Do you have any comments or recommendations on a turntable that would work with 027 track? I am considering options already for Christmas gifts to myself and am looking at the Atlas O one. Don’t see much else out there. See http://www.atlaso.com/oturntable.htm
Doug,
Unfortunately, there are few options out there (short of building your own). Bowser makes several for O gauge, but they are pretty pricey. The Atlas O is less expensive and can be table-top mounted. Diamond Scale makes turntables, but I don’t know if one is available in O or not.
Doug,
Here are a couple of links for O guage turntables. I think that any type of track could be used with either model. Note that these are more of a craftsman type kit that would require a good deal of assembly and finish work. Unlike the Atlas model, these both sit below the table surface so a temporary set up probably wouldn’t be an option.
Please don’t consider this too dumb a suggestion, but 10 or 12 years ago the Lionel Railroader Club newsletter had a 1-page how-to about building a turntable using a Rubbermaid Lazy Susan. With the generally high price of turntables, since you’re running O-27, you might want to consider this basic approach.
You might consider “Bowser”. http://www.bowser-trains.com/ho_turntables.php
Re: AtlasO turntable = Pit diameter: 24"
Perhaps if you’re limited to 027 and by association smaller engines, this will not be a
problem. But you may want to measure your longest steam engine with tender and see if she’ll fit before you go forth with AtlasO.
Doug M,
Now you’ve got me thinking about building one. I don’t think anyone has ever tried this before but really, all you need to do is make a hole in the layout the size the the turntable with a jigsaw,
then use the cutlout circle as the base, connected to the layout.
then, you could find a turning device like an old turntable or even an A Drive from an old computer and mount that on the turntable floor.
That would spin your turntable girder around on a rail (you could bend an O27 rail around and make the dolly wheels with 2 brass washers attached to a round piece of brass. The axle could be readily made with brass as well, maybe with a round ball bearing-filled seal.
The turntable would be fairly easy to build with scrapwood or styrene (and fun too)
You could add a slow-speed stepper motor from Jameco or another outlet but why even both?
If the turntable is within reach, you could spin it by hand! That’s the part I don’t think anyone has done before. Usually they use motors or handcranks, but why not keep it simple?
You’ve got me thinking about this now!
Years ago, Lionel made a very basic turntable. I think it was only offered about three years (late 50s to about 1960). It was a simple circle of tubular rail with a short bridge track (basically a plain piece of O gauge track).
Has anyone seen or used one of these? I’ve heard they were not very reliable
A lazy susan or a build your own - what great ideas! Wonder what a Rubbermaid lazy susan looks like - or if they’re still out there (a simple search shows there’s a million of 'em out there) Especially hand-spinning it. I’m running things pretty basic as it is - with manual switches, etc. The bowser and diamond scale ones are a bit out of my price range - Good point, Tom, about the diameter of the Atlas one - because of 027 curves, I’m running pretty short engines. I like the ability to just place the Atlas one on the layout because there’s precious little to cut out to sink one into some foam board.
In my 1953 copy of Bantam’s Model Railroading, there is a photo of a scale 2 rail layout with a manual turntable. The sunken pit floor of the turntable was actually a very large diameter disc that extended beyond the edge of the layout. The perimeter edge of this disc then protruded out of a slot cut into the side of layout’s framework. You simply spun the wheel to turn the train without having to stick your hand right on the layout. Naturally you would have to position the turntable relatively close to the edge of the table or use a very large disc.
Doug: I have a Rubbermaid turntable, had it a long time now, & measures 10 & a half inches across. Last OTTS meeting, a fellow was telling us how he made one from a microwave turntable.
John,
Would be kinda neat to put brick paper on a microwave to simulate a roundhouse, run your engine into the microwave, set the setting for 2 or 3 seconds depending on which track you want it turned to and hit the start button. When the engine is at the correct track, the bell of the microwave would go off.
You could fry a bag of popcorn too if you let the locomtive spin a few minutes and then chug out with the bag.
Perhaps the microwave would fry the circuits tho, esp command control. 
I wrote the article below on this very subject which will be published in the Oct. issue of the Switcher, by L.O.T.S.
Here are some quick facts on my turntable project.
The pit was cut out from the table top using a RotoZip & a modified circular attachment. (Or, a jig saw
and a steady hand will also work.)
The ‘cutout’ then became the pit floor. Another smaller hole was then cut into this ‘floor’ to mount the
motor. A hole saw was used.
The pit walls were made from a single piece of thin flexible plastic.
The edges were joined using opposing 45º angles. It was then nailed to the cut out then to the hole.
The pit was then painted a flat ‘camo earth brown’.
The track inside the pit is HO flex and is used mainly for electrical pick-up to feed the bridge track.
The DC gear motor was from http://www.surpluscenter.com/ and its intended use was for rotating a
satellite dish. It has a special mounting plate that made it ideal for this use. (Sorry to say that at this
time this item is no longer available!)
The motor is controlled by a HO power pack making for some real slow action.
The bridge is made from (2) Lionel plastic model kits.
I don’t have the kit numbers but the instruction sheet says ‘Railroad Bridge’ (71-2968-250). With
simulated wood decking and one center support, it seems to be a pedestrian walk over type.
The center core of the bridge is white plastic molding found at home centers. I used this instead of
the cross members supplied with the kits for added strength.
The shanty on the bridge is from a Lionel/MPC drawbridge. (Or, you can use a cut down Plasticville
Switch Tower instead.)
I had originally planned on using an indexing system for stopping. But once I installed it, and had it
running, I found out how slow it can move in either direction. I quickly determined that an indexing
system was not needed. It is actually more fun lining it up with just by e
I built a simpler, cheaper 027 turntable in 1978 and it is still going strong. Cut out hole sized for two sections of 027 track about 18 1/2 inch diameter. (Wish it was a little longer for a turbine with long tender).
Used cut out center for a pulley under table. Installed 1 inch spacer and added bottom to pit. Screwed to the under side of pit, a 6 inch lazy susan bearing from hardware store $4. Screwed the 18 inch pulley to other side of lazy susan after installing card board flanges on pulley. Pulley hangs below pit, under the table.
Made a crank out a 6 inch x 1/4 inch bolt and mouted it with T nut bearings and added a disc with tee nut and regular nut to keep from coming loose on the disc. Added a knob to turn on the disc… Used a clothes dryer belt to drive the turntable pulley using the crank; Added a tensioning pulley. This requires the turntable to be near the edge of the layout where you will want it anyway to give it “hand help”. You line up the tracks by human eye just like the real turntables.
Mounted 3/8 inch dia 6 inch piece of tubing to the turntable pulley and mounted the turntable bridge to the tubing or pipe. Pinned them with holes and two finishing nails. Soldered twin wires to the track and ran it down thru the tubing. It just twists as the TT turns. (must make turns about equal number in each direction or install a connector to un wind wire).
TT bridge has four old 1/2 inch dia ball bearings as wheels out on the ends of the bridge to take the weight on the ends.
That is it. Less than $10 unless you have to buy a belt. I got mine for $8 way back. But any old used dryer belt, junked at the garbage or from an appliance store will do. New will cost you at least $20.
email me if you are interested is building one for pictures or more detailes.
see picture at link below
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b4cf22b3127cce999992e4e52700000025108IYsmrRoyb6
red knob is
Charlie,
Great turntable!
Ditto, Charlie for me. I may copy your idea!
I forgot to mention I installed a 10 position rotary switch from Rat Shack to select only one track to be energized at a time. There is a momentary on push button switch (black in picture) that must be held down to send power to that selected track and the track on the turntable. There is a light in the TT shack that lits when the track is energized.
Link below shows the selector switch on main control panel
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b4cf22b3127cce999992eee52d00000026108IYsmrRoyb6
picture of over all view of TT and scratch built round house etc. Building behind RH hides an enterance of train from behind background and allows trains to run striaight through. And kitbashed coaling tower for Plasticville sloped roof CT.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b4cf22b3127cce999992e6e52500000036108IYsmrRoyb6
Charlie
Great photos and good ideas, but the Atlas is still the quick & easy way to go.The indexing is absolutely perfect, without all the fancy electronics of Bowser, and no permanent hole in the layout. That said, Charlie, I really wish I had your talent for modeling. My old turntable was made from an Erector set and spun on a circle of 027 track with an Ace Hardware 4" dia.Lazy Susan bearing plate in the center. Looked horrible, and the Atlas was a Godsend.
Good Evening Doug,
Give Steve a call at Ross Custom Switches. Steven has been working on a turntable for awhile.
Ask him how soon will it be marketed. When Steve makes it, you can be sure it will be the best.
Take care and have a great Friday.
Jimmy
Thanks Jim, I may do just that - as Art mentioned, the Atlas turntable certainly would be an easy fix - but for $124 or so, I like the excuse to think about this as a project.
I have been experimenting with bolts and bearings and cardboard and wood - I’m seeing how much of a gap I can have between tracks. How do you power the track on the turntable? Separately I guess from the ‘incoming’ track. If I use the same power source, and run an engine onto the turntable, then spin it, won’t my power connections to the turntable track - assuming I’ve fed them up through the spinner be reversed in comparision to the main track?