# Homemade walkaround throttle is success



## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

I set out to create a walk around throttle for my traveling micro train layout and I think i was successful. The modification was easy, and the currents involved were pretty low so it was safe. I don't think that it would pass national wiring standards though. But in any case, it works and i haven't killed myself yet, so everythings fine. You can see how I did it here:

http://jjwtrains.blogspot.com/

The first two posts go over the making of the throttle. Also, if you guys have any suggestions for the blog, by all means leave something in the comments box. Anyone wanting to try this outdoors?








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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

If I read this properly, you put 110v into a standard RJ11 phone jack. If you plugged a phone into the jack you would be giving it 110v... 

The spacing between the contact points is not enough to prevent arcing over, nor working in a humid environment. The wiring you are using is not safe at those voltages. 

You NEVER use a jack for voltages and currents way beyond their intent. 

I will say this, not only is this a bad idea, a very bad idea, but you could easily be sued by someone building this. Really easily. Even Shad could be sued for this by allowing it on his web site. 

Do us all a favor, take this apart and forget it. We need you to be alive to enjoy the hobby. 

(by the way, you are not dealing with 16 volts and low current, you are dealing with 110v at the plug you are moving from jack to jack and could easily electrocute yourself. 

Hope this post finds you alive to read it. 

Regards, Greg


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## steam5 (Jun 22, 2008)

Completely agree with Greg, sorry to disappoint you but that set up is very un safe. In addition to what Greg has pointed out, you should have segregation between the 110VAC wiring and the track wiring, having in a comon cable is a no no. It would be easy to short something and have live 110VAC voltage to your track work. Another big concern is you have 110VAC at the phone line wall outlet, one could put something metallic, or a finger in that and get a large boot.

Alan


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## GaryR (Feb 6, 2010)

If that is true Greg, what is the wallwart transformer doing pluged in the the 110 v wall socket for? The blog is not very clear about what voltages are going where.


GaryR


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

the very FIRST part of my post:

If I read this properly[/b]

Go to the part one of the blog, previous month:













Phone Jack 1
Phone Jack 2
Wall plug
Track
Transformer
Tether from phone jack 1 to phone jack 2.
From my understanding, 3 is 110v ... the transformer is 5.... that means that 110v is running from wall socket 3 through telephone jack 1 and cable 6 and telephone jack 2 to transformer 5.....


#3 says "wall plug"... 



This was my my best understanding from that picture... going on to the part 2 of the blog, re-reading carefully, I see that there is a mention that it has a wall wart.... not shown in the diagram, nor identified in the text accompanying the diagram.


You are right Gary apparently he's only sending 16 volts through the phone jack, safe voltage wise, though I'd fuse the output of the wall wart.

The diagram sure looks like a 110v plug... next time I'll read all of the text more thoroughly!

Greg


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## krs (Feb 29, 2008)

The title of the thread is a bit misleading. 

"Walk-around throttle" means the throttle portion of the power pack can be unplugged and plugged back in at different parts of the layout - the power pack itself stays fixed with both the 115 VAC input and the track connections wired permanently. 

The LGB Jumbo power pack offers that, also some others. 

The wiring of the walk-around throttle of the LGB Jumbo is essentially this: 










All low voltage and low current. 

Knut 

Oooops, forgot - fully agree with Greg.


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## krs (Feb 29, 2008)

Posted By Greg Elmassian on 18 Mar 2012 06:58 PM 
the very FIRST part of my post:

If I read this properly[/b]

Go to the part one of the blog, previous month:













Phone Jack 1
Phone Jack 2
Wall plug
Track
Transformer
Tether from phone jack 1 to phone jack 2.
From my understanding, 3 is 110v ... the transformer is 5.... that means that 110v is running from wall socket 3 through telephone jack 1 and cable 6 and telephone jack 2 to transformer 5.....


#3 says "wall plug"... 



This was my my best understanding from that picture... going on to the part 2 of the blog, re-reading carefully, I see that there is a mention that it has a wall wart.... not shown in the diagram, nor identified in the text accompanying the diagram.


You are right Gary apparently he's only sending 16 volts through the phone jack, safe voltage wise, though I'd fuse the output of the wall wart.

The diagram sure looks like a 110v plug... next time I'll read all of the text more thoroughly!

Greg 




The description in the blog doesn't match the diagram at all, at least the way I see it.

The diagram clearly shows 115 VAC going through the phone jacks 1 and 2, but in the description on the blog (sorry, I don't find the description very clear) it sounds as if there is a wall wart that is being modified by adding a phone jack as part of the wall wart itself.


Then it also says:
Step 1. Wire the house current power to the phone jack. 

but right after there is mention of 16 volts.

Maybe if the diagram was modified to show the actual wiring - I'm sure that would help.

Knut


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Those are exactly the thing that set off alarms in my mind. I wanted to comment before someone connected 110v to a phone jack. 

Well, if I am crazy, you are right there with me Knut! (sorry! hahaha) 

Greg


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## steam5 (Jun 22, 2008)

Then if you read towards the bottom of Part 1-Tethered Throttle "I taped them all with electrical tape which is designed to insulate the joints, protecting both you and the trains from a short circuit or 120 volt barbecue" - The tape in the picture looks like standard masking tape, not electrical tape. This suggests the 110VAC does go to the controller via the phone cable, but as mentioned above it may not... There are many contradicting statements which cause confusion. 

I think this highlights some important points 
-One must have a good electrical understanding and background before modifying electrical products, especially when it involves mains power 
-If posting how to's on the internet for everyone to read make sure its crystal clear, someone could make a life ending mistake in this case. 

Alan


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## krs (Feb 29, 2008)

Looks to me that the starting point is a bachmann 44213 power pack:










Just a wall wart with an attached black cord and plug which I assume deluvers 16 VAC at 1 amp. That's based partially on te information in the blog and the description of the power pack.

The red cable with what looks like a mini two-cunductor phone jack provides the connection between the output of the throttle to the track.


So - the 115 VAC power won't be an issue as long as the wall wart doesn't need modification and the telephone jacks can handle the voltage without any problems - but the current - that is another issue.
The voltage on a normal telephone line is nominal 48 VDC but the current is limited by the 400 ohm feed resistance at the CO. Thus even with a zero ohm loop, the maximum current flow is about 130ma.
I just looked up the maximum recommended current for the telephone jacks - it was listed at 150ma.


So - there is that issue that needs to be addressed.


Knut 


PS: But even if all the electrical issues are addressed, I don't really understand the purpose of all this.
The whole point of a walk-around throttle is to bring the throttle close to where the train needs to be controlled. So as the train moves around the layout, the operator can unplug the throttle from one location and plug it into a different location to be closer to the "train action". When he unplugs the walk-around throttle, the train will continue to run at that speed and in that direction until the throttle is plugged in again at which time the operator resumes control of the loco.

At least that's the way I expect a walk-around throttle to work.
There is no way one can modify this Bachmann throttle to do that - when the throttle is unplugged so that the operator can move to a different location, the train wil come to a grinding halt.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

That's why there are plugs 1 and 2 .... the problem is that you need to plug in the next one, and go back and unplug the previous one... 

Greg


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

I don't know electronics from "diddly", but isn't this "technology?" about 40-45 years old? I do remember reading about these types of throttles being used in HO in about 1960 or so.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Actually, the better technology was to have the "brains" stationary, so that you could completely unplug the controller and the loco would maintain speed until you plugged in again. This one works, but is a pain in the butt, since you have to plug in the next location and then go back to unplug the previous one. 

This means the cables have to be pretty long, not as shown, unless you put the unit down on the ground while moving plugs. 

Greg


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By Greg Elmassian on 18 Mar 2012 10:00 PM 
Actually, the better technology was to have the "brains" stationary, so that you could completely unplug the controller and the loco would maintain speed until you plugged in again. This one works, but is a pain in the butt, since you have to plug in the next location and then go back to unplug the previous one. 

This means the cables have to be pretty long, not as shown, unless you put the unit down on the ground while moving plugs. 

Greg 
That's what I meant about the "brains". Now we take this stuff like "trains running on memory when dis-connected", for granted. In those far-off times, it was a big deal!


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Yep, a very big deal, because it had to be done with "analog electronics", like a "DC voltage memory circuit". Nowadays, it's just a microprocessor with an easily-modified program. 

Greg


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Oh guys, there's been a small mix up with the voltages. I myself tested the voltages and the wall plug IS the transformer. 

How I found the Bachmann transformer works is that it takes the voltages from the wall outlet and in the plug steps it down. Now it isn't any more unsafe than O scale current. The voltages my volt meter were reading were I think 16volts. And like I said, if you don't want to risk it, then by no means should you do this modification, as if not done correctly it could give you a shock. What this modification essentially was is it was taking the plug from the power pack to the wall and from the power pack to the track and making it longer. There really wasn't any re-wiring, just simply adding a 12ft phone jack between the transformer, the power pack, and the layout. 

So the voltages are safe, and it does work; on my blog I have a video of the train working using that throttle. if I had to deal with house current, no I WOULD NOT have done what i did, that would have been stupid. But with small current, since we wire our layouts ourselves, i see no reason why I can't modify a transformer on the same current level.


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## krs (Feb 29, 2008)

Posted By jjwtrainman on 19 Mar 2012 07:14 AM 
What this modification essentially was is it was taking the plug from the power pack to the wall and from the power pack to the track and making it longer. There really wasn't any re-wiring, just simply adding a 12ft phone jack between the transformer, the power pack, and the layout.

So you are essentially just extending the black power cord from the transformer and the cable from the throttle to the track by 12 feet.

Not a walk-around throttle in the normal sense at all!
I read a lot more into that than it is because of the subject title.


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

First, I want to thank all of you for bringing these issues to mind, and i will strive to correct them ASAP to avoid any confusion. Thankfully, this blog doesn't get too many visitors so the odds of someone hurting themselves is pretty low. On this forum I see now that my post could be harmful, something i didn't think about earlier. If this is a real concern for most of you here, i will remove this post after you have had a couple days to read this post.

I am currently in the process of addressing any errors I made on my blog post to try and combat any confusion it stirred. Eventually, that post will just be buried in the blog and will be forgotten, I can't really even find it unless I type the title of the blog and post, so what are the odds of people coming across it in large numbers? Several things I have already addressed on the post are:

>Confusion of what wire leads where

>Confusion of the currents involved.

>Confusion of what transformer was used. 

>And confusion of the wiring in general. 

They say hindsight is 20/20, and it definitely is here.

Once again, I thank you for your concern and I am addressing the problems on the post. If nothing else came out of this post on this site, It is that quality control has worked its magic to provide safety for everyone. For my own safety, I will go back through the modified throttle and will double check everything. 

For krs about the resistance: "I see your point, and I am going back through to make sure everything is fine. However in the amount of time I have run it so far (about 10 cumulative hours) I have not noticed any extra heat from the wiring. perhaps I got robust phone jacks? Perhaps I am lucky with the modification? Either way, it seems to work fine and i can assure you all I am safe. Seeing that I am controversial at best, I think I will just resign from this online forum all together and make it easier on everyone.

With that, i bid you farewell, and a sincere apology to everyone I have offended. I meant no one harm, and I hope you all understand its for the best.
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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Don't remove it... you built something that works for you and has advantages over the stock unit. 

You may not have seen this, but there was a guy not too long ago that wired up his track using normal 110v plugs and extension cords. That was downright scary. You are indeed running too much current through the connector, but they are cheap. I would advise putting that fuse in that I mentioned, so that if you do overheat the connector and it melts then any short will just blow the fuse on your "Wall wart". 

Don't go anywhere, it's a forum, and being on a forum invites comments. I apologize for not reading your blog carefully enough the first time. Stay and have fun... listen, if you want controversial, look at me... I have a whole group of people actively trying to get me thrown off this forum! They even have their own forum to spend time talking about me mostly, calling me an "Aristo hater"... they have written letters to the forum owner and even posted foul language to people because they have not thrown me off. 

Don't sweat controversial... do what you believe in, say what you believe... most people will respect you for it... the rest of them, they are the real "haters".... 

Regards, Greg


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## krs (Feb 29, 2008)

Posted By jjwtrainman on 19 Mar 2012 05:50 PM 

For krs about the resistance: "I see your point, and I am going back through to make sure everything is fine. However in the amount of time I have run it so far (about 10 cumulative hours) I have not noticed any extra heat from the wiring. perhaps I got robust phone jacks? Perhaps I am lucky with the modification? Either way, it seems to work fine and i can assure you all I am safe. Seeing that I am controversial at best, I think I will just resign from this online forum all together and make it easier on everyone.


Why would you even consider that? Resign from this on-line forum I mean.

My confusion came about because you called this a "walk-around throttle" and then it sounded as if you were running 115 volts through the phone jack.
Turns out that this is not a traditional "walk-around throttle" and you are just runing low voltage levels, so everything is fine.


As to the current and the resistance issue.
The maximum current one can get from a Telephone Central Office is 130ma if the Tip and Ring of the phone line are shorted.
That doesn't mean that those connectors cannot handle a higher current but I have been unable to find any spec that states what the design maximum is.

As to the phone cable itself, the 12-ft cable you are using.
The typical gauge for those is AWG26 for a good quality one but I have also seen AWG28 and AWG32 gauge cables. The gauge is not usually shown on those cables.

Any of those gauges will of course handle the worst case current you can get on a phone line - with either AWG26 or AWG28 you should still be good for the maximum current that Bachmann power pack is rated for.

http://www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm 
Knut


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Technically speaking, it is a "walk-around throttle" but more along the lines as defined 20 - 30 years ago. (Anything that allowed you to follow your train around the railroad as opposed to sitting in front of a power pack was considered "walk-around.") I built a very similar system for my HO railroad when I was in high school based on an article on "walk-around throttles" that was published in MR or RMC back in the mid-80s. It used a PC power supply as the main power, and a variable voltage regulator for the throttle. It was very basic, but it got the job done. Back then, on-board sound was virtually non-existent. Stopping your trains in the yard, unplugging your throttle and plugging it back in elsewhere was pretty much SOP because the loss of power wasn't ever noticed. I still use the handheld throttle in my workshop. 

Personally, I think what you've described is a cool adaptation of what would otherwise likely be thrown away. If I had one suggestion, it would be to use something beefier than phone jacks. Even in indoor railroads, they rarely proved robust over the long term. I used a 5-pin DIN plug that I was also using for MIDI cables for my keyboards. Much better contact. 

One thought... is there anything inherent in the Bachmann throttle itself (the grey box with the knob, not the black box that plugs into the wall) which would keep it from handling say 3 - 5 amps? Seems to me that if it were up to the task, you could easily use a better power supply with some real guts and have yourself a decent throttle. 

Later, 

K


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## LebenswichtigeGartenBahn (Oct 23, 2010)

You may not have seen this, but there was a guy not too long ago that wired up his track using normal 110v plugs and extension cords. That was downright scary. 

I haven't seen this, can you post the link? I would be curious to see what "scary" things he did. 

However, my DC analog outdoor layout uses 120VAC 20AMP outdoor receptacles on color-coded 4x4" posts as the 24VDC outlets (red) and power-to-track (green) connections. My throttles plug in between the red and green (female) receptacles using standard 120VAC 3-prong plugs (male) which have matching red and green heads. This allows me to be able to remove the throttles and power-supply from the layout when I am not running the trains and keep the rest of the track-system permanently wired and ready-to-use. 

I chose the standard US NEMA 5-20R household receptacle and plugs because they have plenty of outdoor/weatherproof components readily available, insure correct polarity, and are rated at nearly 8x the maximum wattage I would draw across the connections at 24V. My layout wiring is tinned 8/2AWG marine cable. Stranded 16-14AWG cords such as extension cords are no comparison to an 8AWG marine wire in terms of corrosion-resistance and conductivity across distances. I wanted as little current-drop across a 25-30 distance as possible. 

As for safety, power can only be applied to the outlets (red or green) via a male connector. Since 120VAC mains power is ever only supplied in the US from a female receptacle, none of these 24VDC outlets could be energized with 120VAC unless someone deliberately a male-to-male adapter/jumper between an extension cord and a receptacle in the system. Since there are no 120VAC sources anywhere near my layout and the power supply is connected 10 feet away, the only current available within range of the track circuits is the potential 24VDC from the output cable of the power supply. Even that is completely disconnected and removed indoors when not in use. (There is a removable male-to-male connector/disconnect in the 24VDC portion of the system but it is only 12" long and no where near a 120VAC source as I will explain.) 

The power supply plugs into the mains in my garage with a 10ft cord. The external cabinet of my SP750-24 has 3x duplex household outlets (female) along its side, wired to the PS posts with 8AWG copper wire and chromed ring terminals to the outlets. These outlets are color-coded red (for 24VDC unthrottled supply power). The PS is placed on a concrete pad, about 12 inches from the main supply post (red) and a 12" 12AWG male-to-male cable connects between the 24VDC outlets (red) on the PS and 24VDC post (red) of the layout. 

The throttles each have one red (24VDC from PS IN -->) and one green (male) plug (0-24VDC out from throttle) to be connected between the PS or PS supply-post and the track. 

Could someone deliberately take a throttle and plug it in to a 120VAC outlet in the house? 
Yes. Absolutely. 
But since there is purposely no place to plug it into the 120VAC mains near these 24VDC connections, it would pretty much have to be deliberate. While I would conceed that the use of 120VAC plugs/sockets means that it is physically possible for someone to connect 120VAC deliberately, it is not possible to do so during a moment of inattention, the way I have physically segregated and color-coded everything. It has been sucessfully as plug-n-play as I could have hoped, so I don't see the fact that I'm using 120VAC-compatible connections as a realistic potential safety issue for allowing cross-connecting with 120VAC. 

Of course 220VAC 15 or 20amp (NEMA 6-15R) outlets and plugs could be used for the 24VDC instead of the 120VAC 20 amp (NEMA 5-20R) to prevent even intentional connection but, again empahasizing the word intentional, The worst that could ever happen unintentionally on my set-up is reversing the input and output when connecting the throttles. I did consider using different outlets/plugs (like the NEMA 6-15R) to prevent reversing the throttle cables but the color coding has worked quite well, so I did not see the point. 

Add to that that I am the only one ever to power up the layout and connect the power supply or throttles, I do not need to meet the exculpatory obligations of someone marketing this as a system - it is my design for my own use. If I leave my home the Gartenbahn gets dismantled anyway, so no way to confuse someone unfamiliar with the system. 

As far as I am concerned, it is perfectly safe in the exact application and specific context of my layout without being designed to prevent 100% deliberate contravention or stupidity by person or persons unknown.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Bad idea, period... you want to risk yourself and your family, fine. 

I think it's in very poor taste to come in and try to promote a dangerous idea... sure, you figured out how you made it "safe" for yourself. 

Now a newbie reads this, and does not have the same situation, but remembers the idea of using the 110v plugs. 

This guy might very well sue you just because of this post.... 

Good luck using this kind of rationalization in other areas of life, like objects with sharp edges... 

Greg


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## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

What happens if (when!) you die and your heirs decide to sell it off to someone that does not fully understand the dangers! 

"Let's buy this for little Timmy, he likes trains! And these are big enough for his little hands to get a good hold on."


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## LebenswichtigeGartenBahn (Oct 23, 2010)

Bad idea, period... you want to risk yourself and your family, fine. 

I think it's in very poor taste to come in and try to promote a dangerous idea... sure, you figured out how you made it "safe" for yourself. 

Now a newbie reads this, and does not have the same situation, but remembers the idea of using the 110v plugs. 

This guy might very well sue you just because of this post.... 

Good luck using this kind of rationalization in other areas of life, like objects with sharp edges... 

Greg

You know what Greg, you are absolutely right. Still, I can't be responsible for a "newbie" taking a post out of context. I clearly stated that the system was safe enough for me in my exact context personal circumstances. I do not manufacture nor did I supply plans with the reasurrance that it was beyond someone elses ability to make something unsafe out of it. 

However, now let's say that I've set aside my conviction that the system is not dangerous because the reversed male/female configurations of plug and receptacle prevent being able to connect 120VAC to the track, and accepted your designation of "dangerous"...
I would be sincerely interested in what you would consider a more acceptable weather proof permanenet disconnect-system to power my $8K worth of permanently outdoor track. What do you use on your outdoor layout? Where do your track-power connections terminate?

Is it only the idea of someone confusing them with common 120VAC or are you just against any kind of utility plug/socket arrangement? Would you consider my receptacles and plugs more idiot-proof if I used NEMA 6-20R instead? ( If you tell me that someone might try to hook 240VAC to the system because they recognize the plug configuration, I'm going to ask you where you think they are likely to have not only an NEMA 6-20R receptacle but a male-to-male jumper laying around to use.)

The layout is still under construction and modifications can still be made if necessary and reasonable. I would be interested in your input.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

If I spent $8k for my track (I'll have to total it up, I've only got around 800 feet and 30 switches) I would be able to buy whatever I wanted... and not have to use standard AC power connectors. There's all types of high current connectors that are also basically waterproof. 

Funny you should mention the jumpers, recently I had an experience where people were trying to be helpful and were confusing the 120v connectors with the 240 ones... and actually bent and messed with the prongs to make one fit into another... luckily I did catch it before power was applied. This was a few helpful "electricians" who were not really experienced with the varieties of circular connectors and got stumped by the 15 amp and the 20 amp ones, and thought the 240v ones were the same... 

(some of the UPS units for our servers, actually most, use these connectors)... in addition, they actually made jumpers, although no male to mail yet... 

Just a quick search yielded these weatherproof connectors by Molex that handle 22 amps... and I'm sure they make ones that handle more current. 

* http://www.molexkits.com/76650-0186* 

Regards, Greg


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## LebenswichtigeGartenBahn (Oct 23, 2010)

Thanks for the reply Greg. I have professionally encountered your experience with dipsticks twisting blades on plugs straight to fit them into the wrong outlets as well as someone who completely replaced a NEMA 6-20R (240-20 amp) with a NEMA 5-15R (120-15 amp) outlet because it didn't match the plug of the product he wanted to plug into it! It was still connected to both L1/L2 in the panel for 240VAC after he replaced the "outlet that didn't match" and he couldn't understand why it destroyed the A/C unit he plugged into it! 

Still, even UL and NEMA do not prohibit the manufacture and use of NEMA 6-15R or 6-20R plugs because someone could purposefully twist the blades straight. 

Having to anticipate some unknown person inheriting my trains, in the case of my untimely demise, and having to "idiot-proof" to the point of making it impossible for someone to have to deliberately bend blades to jam something into a household socket is a bit extreme. Anyone determined enough to do something like that is just as likely to stick any bare wires directly into a light socket or defeat any electrical connector as well. That person could just as easily twist a blade of the NEMA 5-15R (120-15a) plug of a stock LGB power-pack and jam it into a 240VAC (NEMA 6-20R) receptacle if they had one available. 

I concede to making it as difficult as possible to make a mistake and accidentally connect 120VAC to the 24VDC system but my backyard and trains are not an open venue for the general public. I don't have signs warning people not to trip over the elevated tracks or to touch them when the trains are in use, barriers or fences around the layout either. "Proofing" beyond the point where something has to be deliberately "modified" to make it dangerous is not reasonable. There's a difference between being taking additional precautions and anticipating that at some unknown date any part of it will be in the hands of a somebody elses 10 year-old. 

I looked at your Molex link and I had considered it but Molex pins and sleeves have to be soldered or crimped onto the conductors and there is no point to an 8/2 wire if it has to be spliced to a 20-18 wire to adapt it to the Molex. I actually use 9-pin and 12-pin Molex blocks on my HO layout, but they operate in the milliamp values. G-scale is another story - especially with wet track or long distances. 

I had considered some kind of tractor/trailer connector as they are 24VDC. They could be ideal disconnects - heavy duty ... weatherproof... 
http://www.elecdirect.com/Data/ProductPDFs/84TA.pdf 

However, since they are intended to support mostly lighting between cab and trailer, there is only a single 8amp connector (for the ground)- the rest of the 6 connectors are only 12 or 10AWG and are 5 more per connection than I need.

The metal contact pins in disconnect systems, even for trucks are mostly only 20 - 14AWG. 
There is a 2-wire 10 gauge that is about as close as I could get. 
http://www.elecdirect.com/Data/ProductPDFs/88TA.pdf 

It is insulated and prewired. The issue here is having splice and seal 8AWG wires to 10AWG of he connector. 

There are these which would accomodate the wire size but they're huge and about $70 per plug and socket: 
http://www.elecdirect.com/Data/ProductPDFs/P2-P6.pdf 



My solution is going to be to convert all the 24VDC plugs and sockets to (twistlock) NEMA L6-15R for the 24VDC connections and (opposed horizontal flat blade " - . - " ) NEMA 6-15R. The only common residential applications for either of those configurations are the outlets on a portable generator (NEMA L6-15R) or a 240 VAC 15 amp window A/C unit. I will even order weatherproof decals for the covers on the outlets on the layouts that state 24 Volts. 
http://www.kleinsigns.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=117 
http://www.redrockdecals.com/external-power-24-volt-decal/ 

The likelyhood of anyone connecting any part of my system to a (running) portable generator or a window A/C outlet on my property is 0%. Obviously If I ever sold my equipment I would be removing any connectors that would have been unique to my stationary layout. As far as what happens after I die... and some hypothetical "Timmy" whose parents buy expensive G-scale trains for their kids that they have no clue about even how to hook it up,,, with non-OEM connectors (my heirs would have "forgotten" to remove), and just assume without any investigation should be plugged into a running portable generator or an A/C receptacle, (and then do what with the remaining end that would have been on a 4' 4x4" post on my yard?) that should be a huge stretch of imagination with the new less-common connections.


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