I have a few Ross turnouts which need not be motorized; they lead into passing sidings where the use of track A or B is dependent on the direction the train is heading. Thus they could be controlled by a piece of spring wire holding the points in one postion but allowing a train going the opposite way, coming through the other branch to push the points aside, so the cars aren't derailed. CTT had an article in the last 2-3 years about this which I have read. Has anyone done this, and had any success? I generally use NJ Interational switch machines, but want to save the cost, and the labor to wire them up. Also, I find that their springs provide too much resistance to allow a train to push throught points from the "wrong" side without derailments occuring, even on non powered truck of a 1033 Alco--not as light as heavy as a motorized truck, but still not as light as some current cars are.
Springswitches work well only one way just as they are supposed to. Don't try to use them
to go thru the wrong way. They work real well when used to favor a specific path only.
Tom O'Pray Rockville,MD
If you don't ever use them to go through the wrong way, you might as well replace them with ordinary track sections.
Bob Nelson
I'm not that conversant with the Ross turnouts, have you tried contacting them for their input on what you would like to accomplish?
On the club's layout we use Atlas and their turnouts, all powered, do have the "run-thru" capability when approached from the closed side.
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