Hornby Dublo non-derailing points?

[rockershovel]

I’m just looking at the collection of Hornby Dublo 3-Rail which I appear to have become “club custodian” for. 

 

My Lionel 3-Rail O Gauge has a system of “non-derailing” points, whereby the approaching train closes a circuit on an outside rail, and switches the point blade to suit.

 

Does Hornby Dublo have a similar function? 

[Il Grifone]

No, nothing that ingenious Electrically operated points at over a pound (around £25 today) would have been too expensive with additional switching, though there is no reason in couldn't have been done*. Meccano boys were expected to run their trains properly and not rely on electrical bodges!

 

*It would need a special rail with a short section of insulated running rail to complete the circuit and operate the point motor. (An electromagnet rather than a solenoid.)

[rockershovel]

13 minutes ago, Il Grifone said:

No, nothing that ingenious Electrically operated points at over a pound (around £25 today) would have been too expensive with additional switching, though there is no reason in couldn't have been done*. Meccano boys were expected to run their trains properly and not rely on electrical bodges!

 

*It would need a special rail with a short section of insulated running rail to complete the circuit and operate the point motor. (An electromagnet rather than a solenoid.)

 

That’s pretty much how the Lionel ones work - there is an insulated rail which completes the circuit and throws the blade towards the oncoming train. If the switch is already set that way, nothing happens, it just buzzes (Nearholmer would appreciate that!).

 

There are warnings in the literature not to park a train close to the switch, thus keeping the solenoid energised and sooner or later, damaging it; that’s why I concluded against using them on my O27 door layout. 

[Wolseley]

If we're talking about manually operated isolating points, an insulating tab would do the job:

 

[Silverfox17]

The insulating tab does not change the point though which was the concept of this post. It just stops the loco and you still havd to manually change the point. 

 

Garry 

[Il Grifone]

Fleischmann had a contact shoe on their locomotives to operate accessories, The nearest Dublo came to it was their operating TPO mail van, which used an outside third rail.

[rockershovel]

1 hour ago, Il Grifone said:

Fleischmann had a contact shoe on their locomotives to operate accessories, The nearest Dublo came to it was their operating TPO mail van, which used an outside third rail.

 

Oh, now that’s something else I need to look for in this box of Dublo! There are two TPO but I haven’t really looked at the track yet..

[rockershovel]

2 hours ago, Wolseley said:

If we're talking about manually operated isolating points, an insulating tab would do the job:

 

 

I have a similar setup on my Lionel layout, to stop the loco over-running the reversing loop.