Quick And Easy Dwarf Signals For Your Model Railroad (212)

Signals can add a new dimension of prototype credibility to your model railroad, however because of the difficulty of installing them for many modelers they are seldom seen on layouts. In this video I'll introduce you to dwarf signals from DCC Concepts that are quick and easy to install along with either DCC Concepts iP Digital, Omega, or Analog switch machines, or with Tortoise and similar DC powered switch machines. And in a followup video I'll demonstrate how I install them on my Piedmont Southern layout. Below are website addresses for vendors where you can order the components I show in the video. Pacific Western Rail Systems is a Canadian company that has just been added as a DCC Concepts dealer and therefore may not as yet have these in stock.
DCC Concepts www.dccconcepts.com
Rails of Sheffield www.railsofsheffield.com
Hatton's www.hattons.co.uk
Pacific Western Rail Systems www.pwrs.ca/product_search.ph...

[@chriscox4023]

DCC Concepts make the model railway construction so much simpler, I started changing DIY systems to DCC systems a couple of years ago and found them amazing.

[@daylightdave9405]

The dwarf signals do look pretty good.. hope to see more on your layout.. ! Thankyou! David.. I luv my signals. !🤗

[@michaelsmodelrailroading7665]

Thank you for another great informative video showcasing this interesting product line. Functional signals do add additional visual appeal to a layout, as well as enhance the operational realism. These products appear to greatly simply installation of dwarf signals.

[@And_Zo]

I'm getting these signals very soon, thank you for the video, very informative 👍👍

[@jefftomashunas7913]

Wow, this was great information. I never knew this existed, thank you!!!

[@ronduz1281]

Great one Larry 👍👍👍

[@ricter591]

Thanks Larry, Very Helpful for me. Bear 🐾 Creek 🚂 RR, KY.

[@schadowolf]

Another great and informative video!

[@Mark_W_L]

For superbly built ground signals I recommend Absolute Aspects. NJ International ones are also very good but they are often out of stock.

[@larrydee8859]

Thanks again for this very informative video, Larry. The square shape of these dwarf signals make it a Dead ringer for model transit use. (This, in many cases, if the green led can be swiped out for a yellow led). However; I'm wondering whether or not, these could be manufactured as stackable, multi-head signals, for displaying conditions, across control multiple turnouts. Their small size are excellent for HO scale. Yes; I understand the, as is simplicity, of this type of installation. (You may remember back in the early 70s... Walthers manufactured single, and multiple dwarf square signal heads, that were stackable. Walthers discontinued This square style, many many years ago. They were advertised as HO scale, but were actually closer to O scale in size. I haven't seen model HO scale, square dwarf signals, that are stackable, anywhere recently). Anyway, Great Work, Larry!

[@RonMontagueSWRR]

A great video, helpful information. But there's limited availability on signals these days.

[@marioangols3186]

Hi Larry, great video and stuff information. I have a doubt about the necessity to use the board with the Tortoise switch machine to turn the dwarf signal light from green to red and vice versa (when the turn out is changed) is it not more simple to use the contacts of the Tortoise and connect the leds to it (there are different forms to connect them) and I'm sure you have explained that in other videos.

[@TheDCCGuy]

Well you could do that but you would need to use both the included switches which means you could not use them to power route the frog. In addition you’d have to wire up a separate power source of the right voltage or use dropping resistors, etc. Not exactly the quick and easy plug and play approach that DCC Concepts designed. So if you have the time and knowledge to do all that then yes you can do it, but if time is more limited than money or you have 10 thumbs when it comes to electronics then the DCC Concepts approach is more efficient.

[@marioangols3186]

@@TheDCCGuy Larry, you are 100% right. For a plug-n-play system, this will work very well and that is the video intention. Happy to see you're videos all the time and keep going.

[@gsigs]

I haven't checked the prices but I predict DCC Concepts will sell as many of these as they care to make. Now if only they did it for PRR-style position signals...

[@Mark_W_L]

The DCC Concepts signals are amazingly cheap. A 12 pack with a control board is just under £100. Matt at Absolute Aspects is making some PRR dwarf signals for me: they look very good but as a one off commission they are of course considerably more expensive.

[@miamistax]

This is a great video,, but unfortunately since Larry couldn't see the heads, he was describing the displays for straight while the turnout was curved and showed different displays and vice versa. So you kind of have to take what he says first and apply it to after he throws the switch and vice versa.

[@geraldjones2278]

I just added some mast type three color signals to my layout and am using Model Train Technology detectors and controllers. LEDs of different colors usually require individual potentiometers to achieve equal brightness and MTT provides this capability with their systems while this system just provides a single adjustment which may not achieve that. Plus, it seems to me that real railroads would have any signals facing in both directions instead of just one direction. Just a thought.

[@TheDCCGuy]

As I said a couple of times actual practices vary with the actual railroads, this was just a demo of how the product works. It is up to each modeler to decide how to implement it on their layout. I also showed the 3-socket extension board that allows two signals to be installed in opposite directions, did you not watch the whole thing?

[@geraldjones2278]

@@TheDCCGuy Yes, I did but there was no indication that was what you were going to do, and would the signals be the same for the opposite direction if you chose to do that? I understand this was just a demo of the product. My original thought was this type of signal was mainly used to show which way a switch was thrown. Was I wrong in that?

[@TheDCCGuy]

Depends on the prototype and their specific practices for the location. On the Southern they followed a right hand running rule religiously. Consequently there would be no need for signals facing opposite directions on double tracked sections. Single tracks were handled differently since there would be bidirectional traffic flow. Yards could have bidirectional traffic flow or not depending on how they were operated. Signaling can get very complicated even on one railroad so you need to either do your research if you want to be exact or develop a compromise system that covers the basics. A full blown prototype signal system may be more than many operators care to keep up with. Some layout owners send orders by telegraph to agents for train crews but life is too short for learning Morse code IMHO.

[@michaelsmodelrailroading7665]

@@TheDCCGuy Morse code used to be one of those things a boy would learn in early adolescence, well, just because it was there and it was a neat thing to know. But that was then...

[@michaelsmodelrailroading7665]

Prototypes notwithstanding, it's mighty helpful while working a yard to have a visual indication of a turnout's alignment that you can see from afar, for all 3 of its legs. "Did I remember to close that switch or not?"

[@andrewreynolds599]

Larry - Not politically correct! At 4:20 minutes you assume all train engineers are "men" BTW - I love this concept! I'm installing these myself.

[@TheDCCGuy]

I learned to talk back in the 1950s and sometimes the old vocabulary resurfaces.

[@likesanddislikesetc]

Green light is actually called clear signal on the RR

[@wcrr4230]

Well… it depends. On most northeastern railroads, that would be a slow clear since it’s a dwarf signal. But if it were set up to solely indicate the position of a switch, it would be a “proceed indication.”

[@csnyder29]

What a great video. How would you set this up if you used servos to control your turnouts?

[@TheDCCGuy]

Well if there is a way to set up a reversing DC supply in the 12-18VDC range then you could power them just like with a Tortoise switch machine as I will show in my video scheduled for 1AM tomorrow. I guess I will need to break down and take a closer look at how the servos controls work. What system are you using? I’ll also ask DCC Concepts whether they have plans to add a servo controller interface board and one for solenoids which are still popular in the UK.

[@csnyder29]

@@TheDCCGuy I am using Tam Valley Octopus III to control the servos connected to an NCE 5amp booster.

[@oliver960]

Thank you for these videos. Any good sources for DCC Concepts in the US? Looks like Pacific Western lists every product as "coming soon" and anything else seems to come from the UK so shipping is more than the product.

[@TheDCCGuy]

Look at the Iron Planet Hobbies website, they have a large selection now.

[@oliver960]

@@TheDCCGuy thank you - that place is an IP Digital gold mine! Looks like they have everything but the ground switch lights and boards though, I will email them.

[@jsrogers6464]

I have a small switching layout with Manuel throws and insulated frogs. Is there a way to use these?

[@TheDCCGuy]

Yes, that could be done but it would require using DPDT toggle switches wired in reversing configuration.

[@genejablonski9909]

Larry, would these deices be overkill to use dwarf signals triggered by micro switches on manual turnouts? Thanks for another great video.

[@TheDCCGuy]

Yes, that could be done but it would require DPDT switches wired in reversing configuration.

[@genejablonski9909]

I was looking for a micro switch that I could attach directly to the throw bar on Peco n scale turnouts. Do you know of any DPDT micro switch suppliers? Thanks

[@TheDCCGuy]

You need to define micro. At any rate I would first check AllElectronics.com and if they don’t have them go to mouser.com .

[@genejablonski9909]

Thanks Larry. Keep those great videos coming.

[@frankbed]

Larry: Where did you get the pushbutton switches, Do you have a part number/mfg for them?

[@TheDCCGuy]

Any electrical supplier has them, just look for momentary contact pushbuttons. I probably got these from All Electronics but could have gotten them from, NCE, Jameco, Digikey, Mouser, etc.

[@frankbed]

Thank you!!

[@snowrider1979]

Are you able to use those with Atlas turn outs?

[@TheDCCGuy]

No you need a method for reversing the polarity and the Atlas does not do that.

[@snowrider1979]

I would like to add signaling lights on my layout. However I have atlas turnouts. Would you have a suggestion on how to do that? Or would I need to switch out all my turnouts? I’ve looked at your channel and refer to your videos often. Thanks for all your support videos. They really help us that are new to the hobby. I took your suggestion on trying QSnaps to electronically control my atlas turnouts, however I can’t seem to get them to work. They throw, but won’t return .

[@jdtII]

Would this system work with the atlas snap switches

[@TheDCCGuy]

I’ll have to check into that and see if there is a way, thanks for asking.

[@TheDCCGuy]

I ran this by tech support at DCC Concepts and they confirmed it will not work directly with the AC power used for the Atlas Snap Switches. He did suggest that one could cobble up a circuit triggered by the Atlas switch machine that would use a relay to switch power to the signal board and control the LEDs. Is that something you would be interested in doing or is it more complicated than you would want to introduce?

[@talltimberjunction7140]

Larry, the point is facing the wrong way

[@TheDCCGuy]

Yes, it was just a demo setup to show the dwarf lights and the switch machine was placed beside the turnout to be able to show the wiring.

[@jerryfbarnes5228]

Are these Dwarf Signals Red over Green or Green over Red? Can they be reversed to GRN over Red?

[@TheDCCGuy]

Well, from the photograph they appear to be red over green and that’s the way they come.

[@jerryfbarnes5228]

I am some what color blind so I rely on the position of the colors. Thank you for the quick reply.🕝 @@TheDCCGuy

[@TheDCCGuy]

I wondered if that was possibly the reason. I like them a lot and they can also be used with Tortoises with a little extra wiring, however DCCconcepts expects shipments of iP Digitals switch machines soon.