Hi again, You guys have given great advice, so I'm back for more. I've got a large fleet of locos - some converted to DCC, some still DC only, and some in the middle of conversion. Building a two concentric oval layout where the ovals are joined by DCC friendly crossovers and using a NCE Powercab for DCC. Can I also hook up a DC controller to this layout and via electrical switches, switch out the DCC connectors to the track from the DCC system and switch in the DC controller to the same wiring and run DC locos? If so, what kind of electrical switches would you recommend? Are there any "gotchas" I need to be aware of? Thanks again.
I have some experience with a similar situation. You never want to run DC and DCC on the same track at the same time, and if you ever decide to have a DC oval and a DCC oval you'll need to have a transition track between them that can be switched from DCC to DC and back. This transition track will need to be long enough to take up your entire consist and, as I understand it, all metal wheelsets and cars with lighting fed by the track. As far as switching back and forth, I would recommend getting a center off toggle that has an amperage rating meeting or exceeding what your highest system produces (DC or DCC). It's very important that the wiring not feed power from the DCC system back into the DC controller, even if the DC controller is off, or you'll likely get a short. We had this problem at my club until someone realized that there was a DC power pack still hooked to the line in question.
I have a plug in on my layout feeds all blocks - You can only plug in DC or DCC. NO way to forget a switch or have one fail- You either have DC pluged in or DCC. The old KISS system.
A plug is the safest way to go. If your choice of plug has exposed pins (male) use that for the track side. Install a female on each of your DC and DCC supplies. This allows for only one to be connected with no mistakes bumping a switch or mechanical falures. Using the male on the track side keeps the exposed pins from being hot and inadvertently shorted. BTW, choose a low voltage plug and socket. Don't use fixtures that are meant for 120AC house connections. That's both unsafe and illegal.
