Model Rectifier certainly doesn’t have a static product line. Every few years the firm tweaks it a bit and makes a few changes based on the experiences of earlier models. The toy train product line currently hosts two models, the masterful 270-watt Pure Power Dual to run everything but the kitchen sink and, for smaller operations, it has now added the 0-24 VAC, 64-watt Throttlepack to the lineup.
The Throttlepack is a two-piece unit, consisting of a power block and a controller. The line from the power block connects to the control box right next to the on/off switch. You’ll find four screw posts next to the power switch: two that are not connected to anything, and the AC and common posts.
The controls are all straight-forward. There is a pilot light to let you know that the power is turned on. There are horn, bell, and direction buttons. Press, and each does something; remove your finger, and it stops.
There is a large button you can lock on or off, marked “Booster” in big white letters on a red background. This is for an extra goose of power. You can press it down, and it locks in place to sustain the extra power. Press it a second time to cancel the surge of electricity.
The most eye-catching feature of them all is the large red lever controlling the throttle, which manages the train’s speed.
Testing the power supply
To the annoyance of my co-workers, I spent several days with the power supply hooked up to various locomotives in my office (either on a stationary roller base or flip-sided in a foam cradle) and let them run at very high speeds – all day long. Even with their sound systems silenced, that was a surprisingly noisy experience in a small office. Generally, the transformer got three to four hours of continuous peak-demand operation in the morning and a similar amount in the afternoon.
At no time did the power block rise above tepid to mildly warm. It never got hot, nor did it get close to “almost getting hot.” Warm was about it.
Well, running a locomotive in a cradle is one thing. But what about on a test track?
MRC touts the power supply as using “MRC Sine Wave Technology,” for maximum compatibility with the most sound and command systems. Please note the word “most.” In other words, it may be compatible or it may not.
We tested locomotives made by Atlas O (equipped with LocoMatic and TrainMaster), Lionel (postwar conventional, modern conventional, TrainMaster- and Legacy-equipped), MTH (with ProtoSound 2.0, and Williams and Williams by Bachmann (with True-Blast horn/bell), and all of them functioned well.
Here’s what I mean by that: When operating all of these locomotives in conventional mode, they started, changed direction, and stopped on command. Horns and bells responded appropriately when triggered. If the engines were equipped with a sound system, the sound system started up and operated flawlessly.
To find out how much the transformer could handle, we attached an MTH U30C, a Lionel Dash 8-40CW dummy, and an MTH four-car subway train. That’s a grand total of four motors, two sound systems, two smoke units, and illumination in everything on the track.
The whole shebang moved. Kind of slowly, to be sure, but it moved! The transformer was maxed out, however. Still, the breaker didn’t get overloaded. But as the general purpose warning goes, “Kids, don’t do this at home.”
Instead, use it as a guide for what you can put on the track. I’d say a locomotive with sound, smoke, and two motors and a decent-sized freight train of 10 or 15 cars are easily within your operating reach with the Throttlepack.
After messing around with the MRC Throttlepack for several months, I’d say it would be a good choice for a small to mid-size layout with minimal non-train power draws and trains that run on a flat grade.
Price: (no. 0001301) $129.98
Features: 0-24 VAC, 64-watt output, two-piece design
I will have to get one to replace my CW-80.