Lionel 180 Watt Power Brick ... to TIU ?????????????

You can cut the wires from the connector, or, to preserve the PM originality/value, buy the male Molex connector pigtail.

TMCC/ DCS MTH TIU to Lionel Powerhouse Adapter Cable

John,

Does your transformer have color code like black and red  on the 

I make cables just like WAROK pictures for connecting the brick to the TIU.

There's a thread here that discusses this topic, hope it helps.....

https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/t...56#28601350449610256

If you have some solderless terminals laying around you can improvise something without cutting the cord. Did this for a temp Christmas layout

warok posted:

TMCC/ DCS MTH TIU to Lionel Powerhouse Adapter Cable

I purchased the connector!  Thank you Rob.  I probably threw away $15 but just didn't want to cut the connector off because of future possibilities.

The connector is the way to go... unbelievably, most just cut the cord. The 180's are quite valuable, especially now.

Cut the cord.

David Minarik posted:

Cut the cord.

Cut the cord!  I bought my 180W Powerhouse(s) for about $80.  The adapter adds 20% to the price and provides no additional benefits.

I DID save the end I cut off in case I ever need to use the PH with something that needs that connector.

Ed

If you make your own from readily available parts, the adapter costs about $2.  Since I still have the ZW-C controller on the shelf, I'd like to be able to use the PH180 with it if I like.

eddiem posted:

David Minarik posted:

Cut the cord.

Cut the cord!  I bought my 180W Powerhouse(s) for about $80.  The adapter adds 20% to the price and provides no additional benefits.

Umm, you can sell the adapter.

Why are the powerhouses so scarce?  Problem with Asian supplier?

I think they are just popular, they work well and are relatively affordable. I had trouble sourcing mine when it was time to buy a couple of years ago

I have one on the shelf that I bought for a layout I've built for a grandson, but didn't use.  Looks like a good replacement for, and much better than, a postwar ZW if one is feeding a TIU or powering accessories.  Same ampacity, better breaker, smaller size, and cheaper than a rebuilt ZW.

RJR posted:

Why are the powerhouses so scarce?  Problem with Asian supplier?

Lionel changed suppliers, and there was some issue in using the old design, I'm not sure what part of it was a problem.  They're working to get the new design UL approved so they can get them moving again.  They haven't been manufactured for at least a couple of years.

Thanks for the warning, John.  I won't buy any more for a few years, to give the new supplier a chance to get properly Oriented on the manufacturing process and let Lionel get it debugged.  I have no desire to be a gamma tester.

Hi

I have seen the Lionel PowerHouse in the on line catalog to ship in 2016. Did anyone hear when they will available to the LHS?

I didn't have access to a 3-pole molex, and found that a 4-pole would work.

With its 10-amp capacity, the 180 powerhouse is same wattage/amerage as a postwar ZW, so I use it to drive 2 TIU circuits.  I use a terminal block to make the split.  Be sure to first phase the output with your other transformers; it's a simple matter to switch the output leads if need be when the PH180 is connected to a terminal block.

How can I buy one of these???

Here's one. But read the posts above, some of the forum members make these.

f:0" target="_blank">https://www.ebay.com/itm/LIONE...xyAZ9STdso:rk:1f:0

WOW, $20 with shipping for $2 worth of parts and five minutes time.  I'll sell you those for $15 shipped.

I made up a molex to plug into the end of the cable that came with the PH180.

But if you really want to save money, just cut the cable that came with it, strip the ends, and connect them to your terminal block or directly to your TIU posts wrapped around the posts, taking care to phase it with your other transformers. (On mine, I had to reverse the wires to phase with my Z4000 & other transformers.  I use crimp connectors for wires going to TIU).  I use my PH180 to drive 2 TIU circuits (yards), on which rarely would there more be two locos working in the aggregate.  Replaced a PW ZW, at much less space.

I just did this another way. I took my track #14 wire and soldered the ends up. They fit tightly inside the Lionel brick's connector. No cut, no mess, no cost!

Can anyone post what the sources r for the elements required to build these cables for brick to TIU?    Is their a length restriction. ?  

Thanks

Greg Stack

Length is only restricted by the length of the cable.  A real long cable needs a larger wire (lower gauge number.  On my layout, I use #14 wire, but I run a large number of locos at once.  I would never go below #16.

I normally keep them sort as I use #14 or #16 wire.  With a foot of cable, even #16 has virtually no impact on the final voltage at 10 amps.

Stackm746 posted:

Can anyone post what the sources r for the elements required to build these cables for brick to TIU?    Is their a length restriction. ?  

Thanks

Greg Stack

Are you looking for links? 

Molex connectors

Pins

@MikeH  your links don’t load...

Ted,

@MikeH  your links don’t load...

Actually, the link works fine.

Barry Broskowitz posted:

Ted,

@MikeH  your links don’t load...

Actually, the link works fine.

Yeah, Ted.  They're working okay for me.  If you can't get them to work, go to Digi-Key and look for these part numbers:

Molex connectors: WM1325-ND

Pins: WM1100-ND

Good luck.

I cut the cords.  Even if I had had the adapters, the cords would have been way too long for my application.

Two (out of six) of my 180 Watt Power Bricks were out of phase with the others, so I would have had to have cut one end or the other...

We cut the cord on all them and added banana jacks to the ends.

When you cut the cord, which one is hot?

Where can you buy the adapter cord for the 180 or 135 brick to the TIU?

A link to another thread.   Part was designed to connect PH 180's,  or older PH 135 bricks, to the TPC300/400 (silver box)   IMO.  Lower Far right in picture. It can be used to connect (2) Bricks to (one) TPC300/400. Output of the TPC300/400 connects to the track(s).     P.N.    6SP2983010

A different look with (two) PH 180 bricks.  Lower left, almost on the floor, this picture.  Track power from the TPC400 (silver box) supplies the input terminals of the TIU upper left. 

If one wires the 180 brick to the TIU with the molecular cable. How is the black wire connected to common for legacy operation?

thx.  Greg Stack

Moonman posted:

When you cut the cord, which one is hot?

if you look at the cord with the plug end has 3 holes the wire with the rib on side of wire is the hot wire you can get some pin connectors and make your own cable any length you need.  note the plug has a v shape at one end hot wire is 3 from that and common wire is the center hole. I showed the type of pin I am referring to not sure of its exact size but I used this instead of buying the connector cable from lionel. hope this helps you and others as well

I have always cut the plugs off and soldered on spade lugs which accommodate any and all toy train terminals. As Frank noted the telltale rib on the cord is Hot. (in the little "09 space-deprived attic room the  plumbing helped get the "noodles" organized)

The 180 PoHos with the red/white "phased" labels located on the lower shelf of my early condo layout were a pair of the very first PoHos shipped that were out of phase with the toy train world. I slotted a skinny screwdriver and opened both, found adequate slack and cut the cord well inside the strain knot, slid on 3 sizes of shrink wrap, reversed and soldered the 120 VAC conductors, shrunk and taped and reassembled. Later the adapters became available and I sent them to my  fix adviser, Jim Barrett for decorating his Christmas tree.

19972009

Moonman posted:

When you cut the cord, which one is hot?

Some were produced out of phase, Lionel made a plug adapter to "re-phase" them without cutting.

I am really enjoying looking at different people's wiring/panels on this thread!

RAK posted:

I am really enjoying looking at different people's wiring/panels on this thread!

 Amateurs compared to these guys! 

BobbyD posted:

Moonman posted:

When you cut the cord, which one is hot?

Some were produced out of phase, Lionel made a plug adapter to "re-phase" them without cutting.

Not the anomalies, any modern cord - the answer is -

I have two Lionel 180W bricks powering both of the variable channels of my TIU.  The MTH Z500 is powering the TIU Aux input.  

When I did this, I cut the connectors off of the 180W bricks not knowing about the adapter.  If I had known, I wouldn't have cut the connectors off (I did save them though).  I then connected MTH 40-1015 (cut in half) to the cut-off end using butt connectors. 

BobbyD posted:

RAK posted:

I am really enjoying looking at different people's wiring/panels on this thread!

 Amateurs compared to these guys! 

Just finished wiring mine.

struggling to get back to o gauge after 8 years away with health problems and now a new trainboard. Guys, have a mth z4000, tiu, aiu, wiu- all sat on the shelf 8 years. How should I connect to run dcs, although I have many proto 1 engines (20 premier steam, 20ish premier diesels, all less than 10 hrs run time each). Only 3 proto2 engines. Believe z4000 2 inner fixed terminals are 10 & 14 volt. Have the left inner terminal(2nd from left) connected to the fixed 1 on tiu, the left variable handle on z4000 goes to var 1 on tiu then to distribution point then to atlas track. there are no outputs connected to the 2 fixed out terminals on the tiu. also, 6 years ago, bought a new lionel zw with legacy control units & 1 lionel engine, but all sit in box unopened. Is the lionel equipment the best way to run my many mth proto1 engines or somehow set up the z4000/tiu to run proto1 in conventional mode. I use atlas track, a 27 ft by 17 foot new trainboard. help the new trainboard is here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jm6yyi3WELE

bucca posted:

struggling to get back to o gauge after 8 years away with health problems and now a new trainboard.

Bucca, start a new thread for this.  You'll get a lot more help that way.

This may be a mute point by now with all the stuff I've seen so far, and by the way I wish I had known about the adapter cord.  I did the same thing, bought a brick, then saw the special plug end and thought, "what the?"  Called the store I bought it from and the guy told me, "look for the wire with the tiny white writing on it, that's the red wire."  Found the tiny white writing, and it is tiny, cut the plug off, took Banana connectors, saw that above some place, stripped the wire, attached the bananas, ate and orange, and then plugged it into the TIU Fixed in port.  I like the on/off switch.  I hate leaving my layout on all the time. 

The DCS Companion Guide seems to indicate that for a larger layout it would be better to distribute the TIUs throughout the layout to keep the TIU to track runs shorter and uniform.   My thought is that this would require the 180 brick to TIU to be longer, 3 feet in my case to accomplish this.   Does this make sense to make such as cable?   I have also been told that a 14 gauge cable would not fit in the compatible molex male connector.   Has anyone used a 14 or 12 gauge wire?

Thanks for your help,

Thanks, Does anyone have the correct part number for the banana plugs?

Thx.

I have a 14ga speaker cable running to the Molex Connector, so I think that isn't a major issue.  Perhaps those telling you this stuff should read the specifications.

Compatible 3-pin Connector: Molex 0003092032, Mating pins: Molex 0002092103, pins are for #14 to #22 wire.

Thx.  So the crimp is the middle portion of the pin and the area by the head holds the pin in the white housing?    Do I also crimp the openings furthest away from the head?    Center pin is hot and square end is common?

The part number for the Lionel PowerHouse Power Supply to MTH TIU Adapter, which converts the Molex plug to banana jacks, is PH-TIU.  It works with 135 and 180 watt bricks and is available from C.T. McCormick Hardware for $14.95 plus shipping.

Stackm746 posted:

Thx.  So the crimp is the middle portion of the pin and the area by the head holds the pin in the white housing?    Do I also crimp the openings furthest away from the head?    Center pin is hot and square end is common?

The crimps are the two left hand pairs of tabs in John's image. The "arrow" wings are what hold it in the connector.

The two crimps are both required.  Closest to the pin head is the bare wire, the insulation and wire is crimped on the opposite end to help reinforce the connection.