I need several throttle holders. All the commercial ones I have seen are a poor fit for the Digitrax 4xx/5xx throttles. When they have ad's they never show a picture of a 4xx/5xx series throttle but they always say that Digitrax throttles will fit. It amazes me that there is not a good selection of holders since there are so many Digitrax throttles floating around.
At this point I am prepared to make my own holder. I don't really want to do that (too many other priorities) but it looks like that is my only option. I do not want to use velcro or hooks for various reasons. I want a pocket holder. After looking at several home made versions, I will probably probably start with a plastic electrical box and trim it up to meet my needs. Any other good ideas on a home brew pocket holder?
Are there any commercial throttle holders that are a good fit for the Digitrax 4xx/5xx series throttles? I am also considering a phone holder but have not found one yet that will work for me.
Paul D
N scale Washita and Santa Fe RailroadSouthern Oklahoma circa late 70's
Well I don't know if you can call this "professional", it kind of "commercial", but this works fine for me:
Yup, the good old can coozy.
Mike.
My You Tube
PEDAny other good ideas on a home brew pocket holder?
I don't know about good but it works for me...
I was strolling the aisles at my local, friendly Lowe's and came across these polycarbonate shower/bath soap holder baskets.
At the time the "Throttle Pocket" had not even been developed yet. So I grabbed a few. They had deep ones as shown and shallower ones which I use for coupler picks, Kadee and NMRA gauge and a few other handy tools.
Digi_pocket2 by Edmund, on Flickr
They come with vinyl suction cups — easily removed — I used large trim washers and flat-head screws to securely attach them. I like the design since they are rounded off and do not interfere with passing in the aisle.
Digi_pocket4 by Edmund, on Flickr
Digi_pocket by Edmund, on Flickr
I have a half-dozen of the commercial vacuum-formed throttle pockets, too. You have to be careful as they will snag the rubber-like buttons if you put the throttle in the holder hastily. Someone at these forums had such a problem and broke some of the buttons off.
Again, this is what works for me. Others may find issues with them.
Thank You, Ed
I'll second the coozy. They're easy to install, the soft material helps protect the handheld and it's strong enough to hold it.
Terry
Inspired by Addiction
See more on my YouTube Channel
I have used Velcro strips, the self-stick kind, on my throttles and benchwork for many years without a problem. I also use it to hold my Rix Rail-It.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
New Rail Models makes a universal throttle pocket; they come packaged as singles, 3 pack and 10 pack. Most dealers have them or can get them
https://www.walthers.com/search/category/products/power-and-controls/command-control/manufacturer-name/new-rail-models/show/20?match=AND&q=universal
George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch
I made my own from wood. I used 1/4 plywood for the front and back and 1 by material between the front and back for the sides. I quickly realized I needed something to keep the buttons from dragging on the inside of the front so I glued in some dense foam strips along the sides of the front that the buttons drop between when you drop the throttle in. I also added the same foam to the bottom because the throttle made a pretty good clunk sound when you dropped it in.
Lee
At one point Black and Decker made a screw and part holder that was a clear plastic with a lid that clipped onto your belt. MR I think made a hint to use that as a throttle holder although I can't find it in the index. That is what I use for my NCE but it looks like it would work for Digitrax too. I am not sure if it is still in production.
One of our members built a bunch of holders for our Digitrack throttles. He made them out of wood spacers and paneling that matched the facia. Here's a link to a video of our layout, that should have a glimpse of the holders.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74eZy-dbebo
edit, fixed the link
I like the soap holders the Ed showed. I found a very similar product made as a pencil/etc holder for the office. My local stores in backwoods of Arkansas did not carry them so I ordered one from Amazon to try out. They had a regular cup (flat back side) about the same size as Ed's soap holder but they also had a slightly wider version with several pockets in it si i am going to try the larger version first. That will give me room to hold a few other tools (rerailer, uncoupler sticks, etc) along with the throttle. That will help me to avoid laying stuff on layout which I am inclined to do.
One layout owner I know made small loops in the short tethers he had attached to his Digitrax throttles. He used a small length of heat shrink tubing to hold the loop in the tether. Then he just installed brass hooks near his throttle bus jacks and hangs his throttles by the tether loops. As long as the tether is in good repair and the RJ plug is properly inserted, no problems.
Hornblower
Velcro. No button snags and the cable can hang naturally with no lateral pressure on the socket or plug.
I finally found what I wanted on Amazon. It is intended to be a pencil holder but works well for the Digitrax 4xx/5xx throttles. I found a white one (below) and they also have a blue one. Search Amazon for "Officemate pencil cup" for white one and "Octoorg pencile cup" for the blue one.
They also sell a similar holder that is much wider but the slots are not deep enough to hold the throttle without mashing the buttons.
White one has a magnet stuck to back side but I will remove it.