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The "Fiddlestick Switch Job"


shortliner
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End of day two - it seems to have been a very successful exhibition and may thanks to the club for inviting me. Started slowly this morning, and buit up from around 1100, quietened a little over lunch and busied up in the afternoon. Lots of interest shown, with driving by both boys and girls - (Note to self - if shown again, take some qualified engineer certificates!), and even three dads! - No problems with the overheating today, which meant that the loco behaved perfectly all day - one bogie came adrift, and the maintainance crew did a RIP job, and one coupler lost a knuckle spring - and the crew were not prepared to deal with that during the exhibition so it got "bad ordered", and towed off the track to the shops.

 

Some more photos, as promised

 

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Thanks for looking and all the previous comments

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For Pete, and the Prof - the Sector plate intrigued quite a few people - it is simply a double length Locolift which rests on the track at one end, and "Belt and braces", has a bit of PCB with a mini-jack plug at the other with two bits of rail to rest on (the plug allows the Locolift cassete to swivel, and also the cassette can be used to change stock for variety) - that end is fed by a power wire that runs along the "Fiddle-stick" and terminates in another plug and socket under the board. To operate, the board end is lifted slightly, moved to the required position, and placed on the track - instant alignment without tears!

Edited by shortliner
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Great pics Jack - thanks for posting them. Looks excellent and a lot of fun!

 

Could you post a few pics of the loco lift and that end of things if you have time please?

 

Thanks

Roger

 

Dear Roger,

 

Carl A's "Small/Micro Layout Website" is _still_ a dynamite reference for such tiny layout design info

 

http://carendt.us/scrapbook/page83a/index.html#1lift

 

http://carendt.us/scrapbook/page93/index.html#ross

 

Happy Modelling,

Aim to Improve,

Prof Klyzlr

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Superb pics, Jack,

 

A great example of a small layout which should inspire anyone thinking of building a layout to have a go.

 

It's also great that you've involved youngsters. The hobby needs the younger generation.

 

 

regards,

 

Mal

Edited by Alcanman
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Great pics Jack - thanks for posting them. Looks excellent and a lot of fun!

Could you post a few pics of the loco lift and that end of things if you have time please?

Thanks
Roger


Okay, Roger - you asked - for anyone else who commented, ("Thank you, for your kind words") and isn't interested in this bit - carry on and read elsewhere!
A wee bit of explanation about my ideas - as I get older, and as a oneman band operation, humping weighty baseboards, and all the associated bits and pieces about becomes less and less attractive (especially when stairs and narrow corridors are involved) - the nice thing about this years Inverness exhibition was that there were lifts! - so I am researching/building lightweight baseboards, and not building pieces that don't need to be there and are needless weight - I have to admit that the original Locolift fiddle yard isn't my idea - Bob Blackcloud built a micro with a locolift and a piece of track with a wire for the other end to rest on, on one of his layouts a while back. I nicked it and adapted it to form a cassette system and skeleton fiddleyard/sectorplate baseboard that saves space and weight. By the way - the support for this one is a Lidl infinitely adjustable height Ironing board, with a very very, thin ply cover that slots over it, made from some very thin sheets of ply (I think used by model boaters), from the Dingwall Sports and Model Shop. Okay - on with the piccies

This is the LH end of the Fiddlestick which plugs into the board

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The underside of the board without the Fiddlestick

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The outer end of the fiddlestick

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The underside with the fiddlestick plugged in

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The outer end showing the socket

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Showing the swivelling plate

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The next 4 pictures show how the cassettes simply slot over the tracks

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I hope this explains the hows and whys - anything that you'd like to know more about, or that doesn't make sense - please don't hesitate to ask Edited by shortliner
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One thing I hadn't remembered to add - we have recently had barge-boards and windows replaced, so a bit of salvaged off-cut provided two lengths of UPVC section that bolt onto the back - add a fluoro, under-cupboard strip light (bought from Lidl a couple of years ago for a very silly price), that slots over two screw-heads, and I have a lighting rig - which also packs away into "That Damned Box"

 

Looking forward to seeing other versions - BTW, if you are one of those masochistic people who likes to make their brain hurt, try it with 5 cars - I'd suggest that you DON'T do it at an exhibition"

Edited by shortliner
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  • 2 months later...
  • 6 years later...

I know that I am rehashing this old thread. I want to say to Jack that you had built a nice, simple, and interesting layout. This Inglenook layout can also be built without a sector plate(using two turnouts/switches) and in any scale. Using the same operating example Jack pointed out, this layout can also be built into a 4-3-2(5 cars), 4-3-3(6 cars), or 5-4-3(7 cars) Inglenook.

 

Wendell

Idaho, USA

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"Chicago Fork could easily masquerade as

- LA circa 1970 - 1990s (paired SP SW1500s and western RR stock)

- LA circa 1990 - 2000 (paired ex-SP + UP SW1500s and western stock)

- Florida 1980 - 2000 (Apalachicola Northern SW1500 + caboose and ??? stock, just need to add a palm tree... ;-) )

- Chicago circa "CB&Q" era (as designed, with Atlas CB&Q GP40 + caboose and ??? stock)

- Chicago 1990 - 2010 (IHB SW1500 + PB1 and ??? stock)

- NY/NJ 1990 - 2000 (NYCH S1, S4, or NW2 and eastern stock)"

 

Or one of the following:

- Seattle 1970's to mid-1990's(BN or UP locomotives with mostly western cars)

- Seattle mid-1990's to present(BNSF, UP, or Tacoma Rail locomotives with mostly western cars)

- Portland, Oregon depending on timeframe(SP/UP, BN/BNSF, or Portland & Western locomotives with mostly western cars)

- Spokane, Washington depending on timeframe including the predecessors(BNSF, UP, or MRL locomotives with mostly western cars)

- Vancouver, BC depending on timeframe(BC Rail, CN, CP, or BN/BNSF locomotives with mostly western cars)

- San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose depending on timeframe(SP/UP or ATSF/BNSF locomotives with mostly western cars)

- Denver depending on timeframe(DRGW/SP/UP or ATSF/BN/BNSF locomotives with mostly western cars)

- Kansas City depending on timeframe(MP/MKT/UP, ATSF/BN/BNSF, or KCS locomotives with mostly western and midwestern cars)

- Salt Lake City depending on timeframe(DRGW/SP/UP, Utah Railway, or Salt Lake City Southern Railroad locomotives with mostly western cars)

- Phoenix depending on timeframe(SP/UP or ATSF/BNSF locomotives with mostly western cars)

 

Wendell

Idaho, USA

Edited by Wendell1976
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Thanks, Wendell - This layout still exists - though I have to admit it hasn't been out of its box in a while! - maybe need to get it out and give it a run!

Go ahead, Jack! Get that layout back out! I am sure that everyone would love to see pictures circa-2018!

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/30394

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/30075

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/30975

 

Wendell

Idaho, USA

Edited by Wendell1976
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I had forgotten about this layout but as it has just reappeared as i am about to enter tbe world of DCC.I must check my wood store to see if i have enough materials to build something similar.

 

Looking forward to see it again Jack.

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