Track Power Connection
On the rear of the Mini Mag there is a pair of connectors used to connect the
power to the track. If your train is on the track facing forward and you con-
nect the red terminal to the right rail and the black terminal to the left rail, the
train will go forward when the forward/reverse switch is in the forward posi-
tion. If the engine moves backwards, swap the track wires. Attach the wire to
the terminal. If the plastic insulation on the wire has not been removed, strip
about 1/4” of the insulation off to expose the bare metal part of the wire.
Speed Governor:
Bridgewerks’ exclusive “speed-stop” can be used as a safety device to limit
the maximum speed of your trains. The speed stop consists of a metal plate
which is held in place with a thumb screw. To adjust the speed stop, loosen
the thumb screw, adjust the throttle slide control so that the train is going as
fast as you want to allow, and then slide the speed stop down to limit the
maximum speed. Tighten the thumb screw. Now you can move the throttle
control from 0 up to the maximum selected speed.
Momentum
The Mini-Mag features an adjustable momentum control which will limit the
acceleration and deceleration of the trains. When momentum is at maximum
and you move the throttle from the minimum to the maximum, the train will
slowly accelerate from a stop to the maximum speed. Similarly if the throttle
is moved quickly from maximum to 0, the train will slowly decelerate to a stop.
Momentum adds another dimension of realism to your model railroad. In
addition, the combination of speed governor and momentum makes it easier
to limit derailments when younger engineers are at the controls.
Direction Control
The Mini-Mag has a direction control switch which will change the direction
of the locomotive. If the locomotive runs backwards when the switch is in the
forward position, reverse the connections going to the track.
Speed Control
The Mini-Mag has a slide controller to adjust the engine speed. There is an
LED which will increase in brightness as the speed is increased, and will
change color to red if the direction control switch is switched to reverse.
Overload Protection
In the event of an overload, the Mini-Mag has two different ways of protect-
ing itself and your train from damage: A manual circuit breaker is on the left
side of the rear panel. The button will pop out and the power to the track
will be cut off. If this happens, correct whatever caused the overload, wait 2
or 3 minutes and then push the switch to reset it.
In addition, there is an automatic thermal cutoff inside the controller which
will be activated in the event of an overload. This will reset itself automati-
cally in 2-3 minutes after the cause of the overload is removed. There is a
red light on the front of the controller which will illuminate if the internal ther-
mal cutoff has been activated.
Outdoor operation
Garden railways are often installed outdoors and Bridgewerks controllers
are built to be used with outdoor railroad layouts. However, they are not
waterproof, and as with any electronic equipment, they should not be left
outdoors when not in use. To make this easy, the connections are all
made so that they can simply be unplugged and the controller can be
carried indoors.
