Signal System Help
- Thread starter Conrail97
- Start date
thank you. very informational
Motley
Active Member
Did you see this thread here, by D&J Railroad, all about how he is installing signals.
http://www.modelrailroadforums.com/forum/showthread.php?31377-Block-Detection-and-Signals
http://www.modelrailroadforums.com/forum/showthread.php?31377-Block-Detection-and-Signals
D&J RailRoad
Professor of HO
There are a few signaling systems available and what I mean by that is, systems that run the signals, not just the signal heads themselves.
You can approach your signal system in one of two ways: to indicate the position of turnouts ahead or indicate the status of blocks ahead. The former would be easy to do using slide switches or the additional contacts of a Tortoise machine. The later requires sensing power drops in sections of tracks and the more complex you want to be the more you are going to have to put into it, i.e. learning software and hardware.
I started out attempting to use JMRI with Digitrax hardware, BDL168 block detectors and the SE8C signal control boards. My signals are the BLMA series because of their very prototypical look. After stumbling through the JMRI software and getting absolutly nowhere and frustrating a person who is very knowledgable in the JMRI software, I gave up on it and looked elsewhere for signal control software that was more user friendly. I came across the Train Controller software and picked up on the Bronze version to test for a while. It seemed easier to use than the JMRI but still required some understanding of programming basics, i.e. ors and ands arguements. As I got further into it I started running into things I didn't quite understand so I started the thread of Block Detection and Signals that is linked in a previous post in this thread. With the patient help of FCwilt I was able to get a handle on how to set up the signals and I'm on my way to a fully signaled layout.
It's not cheap though. I have over $400 in the Train Controller software and over $500 in BLMA signal masts along with several of the Digitrax hardware boards and that will cover the third power district on the D&J Railroad. I have yet to start on districts 1 and 2.
Atlas makes a signaling system that seems a bit more basic. I've seen it on another persons layout but didn't quite understand how it worked.
You can approach your signal system in one of two ways: to indicate the position of turnouts ahead or indicate the status of blocks ahead. The former would be easy to do using slide switches or the additional contacts of a Tortoise machine. The later requires sensing power drops in sections of tracks and the more complex you want to be the more you are going to have to put into it, i.e. learning software and hardware.
I started out attempting to use JMRI with Digitrax hardware, BDL168 block detectors and the SE8C signal control boards. My signals are the BLMA series because of their very prototypical look. After stumbling through the JMRI software and getting absolutly nowhere and frustrating a person who is very knowledgable in the JMRI software, I gave up on it and looked elsewhere for signal control software that was more user friendly. I came across the Train Controller software and picked up on the Bronze version to test for a while. It seemed easier to use than the JMRI but still required some understanding of programming basics, i.e. ors and ands arguements. As I got further into it I started running into things I didn't quite understand so I started the thread of Block Detection and Signals that is linked in a previous post in this thread. With the patient help of FCwilt I was able to get a handle on how to set up the signals and I'm on my way to a fully signaled layout.
It's not cheap though. I have over $400 in the Train Controller software and over $500 in BLMA signal masts along with several of the Digitrax hardware boards and that will cover the third power district on the D&J Railroad. I have yet to start on districts 1 and 2.
Atlas makes a signaling system that seems a bit more basic. I've seen it on another persons layout but didn't quite understand how it worked.
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