Hi, just an overlook what is involved to create a working overhead system., using the Sommerfeldt system is not as hard as one could imagine but rather a learning curve as you go along.
the real problem with an overhead system doesn't evolve around how to put it all together but rather the pantographs different manufacturers use.
I found Märklin and HAG of best quality, than Sommerfeldt, Roco, Jägerndorfer and Piko last.
each construction of the lesser quality has floors by either plastic parts, exact 1:87 scale and therefore easily breakable for the material they use, another problem is the wiper which again consists of different designs and methods., some have round edges others sharp edges, some have side movements,
the norm of securing a pantograph to the housing is a screw which in most cases does the job but securing it to a plastic material isn't the best idea,
another problem is the springs which hold the pantograph up, they can be to weak to hold the wiper against the overhead wires and therefore the contact isn't 100 %, or the spring is to stiff and it could move the overhead wire sideways, as you can see there are several reasons why a pantograph doesn't do its job it suppose to do,

I thought Sommefeldt pantographs would be another choice, some are working fine but others fail the test and I found this out when I've replaced the Pantograph on an Austrian electric City Jet made by Jägerndorfer, the wipers edges are so sharp that the tiniest difference in height at a joining point (most the time at a mast) the pantograph gets stuck., in some ways its a good indicator and I can deal with it restoring it to the same height.
,
What I thought would be easy peasy, take one loco with a narrow wiper and this should cover the whole spectrum, nothing is easy, even with a narrow wiper there is a difference how long the loco is, for example a SBB Re 6/6 or a short Bo-Bo loco.

I'm finally getting through most of the pantographs to find out whether or not they fulfil the task and hopefully I can run electric locos without a hitch.
Roco locos no longer hav any contacts with pantographs (they used to), Jägerndorfer and Piko never had, so this another job to solder a wire to the wiper arm, drill a small hole into the housing and solder the wire onto the circuit board AC soldering pad.
It may be the reason why modellers stay away from using a operational overhead system.
at Euro 23.00 upwards a pantograph it could become an expensive exercise.

John

A member of our club has used the catenary in a fully functional way on digital for probably twenty years or more without any problems.

It is certainly where I plan to go with mine, so thanks for sharing your experiences.

Cheers….

Mike

Ben, I could imagine it

John

Märklin themselves have participated in the rumour. I think they need a kick in the bollocks at times.

Hello All,

I'm in the process of acquiring Sommerfeld catenary for my HO layout. However, in a purely digital system, I fail to see a valid reason for powering locos via the catenary. There is simply no point -- in my opinion -- of complicating life by running power to the overhead wires.

Furthermore, if you have tunnels and/or hidden yards, then this is even more reason for staying away from running power to the overhead wires. Not having to install masts and wires in the tunnels saves on both cost and maintenance hassles. I simply plan to install a gently upward-sloped wire at each tunnel entrance. This will definitely make track cleaning and dusting tunnels and hidden yards easier.

Just my opinion. I'm in the eary stages of implementing catenary and would sure like to hear a convincing argument from someone running purely digital that a functional catenary has merit.

Cheers,

@ MDV71
Märklin is quite correct with "not recommended". If they give a "recommended" they give the green light for a newbie with his/her first oval to run the starter set with powered overhead catenary. Very unwise.

In the analog days, the catenary carried only power to power the loco. Digitally, it carries power and information to regulate the locomotive's chip. I have first hand experience where a single arm pantograph is adequate to provide power to run at the locomotive yet the electrical connection is sufficiently inconsistent as to disrupt the information stream. The net outcome was a locomotive that ran consistently, at a given speed, but was uncontrollable. I could not stop it, neither accelerate nor decelerate it. It was running as a ghost. All issues disappeared when I switched the power supply to the pickup shoe.

There are workarounds; graphite grease on the pantograph joints to increase electrical conductivity consistency is one of them. Running locomotive with both pantographs up is very helpful. Yes, the experts can make powered catenary work.

@Kiko
I have powered catenary and show my layout to my Märklin friends and non-railroading visitors. The first question I always get is: Is the catenary powered? Does it really work? Followed by: show me. I have to demonstrate by manually pulling the pantos to show the locomotive stops moving. They are astonished.

With unpowered catenary, you live with the unspoken guest disappointment. However, this may be totally unimportant to you.

Another aspect where it can be helpful is as a split in power supplies. One supply is for the track, a second one is for the catenary. Helpful in intensively operating layouts.

A third aspect is the annoying, at worst stuttering locomotive crossing a point or double slip switch, or the less annoying momentary pause in the locomotive's sound. Catenary gives seamless operation acrosss all types of points. No loss of power, nor stuttering, nor loss of sound. It is very nice and smooth operation.

The charm of the odd electical spark on the pantograph also cannot be quantified.

Analog catenary carries power in HO ( and ground in Z), but no power in digital. For the latter, the track carries all necessary information to decoders, so here catenary is about aesthetics. Mixing analog catenary power with track digital power is not advisable. A short may destroy digital controller or decoders.