Surface mounted point motors - extended arm

[johna]

Folks

 

I want to fit surface mounted point motors and hide them in various buildings that are a few inches away from the track. Can you buy long extended arms or any suggestions who hide them with a building.I will be using the motor to also switch the flog.

 

Regards

Johna

[bike2steam]

Folks

 

I want to fit surface mounted point motors and hide them in various buildings that are a few inches away from the track. Can you buy long extended arms or any suggestions who hide them with a building.I will be using the motor to also switch the flog.

 

Regards

Johna

 

You mean something like this using a length of 1.2mm diameter brass rod bent at 90 degrees each end, one end thro' the centre hole in the point tie-bar, and the other thro' the throw bar of the point motor packed out to the working diameter by a sleeve stripped of a length of wire ( as easily seen in the pic). The micro-switch changes 'frog' polarity.

 

Edited May 23, 2018 by bike2steam

[RAF96]

Jumbo paper clip straightened as required is my standard long link method.

[28XX]

Use two bits of wire and join them in the middle with the metal bits of a small screw terminal connector. Makes it adjustable.

[Butler Henderson]

For a point motor set back substantially a length of rectangular brass tubing works well as it has enough rigidity not to need any guides.

[RAF96]

A point about using microswitches as seen in the picture above, which is angled to the point motor actuator to minimise pushback. If arranged so that the switch is directly activated by the Fore/back motion of the point arm then the spring pressure can push back and release the point. My answer for these type of switches was to put a step in the wire (like a bus stop/lay-by) such that it effectively pushed the switch arm at right angles to the point motor wire movement, hence the microswitch spring couldn’t react into the point.

 

My previous method when using surface mounted points was to trim the mounting lugs off the rather less reliable Peco PL-13 switches and glue them directly under the point where a normal solenoid would mount, then use a track pin through the tie bar into the switch bush.

 

Edit to amend detail to accord with next post comment about switches.

 

Rob

Edited May 29, 2018 by RAFHAAA96

[bike2steam]

A point about using microswitches as seen in the picture above, which is angled to the point motor,actuator. If arranged so that the switch is activated by the Fore/back motion of the point arm then the spring pressure can push back and release the point. My answer for these type of switches was to put a step in the wire (like a bus stop/lay-by) such that it effectively pushed the switch arm at right angles to the point motor wire movement, hence the microswitch spring couldn’t react into the point.

 

 

The micro-switch in the pic ( and all others used on my layouts) are the low resistance spring type as supplied by RS, mounting them at an angle reduces the little resistance there is, to negligible. PL-13's have a tendency to self-destruct under heavy use.

Edited May 29, 2018 by bike2steam

[Butler Henderson]

Maplin (almost RIP) sold a V3 Alarm Tamper Microswitch which was very lightly sprung and could be made to work fine off point mechanisms.