And when the Trains come marching in ...

The title is a punny reference to the latest Super Bowl winners. It was a fun game. I was making progress on the layout at the start but by mid-3rd quarter I just focused on the game.

Regarding the weekly task list from last Thursday we got most of the targeted stuff done, plus a few things not on the list. #1, the switch machine issue, is resolved temporarily in that the crossover switches do work automatically with only one Tortoise and the derailments have stopped. The solution didn't take long -- it was the same concept I was trying in 2007 but this time with better materials. However, it's now only a proof of concept -- when I start the project to automate all the switches I'll re-do this solution in a more solid manner.

#2 is done, as I noted on Saturday, except that I need to finished writing up my post on the power cabinet. #3 is done except that I need to start the weekly routine of using the CMX car. The only major goal I didn't complete was that I didn't get started planning #4.

In addition to the planned tasks 3 other things were done. I resolved #5, as I reported earlier. My son successfully did his first decoder install on his own, a DN163K2 "plug and play" Digitrax decoder into a Kato SD90/43MAC. Worked on the first try. The only minor glitch here was my fault -- the locomotive number on the shell is 118, but when I assigned that as the DCC address it wouldn't run. Eventually I worked out that 118 is considered a 2-digit address in the Digitrax system (the cutover to 4-digit addresses starts at 128), and knowing that we were able to get it running immediately.

The other bit of work this weekend came as a result of a problem we ran into on Sunday. One really nice thing this weekend was that Daniel and Emma joined in a mini-operating session with me which lasted about 2 hours, only ending when I said it was bed time. Emma did well figuring out the DT400R throttle and is getting pretty good at making sure the switches are set correctly. On Sunday she asked to start again, but after a while a short occurred.

As I investigated the short I found that the PSX showed both Power District (PD) 1 and 2 as shorting, which seemed wrong. We stopped playing, but when I got back to the layout later I started a mini-project to investigate whole layout wiring.

As it turned out the short was caused by an engine going over a switch that was set incorrectly, something I didn't think about because we don't use that switch right now. But, it was a useful exercise. I found that PD1 and PD2 were not fully isolated, because when I cut the gap in the Peco code 55 rail I didn't cut deep enough into the ties. I also learned, to my surprise, that when the layout has no power one of the rails (the "left" or "black wire" rail) is still connected electrically across the PDs and the ARs, but the other rail is isolated. This must be the standard way circuit-breaker devices like the PM42 and PSX operate, but I didn't expect it and as a result I was confused for a while about the problem symptoms.

One other point I've been aware of for a while is that in PD-1 the rails are not completed isolated, but instead register something like 100 ohms of resistance between them. Not enough to prevent operation, but it bugs me. I'm adding this to my problem log to work on again.

Another problem added to the log is to investigate why the D402D (new two-way radio throttle) loses connectivity from time to time. My first step will be to actually read the manual.

Finally, as a result of this investigation I also ended up fixing some of the track around the electrical gaps.

So what tasks to work on this week? Here is the new list:

1. Track cleaning.
   
   Get the CMX car running over all track on a weekly basis.
   


2. Track scenery.
   
   This is the item noted in last week's list. This is a potentially big project, with goal of being able to make the Peco code 55 look like realistic, modern, concrete-tied track.
   


3. DS64 deployment.
   
   Also noted last week. This project is to figure out how to get the stationary decoders working with the switch machines.
   


4. Extending middle tier staging.
   
   First step is size and order the needed Atlas code 80 track. Once it arrives the project will be to build the track from the middle tier staging to where the hidden track meets the sceniced main line track.
   

My goal for the end of this coming weekend is to have a happy solution for item #2. This is a big task that will require a lot of thinking and trial-and-error, and my experience is that I get more done if I also have some smaller tasks as part of the same timeframe goal. So I'll also target item #1, ordering the track for #4, and to resolve 3 of the items on the problem log. I don't think I'll start the DS64 until I have an answer for #2.