00559 Interim PDF Edition - Champex-Linden

106
Big LGB layouts can be impressive…and a bit intimidating. Trains are
moving everywhere. Starting. Stopping. Going forwards. Going backwards.
Passing each other on the main line. Avoiding each other at
stations.
It looks wonderful, but it may also look impossible. How can you control
such a complex dance of track and trains?
Actually, it's easy. You only have to remember two simple principles:
1. LGB trains run on power transmitted through the track.
2. By controlling the power in the track, you can control the trains.
The LGB system of train controls is based on those simple principles,
and with some simple circuits using LGB "EPL" and other components,
you can create an impressive layout of your own.
Circuit 1:
Track Power Connection
The most important circuit in the entire system is the most simple: the
track power connection.
What is it? The track power connection is the connection between the
power pack (or speed control with transformer) and the track. You made
this basic circuit when you assembled your first LGB starter set. The set
came with a two-wire cable. You connected one end of the cable to the
DC terminals on the power pack. You connected the other end of the
cable to the track.
It may seem silly to mention something so simple, but the track power
connection is the logical cornerstone of many other train control circuits.
If you connect power to the track, the trains will run. If you disconnect
power to the track, the trains won't run.
Hint: You don't have to disconnect both wires to stop the trains. Disconnecting
just one wire will break the circuit and do the job.
Connection Techniques
The LGB program offers you several
convenient ways to make track power
connections:
• 50160 Track Power Cable. This twowire
(red/blue) cable is similar to the quickconnect
cable found in LGB starter sets.
There are two factory installed terminal
clamps on one end of the cable. The terminal
clamps fit under and around the track
rail. A thumb screw firmly attaches the clamp
to the rail (Page 105, top).
Attention! Do not use the 50160 with an
LGB Jumbo Power Pack. The wires in this cable are not large enough to
handle the output of the Jumbo. With the Jumbo, use LGB 51230
connecting cable (red/blue, 1.5 mm 2 wire cross section, 14 AWG).
• 50161 Track Power Terminals, 2 pack. These are the same terminal
clamps used on the 50160, but you must install your own wires.
To install a wire in a 50161, remove the thumb screw from the clamp.
Remove the metal strip from the plastic base. Route the wire through the
hole in the base. Strip a small amount of insulation from the wires. Solder
or crimp the wire to the lug on the bottom of the metal strip. Reassemble.