HOn3 Rio Grande Southern First District 1938-1945

[Dave V]

So as mentioned I didn't get far on any sort of benchwork due to a minor medical setback, but that's okay...it allowed me to work instead on my Industrial Challenge entry, a kitbashed, compressed version of the Pro Patria stamp mill at Rico:

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Considering that I built what’s under the old Hagerstown yard section you’d need elephants with hydraulic presses to do it damage.

Yeah, actually, the current stuff is all pretty sturdy.

[Dave V]

I've been in Hollow Core Door World so long I just realized my new iteration of the RGS has no provision for turning a locomotive!  For shame!

The real RGS preferred wyes to turntables...in fact the only turntable the RGS owned outright was at Ridgway.  It rented space at the D&RGW Durango roundhouse and turntbale, so I guess based on the RGS carrying 1/3 the expenses at Durnago, it owned 1.333 turntables.

Rico had a wye on the south end (so to the right on the plan I posted a page back).  In fact it was beyond the yard area so kind of "off stage"  As such rather than using a space-hogging wye, I would like to shoe-horn a small turntable on the staging side.

The Ridgway turntable was a tiny 50' affair, choked beyond recognition with weeds. 



So modeling a weedy turntable pit is hard if you want the thing to actually turn.  But wait!   What if the whole pit turns?  Hmm...  More on that in a sec.

The bad news first.  HOn3 turntables, particularly ones that look like Ridgway are expensive laser kits.  Then ya gotta deal with electrical, the motor, DCC compatability...sigh.  A couple hundred bucks and a lot of time for a turntable that essentially sits in minimally-scenicked staging.

Now, the good news.  Fans of Malcolm Furlow remember that he converted an Atlas HO turntable to HOn3, to wit:



But the Rio Grande narrow gauage wasn't much for covered turntable pits in later years (if ever).  But Bachmann's EZ Track system (I know I once said I wouldn't use EZ Track to scratch my a$$...but bear with me) has a very inexpensive, DCC-ready motorized turntable that's relatively small (almost narrow gauge sized) with a semi-open pit.  The whole pit rotates and--without a lot of scenic treatment--looks a lot like my aforementioned a$$.



Now, imagine I place a piece of HOn3 track atop the existing deck (like Furlow did) and solder jumpers up.  Now I do the same for any of the radial tracks I'd want to use (one or two besides the approach track).  And now I bury everything else in scenery.  The little control shack on the turntable bridge goes.  The bigger shed covering the motor...gone, and replaced with an RGS-style shed.  The "pit" gets a faux stone lining and a weedy floor.  Done-ski.  For $100 bucks I get a super-reliable turntable that doesn't take a lot of work (other than scenic detailing...my favorite kind!) but that isn't meant to be a scene-stealer (since it'll be in staging).  Now, a Ridgway-Rico turn can turn its engine(s) in staging as if on the Rico wye.

Just a thought.  I love re-purposing stuff like this.

[Spades]

There is always PECO turntable 

[eric220]

I love re-purposing stuff like this.

Best reason yet to do it. Make it so.

[Dave V]

There is always PECO turntable 

/>

Oh yeah!  That’s another contender!

EDIT:  It does appear the motor is sold separately.  But it does look a bit more like what I'm representing.  Either way I'm sure I can make something work that looks reasonable but--more importantly--is reliable.

[Dave V]

I just realized I still have an HO Atlas turntable.  I bet I could do something with it.  I could sink it in and cover the planked pit as if it were dirt and weeds and then build a little turntable bridge on top...  Hey, even cheaper!

[mcjaco]

I just realized I still have an HO Atlas turntable.  I bet I could do something with it.  I could sink it in and cover the planked pit as if it were dirt and weeds and then build a little turntable bridge on top...  Hey, even cheaper!

I did that exact thing in my teens.  Covered the planks with ground foam, added some weeds, sank the pit, and built the bridge up.  It worked well.  It would have worked better if I had cut my pit opening more circular!

[Spades]

I just realized I still have an HO Atlas turntable.  I bet I could do something with it.  I could sink it in and cover the planked pit as if it were dirt and weeds and then build a little turntable bridge on top...  Hey, even cheaper!

I thought there was a MR article with the Atlas TT being used for the base of the pit/drive for a turntable and pit ring built above it.  It may have been for Sn3?

[Dave V]

Sadly I couldn't find my old Atlas turntable.  I'd taken the good time and trouble to make the deck look very wood-like and I know I moved with it many times over the last 20 years or so.  I might have purged it before the move to the new house, but that seems odd given how much obscure crap I did save.  Oh well.

I still have options!

[Santa Fe Guy]

Dave i have just Purchased a kitwoodhillmodels Durango Laser cut kit for my upcoming HOn3 RR. It is not cheap however it comes with motor and all mounting gear.
Great set of assembly instructions and it looks neat when assembled.
They are located in the UK and Simon the owner is a swell guy.
www.kitwoodhillmodels.com
Rod.

[Dave V]

Dave i have just Purchased a kitwoodhillmodels Durango Laser cut kit for my upcoming HOn3 RR. It is not cheap however it comes with motor and all mounting gear.
Great set of assembly instructions and it looks neat when assembled.
They are located in the UK and Simon the owner is a swell guy.
www.kitwoodhillmodels.com
Rod.

I was looking at those too.  Not bad.  The whole thing, motor too, for just about $93 US?  That's actually quite reasonable.

EDIT:  I'm not super thrilled that it doesn't index.  It looks exactly like what I'd be after though.

And then I found this:

http://somerailroad.blogspot.com/search/label/turntable

ANOTHER EDIT: @Santa Fe Guy , I poked around Simon's site and I think I'm sold.  The Youtube videos show they turn slowly enough that the indexing issue is probably a non-issue.

Two questions: 

1)  How do you activate the motor?  Does the kit include a switch of some sort?

2)  Does the table reverse polarity each time it passes through 180 degrees?  Or is there some provision to do that?

Thanks for the tip!

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Oh man, that river steamer is hot too.

[Santa Fe Guy]

I was looking at those too.  Not bad.  The whole thing, motor too, for just about $93 US?  That's actually quite reasonable.

EDIT:  I'm not super thrilled that it doesn't index.  It looks exactly like what I'd be after though.

And then I found this:

http://somerailroad.blogspot.com/search/label/turntable

ANOTHER EDIT: @Santa Fe Guy , I poked around Simon's site and I think I'm sold.  The Youtube videos show they turn slowly enough that the indexing issue is probably a non-issue.

Two questions: 

1)  How do you activate the motor?  Does the kit include a switch of some sort?

2)  Does the table reverse polarity each time it passes through 180 degrees?  Or is there some provision to do that?

Thanks for the tip!

Dave no there is no controller with the kit. A good mate gave me a 6Volt controller he purchased of an Ebay site. He just typed in 6Volt controller and lots came up. The one he gave me (no part number unfortunately) has a small rotary switch, small wiring loom and a reversing switch in a neat package. It was about A$12.00 Aussie dollars. You will need an auto reverser to get polarity change.
I have seen Barry's T/T move and it can be very very slow so indexing is real easy.
Trust this helps.
Rod.

[Dave V]

Dave no there is no controller with the kit. A good mate gave me a 6Volt controller he purchased of an Ebay site. He just typed in 6Volt controller and lots came up. The one he gave me (no part number unfortunately) has a small rotary switch, small wiring loom and a reversing switch in a neat package. It was about A$12.00 Aussie dollars. You will need an auto reverser to get polarity change.
I have seen Barry's T/T move and it can be very very slow so indexing is real easy.
Trust this helps.
Rod.

Thanks!  It did.  Leaning this way now.