power directed turnouts

[Anonymous]

My problem is that my #4 shinohara turnouts will not conduct power
unless I get the points very tight against the rail.
When I do this then trains will run until a freight car ever so slighty
jiggles the points at which point the the power to the rail cuts out
otherwise the layout runs good.

I have ordered ground throws from caboose Industries in the hopes
that these will be able to lock the points tightly up against the rail
but I don't know.

Any suggestions?

Am I going to have to put jumpers to get power thru?

Thanks for any response.

[lyctus]

I think you will find the Caboose Industries ground throws will do the trick. I have used omega loops on peco points with manual ground throws by CI in the past and the pressure on the switch rails against the running rails is very positive.

[gmpullman]

Caboose has what I think is a #202 S that has additional contacts. They're tricky to mount but once you do the first one they work out pretty well. In any case, with ground throws, be sure to get the sprung ones so they have enough tension to hold the point against the stock rail, plus they're a little more forgiving on the alignment. I put the lever straight up (centered) and lightly wedge two toothpicks to evenly center the points. Now everything is centered and you can anchor the ground throw. This will pretty much guarantee even pressure on each point. Be sure the bronze tab (contact) is clean and properly formed on the Shinohara throw bar. They are supposed to be your contact point for power routing.
Wiring the frog rails to a spdt is the best solution.
Good luck!!

[Anonymous]

This is a classic problem with power routing turnouts. In my experience, they always get dirty and fail to conduct power. Hard wire em' would be my suggestion if you never want to mess with em' again and you want them to work every time......

[Anonymous]

["Hard wire em' would be my suggestion if you never want to mess with em' again and you want them to work every time......"]

Any quick easy way to do the above?
I have an idea but maybe there is a better way.

[Anonymous]

Hard wiring,

No easy way, just straight down the middle. There are a couple of hassles with this method that are sometimes too much for people to stomach. The most difficult issue is that the points are electrically connected to each other on the throw bar. When your wire each inside rail to the stock rail the points and the frog will short. You can gap in front of the frog to isolate it, but you will need to insulate the point rails from each other. Most people replace the throwbar with a PC board throwbar made by Cloverhouse. You unsolder the points from the old throw bar a re-solder them to the new throw bar with a gap in it. It goes pretty quick but it still is a lot of work. What you are left with is a switch with a dead frog and the points and stock rails hard wired to each other. What I have just described is the definition of the new (slightly miss-named) DCC friendly turnouts. Depending on how many turnouts you need, I would go buy some of those in the size you need and save the time and hassle.

Check Allan Gartner's DCC site for more switch modification info.

[Anonymous]

I agree, hardwiring is the best solution. Also, this will allow you to weather your rails without the fear of losing current at the points.

[Anonymous]

Anybody know who makes "DCC friendly" #4 code 70 turnouts?