Tom Ruby said:
Beautiful, HJ!
Could you provide closeup photos of notched in frog, filed point rails and guard rails, just so we can see what you’ve described making?
Yes Tom, I will. I’m just about to start the next batch of turnouts and will take a lot more pictures. Why would I do that? Because I plan to explain the method to a European group.
Yeah, those Europeans… they’ll need lots of pictures.
UPDATE After slowly progressing with the switch it is getting there. I had some big set backs but presently have it together except for attaching the points to the piece that makes them move and isolating the frog for track power. This switch build has been a real learning process and if I can build other ones I think they will get better and better. This first one will probably be placed somewhere out of the way so it won’t be used often.
Todd Haskins said:
UPDATE After slowly progressing with the switch it is getting there. I had some big set backs but presently have it together except for attaching the points to the piece that makes them move and isolating the frog for track power. This switch build has been a real learning process and if I can build other ones I think they will get better and better. This first one will probably be placed somewhere out of the way so it won’t be used often.
It definitely will get better. Your biggest headache will be keeping everything in proper gauge. Once you have that down, the rest falls into place. Eventually you’ll find shortcuts to speed things up, but your best bet for now is just take your time.
I like to work across a turnout as I build…start with the long straight rail as an anchor and gauge everything from there…course if yer laying a wye, thats a little different…my tuppence worth…
May I add another 2 cents worth here? If I were making my own, my main reason would be because I don’t like insulated frogs. I do understand that if you’re using DCC you need to isolate the frog, though.
But if you’re using regular track power, you only need to make sure the points don’t bridge the two running rails, even when a wheel is at that location. This means having an adequate space between the point rail and its adjacent running rail, so that a wheel running through will contact only the running rail without having its flange contact the point rail.
Aside from that, you simply power the turnout from its point end, not from its frog end. Then you can use track power, and the frog will be powered. In my opinion that is a most worthy object. Even better, perhaps, is the fact that track beyond the frog will only be powered if the points are correctly aligned for it. This gives you very convenient places to park locos without fiddling with onboard switches.
If your particular track layout means that power will be coming from the point end of the turnout, then you will need to put a gap in the rails just beyond the frog to isolate it from any power coming from that direction.
In smaller scales, in indoor applications, additional contacts are often used to supplement the points’ switching capability and to insure that the frog is receiving power from the points end. I am not sure that this is possible outdoors; the one time I saw such contacts used on an outdoor switch, owing to weather damage they were unreliable. It may be that in large scales points contact contact alone is adequate, especially if the throwbar is engineered to contribute to the turnout’s switching capability. In the last case, I think I would fabricate my throwbar from circuit board, 'though I haven’t thought this through all the way yet.
My apologies if all this is old hat.
Hans-Joerg Mueller said:
Tom Ruby said:
Beautiful, HJ!
Could you provide closeup photos of notched in frog, filed point rails and guard rails, just so we can see what you’ve described making?
Yes Tom, I will. I’m just about to start the next batch of turnouts and will take a lot more pictures. Why would I do that? Because I plan to explain the method to a European group.
Its been a couple of weeks, HJ. Where are the pics?
Steve he probably out chasing 1:1 trains.
I use DCC with live frogs… no problem.
The turnout is finished with the last spike being driven last night on the guard rails. I do need to attach a throw to it and will use one of those small bolts. It is a bit sketchy being my first attempt and I need to put a powered loco through it for a real test. Both short and long trucks glide through now. I also need to isolate the frog. Overall I’m happy with it. Now I need to build 3 more.
Thanks for all the tips gents.
Randy McDonald said:
Steve he probably out chasing 1:1 trains.
Actually I have a few other projects in the works that are ahead of the turnouts.
Plus whenever the snow and weather was good I took Raven skiing.
OK Todd, you know the rule around here, it can’t be counted as fact until we see the “PICTURES”. So how about some pictures of your finished switch?
Chuck Inlow said:
OK Todd, you know the rule around here, it can’t be counted as fact until we see the “PICTURES”. So how about some pictures of your finished switch?
Yeah, pics, or it didn’t happen.
Did the cat eat them??? or the camera?
Ha the cat we don’t have is at it again! This weekend I hope to hook the switch up to some temporary (indoor) track and run a train through to see how it works. I will snap a photo then so I can keep you guys happy. HA!!
Todd
I wanted to build my own switch but I needed plans. I didn’t have a clue where to start so I trawled the internet and found this site: http://www.urbaneagle.com/data/index.html
The turnout calculator by David Honner gives you all the dimensions needed to draw one up on a CAD program. Unfortunately I don’t have a CAD program so I couldn’t go any further. Maybe one of you guys who does have the software could draw some up and post them as PDF’s? Say an NMRA #7 frog?
Red,
Look up “Draftsight” on the internet. This is an AutoCAD clone (2D only) that is free and legal. Dessault Systems (maker of Solid Works) won that battle and is producing this package. As a long time AutoCAD user it is as good as any hobbyist will ever need in a 2D environment.
Bob C.
Thanks Bob! Now to learn how to use a CAD package; talk about keeping Alzheimers at bay with all this mental acrobatics.
UPDATE
After hooking the switch up to some track and power I was able to run a engine through it but I will need to add jumper wires since it seems I can’t rely on the points to supply juice.
The first switch took forever to build as I felt my way along but the second one that I started this weekend is moving right along. I think what I will do is isolate the frog like Hans did his then run jumper wires to power the legs.
Here is a photo of the progress. They are identical to a LGB 16050 series.
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/capecodtodd/_forumfiles/Switches.jpg)
Looks good! I see you made the suppost ties for the throw longer on the second one. I had to move a couple of mine because the K is a bit wider then the Annies.
Now douse’em in Boiled Linseed Oil, and they should last for awhile outside…
