The Chronicles of Canary Sidings - Eastern Eccentricity in EM
- Thread starter Herb Garden
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- 4mm scale em gauge ger pre-grouping
ICH60
Western Thunderer
I made my own jogging tool. Interesting that if you use Hi HN Nickel Silver I had to anneal as it is very hard to bend.
simond
Western Thunderer
Nice, very high-tech. I’m assuming the copper-ish hue is the lighting rather than the material!
Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
More progress today with the goods yard turnout and the run round cross over....
Theres something out of line on the cross over so some tweaking required to smooth out the kinks
Hi,
one of the joys of building turnouts from pcb strip is that it's easy to rectify minor problems if something doesn't quite fit properly.
Going back as to whether joggle or not, I've built turnouts in N, EM and O and never used a joggle. All blade ends where carefully filed to fit snuggly into the web of the stock rail. Doesn't take long, and not too much material needs to be removed.
Also, there is a way of making pcb turnouts even cheaper! Just use pcb strip for the main structural parts of the turnout then use wood strip sleepers to fill in the gaps! Model boat suppliers sell a range of different sorts of wood in a wide range of sizes. I use 2mm x 3mm x1000mm lime wood strip, and at under 50p a metre it's a lot cheaper than pcb strip! It's also useful in lots of other projects, such as buildings.
Roja
one of the joys of building turnouts from pcb strip is that it's easy to rectify minor problems if something doesn't quite fit properly.
Going back as to whether joggle or not, I've built turnouts in N, EM and O and never used a joggle. All blade ends where carefully filed to fit snuggly into the web of the stock rail. Doesn't take long, and not too much material needs to be removed.
Also, there is a way of making pcb turnouts even cheaper! Just use pcb strip for the main structural parts of the turnout then use wood strip sleepers to fill in the gaps! Model boat suppliers sell a range of different sorts of wood in a wide range of sizes. I use 2mm x 3mm x1000mm lime wood strip, and at under 50p a metre it's a lot cheaper than pcb strip! It's also useful in lots of other projects, such as buildings.
Roja
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Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
So I'm trying to spare you all masses of track progress shots. But here's where I've got to.
James Spooner
Western Thunderer
JimG
Western Thunderer
Just referring back to your picture a day or two ago of the switch blades soldered to the PCB tiebar, you might want to consider providing a hinge joint between the blades and the tiebar. There are going to be stresses at the solder joints between switch blades and the tiebar which could cause them to give after a while. Something like a pin through a hole in the tiebar and soldered to the switch rail base could do the job, or use a different tiebar which has a bit of flexibility.
Jim.
Jim.
Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
Jim,
I think that's an excellent point and I agree with you and Simon. You can allready feel the tension in moving the tie bar on that one point I've finished.
I've also noted that on the previous interaction of skeetsmere I have used a hinge joint on the tiebars so it must have been a moment of madness soldering it directly .
As you can see the track work on the old layout was awful in so many ways don't get me started.... Hopefully I've learnt my lessons
But probably need to learn this one....
Lyndhurstman
Western Thunderer
Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
It did run rather well however the downfall was the rustI don't think that's awful at all. Lovely stuff. I do like odd tangles
Cheers
Jan
Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
Also any recommendations on products that could be used as flexible tiebars or a source of brass pins to make a hinged joint?
On any point less than about 7ft radius I make the blades on a sub assembly with a pivot at the crossing end. Not prototype but totally reliable. I then make the blades same polarity as the adjacent running rail then use the small gap to form the electrical brake before the electrically switched crossing.
I can probably find a photo if interested.
Regards
Allen
I can probably find a photo if interested.
Regards
Allen
JimG
Western Thunderer
I think if you can find a product which represents the full scale tiebars, then there is an amount of flexibility in these tiebars, principally because they are quite thin and can flex easily. Otherwise I use brass wire to make the hinges as I showed in my FS160 thread a year or two ago.
Hinged pin joints in PCB tiebars.
With this method you need a bit of clearance under the tiebar for the wire - usually a slot cut in the underlay.
The brass wire I use is the straight hard brass wire available from several sources.
Jim.
Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
That's really helpful thanks!
Another good idea.... I'm feeling sorry for the cat!
Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
So amidst the stresses of work 
I've managed to make some track progress.....
Although this double slip will be possibly give me a long lasting dislike of such things.... All the points went together fine but I've had to rebuild the Vs on this monster twice and I've just put the first half of the first k on successful only to find I've not followed the template correctly and the curve between that and the V is wrong
Problem is this slip is a key feature of the skeetsmere design and without it working well the layout will be a bit rubbish
Looks ok from a distance but when you look closer....
The wing rail on top of the station end V is out of alignment and has a weird little bend in it which is throwing the connecting rail out....
Two steps forward.... One backwards
I've managed to make some track progress.....Although this double slip will be possibly give me a long lasting dislike of such things.... All the points went together fine but I've had to rebuild the Vs on this monster twice and I've just put the first half of the first k on successful only to find I've not followed the template correctly and the curve between that and the V is wrong
Problem is this slip is a key feature of the skeetsmere design and without it working well the layout will be a bit rubbish
Looks ok from a distance but when you look closer....
The wing rail on top of the station end V is out of alignment and has a weird little bend in it which is throwing the connecting rail out....
Two steps forward.... One backwards
Lyndhurstman
Western Thunderer
Hello George,So amidst the stresses of work
Although this double slip will be possibly give me a long lasting dislike of such things.... All the points went together fine but I've had to rebuild the Vs on this monster twice and I've just put the first half of the first k on successful only to find I've not followed the template correctly and the curve between that and the V is wrong
Problem is this slip is a key feature of the skeetsmere design and without it working well the layout will be a bit rubbish
Looks ok from a distance but when you look closer....
View attachment 203832
The wing rail on top of the station end V is out of alignment and has a weird little bend in it which is throwing the connecting rail out....
Two steps forward.... One backwards
The Scalefour Society do a very useful piece of thin metal about 50 mm long (I think it might come as part of the Brook Smith set of gauges*) that enables you to align the crossing nose with the legs of the wing rails; it also lets you push against it with the short leg of the wing rail, and thus keep the railhead straight; I think this is the problem here - the lefthand portion of the wing rail nearest the knuckle just needs easing in slightly.
*I've used a feeler gauge in the past, too
Cheers
Jan
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