Reverse Loop discovered

[vvarady]

Can the reverse loop(s) be made workable with electronics available in DCC ?

[Tom Springer]

Yes.  Things you need to consider:

• The difference between a "reversing loop" and the actual track section ("reversing section") where the electrical polarity will be flipped by a DCC reversing device.  The reversing section must be longer than the actual train that you will run, especially if you run cars with metal wheels, or with wheelsets that are set up for "block detection".  AnyRail will tell you the "reversing loop" as it see it; the actual reversing section might be within that area, and maybe not he whole loop if properly constructed..
  
• 
  Wiring can be complicated by the inclusion of turnouts in the reversing section track.  And make sure, if turnouts are included, that there is sufficient track between the actual start of the reversing track and the turnout.

There are lots of places on the web where wiring discussions and considerations can be found.  You might start by looking at the Digitrax or NCE websites.  There is also the NCE group on Yahoo Groups.  The Digitrax group has moved off Yahoo and is now on Groups.IO

[vvarady]

Thanks for the info.
know that te "loop" needs t be able to encompass entire train,but I don't know how to determine where the loop actually is so I can isolate properly for those Rev Loop modules.
I thought the loop was in between the 2 turnouts and knew that could never work due to it's length.
Any help on determining how to wire the Rev Loop would be greatly appreciated from anyone.

Thanks again

[Tom Springer]

If you post the AnyRail file here, perhaps we can help figure things out.  And, if you can, also indicate the type of trains you plan on running and info on equipment including locomotives and cars to know the reversing section track length.

[vistisen]

Yes.  Things you need to consider:

• The difference between a "reversing loop" and the actual track section ("reversing section") where the electrical polarity will be flipped by a DCC reversing device.  The reversing section must be longer than the actual train that you will run, especially if you run cars with metal wheels, or with wheelsets that are set up for "block detection".  AnyRail will tell you the "reversing loop" as it see it; the actual reversing section might be within that area, and maybe not he whole loop if properly constructed..
  
• 
  Wiring can be complicated by the inclusion of turnouts in the reversing section track.  And make sure, if turnouts are included, that there is sufficient track between the actual start of the reversing track and the turnout.

There are lots of places on the web where wiring discussions and considerations can be found.  You might start by looking at the Digitrax or NCE websites.  There is also the NCE group on Yahoo Groups.  The Digitrax group has moved off Yahoo and is now on Groups.IO

Actually it does not matter if the wheels are plastic or metal. The loop must be longer than the train for another reason. If it is not the front of the train will crash into the rear end of the train as it exits the loop before the back has gone into it

[Tom Springer]

Metal wheels are more likely to cause shorts, so additional protection may be needed, depending on what is included in the reversing section.

[vvarady]

I am having trouble loading the .any file.
What I would like to find out is where are the loops and that would tell me max train lengths.
I have no idea if this layout is feasible.

Thanks again

[Tom Springer]

Vic,

I'm not a fan of Kato track, too "rigid" for me; I like flexibility.   (And bad puns)

Attached is something that I think might work for you if you can put it together with Kato track; the track in red and the 2 turnouts in orange might be the reversing area you are looking for; the red track is 988mm long, should be sufficient for a reversing section.  I used some Atlas flex track for this, so I don't know if the Kato track can do this configuration.  And I made no attempt to connect the rest of the layout tracks...

The first attached JPG image is from TrainPlayer where I put a train on the red track to see if there was sufficient length for a sample train to fit inside the reversing limits.  (The second attached JPG image is of the train I used)

I hope this gives you some visuals to aid in your layout work.