Has anybody tried the Caboose Industries O Scale Ground Throw? It is made of Delrin so it should last outdoors. It has a travel of 0.280 inches, so it should work for Large Scale track as well as O gauge.
Any ideas? At $3.25 each, it’s hard not to give it a try.
The sprung ones have a very small, non-stainless spring in them that rust out very quickly. Think smaller than a ballpoint pen spring.
For that price, buy one and give it shot.
I might just do that. Film at 11. If the spring is in the overthrow spring, it shouldn’t matter if the spring in the ground throw gives up, should it?
Here one that has been on the layout for 4 years. Ever spring I squirt them with a shot of WD 40 on the ones I still have on the layout.
(http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/9616/dscf3071.jpg)
Rodney
Steve,
I think I may give them a try too.
I have 27 switches, mostly LGB, that I have removed the manual throws from. They were too large and gaudy.
I like the size of these 
Ralph
I also have these on the switches on the portable live steam layout. The biggest complaint with them is
the little arm is kind of hard to get a hold of to throw the switch. They do work very well and they are cheap.
The last 20 that I got was from Trainworld I think for about $2.50 each.
Using them on commercially made switches, you may have to adjust the throw on the points to make them work.
I did a Aristo’s switch using them and all I had to do was remove a screw on one of the points and drill a new hole for the screw.
Rodney
I tried them years ago, and found the ballast would get into the works and jam things up. Finally went with Tenmille ground throws on the switches where we needed positive throws, and “V” springs on everything else. Good luck with the experiment. Hopefully you’ll have better luck.
Later,
K
Kevin, can you give a more indepth description of the “V Spring” throw?
I might be wrong, but I think Kevin is referring to this…
Until last year we were using the barrel bolt switch throws on the club railway. But after the fallen spruce tree disaster last year, Nelson Yard and Glen Hammond had to be rebuilt. It was discovered after the re-build that a simple L-bracket could be used as a switch throw.
(http://ovgrs.editme.com/files/Switches/Throw-E.jpg)
They are inexpensive, easy to assemble, rugged and reliable. http://ovgrs.editme.com/files/Switches/Throw-H.bmp Automotive choke cables are added to active inaccessible switch throws.
(http://ovgrs.editme.com/files/Switches/Throw-F.jpg)
Or switch throws at ground level to save our creaky backs and knees.
Thanks, Jon. That’s precisely what I’m talking about. I use .015" or thereabouts piano wire. Bend it into a “V” shape, and bend the ends downward. On the switch, move the points into the middle, where neither point is in contact with the stock rail. Drill two holes down the center of the track, one in the throwbar, and one in the adjacent tie. Make sure the width of the V is greater than the distance between the two holes. Insert the bent-down ends of the V spring into the two holes. The spring tension will hold the points against the stock rail, but a train can still push the points over the opposite way if need be. They’ll then stay in that position. It’s great for reverse loops where you want to alternate which way you go around the loop each time. It never ceases to amaze me when people come to see the railroad and see the trains running opposite ways around the loop each time, and ask me “how do you get them to do that?” It’s a very low-tech solution that makes “running in circles” interesting.
Later,
K
My spring is a safety pin with the head clipped off; an idea I got from Tom Ruby. I use these on my indoor yard where the track spacing is too close for an Aristo switch machine. Nice idea about the reverse loop.
So Kevin and Jon, when you use the “V-Spring,” you eschew the use of a switch stand all together, except for cosmetics?
When I use the v-spring, you dont need a switchstand. Just plop the points over and Bob’s-your-uncle. Though I did find one bad thing about it. If you use composite ties, the constant pressure of the spring on the tie causes the ties to bend and eventually crack.
Not even for cosmetics. I’m not in the habit of spending $20 for something that my foot will invariably launch across the yard at the most inopportune moment. I’ve always got my eye out for some low profile switch machines, but I’ve not found them yet. With the springs, they woudln’t even have to actually throw the switch (i.e., lock in place), just have a target that rotates with the position of the switch. Maybe I’ll give that some more thought this summer…
Later,
K
Me worried about cosmetics??? You saw that grass mat under un-ballasted brass track, right? The grass mat was a big step up from bare plywood on the indoor division several years ago 
I tried the caboose throws years ago, they are way too delicate for outdoors environments, dont think they are UV stable either…
