Wiring problem


rzw0wr

Newbie Switchman
Below is my track.
I have Digitrax DS 100 DCC.
The turnouts are Fast Tracks and the frogs are isolated.
I have the inside loop wired and running.
The left side of the outer loop up to the turnouts is wired.
The problem is that when I wire the either of the straight sections (top 2 or bottom 1) after the turnouts I get a short.

With the drop downs disconnected I can find no short in the track. I used my meter to check.
I have double checked and all the red wires are on one side and all the white wires are on the other.

Any ideas?????? Fast Tracks Number 4.Ver.1.0.jpg
 
Red/White wires on same side of the rails as the track goes in a circle?
If red is on the outside rails it stays on the outside not front to back, correct?

If there isn't a short in a turn-out (PCB tie gap not cut) then it must be you have the drops reversed. Use your Ohmmeter to double check which rail the drops are connected to.
 
You guessed it waltr.

I missed a gap in the PCB tie under the frog rails.

Works great now.

Thanks for the reply.
 
I know this is obvious, or it should be, but on each half of the oval, the red and white wires should be switched from each other. That is, your red wire should always be on the one rail, say the outside rail. It means, if you were looking at it at eye level, but from one narrow end of the oval and down the oval's length, that the red would be on the 'left' on one side and on the 'right' on the other side. Otherwise, I'm stumped. The Fast Tracks turnouts are not power-routing, so if they are properly constructed, and one of the PCB ties is not still ungapped between the rails (could this be the case? Have you checked with an Ohm Meter?), I don't see what else except crossed feeders could be your problem.
 
I missed a gap in the PCB tie under the frog rails.
I hate it when that happens. One of the side effect of using electrically conductive ties. I once replaced a throw bar on a turnout with a piece of PCB. Didn't finish the project and didn't get back to it for a month or so. I had the same problem, in that I had forgotten I wasn't done with the mechanical part before I started the electrical. Cut a gap in the throw bar and suddenly everything worked great again.
 
Yea, been there with the PCB ties. I now always triple check with an Ohmmeter and a good magnifier each turnout before I put them into the paint shop.
 



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