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DCC Concepts - Working Point Rodding


mdh1950
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Typical innit - somebody goes to the trouble of developing commercial 4mm scale working point rodding components and chooses BS roller units (although they inaccurately call them 'rodding stools') instead of Western pattern roller units.  And seemingly no equivalent to a 9"x18" crank or adjustable crank either of which might well be useful for dealing with the throw on Peco points (although that would be incorrect usage for a plain 9"x18" crank).  But the big advantage compared with the real world is at least you won't have to dig holes to bury the foot of the rodding stools (the I shaped bits of concrete on which the rollers are mounted) although if you do it the LM way on many installations bits of old sleeper seem the useful way of creating the stool (sorry SE).  Could also be interesting setting comp cranks for use in indoor temperatures.

 

But overall a great idea which I think deserves success and I wonder if the ModelU 3d printed Reading pattern rodding rollers would be strong enough to work with the DDC Concepts rodding?

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Post #19 made me stop and think a bit - well yes, back to square one !? Alright if you've got time to kill. Anyway, it may well appeal to some of a certain disposition, there again some may regard it as - well may I say- pointless?? :sungum:

I'll get me 'at

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Typical innit - somebody goes to the trouble of developing commercial 4mm scale working point rodding components and chooses BS roller units (although they inaccurately call them 'rodding stools') instead of Western pattern roller units.

....

But the big advantage compared with the real world is at least you won't have to dig holes to bury the foot of the rodding stools (the I shaped bits of concrete on which the rollers are mounted) although if you do it the LM way on many installations bits of old sleeper seem the useful way of creating the stool (sorry SE).

We need some proper LMS cast iron ones. And yes, we often did make wooden ones if there wasn't enough depth of ballast.

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That's a really interesting photo thank you. It must be really satisfying for you to be involved in providing something like this with others who volunteer (presumably?) and you know that "I did that". Good legacy for some as well no doubt.

I like the way this particular mechanism appears to work too. basic bur efficient?

What is the little block/bolt thing inside the right side rail by the blade?

Phil 

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I had to check the calendar - this sounds like an April Fool of the sort you might see in the April edition of the Railway Modeller. 

 

All I can say, is wow. If I had a hat, it would be off. This is just amazing and unthinkable. 

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That's a really interesting photo thank you. It must be really satisfying for you to be involved in providing something like this with others who volunteer (presumably?) and you know that "I did that". Good legacy for some as well no doubt.

I like the way this particular mechanism appears to work too. basic bur efficient?

What is the little block/bolt thing inside the right side rail by the blade?

Phil

It's all quite easy to do. There is a standard drawing available and one simply copies that. There are a few tricks you pick up over time but most of it is common sense. At this stage this point was not commissioned so the left hand switch is clamped and the right hand switch is scotched with a block of wood. The clamp is padlocked so it cannot be undone and a little trick of mine is to drill a hole in the end of the facing point lock plunger and padlock that too so it can't be withdrawn. I then feel confident i can walk away from from this point and not have to worry it will find it's way open except by completely foul means.

Edited by LNERGE
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It's all quite easy to do. There is a standard drawing available and one simply copies that. There are a few tricks you pick up over time but most of it is common sense. At this stage this point was not commissioned so the left hand switch is clamped and the right hand switch is scotched with a block of wood. The clamp is padlocked so it cannot be undone and a little trick of mine is to drill a hole in the end of the facing point lock plunger and padlock that too so it can't be withdrawn. I then feel confident i can walk away from from this point and not have to worry it will find it's way open except by completely foul means.

 

Presumably it will acquire detection at some stage judging by two things I can see in the pic?

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Presumably it will acquire detection at some stage judging by two things I can see in the pic?

Both ends will gain detection in due course. There will also be a track circuit, not for track locking though, but to interfere with resumption of token working once part of a train has been shut away and something left on the main. I would like to include point detection in this but how far does one go?

Edited by LNERGE
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Having not seen all the contents of the kit i don't really know what cranks are present etc. An adjusting crank could be made in a similar manner to the solder on rod ends. It would need a bespoke crank etching with an offset arm.

Edited by LNERGE
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Its coming, its coming. Just give robotics, nano technology and 3D printing a chance to catch up and we will have walking DCC figures on the layout. The first set being railway gangs to lay the track for you right in front of your eyes!

Really?

 

What happened to the groundwork that was done so the track could be laid in the first place? :jester:

 

Keith

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There is a modeller named Howard Bolton who will probably allow himself a small smile, safe in the knowledge that his own working point-rodding and cranks and compensators are much more scale-sized, and didn't cost much money to install...

Did Howard produce the parts as a product as I've not come across those, but then I'm not a finescale sort of Duck

Phil

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I've got some close-ups of his demo cranks and rodding. Some of the crank and stool etches available from Brassmasters look like they could be made to work, at relatively little cost.

I didn't know that Brassmasters did those, Thanks matey.

P

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There is a modeller named Howard Bolton who will probably allow himself a small smile, safe in the knowledge that his own working point-rodding and cranks and compensators are much more scale-sized, and didn't cost much money to install...

 

I took a look at a sample set at S4um.  Very nice, but waaaaay overscale.........., (in fairness by necessity)

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Having put the Wills rodding in on Abbotswood this has to be more robust and better looking

 

But the issues of baseboard joints in exhibition layouts surely prevent working rodding ? So as others have said could foresee a cosmetic installation....

 

Phil

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Having put the Wills rodding in on Abbotswood this has to be more robust and better looking

 

But the issues of baseboard joints in exhibition layouts surely prevent working rodding ? So as others have said could foresee a cosmetic installation....

 

Phil

I suppose that if you are the modeller that wants operational rodding and wires, then some sort of 'joining', after boards put together device, will be required. This could look awful, unless you are this modeller as you would make it look as near as dammit to the other pieces. I suspect it would be real Finescale territory and anyone that achieves it in 2mm FS needs a medal. It would probably not be suitable for anything more than a small 'Shelfie' (Thanks PMP).

Phil

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I can't see the point (sic) of working point rodding as you still have several non-working peripherals

Signal & point interlocking at the point itself? Fouling bars? etc.

And who is going to complete it by having a working scale signalbox where the levers are actually operated to throw the points?

You could do it with remote control and servos to operate the levers, thus throwing the point(s) but only for a small layout.

 

Cosmetically? Yes.

Working? Not for most layous.

 

Keith

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