I'm working my steel mill D&D Mining & Steel in (HO) scale and I have a narrow gauge (HON30) line that serves the mill along with my standard gauge track. I have a couple of places where I need the track to cross each other and need to build a couple of crossovers. How are crossover scratch built.
I'm also in need of a couple of HON30 diesel locomotives. Anyone know of a company that has locomotives in HON30? Thanks for any help.
Don
Quick and dirty way to build a 16.5mm/9mm crossover, if built to a standard (available at the LHS) angle. Just take a 7.5mm section out of the crossover and butt the cut rail ends together. The ties for the 9mm will have to be replaced (they probably won't line up cut end to cut end) - or you can simply bury all the ties in cinders after you fasten the carefully gauge-checked crossover to the layout surface. The 9mm gauge rails may be lighter - or maybe not if the line moves those flatcars with ingots on them.
Otherwise, building a different-gauge crossover is pretty much the same as building a same-gauge crossover. All rails have to be gapped between frogs, and both routes are built with the same weight of rail and castings. The crossover itself could be heavier than the rail on both crossing tracks - code 70 30" gauge, code 83 standard gauge, code 100 crosssover, connected with offset rail joiners to keep the rail tops level.
As for your miniloco, I'd look for a suitable N scale mechanism - which could be a steam loco - and build a suitable HO scale superstructure to suit. Removing the main rods and cylinders would leave you with a siderod diesel 'critter,' not at all unusual for an industrial tram loco. (One Japanese modeler did this with an N scale Percy - Thomas the Tank Engine's 0-4-0T buddy.)
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
HOn30 is commonly referred to HOe in Europe. Use that when you are searching.
I don't know much about scratchbuilding a crossing. I will suggest that many years ago AHM made a 9mm/16.5mm crossing, you might find one on ebay or someplace if you look. Tillig and Bemo both make combination 9mm/16.5mm track and you might find what you need from them. Both are imported to the US by a few vendors.
Roco makes some small HOe/HOn30 locomotives that are usually listed in the Walthers catalog. They may call them HOn2 1/2. Reworking an N guage mechanism is quite possible, or you can look at HOe locomotives from Liliput or Bemo.
Stephen