Before I would go through the trouble of redesigning and rewinding a coil, I would try to see if some mechanical problem is the trouble. In my Lionel Gabe, the pawls that held the locking gear in place were sticking (probably riveted a little too tight). Higher voltage helped, but only because of the impact of the extra force tended to rattle the pesky pawls loose. In the end, I glued small weights on each pawl & it works fine now even on a small transformer.
Regarding coil force - In theory, the force is proportional to the square of the current times the coil turns. Said another way, if you double the current, the force increases by four. Same for the turns. The simplest way to increase force is to just increase the voltage. By going from 15 volts to 18 volts (a 20% increase in both voltage & current), you could increase the force by 44%. This is why going to an 18B or 30B transformer with 18 volt output can really "rock". My guess is that the Gilbert factory designed the coils by trial and error rather than by some formula*. If they got the coils to operate the accessory without burning up during normal use, they were happy. If you try making your own coil, just remember this simple design rule - "Engines smoke, accessories don't!". * see this link for why they might have avoided using a theorical approach! http://www.ee.surrey.ac.uk/Workshop/advice/coils/force.html John Gasal S-Trains list sponsor: http://www.americanflyertrains.com All the Flyer you desire...books and accessories too! To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list send a note to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
