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Progress has slowed down alot over the last month or three. Other activitoes have taken center stage,
you know all the excuses I could think of no to do a lot of work on the main thing, the layout.
Anyhow there has been some deveopments. I have made a subwiring board for the station I'm working on. This board wil have all wires come back to it. It also has many auto tail globes for short protection, AKA Joe Fugate's reccomended way. I plan to run wires from all sections back to this board, which will meet the "main DCC power bus". So anthitng to do with the staion is there. I also hope to start actual wiring, but are very worried that the woring will be messy (I am a messy wirer) - so are holding back so I can do a half decent job - by runing the wires through clips, and having some ducting as well - at the moment I have a pipe positioned under the layout to run rires that go a distance. Big hopes but I can only try ! At the moment the DCC systenm will be directly attached to this board. Each station or area will have such a board so if there is a short in your area, you will be able to see it !!! The fun is sectioning the railway in a way to keep trains running. 
Another thing I am working on is some manual point throw mechs. Joe fugate and his doorbolt system inspired me greatly. But This is what I have come up with. I have a metal slider with two 90% folds at each end that have holes in them. One end has a spring, the other for the wire or fishing line. This meltal sliding bar is loosely held to the small block of wood by tacks with a decent head on them. the tacks hold the bar in place and allow it to move freely back & forward. The folds also act as stops as well. the point throw bar is soldered onto this via a hole. There is provision for a microswitch as well for contacts. Quite simple and easily made. Variations are possible, Like fitting a "L" shape crank for points in difficult locations. I could if I were feeling more inventive work out a way to use that metal sliding bar as a switch as well saving the cost of the microswitch. This brings me to a diversion. I have a portable railway I'm building upstairs. It is three small boards joined by two hinges so I can fold it and take it in my small Toyota Corolla away. I have been making points and now laying them and track. These manutal point things will be useful there as well. Sort of a testing bed for the main layout below. Thought I have a idea to combine it eventually as a small branch temrinus But that layout really is another story..... |
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This circuit I experimentewd is for a system to move ore cars along to be loaded automatucally for yet another
railway project. Then last night I thought I could use it to run a point on the main layout.
No change to the circuit in order to run my "auto central locking" point motors.
The circuit uses two microswitched and two diodes. The cirecuit is operated by a relay ( could be a switch) to reverse the power. Whent he bar reaches the limit the microswitch kills the power until you reverse the power, then the same thing happens. This is good as you cannot leave these motor powered.  And it lends itself to be activate bymnay sources. Remember a point may be activate from a CTC panel, a local panel and a switch on the facia for testing or "following the train" idea. Well I have been getting ready for a working bee on my layout in a few days. I hope I have enough to do, and then it depends on the people comming if the jobs are what they want to do. for that I have wire, track, sleepers to make, backscnees to cut & fit. Hope to have a progress report next week. And a few photos as well. |
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Page written & maintained by David Head.david@nmit.vic.edu.au