Help with DCC points motor and Hornby Select

[Spud mcspuddy]

Help please!

I have today wired in a dcc surface points motor. The exact model is

https://railsofsheffield.com/products/rails-connect-rpm-smd-1-rails-connect-high-efficiency-surface-mount-digital-point-motor-single-pack

I have wired as diagram says, connected it to dcc accessory input on hornby select and it doesn't work. I connect it to the track input on hornby select and it works, however as soon as i connect the track input in also the points motor does not work. The trains run fine. The dcc bit is sorted as I said when it's connected on its own to track input I put the number in on hornby select and it works fine. I'm new to this and find it very frustrating. Any help would be appreciated.

[96RAF]

Select Aux output is DC whereas your device requires DCC or DC as a power source depending upon your chosen mode of use, controller and/or manual switching .

To operate from your Select you need to use the Track connection so that the mini accessory decoder can hear the DCC commands. You also have to set the point address within the Select allowable range 61-99.

Do you have frog switching connected also.

I have reproduced the Rails wiring diagram here for ease of reference.

[Spud mcspuddy]

Thanks for the reply, when I connect both the track and the cable from the points into the "track input" on the select the trains move but the points don't. Should I just take a feed directly from the track? Sorry about this I'm a very new.

[Spud mcspuddy]

So as per the diagram the points motor is connected with the 3 coloured cables. No frog thing. 2 cables then run from the power input on the decoder over to the hornby select. I would take a picture but not sure they post on here.

[Chrissaf]

Images and photos are supported on this forum as indicated by Rob's reply above. Use the image tool in the tools toolbox on the far right. All images are held back for moderator approval and will not appear straight away. Images need to be in .JPG .JPEG. .PNG file format. .BMP and native Apple IOS file formats are not supported. Files should ideally be less than 2MB in size.

[Chrissaf]

There are three wires in Rob's schematic shown connected to the point [i mean the point track piece on the left, not the point motor]. You say you are not using frog switching, so I just want to confirm that you have not made any wiring connections to these three wire terminals on the Rails decoder. If you have, then this will not work with Hornby track.

Have you set the DCC Address on the decoder to one in the 61 to 99 range.

As Rob said earlier and I reiterate with a little more clarity.

The Track and Aux connections on the Select are outputs and not inputs, your misuse of terms does make it a little harder to follow what you are doing.

The Rails product is dual function with support for both Analogue and Digital use.

It can be used by Analogue DC layout builders by connecting DC to the power input on the Rails product. This allows the points to be operated using a mechanical momentary action switch as shown in the schematic.

But for DCC operation you connect track DCC power to the Rails product. This is just a long way of saying that you do not connect this Rails product to the AUX output of the Select, it is connected to the Track output of the Select.

Now to configuration, just to confirm that you have set the DCC Address correctly. .

Have you used the "set run" switch shown on the schematic in the bottom right corner of the board.

With the decoder power INPUT connected to the Select Track OUTPUT and powered up, put this switch in the 'Set' position. Now select the DCC Address you want to set on the Select [i.e. 61 for the first unit, 62 for the second, 63 for the third etc]. With the DCC Address selected on the Select press the left arrow followed by the right arrow to send switch left and switch right point operating commands to the Rails decoder. Now return the switch on the decoder back to the 'Run' position. If all is well, the point should now operate using the DCC Address that you have just set.

Just for information, when you connected the power INPUT of the Rails decoder to the AUX OUTPUT of the Select, the points worked [presumably because you were using the mechanical switch] as you were operating them in their DC Analogue configuration and not DCC. To operate them using DCC you have to set an address as described above and send operate commands from the Select for the address that has been set.

If it still doesn't work come back and confirm that the instructions above have been followed and more advice can be given.

Please also confirm the firmware number of your Select in your next reply. The firmware number is the very first number to appear on the Select screen as it is being powered up. The number appears very briefly so the screen needs to be closely observed as power is connected to the Select.

This is a long reply. Please use the "Reply Text Box" at the bottom of the page and click the green "Post Reply" button to write and make a reply, not the "blue button" within the post.

[Spud mcspuddy]

The dcc bit works, when I Select 65 on the controller the motor works when I press the arrows.

I have no cables connected to the points frog bit on the decoder.

[Chrissaf]

The track power connector in the top photo has buff coloured press buttons. This means that it is an Analogue R8206 track connector. These Analogue track connectors have suppression capacitors in them that distort DCC signals. Strange things start to happen when these Analogue connectors are present on a DCC controlled layout. This is very likely the cause of why your trains stop working when the Rails decoder is concurrently connected to the track in parallel.

I assume that the blue and brown wires connected to the Rails decoder were originally connected to the track power connector and only transferred to the Rails decoder for the test and to take the photo.

You MUST remove these Analogue suppression capacitors for correct DCC operation.

ANY & ALL track connectors used on your layout need to be checked and all capacitors found removed.

On the R8206 track power connector in your top photo the capacitor is under the clip on cover that sits between the rails. On 'plug in' track power connectors R602 & R8201 the clamshell cover of the connector is prised apart to reveal the capacitor.

Do this and I feel confident that you will see an improvement.

The correct track power connectors for Digital DCC that do not have these capacitors are R8241 & R8242, your layout should have been built using these. The R8241 Track Power Connector typically has either green or very dark grey press buttons. The R8242 has a DCC label on it for type identification, but these labels can fall off. But the described capacitor removal modification is a suitable alternative. You are fortunate that your photo included the buff press buttons for me to spot, else you would have been going round in endless circles.

Select firmware number?

[Spud mcspuddy]

Thank you so much, removed the capacitor and all working.

[Chrissaf]

Note to all.

This is why it is important to provide lots of background information when describing an issue. If it had been mentioned that the layout was built as an Analogue layout, then that would have been a significant clue and the capacitor issue would have been raised earlier in a reply.

Many of these small details seem insignificant and not relevant to novices, but are very significant to the more experienced.

It was just very lucky that spud posted that particular photo showing the buff buttons.

To spud.

Glad to have been of service and glad the issue is resolved. But do note the general comment above regarding giving copious info if you raise further questions in the future.

[Brew Man]

I'd be inclined to recommend buying the analogue version and removing the capacitor rather than buying the digital version at often more than twice the price. And after all, the only difference between the two is the inclusion or omission of the capacitor.

[Chrissaf]

Have you checked the prices recently. Both the Analogue R8206 and the Digital R8241 are currently listed in the Hornby shop with the same price of £11.99

[Brew Man]

What! so instead of reducing the price of the digital version, they've put up the price of both. Astonishing!. I see though that R8206 is £4.99 on Amazon.

I'm glad I moved over to soldering my track.