Micro Engineering Turnouts - Thumbs up!

[jagged ben]

The solution for me was to use thicker wire but add a short extension of thin wire to go through the throwbar.

Ok I'm curious.  How exactly did you do that?

[peteski]

Ok I'm curious.  How exactly did you do that?

I can think of couple of ways.

1. Use short piece of brass tubing as a coupling to join (solder) the wires together. If the smaller diameter wire is too floppy inside the tube, wrap some small gauge wire around its end before inserting it in the tube.  That will keep it centered.

2. Overlap the wires and wrap some wire around them to hold them together. Solder that area and you're done.

Of course since this is steel, acid-based flux should be used, but that  is not a problem since these do not carry electricity, and can be washed before installation.

I supposed that strong epoxy (like JB Weld) can be used instead of soldering.

[Bill H]

I have done a similar "extensions" for a different reason, but the process is the same. Instead of soldering, I used JB Weld. Works just fine.

Kind regards,
Bill

[nickelplate759]

Brass tube that fits the larger wire, crimped on the smaller wire. A little super glue to keep it together.

[CRR Chase]

I  have seen where,
for extensions, you can use brass tubing just large enough for your wire to pass through.. the straight sections, u don't need tubing on the bends or the end. no need for solder or jb weld. simply slip it over the straight areas.

here is an example

/>

[CRR Chase]

I  have seen where,
for extensions, you can use brass tubing just large enough for your wire to pass through.. the straight sections, u don't need tubing on the bends or the end. no need for solder or jb weld. simply slip it over the straight areas.

here is an example

/>

well you have to be a member on his channel to see it.. sorry

[nickelplate759]

Another option that might work is to use the normal size wire but slip a piece of tubing over it to stiffen it.  The tubing should cover as much as possible of the distance between the fulcrum on the Tortoise and throwbar.    I tried this with mixed success.  Sometimes there was still too much flex in the wire at the Tortoise end.

[mmagliaro]

Do you think the standard Tortoise throw wire will work if I am going up through 3 inches of extruded foam if I remove the springs?

3" is a long way.  The wire isn't long enough, and even if you cut a new longer piece of piano wire of the same gauge, it will be too
flexible.  I have used the trick nickelplate759 suggested... slipping a piece of brass tubing over the thin wire for most of its length to stiffen it, leaving an inch or so of the wire sticking out the top to go through the drawbar.  It's pretty easy to do.

[central.vermont]

3" is a long way.  The wire isn't long enough, and even if you cut a new longer piece of piano wire of the same gauge, it will be too
flexible.  I have used the trick nickelplate759 suggested... slipping a piece of brass tubing over the thin wire for most of its length to stiffen it, leaving an inch or so of the wire sticking out the top to go through the drawbar.  It's pretty easy to do.

Max, what myself and a couple other local buddies do and have had success is to use .032 steel wire from K&S.

Jon

[mike_lawyer]

Max, what myself and a couple other local buddies do and have had success is to use .032 steel wire from K&S.

Jon

Do you have to drill out a larger hole on the Micro-Engineering throwbars to accept the larger size wire?  I don't know how large of a hole you can drill in the throwbar if you have to enlarge it.

Mike

[nickelplate759]

Max, what myself and a couple other local buddies do and have had success is to use .032 steel wire from K&S.

Jon

That works for a long reach (it's stiff enough), but that's exactly the wire I had trouble with when trying to fit it to the Micro-Engineering throwbar. 
I had to drill a larger clearance hole in the drawbar to fit the wire, and that weakened the drawbar to the point of breaking easily.  I had to replace a couple of turnouts because of this, which is why I switched to either stiffening smaller wire (Tortoise comes with 0.025") with brass tube or splicing the 0.025 wire on the end of 0.032 wire to reach through the drawbar.

By the way, the 0.032 wire works fine with Atlas code 55 turnouts.

[central.vermont]

Yeah I should have said that this was with Atlas C55.

Jon

[mike_lawyer]

That works for a long reach (it's stiff enough), but that's exactly the wire I had trouble with when trying to fit it to the Micro-Engineering throwbar. 
I had to drill a larger clearance hole in the drawbar to fit the wire, and that weakened the drawbar to the point of breaking easily.  I had to replace a couple of turnouts because of this, which is why I switched to either stiffening smaller wire (Tortoise comes with 0.025") with brass tube or splicing the 0.025 wire on the end of 0.032 wire to reach through the drawbar.

By the way, the 0.032 wire works fine with Atlas code 55 turnouts.

I think I might try the method of splicing the 0.025 wire onto the 0.032 wire.  I am thinking of maybe a small piece of brass tube at the end of the 0.032 wire, then fill that cylinder with JB Weld and connect the 0.025 wire.

Mike

[peteski]

I think I might try the method of splicing the 0.025 wire onto the 0.032 wire.  I am thinking of maybe a small piece of brass tube at the end of the 0.032 wire, then fill that cylinder with JB Weld and connect the 0.025 wire.

Mike

That should do the trick, if you want to wait 15 hours (I would not use the JB Weld 6 minute epoxy, but their "regular" stuff). I would just solder the pieces using acid-based flux.  Instant gratification.  Zinc-chloride-based  flux (like Tix flux) should work.

[nickelplate759]

I just dunked the wire end in a tube of Walthers (Hobsco) Goo and stuck it in the brass tube.