Garden Rail 3D printed signal

Tanker man

Tanker man

G scale and 5 inch ride on
Country flag
I have just finished printing and building the Garden Rail signal from the November issue, it is designed to operate next to a point so that as the point changes the signal changes, it is quite a good signal, takes a lot of fiddling to build it but that, as modellers, is what we do.IMG_2327.jpeg
I think I would rather operate it electrically, I have been looking at 00 scale point motors, most seem a bit more than I want to pay but I came across the one below but I am confused by the dimensions, it states that it is 14cm long? It’s not a bad price at £4:99 but the size bothers me.
Has anyone used one of these and can confirm the size , pleaseIMG_2323.png
I will obviously have to re design the base plate and could hide it in a line side hut or transformer to keep it dry.
thanks
Dave
 
I've always found the solenoid switches to be a bit abrupt. A small servo and servo controller will give a smoother movement, with programmed "bounce" if you wish.
 
I do not have one to measure, but am aware of them..
The dimensions would seem about right, possibly a bit generous?

PhilP
 
These are designed to be under base boards. You drill a hole where the point tie bar is and the rod between the coils connects to it.

I've not seen these used outdoors and I reckon they would need to be in a waterproof enclosure rated to IP65.

I would have thought an LGB or Piko point motor would work better. This could be wired in parallel with the point motor so that they operate together....
 
Gizzy said:
These are designed to be under base boards. You drill a hole where the point tie bar is and the rod between the coils connects to it.

I've not seen these used outdoors and I reckon they would need to be in a waterproof enclosure rated to IP65.

I would have thought an LGB or Piko point motor would work better. This could be wired in parallel with the point motor so that they operate together....
Click to expand...
Tanker man said:
I have just finished printing and building the Garden Rail signal from the November issue, it is designed to operate next to a point so that as the point changes the signal changes, it is quite a good signal, takes a lot of fiddling to build it but that, as modellers, is what we do.View attachment 320843
I think I would rather operate it electrically, I have been looking at 00 scale point motors, most seem a bit more than I want to pay but I came across the one below but I am confused by the dimensions, it states that it is 14cm long? It’s not a bad price at £4:99 but the size bothers me.
Has anyone used one of these and can confirm the size , pleaseView attachment 320844
I will obviously have to re design the base plate and could hide it in a line side hut or transformer to keep it dry.
thanks
Dave
Click to expand...
Gizzy is right, not suitable for outside use, the bit that goes to/n/fro is steel plus so is the rod. Has to be for the magnetic via the roundy electro magnetic bits. Get a cheepo LGB point motor that is made for outside use, ok still the same basic operation but made for outside use.
 
dunnyrail said:
Gizzy is right, not suitable for outside use, the bit that goes to/n/fro is steel plus so is the rod. Has to be for the magnetic via the roundy electro magnetic bits. Get a cheepo LGB point motor that is made for outside use, ok still the same basic operation but made for outside use.
Click to expand...
So you are suggesting that the correct point motor could be pivotal

David
 
This is how I currently control my points
ringbalin-light-railway.blogspot.com

Servo Controlled Points

Because I was having some issues with my Aristocraft and LGB manual points; The LGB points I had would not throw properly with a manual lev...
ringbalin-light-railway.blogspot.com ringbalin-light-railway.blogspot.com
The servo tester has pins to take 2 other servos and I was planning on using a small servo to control a signal.

I have since found this and it may be an improvement as it has a "push through" which at present mine does not.
www.thingiverse.com

Points Servo Drive (Train track) by dagnall53

A Servo mount with sprung drive for G scale PIKO and LGB points (turnouts). The spring mechanism allows the trains to push past "closed" points without derailing.Video: http://youtu.be/xdbzOc0kWSc
www.thingiverse.com www.thingiverse.com
An upgrade
www.thingiverse.com

Points Motor for G Scale with Spring by dagnall53

I was concerned that my previous rack and pinion points drive designs needed preciscion servo setting to avoid straining parts.Also, accidental train traffic "against" the points can derail trains or damage the drives.So this design includes springs that allow the points move in a similar way to...
www.thingiverse.com www.thingiverse.com

Servo

Pardon our interruption...

www.ebay.co.uk

There are plenty more types on here

▷ g scale servo point motors 3d models 【 STLFinder 】

l➤ g scale servo point motors 3d models ✅. This servo-driven points motor for G Scale railways is based on the original design of the LGB construction (LGB 12060 Manual turnout mechanism). It utilizes a standard SG90 Servo, eliminating the need for an inside potmeter and electronics due to......
www.stlfinder.com www.stlfinder.com

Where did you get the stl file for the signal?
 
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dunnyrail said:
Gizzy is right, not suitable for outside use, the bit that goes to/n/fro is steel plus so is the rod. Has to be for the magnetic via the roundy electro magnetic bits. Get a cheepo LGB point motor that is made for outside use, ok still the same basic operation but made for outside use.
Click to expand...
Not sure where you get your LGB point motors from but at £34.00 , I don’t consider that a ‘cheap’ motor, even eBay at £20 is not much better as you don’t know what condition it’s in.
As far as magnetic coils, relays, single motion selectors, 2 motion selectors, MUGs there is not a lot you can tell me about them as having looked after Strowger telephone exchanges for over 20 years before moving on to electronic systems, I think I have a good understanding of their working.
but thanks for the input , anyway.
Dave
 
Teeny thread drift. From one of the links posted in this interesting thread was this circuit for firing LGB point motors. I might have a requirement to add a handful more points next year and this seems a good alternative to using the pricey LGB momentary switch boxes. Anyone used it, or have any comments, before I knock up a version to try?

capacitor_point motor setup.jpg


Edit/update Sat 25 Nov 23:
I already had the components on order and the last bit turned up today, so I have just built the above as a test, using a 6800µF capacitor and a DPDTCO switch. I used 15V DC power from an old H&M Duette, so no need for any diodes for AC and the switch price was a little less than Gaugemaster switches. The result is a good thwack at the point drive, every bit as good as using an LGB 52750 EPL Booster, which is how I feed all my points at present.

So, a useful exercise and learning experience and it will come in handy if I build next year's extension - centre-off switches are certainly cheaper than the LGB switch box, and if my LGB booster ever gives up, I now know how I can replace it with a nice chunky capacitor! :party:
 
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Definitely a faff of a job, so pleased I only use colour light signals.

Works in principle, perhaps a tad more tweaking, but other than that, works as a signal.................

Garden Rail Signal ON.jpg


Garden Rail Signal OFF.jpg
 
GAP said:
This is how I currently control my points
ringbalin-light-railway.blogspot.com

Servo Controlled Points

Because I was having some issues with my Aristocraft and LGB manual points; The LGB points I had would not throw properly with a manual lev...
ringbalin-light-railway.blogspot.com ringbalin-light-railway.blogspot.com
The servo tester has pins to take 2 other servos and I was planning on using a small servo to control a signal.

I have since found this and it may be an improvement as it has a "push through" which at present mine does not.
www.thingiverse.com

Points Servo Drive (Train track) by dagnall53

A Servo mount with sprung drive for G scale PIKO and LGB points (turnouts). The spring mechanism allows the trains to push past "closed" points without derailing.Video: http://youtu.be/xdbzOc0kWSc
www.thingiverse.com www.thingiverse.com
An upgrade
www.thingiverse.com

Points Motor for G Scale with Spring by dagnall53

I was concerned that my previous rack and pinion points drive designs needed preciscion servo setting to avoid straining parts.Also, accidental train traffic "against" the points can derail trains or damage the drives.So this design includes springs that allow the points move in a similar way to...
www.thingiverse.com www.thingiverse.com

Servo

Pardon our interruption...

www.ebay.co.uk

There are plenty more types on here

▷ g scale servo point motors 3d models 【 STLFinder 】

l➤ g scale servo point motors 3d models ✅. This servo-driven points motor for G Scale railways is based on the original design of the LGB construction (LGB 12060 Manual turnout mechanism). It utilizes a standard SG90 Servo, eliminating the need for an inside potmeter and electronics due to......
www.stlfinder.com www.stlfinder.com

Thanks for the links!! I was going to post them, but you have done it for me!
Click to expand...
Spring Loaded drive version There is a new one that uses springs to avoid forcing the points and allow a small amount of movement if the train tries to go over when the points are set wrong.
 
This is the servo solution I use for my points. Not LGB, but the 3D printed units and servos will work perfectly with standard LGB points. I use a little 4 channel RF dongle and remote to trigger the Megapoints controller. Throw is preset on the board, so easy to calibrate for reliable operation. The servos survived the summer in their 3D printed enclosures, but I have lifted them for the winter, just to be on the safe side.

 
Gizzy said:
A much cheaper alternative to the LGB Switch boxes are these Martyn....

Search results for: 'g scale point switch' | Gaugemaster

Default Description
www.gaugemasterretail.com www.gaugemasterretail.com
Click to expand...
Interesting, thanks. Not being very leccy savvy, how would they be wired up and with what power source? Could it be 16V AC, one wire to the drive, the other from the drive via the diodes connected to each side of the switch, with the centre terminal connected to the second wire of the power source?
 
viaEstrecha said:
Interesting, thanks. Not being very leccy savvy, how would they be wired up and with what power source? Could it be 16V AC, one wire to the drive, the other from the drive via the diodes connected to each side of the switch, with the centre terminal connected to the second wire of the power source?
Click to expand...
Yes 16 V ac would be fine. There are instructions with the switches on how to wire them up.

But you surmised correctly on how to connect these up. The diodes rectify the ac to (half wave) dc which operates the LGB point motors in either direction.

You are more savvy than you thought....
 
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