I would like to scratchbuild a turntable for my layouts.One that is compatible with my EZ Track. Should I just pull the joiner off one end of a turnout and mount the table’s track on a swivel of the correct height,then bring the turntable rails flush with the turnout rails?
There are a number of issues to be considered with turntables. They are seldom scratch-built, as the alignment and power management problems really can be overwhelming.
How big an engine do you need to turn? If the Thomas picture is serious, then you can solve most problems with a short turntable like the Atlas, which is still only a bit over $20 retail. The motoring kit is another $20, but after that it’s pretty much all plug-and-play, and I think it’s even close enough to the EZ track profile that it should work.
For larger engines, most people are moving towards the Walthers offerings. These have become a popular item, as they’ve gotten much more reliable and user-friendly.
If you really, really want to scratch-build a turntable, go out and find…a turntable. The kind us old fogies used to spin records on. That will make a good smooth base with a reliable bearing. You can mount a track on that and go from there.
Finally, I took an Atlas turntable and bashed it into a “true pit” turntable:
I have not done this yet, but I plan to. I do operate on a layout with a number of scratchbuilt turnouts. They consist of a length of 1" pine for the bridge. They rotate on a vertical pin on top of a disk of machined aluminum about 5 inches in diameter. I will probably just use a disk of wood and either a dowel or a 1/4 inch stereo plug and jack - which can also cary power. On the ones I’ve seen, each end of the bridge has a metal wiper which conducts power from a rail which runs around the ring of the pit. The spacer also keeps the end of the bridge at the correct height. I have, in fact, salvaged a phonograph turntable. There is enough play in the table that I do not think it will be very helpful in constructing a turntable. You might try searching the forum. There have been discussions on this in the past.
Jim
Not that it will help you much now, but hopefully by this summer I will have my two scratchbuilt turntables done along with the usual tutorial of course.
Like I said, not that it will help you now sorry.
Anyone else have ideas on how to scratch build one? I am always looking for new ways or even old tried and true ones. thanks:)
One thing to consider to to use a Geneva Wheel (google it) in the geratrain that turns the bridge.
The MR’s Guide to Locomotive Servicing Terminals has an article in it on how to scratch build a turntable.
Here’s a link to a well-done tutorial for scratchbuilding a turntable. You should be able to modify things to suit your requirements:
Wayne
Forum member Bob Grech used a small atlas turntable, then scratchbuilt the rest of it. It came out looking terrific!
He posted pictures of it here on the forum. Maybe he’ll see these posts and repost them so you can see it.
TheK4Kid
Here is a turntable that I scratchbuilt:
It took quite a while and was pretty difficult to get it to come out right. If you are an experienced scratchbuilder who likes a challenge, I might suggest you have a go at it. If you are not experienced, I would suggest that you consider the following options:
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Buy a Walthers TT if they fit your needs (there are several generations of these turntables, research and get the right one, certain ones didn’t work too well)
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Take a look at the Atlas conversion articles that are out there
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Buy a Diamond Scale TT kit if you desire more detail.
For more info and a pretty accurate account of the difficulties involved see here:
http://www.housatonicrr.com/DIY_Turntable.htm
Guy
I was always intreged by a story in one of the Model Railroading mags (years ago) using a large phono-plug as the centre piece. You could either buy new male and female parts at electronics store or salvage the plug from old electronic equipment. This is the bigger plug commonly used with the really big headphones. The stereo element allowed for the power routing to be very simple. If you are interested there must be a way to find which issue that story was in. It was sometime in the last twenty years 
After reading that article I always thought I might just make one like it, but when the time came I bought a Walther’s table. It was not indexed. I was then at the Edmonton Train show and bought a like new, vintage Arnold Rapido indexed turn table with controls and roundhouse for $40 (and the seller even threw in several odd vintage rolling stock. It is installed but not yet wired. So I never tried the scratch building route.
I posted a link earlier to a very well-done scratchbuilt turntable, but if you’d like something simpler, here’s mine:
To make the pit, I cut a suitably-sized hole in the tabletop, which was 3/4" plywood specifically used in this area to provide a solid base. I supported the cut-out piece with 1"x2" at a suitable distance below the hole, making it the pit bottom, then used 1/8" Masonite to make the pit wall, which was glued in place. The base for the pit rail was cut from 1/4" plywood, as was the centre bearing foundation, and these were glued in place using yellow carpenter’s glue. My original intention was to use the mechanism from a hand-held electric mixer, operated by a crank on the layout facia, but it seemed like overkill, since the turntable is only a couple of inches from the edge of the layout. I opted instead for an armstrong, or more correctly, a fingerstrong type. [swg] The ring rail is cut from a piece of flextrack, spiked in place with spikes designed for handlaying track - not too many were required, as the pit wall holds it in alignment fairly well. I used one of the mixer shafts as a pivot, along with some telescoping brass tubing for bearings. The outer tubing has a brass washer soldered to it, which sits atop the “concrete” bearing foundation, with the tubing extending below the pit. The mixer shaft is epoxied into a hole at the mid-point of the wood block, along with a steel washer which rides atop the brass one in the pit. Phosphor-bronze wipers beneath the pit rub against the mixer shaft, providing power for one bridge rail. The other bridge rail is powered from the ring rail via wiper-equipped trucks at both ends of the bridge. The trucks are Delrin freight trucks with metal wheels from an Athearn passenger truck: both wheels on each axle are on the outboard end only, outer faces together, forming double flanged whee
This link will take you to an article about one I built a number of years ago. I started out with an embroidery hoop and a head phone jack. http://www.simplytrains.com/pages/hints&tips/turntable/turntable.htm
It’s totally a manual turntable, but it only cost about $10 worth of materials.
Hope this helps.
Lee
Wayne, Guy and Lee. Thanks for the links they are very helpful:D
Maybe someone else has some more as well:D
I have been considering this since I am doing a whole new layout, after seeing and reading this post and the wonderful pictures it help me decide on how and what to use. I hove 2 of the Atlas turntables with motor kits, I never did install any of them on my old setup, thought they looked kind of funny being surface type, and small. But after looking and reading in the links to this post it can be done wit the atlas unit. I had a general Idea of how to do it but MB perfected it, Looked good MB.
Very carefully! 