Seaboard Central 2.0

[vt_railroad_guy]

Awesome to see you running trains!  Your progress is highly motivating for myself as well as others, I'm sure.  Have fun and keep up the great work.

VTRG

[elnscale]

Dave,

Glad it wasn't one of the ones I sent you that was bad! Running trains is the best!

Steve

[davefoxx]

No, it wasn't, and a close examination of yours doesn't show any obvious defects, thankfully.   

DFF

[GaryHinshaw]

Looking good Dave!  I love the flow of that track and the overall workmanship is very neat.

[davefoxx]

Thanks, Gary.  Having seen your level of craftsmanship on the Tehachapi, BC, I really appreciate your compliment.

This evening, I finished the track in the yard in Aberdeen.  All that's left is the A&BP (ex-SOU) interchange and the locomotive facility, which will be finished when I get one more turnout.  While the glue was drying, I test ran a train, consisting of three locomotives and twenty-one cars on the mainline.  Boy, that was fun!  Man, how I have missed running trains.  Anyhow, the trackwork seems to be reliable at this point, although I only have scotch tape holding the switch points.

The next challenge is to figure out what I'm going to do for switch control, because the scotch tape is inconvenient.  I will not go with the Caboose Industries' ground throws on this layout, but I do want something to power the frogs.  I prefer manual control on this small HCD layout, which saves me the expense of Tortoises or other switch machines.

DFF

[Wutter]

What about the BullFrog? Seems to fit what you're looking for.

http://www.handlaidtrack.com/BullFrog-Manual-Turnout-Control-Unassembled-p/bf-0002.htm

[Chris333]

How do you use a Bullfrog though 2" of foam?

[DKS]

How about the mini-slide switch trick Lee likes to use?

[davefoxx]

How about the mini-slide switch trick Lee likes to use?

I'm seriously considering that, despite it not being my favorite design.  While I like Chris333's method of turnout control, it may be a little too complex for me to build and requires under the table installation, which won't likely agree with folding table legs.

DFF

[wm3798]

There's also the click pen in the fascia trick...  Just cut a channel in the surface of the foam and mount the clicker on the hardboard fascia with block behind it.

Leaves virtually nothing in the way of those delicious little NZT switch stands...

[MichaelWinicki]

The easiest method could be to simply slip a thin piece of styrene under the throw-bar and that seems to provide enough friction to hold the points to one side or the other.

Now as far as powering the points, I'd consider the Tam Valley Hex Frog Juicer.

The vast majority of my turnouts are unpowered and work just fine with all my locomotives except for a couple that wouldn't play nice with my few Walther's diesels and a Kato E8.

I added the Hex Frog Juicer to the mix and it did the trick nicely.  It's a snap to wire up and it's flat so it can stay nicely tucked away under the layout.

[davefoxx]

There's also the click pen in the fascia trick...  Just cut a channel in the surface of the foam and mount the clicker on the hardboard fascia with block behind it.

Leaves virtually nothing in the way of those delicious little NZT switch stands...

Lee, do you have a link to your description of how to build the click pen throws?  I remember that you like them, but I don't know how to fabricate them.

The easiest method could be to simply slip a thin piece of styrene under the throw-bar and that seems to provide enough friction to hold the points to one side or the other.

Now as far as powering the points, I'd consider the Tam Valley Hex Frog Juicer.

The vast majority of my turnouts are unpowered and work just fine with all my locomotives except for a couple that wouldn't play nice with my few Walther's diesels and a Kato E8.

I added the Hex Frog Juicer to the mix and it did the trick nicely.  It's a snap to wire up and it's flat so it can stay nicely tucked away under the layout.

The Tam Valley Hex Frog Juice, huh?  I had forgotten about that option.  If I remember correctly, the wiring is ridiculously simple and a handful of frogs can be powered off of one Frog Juicer.  Hmm...   Thanks, Michael.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I have a design to help with the slide switches.

Use a cut up Atlas car box as as mounting for the slide switch.

https://picasaweb.google.com/103328750375507168249/1615ShelfLayoutConstruction#5599736679296527218
https://picasaweb.google.com/103328750375507168249/1615ShelfLayoutConstruction#5599736972203803378
https://picasaweb.google.com/103328750375507168249/1615ShelfLayoutConstruction#5599736761387271010

[Scottl]

I've been dabbling with the slide switch and will be going this way with my yard.  Ed's mount is great.

I'm wondering about how to ballast around and cover these switch heads up.  I was thinking of mounting a NZT switch machine onto the nub of the electrical switch to give a more realistic look. 

For ballasting, I'm thinking about putting a bit of oil or WD40 in the switch to keep it from seizing up and contact fouling during the application of glue for the ballast.  Any other ideas out there?

[davefoxx]

I have a design to help with the slide switches.

Use a cut up Atlas car box as as mounting for the slide switch.

https://picasaweb.google.com/103328750375507168249/1615ShelfLayoutConstruction#5599736679296527218
https://picasaweb.google.com/103328750375507168249/1615ShelfLayoutConstruction#5599736972203803378
https://picasaweb.google.com/103328750375507168249/1615ShelfLayoutConstruction#5599736761387271010

I see the advantages of your design, but, unfortunately, my turnouts are glued down already.  Why didn't you tell me this a week ago?!