Trolley shuttle with Back 'n Forth Train Throttle

[Jalicunning (Jim Cunningham)]

I am getting the train garden and yard ready for a garden party next weekend. Hopefully the azaleas will be in peak bloom, looks so far like the timing is pretty good.

One of the things I wanted to finish before the party was to get the trolley line running. The trolley line is a point to point line that crosses the mainline on ground level and runs along the base of two of the stone beds. In the below shot are some azalea blooms in the background.

I used the G Scale Graphics Back 'n Forth Train Throttle for powering the track. It works very well and was not too complicated to set up. It still could use a bit of tweaking to accomplish a smooth deceleration at each terminal point.
Video of No. 5 Trolley leaving
Video of No. 5 pausing at Pascalis and then coming back

[Korm (Korm Kormsen)]

nice.

(but if it were mine, i would keep Speedy Gonzalez away from the controls… )

how many truckloads of rock did you haul?

[capecodtodd (Todd Haskins)]

Your trolley has a nice long run. I noticed a diamond along the route by the Dozer. Does the trolley cross your mainline?

[Jalicunning (Jim Cunningham)]

Korm, it was about 20 tons of field and flagstone, all delivered on pallets. Another 10 tons or so of soil and gravel. I mortared the stones to form the bed walls.

Todd, it does cross the main using a 90 degree LGB crossing. I’d never used one of those before but it works a charm, keeping the track continuities separate for the perpendicular tracks.

[capecodtodd (Todd Haskins)]

I have a diamond on my RR that crosses the main but that section of track is more of a bypass that allows a train to stay on the lower part of the layout. There has been many near misses at that point. With your trolley on auto I bet you have had lots of near misses as well.

[Dave_Meashey (David Meashey)]

Jim;

Should you manage to come across one, Hartland Locomotive Works (no longer in business) made some really nice trolley and interurban cars. I tended to remove the trolley poles and mount a pantograph on some of mine, as I had hoped to sting wire (actually code 55 N scale rail) and poles like to de-wire outdoors. I also have their little two axle steeplecab.

The single-truck Birney with an N scale cousin on the roof walk.

The double-truck Birney

An interurban pair

Regards, David Meashey

[Joe_Zullo]

Korm,

I agree with you. Slower would be better and more realistic.

[rmccown-admin (Bob McCown (Admin))]

I’ve always wanted a trolley or interurban line, ever since I saw an HO scale one in RMC in the 1960s. I think now I’d want some PCC cars and a dogbone loop.

[Jalicunning (Jim Cunningham)]

I like the looks of those PCC cars for sure. It seems like Aristo made some, do you know of any other large scale manufacturers of them?

[Rooster]

Jim,
Just Aristo that I’m aware of however Bachmann may have carried it over not sure?

[Rooster]

Since we are jacking up with trolley and motor car pics. This is a unit the CVRR shops whipped up and sold for $50 and one strawberry.

[Jalicunning (Jim Cunningham)]

I have heard of a peppercorn as consideration for a contract, but never a strawberry!

[JRad (Jon Radder)]

You probably mentioned it when the build was done, but what was the reason for two trolley poles on each end? Did the wire run along the side of the track, or did they use one for neutral (or ground. I don’t recall if AC or DC) rather than the track?

[RRRR4 (Lou Luczu)]

How about something along these lines?
I did drawings from cartoons and Johnny Chuff Chuff made these beautiful folk figures.

[Rooster]

The wire ran down the side of the track because it was also(the track) shared with the steam locomotives and it was a direct current system.