Stealing a photo from Allan
Not a double cross over or a set of turnouts.
I feel like I need one, but I am not sure how to work one in.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Well, my layout was built with HO Kato track, and unfortunately they only offer a 90 degree crossing.
I too would have liked a 30 degree crossing. Even getting a 45 degree crossing would be helpful and useful, but in Kato track, it does not exist yet.
John
My Mel Double Crossover uses a 19° Atlas 572 crossing. It doesn’t require anything special, no special wiring or gaping. Mel My Model Railroad http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/ Bakersfield, California I'm beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.
PRR8259Well, my layout was built with HO Kato track, and unfortunately they only offer a 90 degree crossing.
Isn't it terrible to be in HO scale and use Kato Unitrack? I look at what they offer in N scale, and I get very jealous.
I would really like that stretchable straight track section that is available in N scale.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
I had one, an Atlas 30 deg crossing, in the middle of a 'scissor' turning wye 6 years ago. That layout is no more...moved.
Obviously, this is during construction, but you can see the crossing in the lower foreground. I'm pleased to be able to claim that it worked well, but not smoothly with all items. Many staggered through it, no matter what I did in the way of flange path clearance, gauging, ensuring the plastic and rails matched at grade...I tried it all.
On my old layout I had an Atlas 60o crossing guarded by an interlocking tower:
The Atlas was SO noisy (from the interior plastic insulators molded too high) that I eventually swapped it out for a Shinohara, which was MUCH quieter. And, yea - no additional wiring needed.
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
Henry I haven’t had even a single problem with my 572, fast, slow, long cars, short cars or articulated locomotives since I installed it in 2012. Mel My Model Railroad http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/ Bakersfield, California I'm beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.
I have one. I think it's a 30 degree. When I got the crossing, an Atlas was available so I bought it. Eventually, I realized it had an internal short. The easy course was to replace it with a Walthers. The Atlas went in the trash can. Like others, I just wanted a crossing. I had to design a couple of short, stub-end sidings to accommodate it. Two more industries to switch. I mounted a big Kadee magnet uncoupler under it.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Mel your double crossover is great, but for my purposes, you are cheating, turnouts are involved.
I understand the concept of two different railroads crossing each others tracks, like Rochelle IL Deshler Oh
or Plant City FL
You have to have a big layout to use a 90 degree crossing unless one limb is just for show.
The Winston Salem has a crossing that can be used.
Maybe I am wondering if a crossing, not involving two separate railroads, is commonly used or commonly modeled?
I have a Walthers one and it is smooth as silk.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
Henry, a crossing is a crossing, just because it is between turnouts doesn’t make any difference. All I did is chop a short piece of rail off the end, I didn’t do any modifications to the actual crossing.
Mel My Model Railroad http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/ Bakersfield, California I'm beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.
Mine is the turntable lead and inspection pit which crossed two main line tracks and a lead to the coal wharf:
Turntable_lead-b by Edmund, on Flickr
I'd like to make a single-arm crossing signal here. It is on the drawing board.
Turntable_lead by Edmund, on Flickr
Walthers Shinohara code 83.
Good Luck, Ed
A friend gave me a crossing - not sure of the brand - maybe Peco or Walthers/Shinohara, but since it was in good condition, there was no need to fix it.
If I had had more room, though, a couple of turnouts would have been more versatile. It serves as an interchange point with a friend's layout (a couple of tracks in my workshop, through a hole in the wall).
Wayne
Crossings have always been a critical part of my trackwork. I primarily use them on my double mainlines to cross from the outer mainline over the inner mainline to reach yards or sidings, but I also use them inside my passenger station complex.
This first photo shows a crossing from the outer mainline over the inner mainline to reach one of the passenger station lead tracks.
This second photo shows back to back crossings from one of the four passenger station lead tracks over two of the mainline lead tracks to reach the fourth passenger lead track. Those two outer lead tracks feed LCL cars into the various sidings for the large freight houses that dominate the landscape inside the Dearborn Station complex.
All of my crossings are Peco Code 83 #6 Crossings.
Rich
Alton Junction
I modeled an interchange with one on my last layout, and yes it was a "dummy" extension from a small interchange yard.
Sorry no photos.
That layout and the new layout design have lots of double track diverging routes that use crossings. One day I will post of photo of that trackwork magic, I use Atlas 12.5 degree crossings with #6 turnouts, on 2" track centers by modifing the turnout and the crossing adding a slight curve between the turnout frog and the crossing diamond. Saves a lot of space compared to using a #6 (9.5 degree) crossing.
I do have a spot on the new layout where I am considering a totally dummy other road track with a pair of crossings.
Sheldon
I have a triple crossing using Atlas (yes, bumpity-bump-bump) 90-degree code 83 crossings. It is a tight layout so this is the entry to the engine service area.
20200424_084045 by Paul Ahrens, on Flickr
IMG_7190 by Paul Ahrens, on Flickr
Paul
Modeling HO with a transition era UP bent
peahrens I have a triple crossing using Atlas (yes, bumpity-bump-bump) 90-degree code 83 crossings. It is a tight layout so this is the entry to the engine service area.
This is my HO/HOn3 ~12.5 degree crossing. First piece of handlaid track I ever built.
It is gapped with directional power controlled by this switch.
The crossing serves to allow standard gauge access to the south end of Durango yard (my Durango is dual-gauge) and gives access to the station's dual-gauge passenger track from the narrowgauge main to Chama.
I call it Carbon Junction and this tower overlooks things.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
My very first layout had two TruScale 90 degree crossings which required toggle switches. I later replaced them with Atlas crossings to eliminate that issue. I was only 15 at the time.
Thanks everyone, you've given me some good ideas. Great pics and layouts.
Here are a couple videos of the 4-way crossing on my layout.
Kevin
http://chatanuga.org/RailPage.html
http://chatanuga.org/WLMR.html
My prototype had one. It was in Ralston, PA, leading from one corner of the wye, across one of the legs, and on to some local industries. The book I'm using as reference is still in a box, but I'll scan the track diagram and post it when I can.
There were quite a few in what I call the "operational radius," (going out to where the trains on the layout would have originated) but none of these are within the area my layout will cover.
I grew up in Grand Island, Nebraska. At that time, a Burlington line crossed the Union Pacific line.
I believe (but I'm not positive) that Burlington had one track crossing Union Pacific's four tracks.
It seemed like you could pretty well hear it all over town.
York1 John
York1 I grew up in Grand Island, Nebraska. At that time, a Burlington line crossed the Union Pacific line. I believe (but I'm not positive) that Burlington had one track crossing Union Pacific's four tracks. It seemed like you could pretty well hear it all over town.
One of my favorite places to go when in the area is in North Charleston, SC, where the single-track Norfolk Southern "SC Line" crosses the three tracks of the CSX Charleston Subdivision. There are a good few connecting tracks and it's right at the end of Bennett Yard, so there's almost always plenty of action.
I have a 12.5 Atlas that crosses a yard lead to allow cars to be switched into and out of a car shop east of the lead to a track on the west. Wanted a car shop on the layout and that was the only way to make it work.
Heres two scratch built crossings
This one is hidden (thank god) and was built by spiking rail to homasote.
This crossing was built by soldering rails to to PC ties and works in only one direction but looks much better than the other one.
Guy
see stuff at: the Willoughby Line Site
John. As you know, I grew up in the same town, about 10 years behind you. Yes, that at grade BN crossing crossed the very busy UP mainline, which was at least double tracked at the time.
A bit of history. That BN line is their Atkinson (Nebraska) Branch, old CB&Q from Lincoln, NE to Wyoming, that leads to the Powder River coal basin in Wyoming...low sulpher coal that was desireable for eastern power plants.
When that coal traffic on the BN increased with the environmental laws in the 1990s, that crossing was statisticly the busiest freight railroad crossing in the USA.
And before that, in the 1970s and 80s, a diesel horn blew about every 20 to 30 minutes (not loud where I lived but could be heard).
Years later, BN built an overpass. Built up the flat terrain, like an interstate hiway overpass, for miles on both sides to handle the 100+ unit coal trains. I often wondered what that cost.
- Douglas
I forget where but in the south East there is a crossing on a bridge. Rather unique
My three diamonds are all scratch built to fit the situation After 10 years, zero derailments on them. One can be seen in my avatar
shane
A pessimist sees a dark tunnel
An optimist sees the light at the end of the tunnel
A realist sees a frieght train
An engineer sees three idiots standing on the tracks stairing blankly in space