OK so I didn’t think this through enough when I layed the track down and now I am looking for solutions to my mess. Here is my dilema. I layed my track down on 2 inch beaded foam which is on top of 3/8" thick plywood. I predrilled where I thought I would put a tortuise switch machine under the layout…problem is I lined it up to the side of the switch, not the middle.Made sense at the time. When i brought the switches home I realized that if I mount them this way I will have a huge hole where the rod comes to the switch. Still I mounted four of them on a double crossover and have yet to hook them up due to the fact that they don’t line up good and tweek the track when thown and thinking i should try something different.This was after I finished ALL my track. I have since done scenery because I have been trying to avoid it and think of a way to solve this problem. Any suggestions that don’t require me ripping out all my switches and starting over? Might have to go to manual switch throws or maybe top mounted switch machines.
I have dones something that I was very advised not to do I measured where the switch is from the front of the layout, I then Marked it on the bottom of the layout and drilled throught he wood and 2’ foam under the switch. I havent ripped a switch apart yet but everyone that hears that I did this always said your (&& crazy I would never do that. I then got a perfect line up everytime. go fast through the wood then as soon as you feel the drill go through slow down and have someone watching from the top if possible.
I am reading this that you have drilled all your holes(incorrectly) already, off to the side? It should be fairly easy to measure(from the original hole) and drill a second hole from underneath through the plywood only in the corrected place, then, as you have used beaded foam you could use a soldering Iron to go up through the foam, it should contract away from the heat leaving a hole for your actuating pin. use plasterclothe to cover anyholes you now dont need.
(be carefull not to melt the ties with the soldering iron when you get there, but the foam should melt away quick enough for this not to be a problem)
Have fun & be safe,
Karl.
That sounds like a good idea. Looks like I’m going to be under the layout for a really long time.
Thanks
Or get the remote mount. Then you can drill through the throwbar and poke through the foam, since you only need a hole for a pivoting actuator. You could add the extra cable and actuator to run the crossover off of one machine, or two, if you want to control them as two single crossovers.
Karl, I wouldn’t recommend melting the foam, especially in a confined area such as under the layout. Depending on what type foam he used, the fumes can be hazardous.
I’d recommend drilling the wood as Karl suggested, and cutting through the foam with a sharp knife.
For future installations, you need to modify your sequence of construction. First, locate and drill the holes for the switch machine. Lay the track. Mount and wire the machine and adjust it as needed. Once it works properly, proceed with ballast and scenery. I usually run the “plywood central” for a while to make sure things are working properly before moving on to ballast and scenery.
Here’s a couple of other solutions (please excuse the crude sketches - I was in a hurry!):
Both of these examples use a home made linkage made of brass tubing and rod. The rod should be about 1/16" or 3/32" and the tubing large enough for the rod to turn freely in it.
Drill a hole centered between the first two ties, (after the throwbar - see sketch), through the foam and ply that will hold the tubing snugly. You should be able to do this without damaging the ties too much if at all.
Drill a hole through the center of the throwbar if there isn’t one already. Insert the tube in the hole between the ties, secure it with superglue or some 5 min epoxy. Make a U-shape bend in one end of the rod so that when inserted in the tube the pin end will reach the hole in the throwbar. Trim the pin end to about 1/8" (short enough so as not to dig into the foam beneath the switch).
On the underside of the benchwork, the rod has to be bent to line up with whatever type switch machine you are going to use, but basically you repeat the bends you made on top in the opposite direction or at 90 degrees depending on how the machine actuates. Paint the visible part of the rod (on the top) black or rust and it will virtually dissapear.
If the existing hole lines up with the throwbar, you can insert the tube in it and secure it with some hotglue, the rest is the same.
