Street lamps

[smokey Joe 72]

Hi, got a good offer on 8 st lamps and brought them. I'm new to this and a real novice. I have a skale lighting power strip with a fuse and switch 12-16v and plugs. I guess I need a transformer ? The lamps have 2 wires coming out but the skale plugs only have 1 input. Any ideas? Apologies for my ignorance. Any advice would be gratley appreciated.

 

[walkingthedog]

The Skale plugs have 2 pins. 

[poliss]

The instructions used to be on the Hornby website, but I can't find them now.

Here they are on another website.

http://www.brunelhobbies.com.au/Hornby/skaleLighting.htm

[smokey Joe 72]

The Skale plugs have 2 pins. 

Yes, I meant I input for wires. Sorry.

[walkingthedog]

deleted, duplicate entry. 

[walkingthedog]

I'm confused do you mean you can only put one wire in the plug or only one pair of wires in the plug?

[Chrissaf]

Smokey Joe, it will be clearer if you look at the instruction sheet that Poliss has provided the link for (I have replicated the link below and made it clickable for your convenience). The Skale plug has two pins at one end and one hole at the other end. The pins are removable. You feed TWO wires through the single end hole and then trap the ‘bared’ wires with the pins in their individual two mounting holes. The drawings on the instruction sheet show the termination technique clearly.

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http://www.brunelhobbies.com.au/Hornby/skaleLighting.htm

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Just be aware that the Skale Lighting power strip is designed to operate incandescent bulbs. The Skale plugs are not keyed and can be plugged into the strip either way round. Ideally just make sure that your purchased street lamps are based on bulbs (typically called ‘grain of wheat’ bulbs) and not LEDs.

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If they are LEDs, then you will need to incorporate 1,000 ohm current limiting resistors in one leg of each lamp if not already built into the product. The resistor has to be in the circuit somewhere, else the LEDs will burn out.

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If bulbs, then you can connect to either an AC or DC supply. If LEDs, then a DC supply is recommended. Note that LEDs are polarity sensitive and will only work one way round, hence the comment about Skale plugs not being keyed.

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You could either use a dedicated separate (this would be my recommendation) 12 volt power supply or use the auxiliary output of a controller if an aux output is available on the controller. Remembering to use the DC output option for LEDs. Any power from the controller that you use for lighting, will detract from the power available to run your locos, hence my recommendation to use a dedicated separate supply for lighting.

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EDIT: A personal comment on Bulbs vs LEDs. My preference would be to always use LEDs instead of Bulbs.

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Bulbs consume a LOT of power (current), this means they get hot, VERY hot.

LEDs run cold to the touch.

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The hotter something runs the shorter its lifespan. Bulb based street lights might look like a good deal price wise, but LEDs will last 1,000s of times longer if in a well designed electrical circuit.

 

[poliss]

I don't know why the links aren't clickable any more. Something changed on the forum software?

[walkingthedog]

Mine are never clickable poliss. 

[Chrissaf]

Poliss / WTD,

Have a look at my post (4th down on the page) here. It has a series of screen grabs showing the process I use.

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EDIT: WTD you've seen my previous post before, because you posted a comment right after it.

[poliss]

Possible that it's the new Edge browser that's the problem.

[walkingthedog]

I know how to make them clickable, but on the other forum I use you just type the link and its clickable as they are in emails. Why do you have to do something extra. Step backwards as far as I'm concerned. 

[mjb1961]

Hi, got a good offer on 8 st lamps and brought them. I'm new to this and a real novice. I have a skale lighting power strip with a fuse and switch 12-16v and plugs. I guess I need a transformer ? The lamps have 2 wires coming out but the skale plugs only have 1 input. Any ideas? Apologies for my ignorance. Any advice would be gratley appreciated.

 

Hi smokey joe ,my wife has those type of plugs on her dolls house ,they come apart and inside you will find that there are two pins ,but that is an expensive way of connecting up lamps and more fiddly ,you need a transformer ,firstly what voltage are the lights ,don't take it for granted that they are 12v because they might not be ,I use a dolls house transformer ,12v and at the moment it is running 21 street lights and for connecting I use those electrical connection blocks and I'm using bell wire ,all bought off eBay ,,,,,mjb

 

Admin edit: Removed specific details of eBay seller

[37lover]

mjb1961,

You might be considered to be contravening the forum rules as Hornby produce skale lighting.

[mjb1961]

mjb1961,

You might be considered to be contravening the forum rules as Hornby produce skale lighting.

Oh dear ,what's to penalty ?

[Rog RJ]

mjb1961,

You might be considered to be contravening the forum rules as Hornby produce skale lighting.

Oh dear ,what's to penalty ?

Go and sit on the naughty step for an hour and think carefully about your behaviour.   :-)

[37lover]

mjb1961,

You might be considered to be contravening the forum rules as Hornby produce skale lighting.

Oh dear ,what's to penalty ?

Admin has edited your posting so just send lots of money to me. Oh, no you can't because we mustn't divulge personal details. Instead read and write out the Forum Rules twenty times before going to bed, for the next week.