has to be made early on when the builder of the railway does not have much experience. This is a description of how I have set up my analogue system. This is not the only solution, even for analogue control, but it is one that works satisfactorily for me.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]In order to get started I built my own controller but quickly found that a garden railway really needs some form of radio control so that trains can be operated from wherever you are in the garden. Controlling trains from a controller in a fixed position is not really satisfactory for a garden railway as you miss out on being able to watch trains from different viewpoints and you can guarantee that if you move away from the controller something bad will happen. I bought an Aristocraft Train Engineer which I use to control the track and five sets of points, all from one handset.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]POWER SUPPLY[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]The diagram below shows the equipment required to get power to the track and point motors.[/font] [/align] [align=left]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]All of the electrical equipment must, of course be kept in a dry place. If a mains supply is sent out to say a shed then it is very wise to include an RCD in the circuit. I have used two transformers as I needed 22 volts for the locomotives and 12 volts for the point motors. The circuit to the track has a fuse between the power supply and the Train Engineer (this is built into the Train Engineer receiver unit) and another fuse in the track circuit. As the transformer is providing 22 volts at 8 amps I think it is important to ensure everything is protected from short circuits. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]The transformer for the points is an old H&M unit which produces 12 volts at circa 1 amp. I know this unit has a fully functional thermal cut out so I have not included fuses in the circuits. There is a danger that a short circuit in any of the point motor circuits could damage the points control receiver unit so maybe fuses would be a sensible addition.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]Having one hand held unit which will remotely control both points and locos is very handy and I would recommend this as the best way forward.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]WIRING[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]Analogue wiring does require a little more work than DCC but it is not as complicated as it looks. I use both LGB and Aristocraft points. Both manufacturers points are none isolating – the power is sent to both routes from the point regardless of which way the blades are set. This is good for DCC users and helps reliable electrical continuity but does make wiring for analogue a little more complex. As supplied, Aristocraft 5ft radius points come with a manual switch mechanism and no means of switching power supply. The separate Aristocraft point motor comes with an electrical switch mechanism but I am sorry to say that I have found these motors to be less than 100% reliable. LGB R3 points come complete with a motor but neither the point nor motor include a power switching mechanism and an extra unit, called a supplementary switch unit LGB ref 12070 is required. This unit plugs neatly into the end of the point motor. I have had no problems with LGB motors (catalogue number 12010) and it should be noted that they can easily be fitted to Aristocraft points.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]This photo shows an LGB point with LGB point motor and LGB supplementary switch added to the motor. Plastic insulated rail joiners are in their native bright yellow condition. There are six wires going into the supplementary switch unit. Three are required for track power. The other three are used to power some lamps which indicate which way the points are set.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]The diagram below shows the wiring diagram for my station which has a passing loop with a siding. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]Black lines represent the track and the yellow blocks are isolators – plastic rail joiners available from LGB. The brown oblongs are point motors and the attached blue oblongs are either LGB switch units or the switch units built in to Aristocraft motors. The blue lines are power supply to the track and the brown lines power supply to the points.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]You can see that point power A sends power to two point motors so that both points controlling entry to the loop change at the same time. There is only a need for one of these motors to have a supplementary switch unit attached to enable track power to be sent to the correct loop. I take a feed from the main track close to the point as a source of power for the loops via the point motor supplementary switch unit. The power to point motor switch B is taken from the feed to the lower loop. In this way if the points are set to the top loop then there is power to the top loop but not to the bottom one. If the points are set to the lower loop then power automatically goes to this loop. If the point is set to the siding then the siding will be live and the track after the point on the lower loop will be dead. There will be quite a few wires around the locality of the points but, once wired in this way, control of trains is very easy. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]The transformer for the points is an old H&M unit which produces 12 volts at circa 1 amp. I know this unit has a fully functional thermal cut out so I have not included fuses in the circuits. There is a danger that a short circuit in any of the point motor circuits could damage the points control receiver unit so maybe fuses would be a sensible addition.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]Having one hand held unit which will remotely control both points and locos is very handy and I would recommend this as the best way forward.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]WIRING[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]Analogue wiring does require a little more work than DCC but it is not as complicated as it looks. I use both LGB and Aristocraft points. Both manufacturers points are none isolating – the power is sent to both routes from the point regardless of which way the blades are set. This is good for DCC users and helps reliable electrical continuity but does make wiring for analogue a little more complex. As supplied, Aristocraft 5ft radius points come with a manual switch mechanism and no means of switching power supply. The separate Aristocraft point motor comes with an electrical switch mechanism but I am sorry to say that I have found these motors to be less than 100% reliable. LGB R3 points come complete with a motor but neither the point nor motor include a power switching mechanism and an extra unit, called a supplementary switch unit LGB ref 12070 is required. This unit plugs neatly into the end of the point motor. I have had no problems with LGB motors (catalogue number 12010) and it should be noted that they can easily be fitted to Aristocraft points.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]This photo shows an LGB point with LGB point motor and LGB supplementary switch added to the motor. Plastic insulated rail joiners are in their native bright yellow condition. There are six wires going into the supplementary switch unit. Three are required for track power. The other three are used to power some lamps which indicate which way the points are set.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]The diagram below shows the wiring diagram for my station which has a passing loop with a siding. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]Black lines represent the track and the yellow blocks are isolators – plastic rail joiners available from LGB. The brown oblongs are point motors and the attached blue oblongs are either LGB switch units or the switch units built in to Aristocraft motors. The blue lines are power supply to the track and the brown lines power supply to the points.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]You can see that point power A sends power to two point motors so that both points controlling entry to the loop change at the same time. There is only a need for one of these motors to have a supplementary switch unit attached to enable track power to be sent to the correct loop. I take a feed from the main track close to the point as a source of power for the loops via the point motor supplementary switch unit. The power to point motor switch B is taken from the feed to the lower loop. In this way if the points are set to the top loop then there is power to the top loop but not to the bottom one. If the points are set to the lower loop then power automatically goes to this loop. If the point is set to the siding then the siding will be live and the track after the point on the lower loop will be dead. There will be quite a few wires around the locality of the points but, once wired in this way, control of trains is very easy. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]RUNNING TRAINS[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]As can be seen from the diagram below, the top part of the Train Engineer controls power to the track. Pressing buttons can provide a smooth controlled acceleration or deceleration, a change of direction and an emergency stop. The lower buttons are used for controlling points. A push on button A will cause the point connected to change. Push again on the button and the points will change back. I have two point motors connected to each point power supply and both points change at the same time with no problem. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]To process to stop one train in a loop and start another is as follows:-[/font]
[OL][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press decelerate until train stops in loop[/font][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press required point button once[/font][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press direction change if required[/font][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press accelerate button[/font] [/OL]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]This really could not be easier.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]CONCLUSION[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]For me this provides a simpler means of control than DCC albeit at the expense of more time setting up the wiring in the first place. Once you get going the wiring is not as complicated as it first seems. Others will have a different view and ultimately it is up to each individual to decide what suits their needs best. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]As can be seen from the diagram below, the top part of the Train Engineer controls power to the track. Pressing buttons can provide a smooth controlled acceleration or deceleration, a change of direction and an emergency stop. The lower buttons are used for controlling points. A push on button A will cause the point connected to change. Push again on the button and the points will change back. I have two point motors connected to each point power supply and both points change at the same time with no problem. [/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]To process to stop one train in a loop and start another is as follows:-[/font]
[OL][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press decelerate until train stops in loop[/font][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press required point button once[/font][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press direction change if required[/font][*][font="arial, sans-serif"]Press accelerate button[/font] [/OL]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]This really could not be easier.[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]CONCLUSION[/font]
[font="arial, sans-serif"]For me this provides a simpler means of control than DCC albeit at the expense of more time setting up the wiring in the first place. Once you get going the wiring is not as complicated as it first seems. Others will have a different view and ultimately it is up to each individual to decide what suits their needs best. [/font]
Elmtree Line said:Maybe someone one day will work out how to program the handset not to turn off automatically after a short while
It's not a problem.......just press on/off and your back in business......saves batteries
Please be aware that if you have any LGB loco that has a Chip in it you should only use TE set to "Linear" on the receiver.