Large Scale Central

Building turnouts

Wellllll Greg, after I read threads that are about “convoluted” DCC problems - in two different languages no less, one with 125 posts and the other one with 74 posts - and everyone seems to have forgotten what basic troubleshooting is all about, then … I gladly add the red lines that lead right to the insulation gaps. Even though they are obvious to anyone who has ever looked at a handlaid turnout that is DCC friendly or even just the schematic of one :wink:

I’m pretty sure the dual FrogJuicers will work just as intended in my staging yard, even with two or more engines moving at the same time. :slight_smile:

BTW in my view the DDC-friendly setup has only one item that differs from the “usual” DCC routine. That is the frog which, by whatever means, changes polarity according to the position of the point rails. The rest of the wiring is just common sense to avoid complications on account of incorrect wheel gauge or derailments “in exactly the wrong spot”.

PS And one more variation on the theme how to power a frog http:///html/mk3_throw.html Works ver nicely; the toggle spring together with the toggle switch holds the point rails in place and a piece of doweling provides the “high-tech manual actuator”, no bending down to throw this, that or the other and it will reach across the elevated sections to any of the turnouts.

And now the jumper wires

(http:///F-PIX/CurvedSam05_s.jpg)

holes through the base of the rail

(http:///F-PIX/CurvedSam04_s.jpg)

stranded, tinned wire threaded through the holes and soldered

(http:///F-PIX/CurvedSam06_s.jpg)

the styrene strips glued in the gaps, they will be shaped after the CA has “air-dried”. A feeder wire will be added to the frog assembly All in all a pretty bullet proof system for DCC. Of course it would be even easier with Battery-RC, but that train left the station when I looked at all the possibilities of DCC (ca 2001/02) PS that’s the large curved turnout. Now I’m waiting for the LGB turnout motors and in the meantime I wire all the other turnouts, too.

Last two

(http:///F-PIX/CurvedSam07_s.jpg)

jumpers at the tailend of the turnout and the shaped insulating spacers

(http:///F-PIX/CurvedSam08_s.jpg)

the completed turnout

HJ,

I’ve followed your thread on building turnouts, both this one, and the one you did several years ago. Naturally, I have a few questions…

Do you use the so-called ladder method? If so, how does the base of the switch fit in with the rest of the track, that presumably doesn’t have the base? Or, doesn’t it make a difference?

I like what you’ve done, and would like to use your idea, but can’t imagine using it with my ladders without some kind of surgery to the ladder.

Ideas?

The curved switch is a beauty for sure, great work!

Steve,

The turnouts in this write up are for inside sitting on plywood. Those that go on the ladder track are built on 1/4" PVC to keep things straight.

So far I built:

the turnouts on the elevated section on 1/2" plywood, for the ladder track on 1/4" PVC, one curved turnout I built on corrugated cardboard and then transferred to the ladder track, and now the ones on EasyBoard.

BTW in the smaller scales I usually build on LauAn (mahagony door skin), takes the spikes really well and doesn’t have hard spot like one can get in plywood.

Smallest project so far Code40 rail on wood ties in Z-scale - haven’t tried handlaid switches yet. :lol: :lol:

Really nice work, HJ!