tortoise switch

Only if you overload the wall wort or supply too much voltage to the motor.

Simple. Just hook two reversing switches in line. Each switch reverses the voltage. So if both are in "reverse" the net result is "forward". The only problem with this is you can't tell what position it's in from the switch. You'd need to use two bi-color LEDs (one at each switch) connected (through a resistor) to the motor. This means running wires back.

It functions like a two way light switch, BTW.

On 3/19/2008 7:16 PM Clark Martin spake thus:

See my reply, above yours, for a circuit diagram.

Thanks guys for all your suggestions... I think I have enough to work with now.

Carter

In message , Carter Braxton writes

There was a complete article on this in Model Railroader magazine (back end of 2007 I believe). There were complete circuit diagrams which used motor car bulbs to help prevent overloading of the components. Perhaps someone can quote the exact article.

On 3/21/2008 2:40 AM Mike Hughes spake thus:

You must be thinking of conventional (coil) switch machines, which can draw enough current to burn themselves out. Tortoise machines draw very little current and wouldn't need any such current-limiting stuff.

In message , David Nebenzahl writes

It was definitely about Tortoise machines. The bulb was used either to limit the current or stop a dead short if the main control panel and the local panel were trying to operate the same point together. I'll try to dig out the article next week when I get time off - unless anyone can quote it first that is

The article in question is on page 82 of the Jan. 2008 Model Railroader Magazine. It is the best direct-wired scheme of powering Tortoises I've ever encountered. The wiring method is very simple yet it allows many operational options. This one is a keeper! However I'm not surprised as the author is a retired IBM staff engineer.

Peteski

"Retired IBM staff engineer."?

That means he'll release the drawing so that other people can build it and beta test the design. Then, once all the problems become known, he'll issue an upgrade. Perhaps.

-- Cheers

Roger T. Home of the Great Eastern Railway at:-

... and every third page will be intentionally left blank, and will say so.

Nah!!! You are confusing things with "Microsoft".

Chuck D.

On 3/23/2008 5:41 PM Calvin Henry-Cotnam spake thus:

... and any on-line documents will be coded in EBCDIC.

David Nebenzahl wrote in news:47e71adf$0$17385$ snipped-for-privacy@news.adtechcomputers.com:

I'm sure they're up to 21st century standards... They'll be Unicode... EBCIDIC unicode. (Yes, there is such a thing.)

Puckdropper

Herman Hollerith lives on!!

On 3/23/2008 11:40 PM Puckdropper spake thus:

Just a *tiny* correction: you misspleld that. It's "EBCDIC". You spelled it the way people say it.

David Nebenzahl wrote in news:47e7e4e5$0$17370 $ snipped-for-privacy@news.adtechcomputers.com:

Sure did... I'll try to miss-missplell it next time.