When utilizing a liftout section for entry into an around-the-wall layout, how is electrical current maintained throughout the track? Is this a quick process of out and in, or is there a bit of fiddling around to line up the rails afterwards?
Sorry, I don’t know how to directly link you to this thread, but go back to Mar 2, (date of last response) and there is a thread “Electrical Disconnect for Lift Out Sections.” You can also go to the right hand column down to Community Search and will get many responses.
Simple answer is that it is not too difficult to get track to align and contact be made. Alignment can be done with triangular wooden blocks or tapered edges of your lift out… Some folks have more elaborate methods. Electrical contact can be a plate on the layout and a matching plate on the lift out that contact each other when together.
Some layouts I have seen (modular traveling laayouts that see a lot of moving around) have rerailers each side of the gap to help in case the alignment isn’t as good as it should be.
There are also a number of lock types you can use to hold it in place, if necessary.
One thing you will want to do is to wire your layout so that when your lift out is taken out that a few feet of track each side of the gate loose power. This is to keep trains from diving into the opening.
You can also search the Magazine Index under RESOURCES above to find magazine articles on the various methods of making gates.
Good luck,
Richard
Three main concerns:
a. That repeated lifting and replacement of the lift-out bridge results in consistent alignment of the rails;
b. That current gets to the rails reliably; and
c. That your trains can’t find their way inadvertently to the gap and fall into it on either side of the gap.
You should figure out how to safely insert the bridge in a robust set-up that can’t get damaged, eroded, or knocked out of kilter over time. I used wooden blocks made of pieces of 1X2 spruce, and shaped the bottom of my bridge to fit into the blocking arrangement solidly.
For electrical contact, I relied on short wood screws sitting on stell brackets that were bolted to the blocks. Wires were soldered to the brackets for power. Power transmission was across the steel bracket and screw gap because the screws acted as the ‘bridge shoes’ in that the entire bridge rested on four screw heads driven up into the wood frame. Feeder wires wrapped around the screw heads provide power to the rails on the bridge surface. So far, mine works reliably.
In the photo below, note the inverted L-brackets on the blockings’ inside shoulders. Below the horizontal ‘flange’ of the bridge, you can see the screws around which feeder wires are wrapped. The screws can be backed out or driven in a half turn to get perfect seating, and are perpetually adjustable.
I had a liftout section on my old layout. I fed the power to the liftout section using electrical spade connectors that also connected to the approaches. When I unplugged the liftout, it killed the power to the approaches, as well. This prevented any “Cassandra Crossing” moments.
These may be helpful as a guide: