Turnout control for Marcway turnouts

[Guest Jack Benson]

The little Inglenook diorama will use Marcway 36" turnouts as the large Peco Code 75 BH are a tad too long to fit within the 48x24 inch baseboard whilst still having enough length for the sidings. 

 

May I ask what is the most reliable method for turnout control of Marcway turnouts, electric or simple mechanical?  If the latter, is the Blue Point system still available in the UK? This question is driven by the need to keep everything as simple and reliable as possible hence analog control.

 

cheers

 

JB

 

 

[Harlequin]

Hi Jack,

 

You might be able to squeeze the inglenook onto your baseboard using Peco large radius turnouts if you curved the trackwork across the diagonal something like this:

 

I have assumed wagons are 90mm long over the couplings, loco 150mm long (green), and allowed 90mm for clearance at the junctions (red).

 

Edited October 4, 2019 by Harlequin

[Guest Jack Benson]

33 minutes ago, Harlequin said:

Hi Jack,

 

You might be able to squeeze the inglenook onto your baseboard using Peco large radius turnouts if you curved the trackwork across the diagonal something like this:

 

I have assumed wagons are 90mm long over the couplings, loco 150mm long (green), and allowed 90mm for clearance at the junctions (red).

 

Phil, 

 

Your suggestions solves so many problems at a stroke.

 

All wagons are Dogfish, Shark and Herring, not 40t bogie stock and loco is 0-6-0t. Couplings are Kadees on short mechanisms.

 

cheers

 

Jack

[brossard]

I had the good fortune to play with a friends layout at an exhibition some while ago.  The layout was fitted with Blue Point actuators.  I was most impressed.  I don't know where you would get them in UK though.  Still mail order is quite ubiquitous these days.  I buy almost all my stuff from UK (I'm in Canada)

 

John

[Flying Pig]

Wire in tube operated from a slider switch works fine with Peco points (and is quite economical!). I don't see why it wouldn't work also with Marcway with an omega loop or similar to provide contact pressure.  I've never been able to understand what Blue Point and the like are able to add to this beyond local crossing polarity switching, which makes little difference on a small layout, and they seem very bulky and expensive.

[Guest Jack Benson]

4 hours ago, Flying Pig said:

Wire in tube operated from a slider switch works fine with Peco points (and is quite economical!). I don't see why it wouldn't work also with Marcway with an omega loop or similar to provide contact pressure.  I've never been able to understand what Blue Point and the like are able to add to this beyond local crossing polarity switching, which makes little difference on a small layout, and they seem very bulky and expensive.

Thanks guys, 

 

EDM offer the Blue Point system, although bulky, they do have integral polarity switches and I just need two. Not sure whether I can squeeze in Peco' s large turnouts but I remain optimistic. One thing for sure is simplicity and lightweight are paramount, so no electrical turnout control whlist loco power is just a wall-wart and a Gaugemaster W handheld. 

 

Cheers

 

JB

[doilum]

I may have posted this elsewhere. My points have a simple rod operation. I have my own brass version of the peco remote point motor mount that includes a changeover slide switch. This is mounted directly beneath the point tie bar. The switch provides the necessary locking as well as controlling frog polarity. 

In my case they are salvaged peco turnouts but the system was originally designed to work a custom built curved crossover from Marcway  on a previous layout.

[Flying Pig]

6 minutes ago, doilum said:

I may have posted this elsewhere. My points have a simple rod operation. I have my own brass version of the peco remote point motor mount that includes a changeover slide switch. This is mounted directly beneath the point tie bar. The switch provides the necessary locking as well as controlling frog polarity. 

In my case they are salvaged peco turnouts but the system was originally designed to work a custom built curved crossover from Marcway  on a previous layout.

 

Do you have a photo of the unit?

[doilum]

I will see if I can take one this evening

[doilum]

3 hours ago, Flying Pig said:

 

Do you have a photo of the unit?

Hopefully these give the general idea. Taken in situ with my tablet.

[Flying Pig]

26 minutes ago, doilum said:

 Hopefully these give the general idea. Taken in situ with my tablet.

 

Yes they do - thanks.

[doilum]

12 minutes ago, Flying Pig said:

 

Yes they do - thanks.

A bit of trial and error is involved. I would suggest temporally mounting a point on a bit of scrap plywood so you can experiment on the bench. Slotting the mounting holes is essential to final adjustment.

[Siberian Snooper]

Very similar to a double pole double throw slide switch with a hole drilled in it and a length of piano wire with a right angle bend in the end to go through the hole drilled in the switch and some form of omega loop in the run. the wire from the centre of the switch goes to the common crossing and the outer terminals of the same pole on the switch go to each rail, these may need swapping over if you get it wrong and the loco tries to reverse or stop on the common crossing. The switch is about 50p and a length of piano wire is about a quid for a metre length.

 

 

[dhjgreen]

On 08/10/2019 at 16:58, Siberian Snooper said:

Very similar to a double pole double throw slide switch with a hole drilled in it and a length of piano wire with a right angle bend in the end to go through the hole drilled in the switch and some form of omega loop in the run. the wire from the centre of the switch goes to the common crossing and the outer terminals of the same pole on the switch go to each rail, these may need swapping over if you get it wrong and the loco tries to reverse or stop on the common crossing. The switch is about 50p and a length of piano wire is about a quid for a metre length.

 

 

Like this?

Edited October 11, 2019 by dhjgreen

[doilum]

Nice and easy. My challenge was to keep the width under 18" and mount the pull rods in the facia.

As a left field idea: does anyone remember a Triang based layout that used hydraulic linkage made from syringes and plastic tube? It may have made an appearance on Blue Peter in the late 1960s.

[Siberian Snooper]

On 11/10/2019 at 08:07, dhjgreen said:

Like this?

 

 

Just like that, although I sometimes move the Omega loop, to avoid obstructions.

 

 

[5050]

I use slide switches for the operation and polarity changeover.  Here they are mounted on some aluminium brackets but, if the board is wide enough, mounting through the top surface is better.  Wiring runs below baseboard as necessary.  The points are handbuilt P4 ones but the Marcway ones should also work this way satisfactorily.

 

 

The springs are my method of taking up excess movement but omega loops work fine too.