Elmic Commander chattering...

[Stew]

Hi Phil, I thought you just powered the escapement via negative and signal wire from the receiver?

Am very uneducated about all this...

[Pchristy]

It looks like a MacGregor MiniMac to me. I'll see if I can find mine tomorrow and compare.

IIRC the escapement connects to the battery positive, and the signal lead from the receiver shorts to ground on receipt of a signal.

The MiniMac was also intended to run off 3 cells, so running it on 6V would probably increase the noise output considerably!

[Stew]

The Elmic Commander instructions say the two wires on the left of the escapement, looking from the rear, should be Rx- and Rx output, so I have it wired on the bench thusly.

Stew, I have resized your pictures, //Tobe

[Stew]

I know the 4.8v pack is still higher than recommended, but it doesn't seem to be chattering now, and my Ripmax Pathfinder seems to be getting it to click in and out when I press the tone button.

[Phil_G]

Unforch I dont have a doc for that particular receiver Stew, but I do have one so if it works I'll have a play & see
The MR doc says "all macgregor receivers are 9v" but I wouldnt believe that, the early ones were Terrytone based, 4.5v

It looks like a MacGregor MiniMac to me. I'll see if I can find mine tomorrow and compare.
IIRC the escapement connects to the battery positive, and the signal lead from the receiver shorts to ground on receipt of a signal.
The MiniMac was also intended to run off 3 cells, so running it on 6V would probably increase the noise output considerably!

Hi Pete, defo a Macgregor, I have the identical rx here in front of me.
We dont have a doc for this rx, you dont have one by chance do you?
Ta
Phil

[Shaun]

Here you go...wiring diag

[Stew]

Amazing. Thanks guys, great stuff. How these little devices work at all after what? 50+ years? Is quite beyond me. It's a lot of fun playing with them, and for me, half the fun is reading about the things and trying to understand the theory while having an example on the bench in front of me.

[Pchristy]

Ah, I was wrong! The escapement does connect between the Rx and -ve.

In my defence it must be 50 years since I last wired a MiniMac!

[Phil_G]

Yep but the important thing is that you remembered it wasnt 9v!!!

Here you go...wiring diag

Thanks Shaun
I've shopped these for perspective as best I can and put them all into a PDF, item M57 on the Archive page of singlechannel.co.uk
They're quite readable so will be ok until theres an opportunity to scan the originals

Weird that the spec page says 3v maximum but the diagram shows 4.5v ???
Edit: as Pete says, probably a typo for 3 cells maximum

[Pchristy]

Indeed!

And I suspect that reference to 3V max was a typo, and they meant 3 CELLS max!