Red and White - Black and White - Pink and Purple - who cares as long as you are consistent. My friend has a museum quality finished road - no circuit breakers - no twisted wires - all splices are soldered but insulated. Good video. I'm so glad that you titled this "how I do" and not "how to do". I just hate videos that seem to express the idea that this is the only way to do things. Thank you...
not a bad video , I work with that stuff every day and the only thing I suggest is tape all your connections with electrical tape , just because stuff happens , and a short can cause a spark , good video for the beginners , most people don't know you need flux , or solder paste to actually do soldering ,, thanks for the video , keep them coming ,
Fantastic tutorial Joe! Great video. My only gripe is that now I've seen your electrical work I feel a lot worse about my own. Haha. There's a reason why I never show the underside of my boards. You gave some great tips and food for thought. Many thanks. Ross
Good video Joe. I couldn't find anything explaining how to when I started. Your video should help lots of people. I'm using what you just showed as my programming track. I'm up to a 5 amp smart booster and 3 dumb boosters. The NCE expands easily as your layout grows..
It's nice to find a 'How-I-Do-It' video than a How-You-It' video, which are all too common with some channels. I love Trains and Railways(Rail Roads) and Railway modelling too. Cool. I was trying to figure how the bus wires would end on the AC set-up that DCC is. With the advance of DCC, I'm glad I didn't pass my RJ45 cables on.
Cheers Joe. Railway modelling's been a fascination since I was a lad. I first saw the Hornby Zero 1 system, the earliest DCC I know of, back in the late 70's-early 80's. How it's advanced since then. I'm just starting to get back into my railway modelling again and on here(FB) I've seen DCC stuff that's as simple as forward/reverse right out to signals that can stop the trains approaching it, not to mention the sound abilities(if fitted :). All can be controlled from a Mother Controller and networked sub-stations and sensors, almost like the real thing. I've even seen a 3D-printed model of the Forth Rail Bridge from here in the UK and the tiniest scale possible trains running along it at a local(Perth) Model Railway Exhibition! Amazing! As ever though, the battery had run out on my phone and its camera......Catch ya again.
Great video. I learned something new. Now I will have to add the resistor and capacitor to my wiring. I see NCE changed the face of the plate to plastic. Mine is metal. I wish they didn't do that. One other thing I like about the NCE system, you can buy UTP panels that use the Cat5 standard so the ton of Cat wire I have can be used to connect the panels and I don't have to buy new wire.Scott
+Joe G Joe, you can teach any one new things. We don't know every thing, well except me. lol This is the true reason to make these video's is to teach every one something. Sometimes we may know things but forget or don't know at all. So great job and keep up the great work. I hate those plastic plates, I wish they stayed with metal. The plates always crack or break off at the holes. I am going with JRMI in the future but I will also have the panels going around the layout. One day I plan on getting the larger system from NCE and using the Power Cab for a test track but will be down the road or I may just stay with the JMRI system when I set it up.
Joe, I love how these pretty much have to be "How I do it" videos..... Because of too many 12 year old Basement Warriors out there!! LOL! Awesome tutorial though! I'm running a 10 amp NCE PowerPro. I actually don't remember if I have to use a snubber. I'll have to dig up that magazine. I'm with you on Soldering connections! I don't care how much people say that suitcase connectors work, DCC sends a slightly finicky signal. It doesn't really need anything more than good, solid wire connections and plenty of drop feeders. The suitcase connectors aren't 100% secure, and have even been known to cut a few strands off of the wires. Doesn't sound good to me! Everything you've done there looks right! Even colors aren't as important as continuity. As long as everything is going to the right place, you're good!! 😉 Carmine 🚂
Lot's of useful info Joe. Thanks for sharing. I actually never heard of the snubber before. I might have to look into that. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks! LOL
My layout isn't as large as yours and therefore the bus wire is shorter...should I still add one of those "snubbers" like you have at the end of my bus wire?
Reather than all that difficult soldering under the board, why ever don't you use the "suitcase" connectors. They are designed for DCC and have different sizes in the clamp itself for the main bus and the droppers, making it a cinch to have a guaranteed connection, but without all that hasssle of soldering under the baseboard, and worse yet, the potential for something shorting those two main bus wires together where you have solder joints. I know you have offset them, but then again , Murphy's law is always at work. It also helps tremendously if/when you have to move some track, and need to undo these types of connections. It is a simple matter of pulling the "suitcase" adaptor apart and lifting the wires out, leaving only a very small "stripped" section of wire to mark where a joint used to be.
soldering, when properly done is a positive airtight connection. the suitcase connectors are convenient but only that. The air gap inside the plastic case allows humidity to enter and then corrosion follows. Current flow is then affected in a negative way as the corrosion causes resistance. At low voltage low/ low current rates every electron matters for performance. If you're going to invest a not-inconsiderable amount of money in equipment and the back wrenching effort to crawl around under your layout do it the best way possible.
Hi Joe. I have a question. Can snap track be used on a DCC layout or is flextrack an absolute requirement? I understand the importance of keeping the current flowing through the rails and reducing the amount of breaks in the rails (joints), but I do like the clickety clack sound trains make when passing over snap track sections.
***** Thank you Joe. I am blonde and not technologically inclined-especially when it comes to DCC. I have both editions of Model Railroader's DCC guides and I'm more confused now than before I started reading. Knowing my luck I'll knock out our whole power grid.
Joe... great video. Nice solder work. I wish I would have watched this before using the suitcase connectors..they were a pain..and not near as solid as your work. I may have missed it..but did you cover the solder joints with tape or anything? Glad to see you got the 14ga wire to work in the do hicky for the NCE faceplate. I tried a number of times with 14 ga on my NCE and it kept coming out. I ended up using a 16 ga wire to go from the bus to the do hicky.
Hi Joe, in this video you showed a book from model railroader that showed what nice recommended. I’m looking to get the book. Do you know the name of it and the author?
Nice video Joe. I got a question I have two main lines going around my layout. Should I have one bus line or should I make two different bus line? I'm new at this...
Stuart Gillis One bus line is enough, no matter how many mainline you have. Also, you can only hook up one bus line to the NCE Cab. What you should do is have each main line on thier own power district so if there is a short on one line it won't effect the other.
OMG... its been 4 years since this video was published.. please tell me you put some form of insulation on the wires.. electrical tape, plasti dip, liquid electrical tape, heat shrink.. etc.. those exposed wires are a fire hazzard..
Here are two videos I like in this subject. This guy is very good at explaining the process. ua-cam.com/video/6e6IecGiNtM/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/eK_3xcoDXNk/v-deo.html
A good friend with a museum quality layout (in MR and several other magazines) has had DCC for many years and did not twist the wires at all and never has had any problems. Also he does not have any circut breakers. The solder joint at the 18:02 time line is not done right.You need to cover the entire splice to get a real good solder. Also you forgot to tape the joint or insulate it in some way. The 2 joints seem to be close enough that they might come into contact some time. Better be safe than sorry.... Boy, all of your solder joints are not insulated and to close together.
The twisting of the wires are manufacturer recommendations, Im sure that there are people that don't have any issues. Many manufactures play it safe than sorry. Also, the soldered wires were off set to reduce the chance of them touching. However, this layout has been taken down and I now use terminals for all my connections.
NCE IS NOT AS GOOD AS DIGITRAX WHEN IT COMES TO THE WIRING THOSE TRACK POWER CONNECTORS ARE MUCH TOO SMALL, MAKES IT VERY DIFFICULT TO WIRE A 12AWG BUS LT ALONE A 14 GAUGE WHICH IS IMPOSSIBLE , DIGITRAX CONNECTORS ARE MUCH MORE ROBUST AND HAVE LARGER CABLE CONNECTIONS,MUCH PREFER DIGITRAX TO NCE.
Mijia Josef - Easy enough! NCE is much more user-friendly. It's intuitive programming works WITH you, instead of frustrating you by doing things like repeating the SAME monotonous steps to do some common commands - like Digitrax. Digitrax DOES have History. They've been around since the 80's. Problem is, they have such a blind, passionate following by some prominent Modelers, that Digitrax hasn't really been forced to upgrade things like it's very dated look, it's lack of compatibility with some other manufacturers... And it can be "touchy". Push some wrong buttons - and you're SCREWED! Enter wrong commands into a NCE PowerPro, and you can either back up, or keep scanning all the way through, until you're back at the start! Digitrax ISN'T a complete Dinosaur! It has some nice features, like Loco-Net, which allows you to know where all your Trains are - as long as they have transponder equipped Decoders. The rest of it was just too old school for me! I shopped CAREFULLY for my first DCC system, about 10 years ago. I chose the NCE PowerCab, and NEVER regretted it! The NCE system is SO modular and easily upgradeable, that with my current 10 Amp, 7 District Layout, I STILL have nearly all of my original $144.99 PowerCab NOW!! It's just GOOD!
Red and White - Black and White - Pink and Purple - who cares as long as you are consistent. My friend has a museum quality finished road - no circuit breakers - no twisted wires - all splices are soldered but insulated. Good video. I'm so glad that you titled this "how I do" and not "how to do". I just hate videos that seem to express the idea that this is the only way to do things. Thank you...
Thank you, that's why I titled it that way. It's just the way I do it, not the only way to do it!
@@JoeG-firehousewhiskey And I respect that...
not a bad video , I work with that stuff every day and the only thing I suggest is tape all your connections with electrical tape , just because stuff happens , and a short can cause a spark , good video for the beginners , most people don't know you need flux , or solder paste to actually do soldering ,, thanks for the video , keep them coming ,
Fantastic tutorial Joe! Great video.
My only gripe is that now I've seen your electrical work I feel a lot worse about my own. Haha. There's a reason why I never show the underside of my boards. You gave some great tips and food for thought. Many thanks.
Ross
I enjoyed watching this again.
Sometimes I have to watch my videos a few times to see how I did something
Good video Joe. I couldn't find anything explaining how to when I started. Your video should help lots of people. I'm using what you just showed as my programming track. I'm up to a 5 amp smart booster and 3 dumb boosters. The NCE expands easily as your layout grows..
It's nice to find a 'How-I-Do-It' video than a How-You-It' video, which are all too common with some channels. I love Trains and Railways(Rail Roads) and Railway modelling too. Cool. I was trying to figure how the bus wires would end on the AC set-up that DCC is.
With the advance of DCC, I'm glad I didn't pass my RJ45 cables on.
Cheers Joe. Railway modelling's been a fascination since I was a lad. I first saw the Hornby Zero 1 system, the earliest DCC I know of, back in the late 70's-early 80's. How it's advanced since then. I'm just starting to get back into my railway modelling again and on here(FB) I've seen DCC stuff that's as simple as forward/reverse right out to signals that can stop the trains approaching it, not to mention the sound abilities(if fitted :). All can be controlled from a Mother Controller and networked sub-stations and sensors, almost like the real thing. I've even seen a 3D-printed model of the Forth Rail Bridge from here in the UK and the tiniest scale possible trains running along it at a local(Perth) Model Railway Exhibition! Amazing! As ever though, the battery had run out on my phone and its camera......Catch ya again.
You should squirt a little dab of clear silicone calk on each of those joints to seal them from moisture and also to prevent accidental shorting.
Thoroughly enjoyed this...not an electrician, but learned a bit here 73 y-o newbie LOL
haha Im glad you were able to learn something and enjoy the video!
Great video. I learned something new. Now I will have to add the resistor and capacitor to my wiring. I see NCE changed the face of the plate to plastic. Mine is metal. I wish they didn't do that. One other thing I like about the NCE system, you can buy UTP panels that use the Cat5 standard so the ton of Cat wire I have can be used to connect the panels and I don't have to buy new wire.Scott
+Joe G Joe, you can teach any one new things. We don't know every thing, well except me. lol This is the true reason to make these video's is to teach every one something. Sometimes we may know things but forget or don't know at all. So great job and keep up the great work. I hate those plastic plates, I wish they stayed with metal. The plates always crack or break off at the holes. I am going with JRMI in the future but I will also have the panels going around the layout. One day I plan on getting the larger system from NCE and using the Power Cab for a test track but will be down the road or I may just stay with the JMRI system when I set it up.
Joe great wiring job, nice and simple. Looking forward to part 2.
THANKS YOU FOR SHARING THIS VIDEO
No problem, glad you liked it!
Joe, I love how these pretty much have to be "How I do it" videos..... Because of too many 12 year old Basement Warriors out there!! LOL!
Awesome tutorial though! I'm running a 10 amp NCE PowerPro. I actually don't remember if I have to use a snubber. I'll have to dig up that magazine.
I'm with you on Soldering connections! I don't care how much people say that suitcase connectors work, DCC sends a slightly finicky signal. It doesn't really need anything more than good, solid wire connections and plenty of drop feeders.
The suitcase connectors aren't 100% secure, and have even been known to cut a few strands off of the wires. Doesn't sound good to me! Everything you've done there looks right! Even colors aren't as important as continuity. As long as everything is going to the right place, you're good!! 😉
Carmine 🚂
Lot's of useful info Joe. Thanks for sharing. I actually never heard of the snubber before. I might have to look into that. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks! LOL
Answered all my questions. Thanks brotha!!
Sweet, glad it helped you out!
@@JoeG-firehousewhiskey one other thing did u use any stranded 14 to connect to the nce port? And also was it any stranded 12 wire?
@@gunn9787 I used 18 gauge from the pcp panel to the terminal strips for the bus. Then stranded 12 gauge for the bus.
Thx joe ,just getting started my self needed that tutorial.
No problem, Im glad I could help!
Great video thank u very much for making this so much easier
Im glad it was helpful to you!
So you solder all your feeders to bus lines? Wouldn't suit case ciips work much easier and leaves no exposed wires?
Yes it surely would. Now a days I use terminal connections.
hi Joe... awesome "How To" ... i'm sure that a lot of modelers will get good use out of it... thanks for sharing.. vinny
This was not a 'how to" video but a "how I do it" video.
Great video, AWSOME host... 👍
Thank you very much, and thanks for watching
Good job Joe. Thanks.
Thank you very much for your kind words
Good job Joe you made it look easy !
***** Your welcome Joe !
My layout isn't as large as yours and therefore the bus wire is shorter...should I still add one of those "snubbers" like you have at the end of my bus wire?
If your bus like is less than 30ft, you dont need the resistors at the emd.
Reather than all that difficult soldering under the board, why ever don't you use the "suitcase" connectors. They are designed for DCC and have different sizes in the clamp itself for the main bus and the droppers, making it a cinch to have a guaranteed connection, but without all that hasssle of soldering under the baseboard, and worse yet, the potential for something shorting those two main bus wires together where you have solder joints. I know you have offset them, but then again , Murphy's law is always at work. It also helps tremendously if/when you have to move some track, and need to undo these types of connections. It is a simple matter of pulling the "suitcase" adaptor apart and lifting the wires out, leaving only a very small "stripped" section of wire to mark where a joint used to be.
soldering, when properly done is a positive airtight connection. the suitcase connectors are convenient but only that. The air gap inside the plastic case allows humidity to enter and then corrosion follows. Current flow is then affected in a negative way as the corrosion causes resistance. At low voltage low/ low current rates every electron matters for performance. If you're going to invest a not-inconsiderable amount of money in equipment
and the back wrenching effort to crawl around under your layout do it the best way possible.
A good solder joint done right will never fail......
Hi Joe. I have a question. Can snap track be used on a DCC layout or is flextrack an absolute requirement? I understand the importance of keeping the current flowing through the rails and reducing the amount of breaks in the rails (joints), but I do like the clickety clack sound trains make when passing over snap track sections.
***** Thank you Joe. I am blonde and not technologically inclined-especially when it comes to DCC. I have both editions of Model Railroader's DCC guides and I'm more confused now than before I started reading. Knowing my luck I'll knock out our whole power grid.
How I do it is put a feeder on every track every one or two feet not sure if it’ll work for you
Joe great how too cheers Robert
I really use video series as I have an NCE Power Cab! I have subscribed!
Thank you very much. I'm glad I could help.
@@JoeG-firehousewhiskey It's been very useful to me. I was one of those users who was using their PowerCab for about 2% of it's capabilities!
Thank you, very helpful video!
youre very welcome, I'm glad it helped you
Awesome video Joe
awesome video Joe!!!
Pretty cool setup.
Great video, Joe! a bit entertaining too!
Thank you very much!
Joe... great video. Nice solder work. I wish I would have watched this before using the suitcase connectors..they were a pain..and not near as solid as your work. I may have missed it..but did you cover the solder joints with tape or anything? Glad to see you got the 14ga wire to work in the do hicky for the NCE faceplate. I tried a number of times with 14 ga on my NCE and it kept coming out. I ended up using a 16 ga wire to go from the bus to the do hicky.
You can not replace a good solder joint done right and they will never fail and they are damn cheep...
ROFL wiring a DCC layout is the same as DC you have 2 wires and 2 rails one wire to each rail .. boom done
Thanks for watching and commenting!
Where did you get the capacitor and resister from and what is the name of it
I need to get one
oh man, that was a while ago. I think it was from Ebay
Hi Joe, in this video you showed a book from model railroader that showed what nice recommended. I’m looking to get the book. Do you know the name of it and the author?
What nce recommended, damn auto correct.
Ill have to look when I get home on Saturday I cant remember off hand. I think its The DCC Guide Second edition, but im not 100%sure
Hey Joe, any luck with the name and author of that dcc book? Thank you.
Why didn't you put tape where the buss wires connect to make more sure you don't get shorts?
I offset the splices so they wouldn't touch!
@@JoeG-firehousewhiskey Yes, I saw that, but it still does not sound like the best way to do it. Life has a way of throwing us curve balls.
@@odalesaylor That is true, you can modify it anyway that works for you!
Does the NCE Starter Kit include that cap and resistor?
No, I had to buy them from eBay!
Nice video Joe. I got a question I have two main lines going around my layout. Should I have one bus line or should I make two different bus line? I'm new at this...
Stuart Gillis One bus line is enough, no matter how many mainline you have. Also, you can only hook up one bus line to the NCE Cab. What you should do is have each main line on thier own power district so if there is a short on one line it won't effect the other.
Nice "How To" Joe. @11:33, How did you add that diagram to your video? Pretty cool effect.
Great video Joe. What is the name of that you tool you used to make the bare spots on the bus wire? - Paul
I used a wire stripper, and a #11 blade with a light on it. Are those the tools you were asking about?
What capacitor did you buy?
A .1 uf capacitor
Well done!
Hey Joe, nice how to" video ! I prefer Digitrax stuff
I know this is old but people should know that Digitrax says not to use a snubber with their system.
Looks great! About to hook up my 5amp NCE booster next week! Never heard about the "no loop" thing. Is there a reason for that?
-JG
+Joe G 5 amp system will be the only track power. The track connection on my NCE power cab panel will be my programming track.
-JG
+Joe G no problems with the 2 amp standard NCE power cab. Just not enough to power the amount of engines I'll have on the layout eventually.
-JG
Don't need that capacitor set up for a 10 ft buss do I?
No, its only if its 30ft or longer.
@@JoeG-firehousewhiskey Oh, Okay Thanks
OMG... its been 4 years since this video was published.. please tell me you put some form of insulation on the wires.. electrical tape, plasti dip, liquid electrical tape, heat shrink.. etc.. those exposed wires are a fire hazzard..
that layout is gone X's 2. I use terminal joiners now
Thank you. So is there a video on that? Power district
Here are two videos I like in this subject. This guy is very good at explaining the process.
ua-cam.com/video/6e6IecGiNtM/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/eK_3xcoDXNk/v-deo.html
A good friend with a museum quality layout (in MR and several other magazines) has had DCC for many years and did not twist the wires at all and never has had any problems. Also he does not have any circut breakers. The solder joint at the 18:02 time line is not done right.You need to cover the entire splice to get a real good solder. Also you forgot to tape the joint or insulate it in some way. The 2 joints seem to be close enough that they might come into contact some time. Better be safe than sorry.... Boy, all of your solder joints are not insulated and to close together.
The twisting of the wires are manufacturer recommendations, Im sure that there are people that don't have any issues. Many manufactures play it safe than sorry. Also, the soldered wires were off set to reduce the chance of them touching. However, this layout has been taken down and I now use terminals for all my connections.
Brill.
Subbed you
Thank you very much!
What is a buss wire?
Ok, thank you
that screwdriver though!
i have a smaller screwdriver lol and it says druacell on it lmao
NCE IS NOT AS GOOD AS DIGITRAX WHEN IT COMES TO THE WIRING THOSE TRACK POWER CONNECTORS ARE MUCH TOO SMALL, MAKES IT VERY DIFFICULT TO WIRE A 12AWG BUS LT ALONE A 14 GAUGE WHICH IS IMPOSSIBLE , DIGITRAX CONNECTORS ARE MUCH MORE ROBUST AND HAVE LARGER CABLE CONNECTIONS,MUCH PREFER DIGITRAX TO NCE.
IT'S OK! NCE IS BETTER THAN DIGITRAX IN SO MANY OTHER WAYS!!! AAAAHHHHHH!
PacbeltRR
What other ways do you mean exactly? Just asking.
Mijia Josef - Easy enough!
NCE is much more user-friendly. It's intuitive programming works WITH you, instead of frustrating you by doing things like repeating the SAME monotonous steps to do some common commands - like Digitrax.
Digitrax DOES have History. They've been around since the 80's. Problem is, they have such a blind, passionate following by some prominent Modelers, that Digitrax hasn't really been forced to upgrade things like it's very dated look, it's lack of compatibility with some other manufacturers...
And it can be "touchy". Push some wrong buttons - and you're SCREWED!
Enter wrong commands into a NCE PowerPro, and you can either back up, or keep scanning all the way through, until you're back at the start!
Digitrax ISN'T a complete Dinosaur! It has some nice features, like Loco-Net, which allows you to know where all your Trains are - as long as they have transponder equipped Decoders.
The rest of it was just too old school for me!
I shopped CAREFULLY for my first DCC system, about 10 years ago. I chose the NCE PowerCab, and NEVER regretted it!
The NCE system is SO modular and easily upgradeable, that with my current 10 Amp, 7 District Layout, I STILL have nearly all of my original $144.99 PowerCab NOW!!
It's just GOOD!
PacbeltRR
Thank you for your response. I understand.