Not Another Short?

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I use Peco PL-10 and PL-11 point motors wired using their colour scheme throughout.  Black and red are the switch wires, green is the common power.  

 Each motor has a green wire which are all fed back towards the controller.  Each switch on the panel has a green which is also fed back to the controller.  All the various greens on each side are brought down to two single wires through various choc-block terminals where two and sometimes three wires are reduced to one across the block.  

I connect the switch feed to the negative terminal and the power feed to the positive side as per the controller instructions.

And I get a short.  

Swap the wires.

I get a short.

WHY?????   :hmm   I had this all working but now it shorts.  Not enough hair left to tear out.  :brickwall

Rick
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Sol
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What controller? Do you mean the power supply?

Can you supply a drawing of the wiring ?

Ron
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Hi Rick,
Is it possible you have a burnt out coil in one of your switches?  Before connecting your power, check for the absence of resistance with multimeter. Personally I think you have a crossed wire or if you have a pair of wires from your supply to your switches, perhaps a faulty wire?

That will do for starters… it is late here in Victoria!

Good Luck

Trevor

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Burnt-out coil?  I doubt it because everything was working correctly when tested on a previous controller.  That controller, which was the one I used on Penhayle Bay for over 10 years, was replaced because the CDU didn't work so a known problem.  The points were wired back to the accessory output.

The new one is a Morley Vortrak Zero-Ten with inbuilt CDU and therefore the updated version of their Zero-Nine which I was using before.  The points are wired to the CDU output.  

I'll have to start checking things with the multimeter over the next few days.  It might even be as simple as having an item of rolling stock placed across the tracks at a switch though I can't see how that would show a short in the point-motor circuit.  

The other option is that two wires are touching somewhere which should not be touching.  That could take a lot of tracking down ….. 

:hmm

Rick
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If it was all working before you did your "step-down" into your single wires Rick, then the problem has got to be in that stepping down.

Have you used choc blocks or tag strips ?  My guess goes with Trevor - you've crossed a wire somewhere in the operation - easily done with multiple wires and repetitive jobs.

Stock on the track wouldn't cause a short - unless the axle insulation has gone belly up but you'd see that easily………..


'Petermac
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