I’ve got my 130’ Walthers turntableinstalled. All of the approach and stall tracks are at the same height (ends) but the bridge and bridge track a just a tich lower. I don’t suppose it’s possible to shim up the bridge using a teflon washer or similar idea under the center motor post?
Is there another solution? The locos run from bridge to stall/approach tracks fine but there’s a tiny lift up/bump of about a 32nd of an inch or so and I’d rather get rid of the difference if possible.
Thanks for any advice,
Jim
PS: What glue to use to glue stall rail ends to the plastic t.t. rim. I’d like to use water base so they can be removed if necessary without harming the pit. Would AC glues be able to be removed later with debonders or a #11 blade without damaging the turntable rim? Thanks. Trying Alene’s Tacky Glue but requires weighting and waiting thanks.
How about shimming up the track on the bridge? Is it glued down hard so you can’t easily remove? How about just setting the whole turntable up by 1/32" using the lip of the pit? I say these things because the walthers mechanism is wobbly (I have the 90’ kit) and adding a washer will probably increase it if it changes it at all …
NPO1, the approach tracks are already glued to the rim (we’ll see how the Alene’s holds up over time) and some of the stall tracks are, as well so if a straight edge is lain across the tops of these rails, across the pit without the bridge in place they are level. IF I shim up the whole pit, these tracks would be bowed and even higher than the bridge tracks. The bridge track may be removable but I don’t think so and would rather not go there if possible.
If anyon has removed/shimmed the t.t. bridge track please let un know how? I figured if I put a teflon, or some other slippery plastic washer under the motor post that would work, but figure it wouldn’t allow the bridge contacts to meet the contacts at the bottom of the pit’s center hole. Is there any room to play with that?
I’m just guessing at this, but are your approach tracks and the bridge track the same size? i.e. what code rail is on the bridge vs on the approach tracks? I looked at the Walthers turn table listing and it didn’t specify the track code used on the bridge but I seem to recall it being code 83. I might be totally out to lunch on that.
I know you already have your track glued down so if the track code is the issue I may not have been much help, but you might want to explore putting code 100 track on the bridge if that is what you used on the approaches, if that’s possible.
As Dave has already mentioned, the code of track on turntable, is indeed code 83. If you do have code 100 approach tracks, I would file down the height difference, with a small block of wood overlapping both rails heads, with black emery 220 grit sandpaper starting at least an inch away from the pit to the pit, followed by 300 grit paper. The emery paper will make short work of the sanding. Just make sure you try to keep the pressure on the block level and remember to bevel the inside ends of the approach tracks for easier transition from bridge to approach. If you do have code 83 for approach, something ain’t right, thicker ties on approach tracks?
By NO means would I attempt to shim shaft to raise it, you will have to bend all the contact fingers so they touch perfectly and the gears will not fully grab for the motor. Let alone the ring rail.
A PDF to keep on hand. look at bevel ends of approach tracks:
EDIT: Just caught You last question. I use ZAP-A-GAP Medium CA+, for approach tracks to pit rim. It is a lot stronger than just plain CA, but it can be removed without damage if need be, as long as you didn’t go crazy with the amount you used. Sets, in 15 seconds.
As you know, I have the Walthers non-DCC 130’ turntable. If I were you, I would not mess with the bridge. My turntable bridge is slightly lower as well but at low speeds, my locos encounter no problems.
As others have pointed out, the bridge uses Code 83 rail. If you are using Code 100, that will intensify the difference.
If it bothers you or causes problems, a better solution would be to take a Dremel and file down the approach track to match the height of the bridge.
I used CA adhesive to glue down the rails to the plastic lip of the turntable. If you need to remove the bond, you can use an acetone-based product which will dissolve the CA adhesive.
I would also choose to file down the approach tracks. A 32-nd of an inch isn’t much.
But, I’d use a hand file, not a power tool. You want to do this slowly and carefully. It’s already in an awkward location, and it would be very easy to take off too much with a Dremel.
I also have the 130’ TT and I glued my approach tracks (Code 83) with the water thin ACC which dries almost instantly and doesn’t add any to the height of the rail. The Alene’s Tacky Glue is thick and may be adding to the height of the approach rails thereby causing the problem you are having. I have a couple of tracks that are a little higher than the bridge but they are only about .010" higher. If you have a 1/32" difference then there is something wrong; 1/32" or .032" is quite a difference and most definately will be noticable if not problematic in the operation. I would start by checking the rail height on the approach tracks to see if they are code 100 and then file each rail top down to match the bridge. I would file back about 1" to make the transition less noticable and smoother in operation. If you file along the rail rather than across it, you shouldn’t loosen if from the pit but make sure you get all the filings from the pit; in fact you might want to cover the pit in the process. I realize this is time consuming but filing doesn’t take that much to remove 1/32". Also, as mentioned before, make sure you file a bevel on the inside of each rail for about 3/16". My TT works great and has never given a problem. Good luck and keep us informed as to how you resolve your problem; we can all learn something from others.
This is a very common discovery, one I made myself on my last layout when I installed the 90’ version with surrounding Code 100. My solution, and it worked very well…AND FAST:
Placed the thin grinding wheel/disk on my Dremel and ground down two parallel ‘ditches’ or channels into the lip of the turntable pit. I then removed one or two ties and embedded the rail feet of the Code 100 lead into the channels. When the heights matched, I glued them with epoxy or CA…can’t remember which.
Grinding the two shallow ditches into the plastic was hugely faster, and every bit as effective, as grinding down about 6" of rail length so that the transition was gradual.
If You do decide to file the rail, I most definitely would use the block of wood with 180 to 220 grit emery paper, that is what it is for, metal, it will make short work of that NS rail and you will be doing both rails at the same time, sand parallel with the rail heads. If you use a Dremel, you can only do one at a time and how do you keep them both level and not have any dips from the grinding wheel or abrasive disk drum. Even if you used a flex shaft, it would still be hard to keep it level.
This was one of my first thoughts too, but I noticed that the OP didn’t want to damage the pit lip with any type of solvent adhesive. This is a fast and easy way to rectify the problem though, but requires removing the approach tracks. Any of the suggestions would work, just a matter of which one suits the OP.
Just my [2c], but if it were me, I’d just replace the approach tracks. That’s why I put my tracks down with acrylic latex caulk. All it takes is a putty knife to remove the track. If the track is already ballasted, and you used diluted white glue to affix it, just resoak it scrape up what you can and shop-vac the rest up.
Since both the approach tracks and the stall tracks are higher than the bridge track, it would make more sense to increase the height of the bridge track. Substituting code 100 rail for the current code 83 would more than halve the discrepancy.
Still, I’d investigate the possibility of raising the bridge with a washer - the contact wipers are adjustable, although I’m not familiar with how that would affect the drive system. If it works on a rack within the pit, it shopuld be possible to shim the drive gear assembly down by the same amount the table is shimmed up.
Another avenue to investigate is removing the bridge track or the entire bridge deck, then inserting a suitable styrene shim.
Another possibility is to solder strips of nickel-silver shim to the top surface of the bridge rails - not all that difficult if the shim and rail is pre-tinned. The actual soldered connection wouldn’t need to be continuous, either - both ends, for sure, and at least a couple of intermediate points.
EDIT: Another option might be to contact Walthers about the problem - it may not be unique to your installation and there may be a simple remedy already available.
Don’t mess with the turntable, just file the approch tracks. I had this trouble on my aproch tracks to my car float apron as I use code 70 and needed to use code 83 on the apron if I wanted to avoid a lot of unnecisay work, had fancy transition conectors but ended up jus filing, way less work and worked great.
Thank you guys. I didn’t think to include the track code info. Both the bridge deck track and the stall/approach tracks are (all) Code 83. It’s interesting to hear that the slightly lower bridge is common with this turntable.
I’ve looked over the bridge and have decided I don’t want to mess with that regarding replacing track or shimming it. It’s an expensive unit and it doesn’t look easy or (maybe) possible.
I chose 32nd of an inch as a max. It’s possibly less, but I have weights on the stall tracks while the Alenes is drying and couldn’t put the bridge back in to give an accurate measurement to you. The locos and cars do negotiate all tracks but the slight bump-up irritates me and hoped to find a fix.
My “wiring boy” suggested rounding the ends of the stall and approach tracks a tad and that’s likely what I’ll try lst. I already have the 30 degreee slant filed into all rail ends as per Walthers instructions.
I would be VERY interested to hear from other 130’ Walthers t.t. owners to see if the majority of them sit low enough on the motor shaft/hole to be slightly lower than the stall/approach tracks. If so, I wonder why?
I greatly appreciate the advice and ideas. It took me 5 years to get to this “crowning” acheivement so hoped to see what I could try. Thanks again!
Sorry, didn’t want to add this as an edit as it might get missed. I don’t want to remove already glued in track in the stalls. I got my r.h. pre-built from a club sale and have no idea what adhesive was used, etc. I also don’t want to remove the table or tracks as they “work” so far as is. Haven’t tried the Big Boy or Cab Forwards yet though.
Also, what’s the ultimate verdict regarding damaging the pit’s rim with AC glues should I need to remove them down the road. Still confused on that issue.
I will call Walthers but I’ve had zero luck with the taking (message) or returning calls the last year or so. They used to be great about returning calls…regarding the washer idea or what else they might suggest.
IF I get ahold of them, I’ll let you know if they’ve suggested anything vastly different from the above posts.
Cap’n G, I didn’t realize that the stall tracks, of the same code as the bridge tracks, were not a good match. As you must realize, my problem was with both the Code 100 lead and the Code 100 into the bays, both of which I had to provide. In both cases, I gouged out shallow grooves in the plastic pit lip and set the rails lower so that their running surfaces would all match. They did when I was finished.
In your case, can you alter the height of your bays/roundhouse? If not, then you have two options:
Cant the turntable imperceptibly so that the lip closest to the bays allows the rail heights to match. You won’t see it, and neither will the critics. We’re talking 1/32" at most across the 18+" diameter of the lip. Or, tilt the bays and 'house by that much downward toward the bridge.
Since the rails rest on the turntable lip, and because you need to remove the plastic ties for that purpose, you could leave the rails untouched and put grooves in the turntable lip to lower the rail height to match the bridge track.
thanks.