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How to Make Turnouts
David has this question for readers:
“More about my cheapskate G scale toy train purchases! The track supplied has straight and curved rail sections (set track) but no points (turnouts or switches to the initiated). Have any of you tried to make turnouts from set track pieces (in any scale), if so I’d like to hear from you.”
5 Responses to How to Make Turnouts
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David,
There is no such thing as a cheapskate way of building your layout. What you can do on your own will save the money for the items you cannot or do not want to tackle yourself . Beside what you can do yourself you can now take claim that it was your work. Switches can be made in most any scales. G scale will work too. Mine are in HO code 100 rail. You will want roadbed the thickness of the track you are wanting to match. You can do the radius of the switches that you want and not be forced to stay with manufactured switch radius.Your going to lay PC strip ties the size for your scale and goo glue them down on a pattern already drawn out. Your only going to use PC ties every 4 ties or so and fill the rest with tie wood pieces. Then lay your stock rails in place and soldier them to the PC TIES starting with the single track end. You will need gauges to set the space between the rails. You will file down two rails so that when put together it will form the frog of the switch each rail from the frog will need gauged from the other rail. There are a lot of articles of making switches and believe me after you have made a few you will fall in love with them and will want to get away from commercial switches. I have made 6 switches so far and other than the first one they are all serviceable and are working better than the ones from the hobby shop. The first one I did I got the gauging too tight and it is fixable and I will go back to it as I get time and use it somewhere. I am starting on a double curve switch cross over (two switches in one) and will get it done in about a month of evenings. My switches are a solid bendable switch rail like the higher speed prototypes are today. They take time and with each switch you will get better and better, If you are interested I can get you more info on it. from Newman Atkinson
Just a little further explanation of Newman’s bendable switch rail for those may not know what he is describing : The switch points are each a single piece of rail that runs from the frog point to the stock rail without any hinged joint gap. The whole rail flexes to make a smooth curve of the outside rail to the frog and the inside rail bends away from it’s stock rail to create the wheel gap. Both points need to be finely tapered to form a smooth transition to it’s stock rail. Tim
Tim Thanks,
I kind of left that out. They are not hard to make but the first ones take some time. As I do each new switch I get better with my soldiering and gauging and actually I am making the latest ones in less time as the previous ones. Figuring up what it cost to make one well just go to the hobby shop and you will find atlas switches around 20.00 and up. I made it for about 8.85 not counting my time. So far they are more dependable that the store bought. They say you will ruin your first six switches before you get a good one. I was able to come across some old homemade switches to practice on. They needed some repair. So I applied the PC ties technique to them and they are usable now. The rails are locked in now.
My first switch works but the gauge between the rails were slightly off and as I get time I will re-gauge it and re-soldier. $ axle engine will go through it but 6 axles will be too tight and need more room So it is not a loss either. The person that taught me can build a simple switch now in about 5 and half hours. Most of my switches I have done so far have been double curve switches and that is not necessarily more complicated but takes some extra gauging to keep the curves correct. I think if I count my time I am under 10 hours but it will get better. As you build them you learn the best places to put the rail gaps in to isolate the frog. When my switch is done the switch looks a little bit like a Lionel switch with minimum amount of ties. When I have it like I want then I flip it over and install painted wood ties in between the PC ties. When done You have to look close to see the difference. But unlike the old wood and nails homemade switches the PC ties is what holds it all together and the wood ties are just for looks. from Newman
Thanks Newman. I have made scratch switches. I was wondering if anyone had experience converting the plastic G scale curves and straights that came with the toys into workable switches
Daid
David there is no reason why the switch rails are not made out of metal and glue the switch in place aligned with the plastic rail with the plastic rail. The technique would be the same. You just would not be powering it. You could though power a switch motor to turn the switch if you wanted. Newman