Here's one for the forums. Has anyone out there tried to mount an Atlas undertable machine directly to a turnout with roadbed? Reason being to conceal them under track on thick (aprrox 4") foam scenery. Any exposed wires would be coated with liquid electrical tape to avoid any sparks getting loose.
FRRYKid,
I have 45 under table Atlas switch, along with snap-relay, they come with four wood screws, for a very good reason, the force of the throw will cause them to move, if not fastened down properly, mine are attached to the bottom of half inch plywood. I would not attempt to, caulk or glue them to foam. But that is My opinion! Have only had one fail in 25yrs, but that was my fault, I drilled a hole through the coil for a hot frog and forgot that the switch was reversed underneath. I guess you could cut away some foam and put a 1/4 piece of ply there, but that seems like a lot of work, maybe Gorilla glue, but that is speculation. Maybe others have a fix.
Btw, put open spade connectors on the wire ends, don't wrap the wires around the screws. And they must be perefctly flat to work properly. One more thing to consider, they may not work reliably, at all for you, they are designed, for no more than 1 inch thick roadbed, any more and you will have lateral movement of the pin, it's flex nylon plastic.
Frank
I have one Atlas snap-switch that is operated by an Atlas machine that I glued directly to the underside of the turnout. I hollowed out the roadbed and a bit of pink foam so this would work. It has been in service for 6 or 7 years now with no problems, but it's on a lightly-used siding. I don't remember if I used an under-table model, or just a standard Code 100 Atlas machine with the throw wire bent up at a 90 degree angle.
The under-table machines are really meant to be mounted directly below the turnout. The vertical throw bar is only an inch long, so you're kind of limited to a quarter-inch of roadbed over half-inch plywood. Some years ago when these machines came out, other users reported that the whole mechanism was not firm enough to add a longer throw wire, like you can do with a Tortoise.
As an alternative, can you spot the switch machines in this picture?
One is hidden beneath a mound of scenery in the foreground. I made a shell of plaster cloth to protect the machine and allow it to operate, and then covered the shell with Gypsolite and ground foam to disguise it. The other machine is inside the old Suydam Swift packing plant, with an extended throw bar.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Hey
At the risk of being ridiculed, and some say I'm not handicaped by knowing how things should be done,this is the way I moved all of my atlas motors to the underside of the table. This picture is the proto type and kind of rough. I used two sizes of brass pipe and paper clips. The solder at the top is not needed if the paper clip is inserted past the bend. The bearing is just a short piece of the outer pipe to alow a free movement of the inner pipe. The sleeve is glued in place and the inner pipe dropped in place and bottom arm is soldered to that. My Atlas motor are the normal top side motors installed up side down. I later realized that the shafts could be installed along side the track like a proto switch. Oh, one would have to experiment to see how long the shaft could be to reach through the material. I mounted mine on a piece of 1/4" plywood. The motor can be mounted at any azmuth or radial from the shaft to alow more leeway in mounting positioin. Edit: I polish the inner pipe to make sure that it is free turning, because the Atlass motors don't have a lot of power. Mine work well though.
Have fun.
Lee
Lee,
I have seen your idea before and that is quite ingenious, to say the least. I just kept mine simple, 1/2 ply sub, 1/2 Homasote roadbed, easy to mount, easy to maintain. No foam at all on my 121/2x40x121/2, no grades either, just looks like there are. I just can't see myself, ( although creative) making 45 of those. Or for that matter 45 tortoise's either.
Take Care,
zstripeI would not attempt to, caulk or glue them to foam. ... I guess you could cut away some foam and put a 1/4 piece of ply there, but that seems like a lot of work, maybe Gorilla glue, but that is speculation. Btw, put open spade connectors on the wire ends, don't wrap the wires around the screws. And they must be perefctly flat to work properly. One more thing to consider, they may not work reliably, at all for you, they are designed, for no more than 1 inch thick roadbed, any more and you will have lateral movement of the pin, it's flex nylon plastic.
I wasn't planning to glue it to the foam. At worst, I was thinking about gluing it to the bedding, but I figured I would have to put a shim of some sort in there. In the alternative, could .250" styrene be used instead of the plywood if one was careful when drilling?
I have never had a problem with the wires on the screws but the spade connectors would make the operation a little bit neater.
I have two places on my layout where I have used undertable machines so I am familar with the depth restrictions. I seems to me that the plastic seems to be stronger than the wire on the deluxe version.
Yes they will work fine, just that the longer that the pin has to be, the more chance of it flexing, is what I was trying to explain. I have the ones you are referring to. The use of styrene would also work, just drill a pilot hole all the way through the styrene smaller than the diameter of the screw, they are wood screws, but they will thread into plastic and make their own threads, do it all the time. Have Fun!
BTW; A little tip, when you are ready to mount them to the turnout, use balsa wood, or plastic shims at the points to keep them in the center of throw position and have the slide pin on the machine also centered.
zstripe Lee, I have seen your idea before and that is quite ingenious, to say the least. I just kept mine simple, 1/2 ply sub, 1/2 Homasote roadbed, easy to mount, easy to maintain. No foam at all on my 121/2x40x121/2, no grades either, just looks like there are. I just can't see myself, ( although creative) making 45 of those. Or for that matter 45 tortoise's either. Take Care, Frank
Hi
After you find your self a mandrel to bend the exact length each time and start a parts assembly line they go quite fast. that first one was made freehand.
Don't forget they are cheap./
Please don't get me wrong, that's a great idea. I just had no need for the length. I'm still working on my home made brass street lights, that I had to put on hold for awhile, due to Med. issues, but I enjoy a challenge. The materials are out there, takes an idea and action,where I come from, mistakes are learning curves.