Wall mounted adapter plug powering TMCC?

Greg,

I am certainly no expert on TMCC, but we may be the only two guys without a date tonight being it New Years Eve. I had always been a DCS operator until the panic of 2020 when some of us thought that MTH may completely fold. Complete TMCC systems were hard to find and most were for sale without the power cord.  If I remember correctly, the power cord that came with the unit was somehow wired differently than a standard, off the shelf, wall wort.  I don't remember any damage being done to the base but it didn't function properly in all circumstances.  I may be all wet and hopefully one of the better versed forum members will correct me but, as for now, I would be careful.   HAPPY NEW YEAR !!

John

PS: Here's the unit I found in 2020

6-12969          Trainmaster Command Control

6-12868 CAB-1 REMOTE  

6-12911 COMMAND BASE with power supply

@Gregcz1 posted:

My question though is how safe is this method of supplying power?

For the BPC's, you are good to go.

@JPaul posted:

If I remember correctly, the power cord that came with the unit was somehow wired differently than a standard, off the shelf, wall wort..

The power for the Command Base is special, it needs to be coupled to the building ground and will have a three-prong plug which includes the grounding plug.

Rob,

Thank you for helping both Greg and myself.  I knew there was something special about the TMCC but the PBC component threw me.  I run my one TMCC engine and the TMCC base through my TIU.  The forum is such a great resource. I learn every day!!

John

@Gregcz1 posted:

I recently found a wall plug adapter with an output of 15 VAC. (I have no idea what it was used for LOL!).  I thought this might be a convenient way to save space of a bulky transformer and have it power my TMCC BPCs.  I hooked it up and everything seems to be working fine.

My question though is how safe is this method of supplying power?  The output is well within the range of the recommended "12-18 volts", but obviously, there is no circuit breaker.  I mean, the likelihood of a short occurring for just powering components is very small.  Unless there is something in the equation I am missing.

Happy to hear your thoughts.

Happy New Year!

Greg

Rob is correct the most important aspect is the ground part of the power supply.

This is something that can trip folks up, and I've seen power supplies for sale being represented as "for TMCC" that won't work.  Here's one thread where a workaround is discussed - https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/topic/tmcc-power-supply. 

The Lionel part number is 610-2911-010, but it hasn't been available for awhile.  I'm assuming that the new Base 3 will have a similar power supply, so hopefully Lionel will start stocking it again.

If you want to take a deep dive into the subject, search for "wall wart" on the TMCC subforum.

@Mallard4468 posted:

This is something that can trip folks up, and I've seen power supplies for sale being represented as "for TMCC" that won't work.  Here's one thread where a workaround is discussed - https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/topic/tmcc-power-supply.

The Lionel part number is 610-2911-010, but it hasn't been available for awhile.  I'm assuming that the new Base 3 will have a similar power supply, so hopefully Lionel will start stocking it again.

Actually, the TMCC BASE1 or the BASE1L take a much smaller power supply then the Legacy #990 or the upcoming BASE3 will require.  I'm actually hoping that the BASE3 might actually use an internal power supply and just use the ubiquitous modular power cord.  I'd love to dispense with the annoying wallwart.

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

Actually, the TMCC BASE1 or the BASE1L take a much smaller power supply then the Legacy #990 or the upcoming BASE3 will require.  I'm actually hoping that the BASE3 might actually use an internal power supply and just use the ubiquitous modular power cord.  I'd love to dispense with the annoying wallwart.

The Base3 power supply is internal.  This was one of the issues I believe with the Legacy bases being reproduced.  I'm not sure of the specifics but I seem to recall Dave mentioning that the external supply was one of a few hurdles.  Anyway I can confirm that the Base3 has an internal PS as it has been mentioned many times by Dave. 

Thank you all for the feedback.  For the record, I am not speaking about the adapter for the command base.  I AM using the plug provided by Lionel for that.  I was speaking about the TMCC components that need a separate power supply. 

I am glad I can use the 15 volt adapter and not have to worry about hazards or frying equipment.

Greg

@Gregcz1 posted:

Thank you all for the feedback.  For the record, I am not speaking about the adapter for the command base.  I AM using the plug provided by Lionel for that.  I was speaking about the TMCC components that need a separate power supply.

I am glad I can use the 15 volt adapter and not have to worry about hazards or frying equipment.

Greg

For separate equipment that happens to be TMCC compatible, the external totally isolated power brick is perfect for powering them.

@MartyE posted:

The Base3 power supply is internal.

I wondered about that, I thought that I might have heard that.  I'm happy to hear that, one less chunk of iron to find a place for.