POINT MOTOR WIRING AND CAPACITOR DISCHARGE

[Jules59]

Hi Guys

Im just starting a mimic board with stud and probe and just making sure the 16/0.2mm (2.0mm) 3 amp wIre peco PL-38 will be adequate with a gaugemaster capacitor discharge unit to run off to the point motors studs etc whilst using the 16v AC from a Hornby duet. The peco point motor wires and spades seem more like 1.0 to 1.5mm much thinner should I bin these and stick to the 2.0mm throughout. I will be putting chocolate blocks at each point motor under the baseboard then wiring loom common to capacitor, positive and negative to the mimic board on banana plugs or similar for easy storage.

Jules

[Flashbang]

Hi
16/0.2mm is fine to use for a solenoid point motor feed and return. I would if two motors are to move from one stud - cross-over pair of points etc wire each motor back to the panel and not link from one motor to the other. As you stand a better chance of both moving correctly if they have their own separate feed wires. The return wire where two or more motors share a common return and move together should ideally become 24/0.2 or better still 32/0.2mm

Note; 16/0.2mm is roughly equivalent of 0.5mm2 While 32/0.2 is roughly 1.0mm2

[Jules59]

Hi Flashbang
Thanks for the response im still feeling my way through the electrics on this layout as a first timer .
Tho im still a little confused as I said in my post the Peco point motor looms PL-34 seem an awful lot thinner than the PECO wire stated as being 16/0.2mm. Are these looms only good to get to a chocolate block and then use the thicker wire to the mimic board and CDU ?

I also need 5 more studs and washers if anyones got some spares ha ha

Jules

[RAF96]

Hornby surface mount motors are much the same, very thin wires that are only to get you to a junction with proper thickness wire.
I have modified some of mine to a direct plug arrangement which allows me to solder the thicker cable to the plug.

http://www.halton96th.org.uk/r8243pointmotor.html

[Bufferstop]

Treat Peco's thin wire the same as a dropper, no longer than it needs to be to get to the main wiring.

[Flashbang]

Hi
As stated at the beginning, use 16/0.2mm wire for all solenoid motor wiring. This is an example and cheaper than Peco offerings http://www.brimal.co.uk/ seach 16/0.2mm 10Mtrs for £2.58 or there is Bitsbox slight more expensive at 10Mtrs for £3.00 https://www.bitsbox.co.uk/index.php?mai ... th=200_203
Also obtain some of these ... Example https://www.toolstation.com/connector-s ... al%20Block Cut up into three way pieces and secure under the layout right adjacent to the point motor. Drill a small hole at the point motors position where the factory fitted three motor wires need to pass down to below baseboard and feed the three factory fitted wires down to below baseboard, shorten them and terminate them into one side of the now three way blocks and then run the two 16/0.2mm wires from the terminal block motor operation pair of connection on the blocks other side back to the panel studs. Then wire the return connections to all motors together then it goes back to the CDU negative.