Free-moN Staging Yard - 16"x10'

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
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Had started posting some of this over on my “Shoofly” module construction thread, but then realized that there’s going to be a whole bunch of photos & how-to’s specific to staging yards & module construction (especially Free-moN), so thought our new staging yard module should get a thread of its own.

The story begins on April, Friday the 13th (duh duh duh…) when the Silicon Valley Free-moN group set up for a week-long show at the Hiller Aviation Museum. With four main modules, a large turnback loop, and many small 45 deg. fillers, we were able to get a decent mainline going, with trains of 10-16 cars running through some nifty scenery.

However, after operating Friday & Saturday we soon realized that, besides the turnback loop, Steve Williams’ Lockhart, TX module was the only one with a passing siding, which soon became the passing / runaround / staging / terminus, as well as limiting us to about two trains at a time: one running out to the loop & back while the other loco did a runaround to get ready to leave when the first returned.

We needed staging, and another runaround, and we needed it bad.
Like an oreo needs milk bad.
And by the next weekend when the whole group would be there to run trains.

So Sunday, April 15, I looked at the sheets of wood in my garage and found two pieces of 16" x 4’ 1/2" very nice ply (birch?) that my dad had used as center cross-supports when he built a queen-sized mattress box-frame for us when we moved back from Japan 10 years ago.

That determined the size of the yard sections (4’ is perfect for transport), but using #7 turnouts limited the tracks to 7 in just 12" of space (using 1 1/2" centers). What to do with the other 4" of width? Ah, hah!

Free-moN module s

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Saturday: installed temp Caboose Ind. ground throws and buswire

And Sunday:

We ran trains, using our new staging yard!
Woot!

And here it is in action:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txeqQms9Zjg&feature=plcp&context=C433f96bVDvjVQa1PpcFPo5FJc9Aov08U_bbGiy6815n6vRlpl9Fg=

What was cool is that Steve’s Lockhart, TX module, which use to be the end (though there was some single main after it), now became the “meet”, so a train could go out to the loop while one entered staging and another left.
Nice long runs with long trains!

More important: both the Shoofly module and the staging yard fit in the back of my car with all their legs (and mine)!

So the show is over, but there’s another one coming up (hopefully) in June, so I have time to finish the yard.

Installed the phone jacks at either end we use to connect the control buses between modules and UTP panels:

Good ol’ Gorilla Glue keep’s em rock solid.
Steve has a 6-pin crimper, so the wires are straight through.

Got more turnouts, so I installed the rest of the ladders on both sides:

Notice I don’t run the track up to the edge: need to leave room for the track to “float” a little over the PC board ties (which are raised a little) but I explain all that in a video I should have edited tonight or tomorrow.

[cont.]

3

For the feeders I’ve been soldering the wire “L” bent under the rails / joiners:

Then I solder them to the buswires.
At first I tried suitcase connectors, but 22 gauge to 12 gauge doesn’t work too well.
Luckily, I can just put the modules on their sides on my workbench. (yeay!)

When laying the track over the middle section, I first put a sheet of 0.020 styrene between the sections before clamping:

Even though I use a Ultra Thin Dedeco separating disc, the styrene makes sure that there’s rail to file back flush with the endplate instead of wishing it’d grow a 1/32" to prevent a wheel-grabbing gap.

I thought of this trick after I cut the first track (at bottom):

As you can see, a wider gap than the other above it (when I used the styrene).
[The styrene is in place in the photo above: normally there’s barely a gap in the upper rails]

Also, because the separating disc comes in at a slight angle:

The styrene allows enough space for a flush file.
By laying the rail over the PC board ties first, the solder helps create a smooth path over any little bumps or skewed PC boards / endplate top.
Sometimes there’s a little rise but hardly noticeable.

[cont.]

4

Once you get ALL the yard tracks smooth & even, soldered / caulked down, & cut, then & ONLY then is it ok to release the clamps, remove the styrene and separate the sections so you can file the rail flush:

Gorilla Glue is strong, but I still file only down, and I put my thumb over the rails to relieve any stress on the solder.
Make sure you file flush + a smidge: if the rails touch each other when mating the pressure of the clamp will pop them off the solder.
I also slightly camphor the head with a single light pass of the file.

The most difficulty aspect of Free-moN is to get the tracks from different modules to line up: fortunately usually there are two people setting up: one to hold the two module endplates flush and the other to clamp.
Usually it takes a bit of finessing and a lot of patience.
And that with modules with a SINGLE track.
This yard has SEVEN, and they all have to line up perfectly or it won’t work (or only some will).
Seems like the model railroad gods were on my side today, as all seven line up great between the two main sections:

Now all I have to do is slip the 2’ insert between them (with a sheet of styrene between each gap) and then lay the curved track on the insert so it matchs up with the established track on the main sections.

My crate of unassembled Bullfrog turnout controls should show up soon, too, so I’ll get to figure out how to do the double-actuated (one on each side) control rods.

I’m also going to be building a sloped hardboard shelf & lip on each side that will hold our iPhone & NEC throttles as well as protect the Bullfrog knobs below it.

Thanks for watching and hope to have a video up soon

5

I love the whole Free-Mo concept, but I’m not familiar with all the details. Does the specification not call call for rail joiners between modules? I’ve never looked carefully at that detail of the layouts I’ve seen at shows.

Right now, building my own layout takes all my train-time, so joining a club or doing Free-Mo isn’t really a good option if I wish to, in the words of Thomas Jefferson, “promote domestic tranquility.” But, if we decide to relocate after we retire in a few more years, I think a locale with an active Free-Mo group would be something to seriously consider.

Again, thanks for taking the time to document your fine work. I look forward to seeing the scenery that develops around the yard.

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Thank you for sharing another project with us! Your project threads are always entertaining and very inspirational.

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Thanks, guys, for the kind words.

Free-moN standards call for butt joints: I gorilla glue about 4 PC board ties at the ends and solder the rails, then file back flush with the endplate.

Works out great, with barely a bump between modules (though sometimes it takes a few tries to clamp them in the right position :wink: )

Here’s the last video of the Hiller show, showing steam & diesel running through the whole layout:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBWYq0wMVbs&feature=plcp&context=C433f96bVDvjVQa1PpcFPo5FJc9Aov08U_bbGiy6815n6vRlpl9Fg=

Thanks for watching!

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Gidday, Have you ever considered putting “Super” in front of "Mcfunkeymonkey?? [:)]

Great to see people enjoying themselves at the show. Viewing your posts always puts a smile on my dial.

Cheers, the Bear.

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A simple and smart way to get straight rail cuts with minimum track gaps at the module boundaries.

Thanks MC - yet another good build thread that both shares enthusiasm and good ideas !

Smile,
Stein

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Love the videos, your skills as a modeler are unparalleled in this universe… HOWEVER, could you please ditch that elevator muzak soundtrack and replace it with… oh, I don’t know, just about anything! Maybe some AC/DC, yeah, that’s the ticket…

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Thanks.

All the music in the videos was written by my brother (and used by permission).
The super-cheezy elevator-type music was the background muzak in a supermarket for a Doritos commercial, so imagine it coming out almost inaudibly from a very crappy speaker while cruising the snack aisle at 2am.
I’m trying to get him to record some Johnny Cash-ish / Neil Young-ish / Tom Waits-ish more train-like music for me, but he’s a busy guy down in LaLaLand.

So until then, you’re stuck in the elevator, just like Shallow Hal with Tony Robbins.

Now onto today’s adventure!

I might have over-emphasized the finickiness of aligning butt joints in the early posts.
Yes, it’s not a two-second snap together, but it’s not that hard to get the modules aligned.
Especially with two people: one to align, the other to clamp.
And most modules have a single main, so all you have to align is two rails (no matter the off-chance of endplate warping or wacky floor).
And what we’ve found is that even if there’s a significant gap, trains will still run over it fine!
It’s pretty amazing what long trains are able to run over.
Now, of course, it’s better to get as close as possible to flush & smooth.
But there’s a lot of lee-way.

Drop-in sections of track or even the pre-ballasted joints where you drop in two rails also have their place: we’ve found that those options actually have more variables than necessary (and the drop-in rails can get bent very quickly), and take longer to set up & take down.

Bolts & pins are great between sections, but not between modules: it’s just too hard to get people from all over to precision-machine-place pins in the correct spot to allow alignment on either side of the module in any combination with anyone else’s module.
Maybe if we machined endplates out of steel and then all used the same…
Ugh: the weight!

So butt-end joints over 6"-tall 3/4" birch ply have proved (for us

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Gidday MC, I certainly do not think you have “…over- emphasized the finickiness of aligning butt joints…”

It, to my mind, it doesn’t matter now fantastic the scenery, the rest of the track work is, in fact all the aspects of what makes a great model railroad, if the butt joints aint right, the rest dont work!!, detracts from the modular experience, much[:(] “ness”

Keep having good days.

Cheers, the Bear.

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Here’s a video I made on how I make the butt joints over a Free-moN module section:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wM1H0URvKX

Again, I apologize for the length & rambling, but I wanted to take the mystery out of a potential deal-breaker for anyone wanting to build a Free-moN module.
This is for 7 tracks on plywood, but can also be used for 1 or 2 tracks on foam / cork.
The same technique can be used for other modules, or swing-out / lift-up sections.
(At the single-main endplate of a module you can just solder the rails so they stick out & file back flush)

Hope this helps spread the Free-moN flow, and thanks for watching (and for all comments / suggestions!)
Cheers!

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MC:

Thanks for the video. It is incredible! I think I now have the confidence to try something similar in HO scale.

I can’t wait to see what you tackle, next.

jeff c.

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Thanks, Jeff.
The whole point (flush butt?) is to take the mystery out of modules and other aspects of model railroading so people spend more time building and less time worrying.
The same technique can be used for bridges, docks, lift-up & swing-out sections.

Built a couple of Bullfrogs and started figuring out how to install them.
While I could just screw them into the 1/2" ply, that wouldn’t leave much room for the control rods to drop 4" to the sides, especially when install right next to the edge.
So I’ll probably mount the Bullfrogs on some 1 1/2" square blocks (leftover leg material), but we’ll see.

First, though, I have to deal with another issue thrown my way, specifically this:

The Atlas C55 turnouts, while nice for their power routing & easy-to-wire frog set up, have a weakass plastic throwbar / point rail clip that actually pushes the point rail up over the stock rail when thrown to the far side.
“You’re throwing too hard!” you might say.
Well, so does the Bullfrog, so I gotta work with that.
And I have no problems with the Bullfrog working my handlaid turnout with PC board throwbar on the Shoofly.

So, before I started butchering the turnouts already installed on the staging module, I practiced with an Atlas C55 turnout I’m saving for another project (muhahahaha):

Just cut the point rail clips with rail nippers and soldered.
I use HO scale PC board ties for throwbars as I’ll be drilling holes for the Bullfrog wire & the N scale ones are a little thin.
[Note to self: remember to cut the gap on the throwbar before installing & soldering

16

I too have had issues with the quality of Atlas Code 55 turnouts in the past, the weak throwbar being one issue. Or in other instances one or both of the point rails come loose from the pins holding them in place. Lately I’ve noticed that I have problems with certain cars derailing on a couple of my installed #5 turnouts. Eventually I figured out that the metal frogs were slightly raised and were not flush with the rails. I’ve had to file down the frog to fix the problem.

I am building any new turnouts I need with Fast Tracks products which always results in smooth problem-free trackwork. I don’t want to rag on the quality of Atlas products, as for the most part they’re pretty reliable. But it’s definitely annoying when these problems pop up.

Keep the updates coming, I always look forward to your informative posts.

Frank B.

Dorval, Canada

17

Thanks, Frank.
Usually I handlay turnouts myself, but as I built most of this in less than a week for a show, I went with the Atlas (though now I wonder if I could have built 20 turnouts in a day. Hmm…)

The other issue with Atlas C55 turnouts is with the “bumps” / tie clips.
For some reason, they seem to be a hair tall for many wheel flanges, leading the wheel to “pop up” right before the frog.

A few passes with a file seems to do the trick, as does making sure your wheels are perfectly in gauge.

If I do get major issues with the Atlas turnouts, then I’ll definitely replace them with handlaid (unless it’s the day of a show :wink: )

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Sooooooo, last night I tried replacing a throwbar on an already-installed turnout and tweeked the point rail: they really like to bend and pop out of the hinge!
I think it’ll be repairable, but otherwise I don’t mind replacing one with a handlaid turnout.

But, thinking about how people had been talking about shims, I decided to give it a try.
There’s a little channel in the throwbar under each stockrail, so I just slipped a small section of 0.02" x 0.06" styrene strip into the space:

Seems to work great.
I also tried 0.03" x 0.06", but that thickness doesn’t allow any give around the point clip, and the tension pops the point rail out of the hinge hole after a bit.
The 0.02" x 0.06" is still thin enough to slide under the point rail clip & allow it some play, while still keeping the throwbar down under the stockrail to keep the point rail flush (and not ride up like it had been).

So far, I think you only have to do it on the side opposite the ground throw / bullfrog wire, but the groundthrow might be keeping that side down.
When I install a Bullfrog I’ll see how it works, but it seems the worst case is that I slide another styrene strip on the throwbar under that side of the stockrail.

K.I.S.S. really is a great principle to live by.
Thanks to all who made all the suggestions / alt ways to skin the cat!

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Here’s a short “How To” video on how to improve the Atlas C55 turnouts by adding shims to the throwbar:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CA87ZvHJQd

I’ll do another one on how I replace the throwbar with a PC board tie later (probably this weekend).

I’ve also started installing the Bullfrog turnout controls to the module.
As there’s no 2" pink foam, I added a spacer made out of 2" chunks of 1"x2"s.
Here’s with the control knob pushed in:

And pulled out:

Notice that I built the turnouts without the rod support option: the Bullfrogs in the center don’t need the Tadpoles as the red control rod sheathes are stiff enough when short enough.
When I install one on the side of the module I might need a Tadpole for the far side.
We’ll see!

The travel distance is about 1 1/8".
Not thrilled with the distance (or the bright yellow of the rod), but I really dig the Bullfrogs themselves: keeps the points firmly secured and easy to power the frogs.

To protect the knobs and have something useful on the yard module I built some small shelves 4" high that stick out about 2":

[Haven’t installed them yet: will drill all the holes for the Bullfrog knobs first]
But not only to they protect the knobs, but will give us a surface other than the layout to place our Powercab

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I had an issue with HO-scale Atlas turnouts, Code 83 snap-switches, about a year and a half ago. Atlas is in the process of moving their flex-track production from one Chinese factory to another. I’m wondering if some of these quality control issues are a result of the move, or perhaps a reason for it.

On a brighter note, I know this is a “staging” yard, but since it is seen by the public, will you be putting in some scenery, at least?