Do you isolate your loco storage tracks?

[mu26aeh]

Layout I operated on today had his engine tracks on a toggle to keep from hogging the power supply.  Most have sound installed

[Cajonpassfan]

Well, much of my "loco storage" is in the main staging yard (Barstow) and there can be many sound powered multi-unit sets there at any one time. Rather than isolating every track, I opted for track groups. Helps at start up, and isolating track groups for troubleshooting. Simple SPST's.
Otto K.

[glenng6]

Layout I operated on today had his engine tracks on a toggle to keep from hogging the power supply.  Most have sound installed

Since I never know where I may leave a loco, all my yard and stub tracks are isolated. I certainly don't want to listen to locos droning on endlessly. There is enough sound coming from the locos that are actually working. Isolate because it opens up many options, not because it save some power. Glenn

[Cajonpassfan]

I don't mean to second guess your approach, Glenn, it's always good to have the option to shut things down block by block, for several reasons. But sound can be shut down at the end of the run by F8, no? At least that's one of my rules of the road for visiting operators: turn off headlight, shut down sound, zero out the cab. Some even follow these rules...
Otto K.

[MetroRedLine]

I don't mean to second guess your approach, Glenn, it's always good to have the option to shut things down block by block, for several reasons. But sound can be shut down at the end of the run by F8, no? At least that's one of my rules of the road for visiting operators: turn off headlight, shut down sound, zero out the cab. Some even follow these rules...
Otto K.

F8 doesn't necessarily shut off sound - it varies from one decoder brand to another. F8 can either turn all sound off, turn the sound volume considerably lower, or only shut off the prime mover sound (and function button-triggered effects like bell, horn, coupler, etc will still sound).

[DeltaBravo]

Quick shot of my engine tracks. Each track has independent power via the toggle on the facia.

[Dave V]

Dave, I like these round rocker switches you have. Can you tell me more on what size they are and who makes them, I'd like to get some myself. Jon

I get them on Amazon, but I also got a bad batch when I was building the Colorado Midland, so not sure I'd recommend them.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07L9JWVVR/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I found something fun at the recent Timonium show.

I love "immersive switchgear" for the layout. It's why I'm going with very retro looking LEDs for my switch control boxes.

So, what better to handle turning tracks on and off than these monkey fighters that remind me of EMD battery switches?

Overkill? Definitely. Cool? Well, I like to think so.

[peteski]

"Retro looking LEDs" Ed?  That seems to be contradiction in terms, considering that  Light Emitting Diodes are not all that old.  Retro are incandescent light bulbs.
 Anyhow, I don't see and LEDs or bulbs in that photo - just some knife switches. Those switches do look "retro". They also feature a spark gap - another cool blast from the past. 

[nickelplate759]

"Retro looking LEDs" Ed?  That seems to be contradiction in terms, considering that  Light Emitting Diodes are not all that old.  Retro are incandescent light bulbs.
 Anyhow, I don't see and LEDs or bulbs in that photo - just some knife switches. Those switches do look "retro". They also feature a spark gap - another cool blast from the past.

I see the spark gap, but have no idea why it's there.  Would someone enlighten me please?

[wvgca]

yup, i keep DC locos on the same track as DCC

[C855B]

I see the spark gap, but have no idea why it's there.  Would someone enlighten me please?

Inductive loads, like fractional-horsepower motors. I can't see using these for anything serious like a big motor due to the obvious safety problem. But the spark gap may also be an artifact of old tooling being repurposed into a novelty item.

Also... these kind of blade switches are popular with the "traditional" ham radio crowd to switch between long-wire antennas. The spark gap definitely has purpose there, to deal with static buildup.

[peteski]

I see the spark gap, but have no idea why it's there.  Would someone enlighten me please?

Well, knife switches are really old-school (overkill for working with 12V), so it might be the spark gaps are for when they are actually used for their intended purposes (few thousand volts)? Maybe to shunt the arc while the switch is being opened, so it doesn't arc to the blade part of the switch?

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I just went with them because they look cool 

As for "old school LEDs", these are what I'm using. They're not perfect, but I think they "get the idea across"

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08DXQPTJF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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