I watched your video whilst trawling for solder-tag and connection block wiring tutorials... Went straight to Amazon, ordered a pack of these blocks and abandoned my search! Just fitted a block with half black and half red forks to my layout and its solved my track wiring issues. Great product :) Thank you for showing these off.
Ive been a sparkie for 45+ years and have used all kinds of connectors over tat time. For the past 5 years or so I have been using "Wago" lever connectors. (221 series) available in 2,3 or 5 way. The five way are excellent for your BUS connections. Brilliant and will handle up to 32 Amps. Not one single burnout in that time. I now use these on my model railway layout. held in place with a small blob of glue or silicon. So no soldering. No screwdrivers. Just trim cable. lift lever. poke cable in close lever that simple. Easy to alter or add to. Fantastic and definitely works for me.
Many thanks Charlie for this video. I've spent most of the afternoon looking for and at videos using and explaining terminal blocks and yours was the most informative for this novice. I have most of my track wired with feeders and solder joints with lamp cord as my bus, but will definitely use blocks for my next wiring projects (lighting). AND I may eventually rewire all my track with terminal blocks. I would tomorrow, but am so far behind with the layout, my grandkids will be out of school by the time I would finish. My son never got to see my trains running and I don't want to make the same mistake again. Cheers!
Hi Charlie. It fell to me to DCC our DC club layout. I have used these terminal blocks to attach all the droppers. No one at the club had seen these. Having watched me do it on 2 they have cracked on themselves. So thank you for making a hero.
I’m getting back into the hobby after 20 something years and whilst excited by the possibilities of DCC, not having my dad around any more to do the wiring, it concerned me. I watched one of New Junction’s videos on DCC bus wiring without soldering which recommended presoldered fish plates and a splicing solution. So I thought I’d take the plunge and convert the kids old Thomas layout to DCC. However, I saw these on Horsehay who said he’d seen them here and watching this gave me the context. Much easier than a splice solution and builds tidiness in from the start! I’ve cut the buzz bar in half as shown here which works well in the small 5x3 environment but clearly shows how it can be replicated/repeated on a larger layout. So Mrs K has signed off the authority paperwork for a 6x4 in the garage with a possible extension in to the garden! Thanks for these videos Charlie very entertaining and educational!
Thank you Charlie! I have been stressing about bus bars since I recently entered the hobby a few months back. Yes, I am a complete beginner. With the video you posted, I feel a lot more confident about setting up my bus wiring. Cheers from California👍
Charlie, l really appreciate your advice. I'm just an old beginner, but l I'm glad for the educational information that you gave. I didn't know what a terminal was, nor a bus, nor how to make my connections. That's how dumb l am on this wiring for my beginners layout. Thank you for helping me out. Now I know what's going on and what to do. Hopefully l'll do it right!🤔 But l 'm looking forward to catching more of your videos.
Hi Charlie, I have just about finished my DCC Programming Track, on 30 cm x 100 cm 18mm plywood, including using the same Burnt Umber acrylic paint you used! I will be ballasting over the weekend. I am shortly buying the main layout baseboards, and will obviously be adding droppers for each bit of new track I lay, which means your discovery of these Terminal Blocks from Amazon means I can wire my whole layout much more easily and much neater! Thanks very much for this information... it has been very timely in my case. Regards, Jim
I have been in electronics for 35 years and cant tell you how many places they are used.They size from 2 terminals all the way up to 25 that I have seen or used. Very rare are the 50 pair. Suggestion: Mount the board on a 45 degree angle. Kind of reduces the reaching all the way back. I mounted mine under the table on the wall and in order to work on it I have to sit on the floor under the table and hit my head several times. Currently doing a complete rewiring, switching from snap switches to Tortoise switches, so now I can move mine to a 45. Great video and always a pleasure to watch.
Thanks B68C, I’m so pleased that you the channel. I’m going for wall mounting but with a great deal done before the the board above is in place. There is no ideal answer on this one.
These, Charlie are the duck's guts. I had, as you had previously shown used chocky blocks, making bus blocks...very untidy. Found them on Ebay and yes did get them shipped into Tassie (The Apple Isle). Neat, simple to use.I use crimp terminals for connection, with my bus feed being connected at one point of contact at the bus terminal strip, hence getting twelve outlets. best regards' Gary
Thank you, Charlie. I have a soldering iron but I'm not the world's most confident user of them. This might just be the gizmo I need! Cheers! @12:12 "Repeat the same process for the blacks..." *Cut while Charlie dislocates his other shoulder and invents a new word, but at least they match now ;)
Awesome! I've been beating my brains trying to figure out how to make a covered terminal block into a bus block. Thank you. You're saved me countless hours of soldering...
I have spent the last few weeks going through your videos starting from the very first one. I've just seen this one about the new terminal blocks on the same day that my new soldering kit is due to arrive from Amazon! Never soldered before but after watching your previous videos thought it will be a skill that I need for making a layout! Ah well, I'll find some other use for soldering ;-) . Cheers, George
That certainly helps - every day is a school day - they're even better than pluggable choc-blocks. Great find! Working up hill, soldering, welding etc, even when young ain't fun, get past 50yrs old, even if 50 is the new 40, even less fun! I've started by trying to make 'consumer unit' boards for easy access and making them relate to 'districts'. I'm using Digitrax too - but in 7mm, I've started dabbling with RC (less wiring - less track cleaning of the link tracks that take the layout from one side of the shed to the other via the garden). To do DCC properly requires hard wiring of points and two BUS set ups (loco net etc) - a lot of wiring. With hang down boards or sliding boards, I'm pondering the use of curly leads - similar to guitar leads (1970s stylee) etc with plenty of slack but not taking up much space. I find that many railway modellers use very thin wires, often too thin - I use the thickest possible that will fit and work.
I use those terminal blocks as well, Charlie. They are wonderful. Instead of inserting a bare wire into the block, you may wish to use spade terminals (at least that's what they're called in the States). Just crimp them onto the bare end of the wire, slip them in place, and screw them down. Makes removal and re-install a breeze.
@@ChadwickModelRailway No special pliers. I just use the crimper on my electricians multi-tool. Mine is a Stanley 84-199. There's nothing particularly special about that particular tool, a lot of different companies make similar items. Do a Google search for the above tool and you'll see what I'm talking about. You may even already own one.
Thanks for this insight as I am planning on my 13' x 10' S Gauge layout. I miss my dad who was the electrician in the family as we did it together. Thanks
Good idea. I have several types of terminal strips. Phone companies use push terminals that are great for 22 or 24 gauge wire. However you will never get away from soldering. I just try to prevent doing it upside down. Do like those preformed jumpers. Glad to see you are surviving the Virus attack. Waiting for your next video.
Another great video Charlie, I agree 100% about the drawer idea. I have my power board vertical and set in about 8" from the front of the table, and hung on hinges so I can open it like a door if I need excess to the back of it. Though at some stage i'm going to move it back about another 4" so it'll be a foot from the front of the table to the board. I have arthritis and stretching can be a problem, so I tend to make things as handy as I can. Stay safe Charlie, and keep up the good work.
I carried out a wiring rationalisation some 12 months ago to merge 4 separate wiring sections return wires into a common return system and I utilised these blocks to achieve a long overdue sense of order. They make the wiring look almost professional and are, incidentally, somewhat cheaper on the well-known auction site direct from China.
Hi Charlie just got back from two weeks away and managed to get caught up on your videos. Great idea using a pre-made bus bar to create this type of terminal block. I have used the white type and found with stranded wires the screws get loose over time, especially when inserting multple stranded wires to create the bus bar. This looks like a much better solution, thanks for the tip. - Mike
I have been using these for around the last year on my layout, and they are great. Especially as you chop and change things around in the early stages. Make life very easy. But, im an Aircraft Avionics Engineer who has spent enough time soldering upside down behind instrument panels to want to make life as easy as possible! Great video, I'm sure the sales of these will certainly increase now!
One of your previous videos inspired me to redo my wiring. I couldn’t find the chocolate blocks but ran across these on Amazon instead. They work very well and now use them throughout my layout, especially in the yards where I have a lot of PECO switches planned. Instead of raw wires I crimp a two prong connector to the end to slide easy on/off with the block. Also makes it easier when moving wiring around. Didn’t think of snipping the jumper. Going to use that going forward in a few spots.
I love these terminal block been using them for about 5 years now. Just be carefull putting bare wire straight in. Sometimes they tend to wiggle loose. Best to use the Y wire terminal connectors on the ends of your wires. Thanks for sharing Charlie.
Hi Charlie, the connectors are described as “fork” connectors, I think that I sent a link to them in my email but they’re easy to find on eBay and amazon. The best size for model railway wiring is coloured red and yes, you will need a crimping tool.
Brilliant!!! I'm rebuilding my layout (again) and these things will be a godsend. Ordered!! I'm liking the bi-weekly videos. They have been a great help to me. Cheers Charlie!
My comment about the wiring board with components: your earlier feedback about the board horizontal and back ache is valid, as is a board set in a vertical position. However a board set at 45 degrees with a bottom lip (for your pencil/pliers) is easier to work on and can be mounted high enough under the top baseboard (and towards you, not on the wall) to enable one to sit on a stool and do the wiring work! 🤠
Gday Charlie these terminal blocks are brilliant however we solder or ferrule bootlace connectors on to the bridging part for your inputs and you can also on your outputs put 2per connection giving up to 24 feeds etc cheers David and Jenny
Hi Charlie, We have a similar products here in Australia which I use on my layout. It is brilliant. Your subscribers should thank you for posting this video. Cheers Greg
Being an old electrician. I've done many of those strips in my time. I love the little bus bar bit. Saves a hell of a time not making those loops. Yes. Thanks.
@@ChadwickModelRailway I figured that's the case, I bought something similar from ebay months back, but it didn't have the additional bars. Personally, I've got access to a water cutter, so it would almost be easier to just make it myself, cutting a bit of metal to the correct dimensions and then dipping the rest in rubber.
Charlie, rather than using up terminals 1 & 12 for power in and to rest of layout, add these wires to the same side as the spaded multi-jumper (No not a cardigan for the spring, summer, autumn & winter - LOL). That leaves free the out 1 & 12 for two further connections, but yeah these are a great item to get for myself. The Digi-board on the back wall under the layout is a logical idea, plus it leaves you space to pack your storage boxes still. Also, it will give you the option to have a larger even a loop around under layout boards storage yard for more rolling stock. So in Bill & Ted speak = EXCELLENT.
Have used these terminal blocks on by brother in law's railway I wired up for him. I put the input wires on the same side of the busbars then you don't lose any numbered terminals. You could solder the leads to the bar but have had no problems compressing the bare copper cable under the spade connector.
Those little terminal blocks look very neat. I'm using Wago connectors for joining cables without soldering, but they only go up to 5 or 6 cables. Wago connectors are used by electricians, so they are robust and widely available.
Nice video Charlie. Been using those terminal strips in various lengths on my layouts . I have a 14 ga bus running around my layout and I skin some of the vinyl insulation off the end of the jumpers and directly solder the 14 ga wire to it. This frees up all of the terminals on the strip for use. I also attach spade lugs to the ends of my feeders to slip under the screw instead of using the bare wire.
Hi Backdrop Charlie, Great to see you are now moving onto health and community service announcements. Thank you for the list of tools and links above. You gave forgotten to add those wire strippers you are always bragging about. Would be great if you could add that link. This video will be great in helping me get my wiring right. As always Love your videos. Onky
I’m just revisiting your excellent wiring videos Charlie and they are invaluable and you also manage to make wiring interesting and humorous. Thanks so much👍🇬🇧
Good tip Charlie. If you put the spade connectors on the individual wires too you can then make screwing them that much easier than the wire and give a better electrical connection.
Great to see so many people helping giving advice best idea would be wall mounted as so much easier to get to no need to add extra long cables and dont have to work upside down well at least to a minimum
Hi Charlie and greetings from Northern Virginia. I had not seen these before, so thanks. My solution has been to use left over Tortoise edge connectors. A decking strap from Home Depot connects all eight tags to the bus, and is easily pulled out to isolate for fault finding. Hopefully the pic explains.
85hi charlie those blocks are very good i bought some this week 18/11/20 they are now in sets off six @ just over £13.00 good for the money i got thease after seeing your video i like your vidoes.
Amazing Video - exactly what I was looking for. I was just on Amazon Canada and my head was spinning from all of the options. This topic is very well explained and perfect for the beginner like myself. This past weekend i just completed my individual power feeds, using a dual ring powerline(bus) and those clamps with the levers. Easy solution but probably not the best for troubleshooting. Now I am on to my lighting circuits for lanterns on points and other "always on" lighting. For the life of me I couldn't find distribution strips. Not realizing of course that you can just "common" these, which you so eloquently explained. I have left a sub, which is nice for me as all my subbed train channels are in German as I am a German speaker. Again thanks. Greetings from Toronto 🇨🇦
I make my own bus bars. I buy from the local hardware store a flat aluminum bar and cut it to the length I need and drill and tap it with as many holes as I need. Works like a charm. ( Yes, the Brits do spell aluminium correctly)
@@ChadwickModelRailway Yes - the terminals come in various sizes to suit the wire gauge, and the colour of the insulated ferrule over the wire end of the connector specifies the gauge. Takes a bit of practice to get it right, but at our club layout, I've been going through replacing all of the rather dodgy connections (wires stripped and twisted together... I wonder why those lighting strips were unreliable? Where did that burning smell come from?) with correctly sized wires, terminated securely into terminal blocks just like you've shown.
I am an electronics tech. who worked in telecom for decades, and am very familiar with terminal blocks. My suggestion would be to get some spade connectors. This way you could connect your pos and neg wires to the bus bar side of the terminal thus giving you 12 feeds as an option. There are specs that indicate the limit of connectors on one terminal position, usually it is more than one.
Well I have used Telecom fittings out of old telephones for many years, nice to see they make them without the rest of the old phone attached, thanks for that, great videos Charlie, from Wairoa in New Zealand
Excellent Charlie. Saves a heap of soldering. Just went on to Amazon. Seller only has one left in stock. They come from China, (where else), so may take a while. Quite a few ones with different connections. I am abroad at the moment so will check what is available when I get home. There are a lot of Cheers. Pete
Yup. These are standard in Chinese machine wiring. I have been engineering in China and I hate them. Too easy to overtighten and strip the threads etc.Also too bulky, but thats not an issue for your application. For an anternative UK supplier of similar stuff have a look at RS Components website.🙂
Something like this is best. I dont know about model railways sorry. This is just going by experience of machine building, especially in China with Chinese kit 😂
All I can say is Äwesome"- best description of how to use a terminal block that I have ever seen. I am heading to Amazon now! Have you considered mounting your electronics board on an angle downwards from top to bottom. Being a big guy and the knees not being what they used to be, can't see kneeling constantly. Sort of an option to the hinged board idea....? You make all things look easy.
Great video! I stumbled across this because I was looking for how to properly wire one of the blocks up.... seen a lot of automotive videos that showed everything BUT this. Thanks a lot for showing me how to do this. now subscribed to your channel!
I might have to move to the UK. Those terminals are 90 plus australian dollars, plus postage. Model railways is becoming a hobby for the elite here in australia. Love your videos, keep them coming
@@ChadwickModelRailway Leon, shop around the prices are all over the place. As Charlie said they are a fantastic way of wiring the layout. I used them 30 years ago to do my turnouts and power to the tracks. I haven't had to touch them since I tightened the last screw 30 years ago and that includes moving my layout 110 miles. Glenn
Great connector block, you can also get pronged crimps for the end of your wires too, which would make screwing them in neater too, like the suggestion of soldering bus wiring to the strip thus giving you more terminals free
Hi Charlie, they are great and I use them also for the same reason, but when I use flexible wire I use uninsulated ferrules to keep the wire together. Kind Greetings Frank
Hi Charlie, I love your channel and these connection blocks are a great idea, I've been playing around with an idea of mounting all the 'under board' components/wiring an a separate board, as you've suggested, but mount it on hinges to the inside of the front frame rail of the base board, that way when you hinge it down, all your components/wiring are right in front of you, at the front of the layout and on the back wall. If you give your wiring an arch from base board to hinged board, you won't have any problems with the wire. And you can do any work on the board while sitting on a comfy chair 😁 Cheers Ian Mac.
Thank you for the excellent explanation on everything. History and current. My purpose is to make Star Wars light panels connected to arduino uno. But because things change, I thought a terminal block would work. Then it came with this bus bar and and had no clue what use it had. You helped me get that clue. Thank you
Hi Charlie, thanks, for an interesting (and thought provoking) video. Unfortunately my iring is largely complete but I will certainly adopt this method for any re-wiring that I have to do.
Thanks for the video. I think the idea of having a board fixed to the wall is better than a fold down one. Although the latter may be more tidy, it does mean that you will have longer wires and there is a greater risk of a wire becoming detached when folding down and back, or worse still providing intermittent connection. The units are very useful and have advantages over the chocolate box and certainly over soldering upside down (especially with my soldering skills). Thanks again and keep up with the videos. You ought to put a collection of the videos together and sell them as a "How to do" for modellers.
@@ChadwickModelRailway I do, Charlie. But even if something goes wrong then you admit it and put it on video so we can avoid it. It allows us to make other mistakes of our own.
Brilliant idea Charlie - I'm building a new modular shelf layout using Kato track in N Scale (while in semi-retirement mode here near Ann Arbor in Michigan, USA), and you've just provided the solution to one problem I've been noodling over for a couple months while developing my DCC wiring plan. Amazon Prime has similar styles available to me. FYI, planning to use the Digikeijs DCC system with Multimaus throttle here. Thank you, sir! Gary
Hello Charlie, Just a possible refinement to joining up wires to the terminal blocks. Rather than simply twisting together the bare ends of a multi stranded wire and then pushing it under the terminal clamp, use a bootlace ferrule to keep the ends of the fine wires firmly crimped together. The ferrule makes inserting the wire into the terminal much easier and prevents odd strands straying into places they should not be. A reminder that the twisted ends of multi stranded wire SHOULD NOT be soldered into a solid mass and then clamped into the block. Plastic flow of the solder will cause problems with the joint. Keep up the good work and hopefully virus free.
I use drawers, it is much easier. All you need is cable management arms. You basically attach all your cabling to this arm. When you pull the drawer, the arm will extend and the cabling just follows it. That is what we use in IT for server racks ;)
@@ChadwickModelRailway I was just mentioning it just to let you know that the arms existed ;) keep it up! I hope all you guys are well and healthy during this crisis
Hi Charlie, I prefer using terminal blocks as well. For attaching my wires to the terminal blocks, I prefer using Insulated Fork/Spade Connectors for 22-18 AWG wire and crimping the connector onto the wire, such as these (uxcell 200Pcs SV1.25-4S Insulated Fork Spade U-Type Wire Connector Electrical Crimp Terminal 22-16AWG Blue/Black/Red/Yellow ) I agree, attaching your electronics board to the rear wall under your layout is a better option if, you're able to sit under the layout fairly comfortably and service or maintain the board. On a side note, I've been a satisfied owner of a Digitrax system since 1999. Cheers, Rich S.
Looks like I now have more time at home...more time to work on my layout dreams. Thank you COVID-19! I just wanted to say how much i enjoy your videos. Great stuff.
Hi Charlie .. I’ve used those terminal strips on my entire layout and they work fantastic. And with using the jumper strips the possibilities are endless . Great video . Here in the US I used a brand called Molex and the comes in , well the variety is endless anywhere from 2 to 24 positions.
Charlie, the squires ones allow two busses, but the Amazon ones only support one bus. But I agree about keeping expansion capability on screw terminals; just a matter of the cheapest combination. Thanks for the video.
Chadwick Model Railway Thanks, Charlie, I noticed that. And your colour coding is wonderfully simple; almost as simple as making the jumpers for the chocolate blocks from the same wire as they are bussing. I suspect that, against the logic of fitting as little as possible to keep things cheap, some spare capacity with screw terminals at key nodes sounds like a good idea. Those bus plates are great, and used in household mains distribution boxes; it may be that Screwfix et alia may be able to help (but apparently no so cheaply) BTW, COVID19 strikes again, and I’m not going to Wimborne or Ally Pally. 😥😕
Im not sure if cable length is an issue on DCC, but if it isn't then your idea of the vertical board at the back will work if you make a cable loom. its something they use in a lot of electronic and electrical setups, where all the cables will enter or exit the board at one location , grouped together and then are routed to the various components. That way with enough length of the loom coming from the layout to your board , you will be able to bring it to the front to work on then replace it at the back when your done :) Hope this at least gives you food for thought. Keep up the good work Charlie. Roger
Charlie if you watch videos from the other side of the pond you will see these strips appearing in a lot of them the problem I have found up till seeing your video was they were supplied from the US but including the shipping costs which for me was too expensive. Thanks for highlighting you can now get them from this side of the pond Neil
@@ChadwickModelRailway no problem Charlie ,i look forward to your vids ,i cant understand why some people put thumbs down ,i see nothing but professionalism in your videos.
And after mastering soldering up tag strips, which are now ready for under the boards, you present this!! Order some so now have the best of both. Thanks Charlie. Your videos have certainly been a help and inspiration.
Best practices (adding the least resistance to a circuit) would say to add spade connectors to the power leads and place them side to side in the center of the buss side so that the connection is close for the continuing feeds. any wire that you may want to disconnect in the future should have a spade terminal crimped on it. Wire ends should have soldered (tined) ends so you don't get catwisker shorts if you use it with broken ( separated) buss strips. Yes you can use a Dremel rotary or heavy diagonal cutters to shorten the buss strips so you could actually place track power on one end and accessory power on the other end.
On my DC layout, and so far over 600 wires added to Tag strips and then you do this to me 😢 No problem though Charlie as I enjoy soldering (insanity certificate available lol). Nice thought though. So many options for the module board. I think it really does come down to your personal preference. Mine would be the one you don't like...the slide out board. Cheers for now, Bob
Great as always Charlie. In regard to your control board could you not fit the components to the smaller board and have it sitting at a 45 degree angle against the wall on the board already in place. That would give you fairly easy access with a small area in front of the flat board for other parts (hand held controllers etc) to rest when not in use.
I watched your video whilst trawling for solder-tag and connection block wiring tutorials... Went straight to Amazon, ordered a pack of these blocks and abandoned my search! Just fitted a block with half black and half red forks to my layout and its solved my track wiring issues. Great product :) Thank you for showing these off.
I’m so pleased that you found the product useful MM, they truly are brilliant.
Ive been a sparkie for 45+ years and have used all kinds of connectors over tat time. For the past 5 years or so I have been using "Wago" lever connectors. (221 series) available in 2,3 or 5 way. The five way are excellent for your BUS connections. Brilliant and will handle up to 32 Amps. Not one single burnout in that time.
I now use these on my model railway layout. held in place with a small blob of glue or silicon. So no soldering. No screwdrivers. Just trim cable. lift lever. poke cable in close lever that simple. Easy to alter or add to. Fantastic and definitely works for me.
Thanks Peter, another great option.
What a good idea! Can you tell me who the connectors wire up to my guage master controller please?
Many thanks Charlie for this video. I've spent most of the afternoon looking for and at videos using and explaining terminal blocks and yours was the most informative for this novice. I have most of my track wired with feeders and solder joints with lamp cord as my bus, but will definitely use blocks for my next wiring projects (lighting). AND I may eventually rewire all my track with terminal blocks. I would tomorrow, but am so far behind with the layout, my grandkids will be out of school by the time I would finish. My son never got to see my trains running and I don't want to make the same mistake again. Cheers!
Thanks Setaf, i’m so pleased that you have found this product useful. It’s certainly one that I continually recommend. Regards Charlie
Hi Charlie. It fell to me to DCC our DC club layout. I have used these terminal blocks to attach all the droppers. No one at the club had seen these. Having watched me do it on 2 they have cracked on themselves. So thank you for making a hero.
We can share the glory Kelvin. Regards, Charlie.
I’m getting back into the hobby after 20 something years and whilst excited by the possibilities of DCC, not having my dad around any more to do the wiring, it concerned me. I watched one of New Junction’s videos on DCC bus wiring without soldering which recommended presoldered fish plates and a splicing solution. So I thought I’d take the plunge and convert the kids old Thomas layout to DCC. However, I saw these on Horsehay who said he’d seen them here and watching this gave me the context. Much easier than a splice solution and builds tidiness in from the start! I’ve cut the buzz bar in half as shown here which works well in the small 5x3 environment but clearly shows how it can be replicated/repeated on a larger layout. So Mrs K has signed off the authority paperwork for a 6x4 in the garage with a possible extension in to the garden! Thanks for these videos Charlie very entertaining and educational!
What a great comment Richard and I wish you success with your new project.
Charlie I bought the same set, I was not sure how to use it but thanks to you, now i do. happy day. thank you so so so much!
Glad that I could help Sarah.
Thank you Charlie! I have been stressing about bus bars since I recently entered the hobby a few months back. Yes, I am a complete beginner. With the video you posted, I feel a lot more confident about setting up my bus wiring. Cheers from California👍
That’s great news mate, I’m so pleased that you found the video useful.
Regards Charlie
I purchased the same blocks before watching your video and I 100% agree with you... they are great!
I couldn’t possibly agree more Ricardo
Charlie, l really appreciate your advice. I'm just an old beginner, but l I'm glad for the educational information that you gave. I didn't know what a terminal was, nor a bus, nor how to make my connections. That's how dumb l am on this wiring for my beginners layout. Thank you for helping me out. Now I know what's going on and what to do. Hopefully l'll do it right!🤔 But l 'm looking forward to catching more of your videos.
Thanks Michael, it’s great to have you onboard.
Hi Charlie,
I have just about finished my DCC Programming Track, on 30 cm x 100 cm 18mm plywood, including using the same Burnt Umber acrylic paint you used! I will be ballasting over the weekend.
I am shortly buying the main layout baseboards, and will obviously be adding droppers for each bit of new track I lay, which means your discovery of these Terminal Blocks from Amazon means I can wire my whole layout much more easily and much neater! Thanks very much for this information... it has been very timely in my case.
Regards,
Jim
I’m so pleased that you found it useful Jim.
Evening from Texas, Charlie. I just put in my blocks this evening. This is making my power distribution a lot easier. Thank you for the advice!
You’re most welcome mate.
I have been in electronics for 35 years and cant tell you how many places they are used.They size from 2 terminals all the way up to 25 that I have seen or used. Very rare are the 50 pair. Suggestion: Mount the board on a 45 degree angle. Kind of reduces the reaching all the way back. I mounted mine under the table on the wall and in order to work on it I have to sit on the floor under the table and hit my head several times. Currently doing a complete rewiring, switching from snap switches to Tortoise switches, so now I can move mine to a 45. Great video and always a pleasure to watch.
Thanks B68C, I’m so pleased that you the channel. I’m going for wall mounting but with a great deal done before the the board above is in place. There is no ideal answer on this one.
These, Charlie are the duck's guts. I had, as you had previously shown used chocky blocks, making bus blocks...very untidy.
Found them on Ebay and yes did get them shipped into Tassie (The Apple Isle). Neat, simple to use.I use crimp terminals for connection, with my bus feed being connected at one point of contact at the bus terminal strip, hence getting twelve outlets. best regards' Gary
The duck’s guts is a new one on me Gary. Yes powering from the other side makes more sense.
Thank you, Charlie. I have a soldering iron but I'm not the world's most confident user of them. This might just be the gizmo I need! Cheers! @12:12 "Repeat the same process for the blacks..." *Cut while Charlie dislocates his other shoulder and invents a new word, but at least they match now ;)
Ops, easily done!
Awesome! I've been beating my brains trying to figure out how to make a covered terminal block into a bus block. Thank you. You're saved me countless hours of soldering...
Yes, these are a real gem. Regards Charlie
I have spent the last few weeks going through your videos starting from the very first one. I've just seen this one about the new terminal blocks on the same day that my new soldering kit is due to arrive from Amazon! Never soldered before but after watching your previous videos thought it will be a skill that I need for making a layout! Ah well, I'll find some other use for soldering ;-) . Cheers, George
Soldering will always be a very useful skill GBDT. Regards Charlie
That certainly helps - every day is a school day - they're even better than pluggable choc-blocks. Great find! Working up hill, soldering, welding etc, even when young ain't fun, get past 50yrs old, even if 50 is the new 40, even less fun!
I've started by trying to make 'consumer unit' boards for easy access and making them relate to 'districts'. I'm using Digitrax too - but in 7mm, I've started dabbling with RC (less wiring - less track cleaning of the link tracks that take the layout from one side of the shed to the other via the garden). To do DCC properly requires hard wiring of points and two BUS set ups (loco net etc) - a lot of wiring. With hang down boards or sliding boards, I'm pondering the use of curly leads - similar to guitar leads (1970s stylee) etc with plenty of slack but not taking up much space. I find that many railway modellers use very thin wires, often too thin - I use the thickest possible that will fit and work.
Great comment MS.
I use those terminal blocks as well, Charlie. They are wonderful. Instead of inserting a bare wire into the block, you may wish to use spade terminals (at least that's what they're called in the States). Just crimp them onto the bare end of the wire, slip them in place, and screw them down. Makes removal and re-install a breeze.
Do you use special crimping pliers?
@@ChadwickModelRailway No special pliers. I just use the crimper on my electricians multi-tool. Mine is a Stanley 84-199. There's nothing particularly special about that particular tool, a lot of different companies make similar items. Do a Google search for the above tool and you'll see what I'm talking about. You may even already own one.
Thanks for this insight as I am planning on my 13' x 10' S Gauge layout. I miss my dad who was the electrician in the family as we did it together. Thanks
Thanks Tim, hopefully you found it interesting. Hood luck with your project, regards, Charlie
Good idea. I have several types of terminal strips. Phone companies use push terminals that are great for 22 or 24 gauge wire. However you will never get away from soldering. I just try to prevent doing it upside down. Do like those preformed jumpers. Glad to see you are surviving the Virus attack. Waiting for your next video.
I’m so pleased that you found it interesting Ken.
I like the idea of the jumper bar Charlie for continual reds/blacks
They are truly revolutionary John, it makes wiring so much easier. Regards Charlie
Another great video Charlie, I agree 100% about the drawer idea. I have my power board vertical and set in about 8" from the front of the table, and hung on hinges so I can open it like a door if I need excess to the back of it. Though at some stage i'm going to move it back about another 4" so it'll be a foot from the front of the table to the board. I have arthritis and stretching can be a problem, so I tend to make things as handy as I can. Stay safe Charlie, and keep up the good work.
Thanks AM. You’re in the minority but I’m with you on this one.
Just came back to this .Them blocks are great value.And if you buy fork connectors.You can put more than one to a connector.
Spot on Thomas. Regards Charlie
Thanks Charlie, i have learned lots of good stuff from your videos......Please continue.
Thanks for joining me Marc. Regards Charlie
I carried out a wiring rationalisation some 12 months ago to merge 4 separate wiring sections return wires into a common return system and I utilised these blocks to achieve a long overdue sense of order. They make the wiring look almost professional and are, incidentally, somewhat cheaper on the well-known auction site direct from China.
If ever we needed proof Goffic
Hi Charlie just got back from two weeks away and managed to get caught up on your videos. Great idea using a pre-made bus bar to create this type of terminal block. I have used the white type and found with stranded wires the screws get loose over time, especially when inserting multple stranded wires to create the bus bar. This looks like a much better solution, thanks for the tip.
- Mike
I’m so pleased that you found it useful Mike.
I have been using these for around the last year on my layout, and they are great. Especially as you chop and change things around in the early stages. Make life very easy.
But, im an Aircraft Avionics Engineer who has spent enough time soldering upside down behind instrument panels to want to make life as easy as possible!
Great video, I'm sure the sales of these will certainly increase now!
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it but what an interesting name you use!
One of your previous videos inspired me to redo my wiring. I couldn’t find the chocolate blocks but ran across these on Amazon instead. They work very well and now use them throughout my layout, especially in the yards where I have a lot of PECO switches planned. Instead of raw wires I crimp a two prong connector to the end to slide easy on/off with the block. Also makes it easier when moving wiring around. Didn’t think of snipping the jumper. Going to use that going forward in a few spots.
Clever minds think alike RS
I love these terminal block been using them for about 5 years now. Just be carefull putting bare wire straight in. Sometimes they tend to wiggle loose. Best to use the Y wire terminal connectors on the ends of your wires. Thanks for sharing Charlie.
Hi Rick, where did you buy the terminals and did you use crimping pliers?
Regards Charlie
Hi Charlie, the connectors are described as “fork” connectors, I think that I sent a link to them in my email but they’re easy to find on eBay and amazon. The best size for model railway wiring is coloured red and yes, you will need a crimping tool.
@@george_kennedy yes george is correct. You can find them on amazon or ebay. Also note different size wires need different size fork connectors.
Thanks a bunch Charlie ! Like you, I too was excited to see the bridge bus could be snipped into 2 .. nifty
Clearly a versatile product NA.
Brilliant!!! I'm rebuilding my layout (again) and these things will be a godsend. Ordered!! I'm liking the bi-weekly videos. They have been a great help to me. Cheers Charlie!
Thanks Wayne, I’m so pleased that you enjoy the channel
My comment about the wiring board with components: your earlier feedback about the board horizontal and back ache is valid, as is a board set in a vertical position. However a board set at 45 degrees with a bottom lip (for your pencil/pliers) is easier to work on and can be mounted high enough under the top baseboard (and towards you, not on the wall) to enable one to sit on a stool and do the wiring work! 🤠
I totally agree but I am going to try it vertically with some cable slack should I change my mind.
Gday Charlie these terminal blocks are brilliant however we solder or ferrule bootlace connectors on to the bridging part for your inputs and you can also on your outputs put 2per connection giving up to 24 feeds etc cheers David and Jenny
Great point D&J, I’m trying to find ferrules myself.
Hi Charlie, We have a similar products here in Australia which I use on my layout. It is brilliant. Your subscribers should thank you for posting this video. Cheers Greg
Thanks Greg, you’re too kind.
They are just what I am looking for have just completed a panel with chocolate block and wire link, big improvement for rest of layout.
That’s greater news Brian
Being an old electrician. I've done many of those strips in my time. I love the little bus bar bit. Saves a hell of a time not making those loops. Yes.
Thanks.
Yes it’s a real bonus SL
@@ChadwickModelRailway I figured that's the case, I bought something similar from ebay months back, but it didn't have the additional bars. Personally, I've got access to a water cutter, so it would almost be easier to just make it myself, cutting a bit of metal to the correct dimensions and then dipping the rest in rubber.
Charlie, rather than using up terminals 1 & 12 for power in and to rest of layout, add these wires to the same side as the spaded multi-jumper (No not a cardigan for the spring, summer, autumn & winter - LOL). That leaves free the out 1 & 12 for two further connections, but yeah these are a great item to get for myself. The Digi-board on the back wall under the layout is a logical idea, plus it leaves you space to pack your storage boxes still. Also, it will give you the option to have a larger even a loop around under layout boards storage yard for more rolling stock. So in Bill & Ted speak = EXCELLENT.
We are singing from the same song sheet on the one John and you’re right about the power feeds too.
Have used these terminal blocks on by brother in law's railway I wired up for him. I put the input wires on the same side of the busbars then you don't lose any numbered terminals. You could solder the leads to the bar but have had no problems compressing the bare copper cable under the spade connector.
Useful tips Steve, thanks.
Those little terminal blocks look very neat. I'm using Wago connectors for joining cables without soldering, but they only go up to 5 or 6 cables. Wago connectors are used by electricians, so they are robust and widely available.
Thanks for the info Chris.
Thanks Charlie. A very timely post as I’m wiring points tomorrow. Thank you.
Perfectly timing Bill.
Nice video Charlie. Been using those terminal strips in various lengths on my layouts . I have a 14 ga bus running around my layout and I skin some of the vinyl insulation off the end of the jumpers and directly solder the 14 ga wire to it. This frees up all of the terminals on the strip for use. I also attach spade lugs to the ends of my feeders to slip under the screw instead of using the bare wire.
Hi Paul, is that the red spade connectors?
Well done Charlie! I ordered mine and they are coming today! Very useful thank you
They are a god send Harvey.
Hi Backdrop Charlie, Great to see you are now moving onto health and community service announcements. Thank you for the list of tools and links above. You gave forgotten to add those wire strippers you are always bragging about. Would be great if you could add that link. This video will be great in helping me get my wiring right. As always Love your videos. Onky
I cant add a link but please seach for
RS 382-2847.
Regards Charlie
@@ChadwickModelRailway Thank you, you are the best. au.rs-online.com
Look very useful and sturdy for those with the soldering issues. Good review.
Thanks Anthony, I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it.
beautiful demonstration. thanks sir. although i prefer soldering... but having a terminal block makes your wiring look a lot more neat and prettier
I’m sold on them PN.
I’m just revisiting your excellent wiring videos Charlie and they are invaluable and you also manage to make wiring interesting and humorous. Thanks so much👍🇬🇧
That’s very kind of you to say so mate. Regards Charlie
Brilliant! I am looking to start a new layout with much more wiring involved these will be just the job. Thanks Charlie
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it David
Good tip Charlie. If you put the spade connectors on the individual wires too you can then make screwing them that much easier than the wire and give a better electrical connection.
They are in the post mate.
What size spades did you use? I’m about to order and would like the security of them. Cheers
Great video. Those blocks will help me very much. I have hand tremors and soldering is nearly impossible on top of a table, let alone upside down.
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it Stephen.
Great to see so many people helping giving advice best idea would be wall mounted as so much easier to get to no need to add extra long cables and dont have to work upside down well at least to a minimum
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it Adam.
Don't mount it on the wall, mount it much further forward so that you can get at it easily
Bob, I'm 5ft 1in, it's do-able!
Thanks Charlie! I couldn't use your link here in Los Angeles, but I liked/subscribed! My set will be here tomorrow. Thanks again.
I’m so pleased that you found the video useful Christopher
They are the answer. Once I saw how much they cost at the hardware store, I save them all during demolition.
Yes they are very useful commodity. Regards Charlie
@@ChadwickModelRailway In elevator trade btw and I love your channel. I really do come across a lot of these. They can be used in many applications.
Hi Charlie and greetings from Northern Virginia. I had not seen these before, so thanks. My solution has been to use left over Tortoise edge connectors. A decking strap from Home Depot connects all eight tags to the bus, and is easily pulled out to isolate for fault finding. Hopefully the pic explains.
Sorry Tom but no pic.
Can you send a link?
Hi Charlie - I agree that these blocks are great, as they're so easy to use, and excellent value also.
Regards, Graham.
I’m so pleased that you found them useful Graham, regards Charlie
85hi charlie those blocks are very good i bought some this week 18/11/20 they are now in sets off six @ just over £13.00 good for the money i got thease after seeing your video i like your vidoes.
Thanks Derek, I’m so pleased that you found them useful.
Amazing Video - exactly what I was looking for. I was just on Amazon Canada and my head was spinning from all of the options. This topic is very well explained and perfect for the beginner like myself. This past weekend i just completed my individual power feeds, using a dual ring powerline(bus) and those clamps with the levers. Easy solution but probably not the best for troubleshooting. Now I am on to my lighting circuits for lanterns on points and other "always on" lighting. For the life of me I couldn't find distribution strips. Not realizing of course that you can just "common" these, which you so eloquently explained. I have left a sub, which is nice for me as all my subbed train channels are in German as I am a German speaker. Again thanks. Greetings from Toronto 🇨🇦
What a heart warming comment Tommy.
Stay safe. Regards Charlie
I make my own bus bars. I buy from the local hardware store a flat aluminum bar and cut it to the length I need and drill and tap it with as many holes as I need. Works like a charm. ( Yes, the Brits do spell aluminium correctly)
A true modeller Dave.
We use these on our club layout. And I would recommend using some appropriately sized spade connectors crimped onto the cable ends.
Do you use a crimper Ken?
@@ChadwickModelRailway Yes - the terminals come in various sizes to suit the wire gauge, and the colour of the insulated ferrule over the wire end of the connector specifies the gauge. Takes a bit of practice to get it right, but at our club layout, I've been going through replacing all of the rather dodgy connections (wires stripped and twisted together... I wonder why those lighting strips were unreliable? Where did that burning smell come from?) with correctly sized wires, terminated securely into terminal blocks just like you've shown.
Thanks Ken, I’ll do some pricing.
I am an electronics tech. who worked in telecom for decades, and am very familiar with terminal blocks. My suggestion would be to get some spade connectors. This way you could connect your pos and neg wires to the bus bar side of the terminal thus giving you 12 feeds as an option. There are specs that indicate the limit of connectors on one terminal position, usually it is more than one.
Sound advice Geoffrey, many thanks.
Well I have used Telecom fittings out of old telephones for many years, nice to see they make them without the rest of the old phone attached, thanks for that, great videos Charlie, from Wairoa in New Zealand
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it Jed.
Excellent Charlie. Saves a heap of soldering. Just went on to Amazon. Seller only has one left in stock. They come from China, (where else), so may take a while. Quite a few ones with different connections. I am abroad at the moment so will check what is available when I get home. There are a lot of Cheers. Pete
Have a great break Pete unless it’s work but do stay safe.
I’ve just checked the Amazon page and the dropdown menu starts at “1” but there appears to be more available.
Regards Charlie
Yup. These are standard in Chinese machine wiring. I have been engineering in China and I hate them. Too easy to overtighten and strip the threads etc.Also too bulky, but thats not an issue for your application. For an anternative UK supplier of similar stuff have a look at RS Components website.🙂
@@ChadwickModelRailway My stupidity Charlie. I did not notice it was a drop down box!
Something like this is best. I dont know about model railways sorry. This is just going by experience of machine building, especially in China with Chinese kit 😂
All I can say is Äwesome"- best description of how to use a terminal block that I have ever seen. I am heading to Amazon now! Have you considered mounting your electronics board on an angle downwards from top to bottom. Being a big guy and the knees not being what they used to be, can't see kneeling constantly. Sort of an option to the hinged board idea....? You make all things look easy.
A good point Andy but I'm currently looking into a draw mechanism. Regards Charlie
Great video! I stumbled across this because I was looking for how to properly wire one of the blocks up.... seen a lot of automotive videos that showed everything BUT this. Thanks a lot for showing me how to do this.
now subscribed to your channel!
Thanks Mikey, it’s great to have you on board mate. Regards Charlie
I might have to move to the UK. Those terminals are 90 plus australian dollars, plus postage. Model railways is becoming a hobby for the elite here in australia. Love your videos, keep them coming
Blimey Leon, that’s a shocking mark up.
@@ChadwickModelRailway Leon, shop around the prices are all over the place. As Charlie said they are a fantastic way of wiring the layout. I used them 30 years ago to do my turnouts and power to the tracks. I haven't had to touch them since I tightened the last screw 30 years ago and that includes moving my layout 110 miles. Glenn
Charlie thanks you make it look simple just about to start a rewire will go on amazon to buy these
Thanks Keith, I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it.
Great connector block, you can also get pronged crimps for the end of your wires too, which would make screwing them in neater too, like the suggestion of soldering bus wiring to the strip thus giving you more terminals free
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it Tricky
Hi Charlie, they are great and I use them also for the same reason, but when I use flexible wire I use uninsulated ferrules to keep the wire together.
Kind Greetings Frank
I’m so pleased that you found them useful Frank
Thank you Charlie, Those Terminal Blocks look like the Way to go. Great Video as ever.
Thanks Peter, I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it
Thanks for sharing this Charlie. I'm about to start building a new layout and those blocks will make life so much easier!
Glad to help TEG
Hi Charlie, I love your channel and these connection blocks are a great idea, I've been playing around with an idea of mounting all the 'under board' components/wiring an a separate board, as you've suggested, but mount it on hinges to the inside of the front frame rail of the base board, that way when you hinge it down, all your components/wiring are right in front of you, at the front of the layout and on the back wall.
If you give your wiring an arch from base board to hinged board, you won't have any problems with the wire.
And you can do any work on the board while sitting on a comfy chair 😁
Cheers Ian Mac.
Great comment Ian and I’m now using both wall mounting and a flap down board.
After watching your video I ordered a set from amazon. I’m very impressed with the quality and look forward to using them.
You won’t be disappointed Fred.
Thank you for the excellent explanation on everything. History and current.
My purpose is to make Star Wars light panels connected to arduino uno. But because things change, I thought a terminal block would work. Then it came with this bus bar and and had no clue what use it had. You helped me get that clue. Thank you
I’m so pleased that you found the bus bar useful, regards Charlie
Hi Charlie, thanks, for an interesting (and thought provoking) video. Unfortunately my iring is largely complete but I will certainly adopt this method for any re-wiring that I have to do.
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it K31.
Thank you, Charlie! They arrived this morning and l’m already under the boards! Wonderful.
Blimey, you got in early David.
Thanks for the video. I think the idea of having a board fixed to the wall is better than a fold down one. Although the latter may be more tidy, it does mean that you will have longer wires and there is a greater risk of a wire becoming detached when folding down and back, or worse still providing intermittent connection. The units are very useful and have advantages over the chocolate box and certainly over soldering upside down (especially with my soldering skills). Thanks again and keep up with the videos. You ought to put a collection of the videos together and sell them as a "How to do" for modellers.
Hi Daon, I've taken the "On the Wall" option. Wish me luck.
@@ChadwickModelRailway I do, Charlie. But even if something goes wrong then you admit it and put it on video so we can avoid it. It allows us to make other mistakes of our own.
Brilliant idea Charlie - I'm building a new modular shelf layout using Kato track in N Scale (while in semi-retirement mode here near Ann Arbor in Michigan, USA), and you've just provided the solution to one problem I've been noodling over for a couple months while developing my DCC wiring plan. Amazon Prime has similar styles available to me. FYI, planning to use the Digikeijs DCC system with Multimaus throttle here. Thank you, sir! Gary
Thanks Gary, Those terminal blocks really are a godsend. Regards Charlie
Charlie, you are my go to for my new hobby....!!!
Such a privilege, thanks
Thanks Charlie. Just about to start wiring my layout, so these are a brilliant idea and I have just received them. Now to start wiring
They are really good, enjoy Geoff.
Hello Charlie,
Just a possible refinement to joining up wires to the terminal blocks. Rather than simply twisting together the bare ends of a multi stranded wire and then pushing it under the terminal clamp, use a bootlace ferrule to keep the ends of the fine wires firmly crimped together. The ferrule makes inserting the wire into the terminal much easier and prevents odd strands straying into places they should not be. A reminder that the twisted ends of multi stranded wire SHOULD NOT be soldered into a solid mass and then clamped into the block. Plastic flow of the solder will cause problems with the joint.
Keep up the good work and hopefully virus free.
Thanks Frank, I’m on it.
if you are going to crimp something to the wire then why not just crimp a spade terminal to the end of the wires, takes seconds and clamps down better
I use drawers, it is much easier. All you need is cable management arms. You basically attach all your cabling to this arm. When you pull the drawer, the arm will extend and the cabling just follows it. That is what we use in IT for server racks ;)
I understand Robin but I am going to wall mount.
@@ChadwickModelRailway I was just mentioning it just to let you know that the arms existed ;) keep it up! I hope all you guys are well and healthy during this crisis
Brilliant Charlie! My new (first) board arrives in two weeks, just ordered the eight block X5 for £8.99. Thank you! TonyS
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it Tony
Hi Charlie, I prefer using terminal blocks as well. For attaching my wires to the terminal blocks, I prefer using Insulated Fork/Spade Connectors for 22-18 AWG wire and crimping the connector onto the wire, such as these (uxcell 200Pcs SV1.25-4S Insulated Fork Spade U-Type Wire Connector Electrical Crimp Terminal 22-16AWG Blue/Black/Red/Yellow ) I agree, attaching your electronics board to the rear wall under your layout is a better option if, you're able to sit under the layout fairly comfortably and service or maintain the board. On a side note, I've been a satisfied owner of a Digitrax system since 1999. Cheers, Rich S.
I'm pleased that you're onside RWSB.
Looks like I now have more time at home...more time to work on my layout dreams. Thank you COVID-19! I just wanted to say how much i enjoy your videos. Great stuff.
Thanks Geo, you’re too kind
Hi Charlie .. I’ve used those terminal strips on my entire layout and they work fantastic. And with using the jumper strips the possibilities are endless . Great video . Here in the US I used a brand called Molex and the comes in , well the variety is endless anywhere from 2 to 24 positions.
Clever minds think alike Jim
Will have to use these when I start to get more adventurous with my sons layout
They are brilliant Ashley.
Charlie, the squires ones allow two busses, but the Amazon ones only support one bus.
But I agree about keeping expansion capability on screw terminals; just a matter of the cheapest combination.
Thanks for the video.
But Tom you can convert it into two buses, i did!
Chadwick Model Railway
Thanks, Charlie, I noticed that. And your colour coding is wonderfully simple; almost as simple as making the jumpers for the chocolate blocks from the same wire as they are bussing. I suspect that, against the logic of fitting as little as possible to keep things cheap, some spare capacity with screw terminals at key nodes sounds like a good idea.
Those bus plates are great, and used in household mains distribution boxes; it may be that Screwfix et alia may be able to help (but apparently no so cheaply)
BTW, COVID19 strikes again, and I’m not going to Wimborne or Ally Pally. 😥😕
Thank you so much for this video, I ordered some staright away very happy with them, arrived as I was starting a rewire
Good luck Allan with the re-wire
Im not sure if cable length is an issue on DCC, but if it isn't then your idea of the vertical board at the back will work if you make a cable loom.
its something they use in a lot of electronic and electrical setups, where all the cables will enter or exit the board at one location , grouped together and then are routed to the various components.
That way with enough length of the loom coming from the layout to your board , you will be able to bring it to the front to work on then replace it at the back when your done :)
Hope this at least gives you food for thought.
Keep up the good work Charlie.
Roger
Thanks Roger, an interesting option.
Charlie if you watch videos from the other side of the pond you will see these strips appearing in a lot of them the problem I have found up till seeing your video was they were supplied from the US but including the shipping costs which for me was too expensive. Thanks for highlighting you can now get them from this side of the pond Neil
I’m so pleased that you can get hold of these useful items Neil.
Nice find with the terminal \ connector blocks, Charlie.
Thanks Gonads
hi Charlie. perfect timing! I was looking to order terminal blocks. ordered them from amazon. Enjoy your channel. thanks, Lee
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it Lee.
Great job Charlie ,i have been using the covered terminals for a while ,they are so easy ,looking forward to your next video..take care for now ,Mac
Thanks Mac, you’re too kind
@@ChadwickModelRailway no problem Charlie ,i look forward to your vids ,i cant understand why some people put thumbs down ,i see nothing but professionalism in your videos.
And after mastering soldering up tag strips, which are now ready for under the boards, you present this!! Order some so now have the best of both. Thanks Charlie. Your videos have certainly been a help and inspiration.
What a lovely comment Ali
Best practices (adding the least resistance to a circuit) would say to add spade connectors to the power leads and place them side to side in the center of the buss side so that the connection is close for the continuing feeds. any wire that you may want to disconnect in the future should have a spade terminal crimped on it. Wire ends should have soldered (tined) ends so you don't get catwisker shorts if you use it with broken ( separated) buss strips. Yes you can use a Dremel rotary or heavy diagonal cutters to shorten the buss strips so you could actually place track power on one end and accessory power on the other end.
Great tips Peter, many thanks.
Piece of advice when cutting the strips use solder mask to cover the exposed areas from the cut as it will insulate the strips
I must confess, I just turned my ends around, so the insulated ends faced each other. Regards, Charlie
Nice find Charlie. Will help me no end, when I actually start to build my layout.
No time like the present Andy.
On my DC layout, and so far over 600 wires added to Tag strips and then you do this to me 😢 No problem though Charlie as I enjoy soldering (insanity certificate available lol). Nice thought though.
So many options for the module board. I think it really does come down to your personal preference. Mine would be the one you don't like...the slide out board. Cheers for now, Bob
I’m building the board on the wall as we speak!
Great as always Charlie. In regard to your control board could you not fit the components to the smaller board and have it sitting at a 45 degree angle against the wall on the board already in place. That would give you fairly easy access with a small area in front of the flat board for other parts (hand held controllers etc) to rest when not in use.
Interesting points Mr Bones. It looks as though I’m going to wall mount it.
A great looking alternative to standard terminal blocks, I'll have to order some... thanks Charlie👍
I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it SRMR