LGB 52750 Booster

[James Day]

Guys,

I am probably 15 years too late reporting this here, but I have just acquired a couple of these LGB EPL Booster units (as new) and have just pressed one into use on my garden line. They are amazing little things and I can't praise them highly enough.

Unless my search failed, very little seems to have been written about them on the forum.

I have a conventional DC line, with EPL automated Loops, block signalling and dwell timers. There are a couple of special home made modules that power shuttles on the branch lines and and another that controls the signalling at a diamond crossing where trains cross each other.

Everything works well and reliably, but the loops can sometimes lack the gusto I desire when they switch. One worse than the others.

Each loop has a separate AC feed from the control point and the automation can be switched on or off, or the loop can be switched manually.

I have inserted one of the boosters between my AC feed and the two switch boxes that control automation and manual control of the loops. So both the automation of the loops and the manual control both benefit from the extra punch.

I located the booster carefully so my block signals and the special modules don't get the boost, as they don't need it!

The booster has made the loops a whole lot more reliable. Obviously early days (for me) yet, but I am very impressed with the difference!

James

 

[James Day]

Thought I had better add some more details to further help understanding on these beasts. They were a mystery to me until I bought mine, so I hope that this helps:

Firstly my auxilary power supply is 24v AC at 5 amps - Not exactly lacking, but also not enough on its own for snappy and positive route setting. Lighting and all other suppplies are from separate transformers.

The booster has three LEDs on the top - The first is a yellow 'tell tale' LED that shows that the AC supply is on. There are also a red and a green LED, one of which lights up when an activation takes place.

Whichever one lights up is dependant upon what EPL function you are using, at that moment. Pictograms showing various point and signal positions are adjacent to the red and green lights to help identify what each function does. Another way of looking at it is that one indicator relates to half wave positive, the other for half wave negative.

The obvious advantages of having indicator lights of this type is that it shows when an activation is happening and as the instructions point out, it can also draw your attention to activations that are happening when they shouldn't! The Instruction sheet mentions that it would alert you to a loco with magnet sitting over a reed, but that would presumably apply to stuck reeds too, perish the thought….

I have not opened up a unit yet to see what is inside, but my guess is that it is 'clever' a double Capacitor Discharge Unit, which delivers a 'shot' of the power required for the function being performed at that moment. Not sure exactly how it does it, but it really does it well!

James

 

[ntpntpntp]

I found this diagram at www.trainingdutchman.nl

 

[James Day]

Re: LGB 52750 Booster - Now Timer?

Nick,

Thanks for posting this! Most clear with all the parts labelled.

I have taken a look at the site, but I can't find the source of the diagram you posted. So I wonder if I am missing something? I was searching to see if there is a diagram of the LGB Timer 53750?

If you know of one, please let me know. I have one that has died and need to understand why. The timer is another wonderful module that LGB once made but no longer do.

Luckily I bought a few and have since snapped some more second-hand, but I would like to keep them all working if I possibly could!

James

 

[ntpntpntp]

That 52750 diagram is in a temp folder on the site, so maybe that's all there is on the subject.
Looks like there are some useful tips and stuff on the site, I'll have to have a proper trawl around at some point.

 

[James Day]

Well the booster has been in place for just under a month now and thought it time to post some feedback.

I have managed to get out and run trains several times in that period, possibly as many as seven times. I have run an intensive service with up to 8 trains on the go.

Failures? None! It works really well.

I am still only powering the entry point to my loops. The exit point has fully floating blades that are thrown by the departing train. I also disconnected the clips that make the point lanterns rotate on my automated points some time ago to improve reliability.

My points are still operating snappily and positively first time. If I switch the automation of a specific loop on, or use the 51750 to change it, they work first time, even if it has been a week since it was last used. Before I had the booster they all needed coaxing and bring back to life if they had not been used.

The tell tale lights on the unit are very helpful, but no reeds have stuck or failed since the unit was installed.

Next - I would like to see how well the unit copes if I try to makesome of my point lanterns work again.

James

 

[minimans]

James when my railway was fully functional I also used the booster unit to good effect and thought the same as you lets put the lamps back on................Failures were constant! Maybe you will have better luck but those lantern's are sticky little buggers.......

 

[viaEstrecha]

I have to say that though I don't understand the electrickery inside, the booster has made my life easier. My setup is very basic, with no additional switches on the motors - just more to go wrong! It just sits there, plugged in to the end of the bank of control units, and delivers a nice thump to all 20 point motors, some of which are 30m (cable run) away and some wired as pairs for crossovers. It does help to know that the pulse of power is reliable and so all I have to worry about is keeping the turnouts free of debris.

 

[G-force1]

Hmmm! I'm wondering if one of these might help with my problem. I have a point I want to operate when a second (sprung return) point is trailed against the spring (if that makes sense to you). The perceived problem is that a micro-switch on the point bar might only make too short (time) a contact to throw the other point. If this is a capacitor unit might it do the biz? It only has to throw one way, i.e. return the point to status quo, after having been trailed by the previous train.

 

[James Day]

It operates instantaneously, there is no delay. As soon as the reed is triggered by the magnet under a pasing loco, the unit operates and helps the drive make a nice positive clunk as it reaches 'home'.

I have been out operating my loops today and despite the terrible nasty wet winter that has kept me inside more than I would like, the drives that run from the booster are all working 100% reliably.

My only question is in the situation you describe why not simply use a spring drive? I have a passing loop on a branch which is operated by a twin train shuttle The two points are both sprung and set to allow the trains to always enter it in the same way, from each direction, allowing the trains to pass each other. As they leave they 'barge' through the sprung blades, sometimes loco leading, sometimes stock leading, but the blades return to the desired position after the wheels have passed. They never fail. The trains always enter the loop as required and never de-rail.

The sprung drives are the simple LGB hand operated units. Nothing fancy. This wins my vote on the 'Keep It Simple' principle.

James

 

[James Day]

I found this diagram at www.trainingdutchman.nl

Nick,

That Diagram you posted came in very handy today whilst Mr Brixham and I were running trains - One of my 52750s went south, in a very weird way. Some points began only switching in one direction. After wasting a good amount of testing and eliminating everything else we realised that I was the booster, which had 'half broken', in that it continued to function one way, but not the other.

As the unit has been installed on the layout and doing the same job since I first posted this thread, I am mystified to know why there should be an issue today. It seems to have got rather hot, too hot. We had none of the rattles that you get when a reed does a wrong side failiure and everything seemed to be working well until half of it stopped!

I had purposely only installed it to power the automated loops. Block signalling and other functions did not use the booster at all.

So the jury is out, whilst Malcolm does his electronic forensics, but your diagram will come in very handy indeed. A spare unit has been installed meantime, but the line is being taken up next month for a massive re-building! Fingers crossed the spare one holds out until then!

James