EZ Command Walk around

[plint]

I have the Command Control and am looking at this EZ Walkaround so I can walk around the layout.  So how does this work?  What do I need?
Thanks

[Hunt]

Click Here to view Bachmann video about E-Z Command Walk Around Companion part 1

Click Here to view Bachmann video about Walk Around Companion part 2 and Walk Around Companion control Panel installation.

Be sure the Bachmann E-Z Command system will handle your control requirements (or you can live with its limited features) and that a different dcc system with more features is not required to do what you would like to do. 

[Doneldon]

I have the Command Control and am looking at this EZ Walkaround so I can walk around the layout.  So how does this work?  What do I need?Thanks

Plint-

You don't need the Walk Around Companion to move around your layout with a DCC controller. You can do that with the EZCommand DCC unit itself. You only need the companion if you want to have more than one cab operating at the same time.
                                                                                                                                   -- D

[rrbob]

The walk around controller just plugs into the master controller.  You can also add plugs around your layout if you need to.  The walk around controller can be unplugged and the train it controls will keep running at the last speed. Then you can plug it into the next plug and have control of the train.
People seem to not like the Bachmann system but how many have even tried it?  It works fine for me now.

[riff99]

I have it as well.  Whenever my son and I wish to drive our own trains, it sure makes it handy.  But the E-Z Command Controller HAS to be the lead controller wherever you wish to plug the unit into a re-railer around your setup.  We have three re-railer points on our setup where we can plug our E-Z Command Controller into.  But the walk-around controller can only follow wherever you plug the E-Z Command into.  It's not a separate entity at all.

[Doneldon]

But the E-Z Command Controller HAS to be the lead controller wherever you wish to plug the unit into a re-railer around your setup.  We have three re-railer points on our setup where we can plug our E-Z Command Controller into.  But the walk-around controller can only follow wherever you plug the E-Z Command into.  It's not a separate entity at all.

riff-

Perhaps we just have a terminology problem but I'm not sure that your information is accurate. The EZCommand isn't intended to plug into terminal/rerailers at various sites around your layout, although I suppose you could do so. However, that would mean your power would be interrupted each time you unplug which would cause all trains to stop until you restore power at another point; you cannot unplug the EZCommand from your layout without stopping everything.

Also, the Walk Around Companion doesn't need to be plugged into the EZC master controller or follow it around. The customary thing to do would be to permanently place the EZC master at a convenient location and connect it to a power buss with feeders at various points on the tracks. Then connect the EZC master to a control buss with plug-ins around your layout. That will allow you to operate up to four Companions, with each running its own train(s). You do not have to keep the Companions tethered to the EZC master and any operating trains will continue to run in the same direction and at the same speed as last instructed by the Companion which had control of the train when the Companion was unplugged.

Of course there is a bit of fantasy in this. The EZC cannot operate so many trains at one time unless the "base" power output is increased by connecting a more powerful booster.
                                       -- D

[riff99]

Absolutely correctly, Doneldon.  I should have mentioned that I stop all trains and unplug the power from the wall before I move to another area of the setup where I can re-connect the EZC.  And as you guys have come to know, is that my terminology is still way off.  But I'm trying my best to understand it all, all hopefully help others whenever I can.  I'll have to figure out what a power buss with feeders is, but I'n thinking that is what I meant by my terminology of a re-railer.  All my re-railers include a port to plug the EZC into.  They help with keeping certain problem locos and tenders on the track, so I have a bunch of them.  And they help us connect the EZC to another area of the setup.  That's all I was trying to explain.  The walk-around companion has always been connected to the EZC, so again this is why I suggested they work in tandem alone, and not as separate units.  Thanks for the help, D-.

[jward]

perhaps a better terminology would be master/slave. the ez command, as with all dcc command stations, is the master unit. it controls everything. the walk around compannions will not work without an ez command unit to process their commands. thus they are slave units. i have a similar setup with my digitrax zephyr. i have 2 dc power pacs i use as auxilliary throttles. these can control speed and direction, but can only run what is assigned them by the zephyr.

as for what a bus line is, a bus line consists of 2 wires which run around the layout, it transmits the signal from the command station to the track. feeder wires connect the bus to the track at various points. in theory, you could connect your ommand station to the track at only one pont, but since degradation of the dcc signal can result in loss of control of the locomotive it is much better to have a set of feeders every so often around the track. redundancy reduces the likelihood of loss of control. keeep in mind that a decoder receiving a corrupted signal will run on the last signal it understood as long as it is getting power.

as for having so many rerailers because of problem locos, perhaps riff might be better off trying to find out why they derail? careful observation under good llighting conditions wil show where the wheels go off the track, and careful inspection of the track at that point will usually reveal the cause. look for kinks in nthe track, misaligned rail joints, bumps, etc.

[Doneldon]

riff-

It's not necessary (or desirable) to stop everything and unplug your EZC from the track and wall when you want to move your command station. A power buss will enable you to keep things running while you change locations of Companions but the EZC Master must stay connected.

A power buss is a convenient way to keep the command station connected full time while still having an excellent power supply to your layout. The purpose of a power buss is to supply your railroad with consistent and reliable power.

The materials used for model rails, except brass which presents its own challenges, don't carry electricity very well. That is, the power drops comparatively quickly the farther you get from a power source. A power buss made of nice, large, brass, stranded wire carries power with almost no voltage drop. So ... you run a concealed power buss of large wire and feed your rails with short, small gauge wires often called jumpers but more often called feeders. These need to be as short as possible. (I use an eight-inch limit. Others go longer or shorter. However, we all use very fine wire for the feeders, even as small as 20-26 ga.) This all ensures that plenty of power is available on all of the tracks, not just the ones near a terminal track.

Instead of plugging your EZC Master directly into the rerailer ports on your terminal/rerailer tracks, connect it to the power buss hidden under your layout. These should be at least 16 ga (for a small pike) or larger as the size of the layout increases. Regular old lamp cord or a standard extension cord will work fine for a power buss on most home layouts. The feeders can be fed to terminal/rerailer tracks, soldered to the bottoms or outsides of rails, soldered to rail joiners or attached any other way which allows you to use small gauge, inconspicuous feeders.

In order to use your Companions in different locations, you connect a special cable (they come with the Companions) from the multi-conductor port on the back of the EZC master to an identical port mounted (usually) on the fascia of your model railroad. You then add additional ports at various places on your model railroad where you expect to need both visual and electrical control of your trains. These locations might be near a place with a lot of switching, like a yard, or a place where you can't see your trains, like behind scenery or just too far from the EZC master. Bachmann makes the various cables and ports you need.

I hope this explanation of power busses and command busses is clear. But I'm kind of in a rush right now so please excuse me if all I've done
is confuse you.
                         -- D

[Jhanecker2]

To Doneldon :  there is a typo in your last reply .  You have a feeder  wire of 2 gauge posted  , I am sure you meant to type  #20 gauge wire .  Sorry for being pedantic but used to be an electrical  Q.C. inspector .  John2.

[Doneldon]

To Doneldon :  there is a typo in your last reply .  You have a feeder  wire of 2 gauge posted  , I am sure you meant to type  #20 gauge wire .  Sorry for being pedantic but used to be an electrical  Q.C. inspector .  John2.

J2-

You are absolutely correct and I will fix the typo. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.

Actually, a 2 ga feeder would be a rather interesting animal, kind of like filling a child's wading pool with one of the spillways at the Hoover Dam.

                                                                                                                                                                          -- D

[jward]

To Doneldon :  there is a typo in your last reply .  You have a feeder  wire of 2 gauge posted  , I am sure you meant to type  #20 gauge wire .  Sorry for being pedantic but used to be an electrical  Q.C. inspector .  John2.

J2-

You are absolutely correct and I will fix the typo. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.

Actually, a 2 ga feeder would be a rather interesting animal, kind of like filling a child's wading pool with one of the spillways at the Hoover Dam.

                                                                                                                                                                          -- D

not to mention 2 guage would be bigger than the rails you'd solder it to.