Mounting tortoise control rod at an angle

[notabob]

As I'm starting to lay down track, one of the throwbars of my double-crossover is ending up directly above a support leg in the benchwork. I'm planning on using tortoises. The attached diagram shows the location that the throwbar is over and the proposed angled control rod hole through the cork/foam/plywood. I would prefer not to change the design and move the crossover due to limited space. I am curious if anyone has successfully installed a tortoise so that the control rod goes through the sub-roadbed at an angle, instead of straight up/down. Any other suggestions for getting this working are also welcome. Thanks in advance!

 

[gregamer]

I've never done it at an extreme angle, but I've bent those throw rods pretty liberally to get the right throw. Do you have foam subroadbed that would be thick enough to hide an actuating mechanism? Or could you bury an actuating rod and mount the Tortoise
Remotely?


Greg Amer
The Industrial Lead
gregamer.com

 

[notabob]

I've never done it at an extreme angle, but I've bent those throw rods pretty liberally to get the right throw. Do you have foam subroadbed that would be thick enough to hide an actuating mechanism? Or could you bury an actuating rod and mount the Tortoise
Remotely?


Greg Amer
The Industrial Lead
gregamer.com

The subroadbed is 1" thick, so not deep enough for the tortoise. By burying the actuating rod, did you mean pre-cut a wide enough groove in the subroadbed and bend the actuating rod into an S-shape to move the tortoise placement further out (see attached). Eliminates the extreme angle, but the problem with this approach, of course, is that any problems with the actuating rod will now require ripping out the track and roadbed instead of simply pulling it out through the straight hole...

 

[Cjcrescent]

Tortoise makes an attachment that allows you to use two torti (?) to throw a double crossover, or one to throw a single. It is also made for mounting a tortoise off to a side of the track in situations where the machine can't be mounted directly underneath the turnout.

I've used this before on a friends layout where the tortoise was mounted almost a foot away. It worked flawlessly.

 

[John P]

Does the design of the turnout allow you to attach some kind of extension to the throwbar which would allow you to locate the Tortoise off to the side? I'm just thinking of a wire link, nothing very fancy.

I have a whole menagerie of adaptations for Tortoise machines to deal with differing mounting situations. In retrospect, some were better ideas than others.

This one is for a place where there isn't much clearance under the turnout, but it wouldn't work for a place where there is woodwork right under the throwbar:
http://files.myopera.com/John98wbr/albums/661338/1n_a.jpg

 

[ianacole]

Can you notch the leg, or move it along either plane of the bench work? I have an idea about using the arm to throw the turnout rotationally, but won't be able to draw out my thoughts until tomorrow. Model Railroader had an article last month (?) on mounting tortoise machines sideways, and using the arm to move swing another arm that had the fulcrum through the substrate, rotating the other end as it's attached to the turnout throw. Let's see if I can show this...

Ignore the dots (or look at them as the foam). The lines are bent wire, with the left side going though the hole in the switch throw. The tortoise machine is mounted sideways so the arm swings side-to-side, and the wire arm from the switch through is routed through a loop formed at the end of the tortoise wire arm:
__
| |
...|
...|
...|_____0-----Tortoise arm

Maybe? ...doesn't do it justice, but I can draw something more technical tomorrow.

 

[Brett_Henderson]

For the sake of installation and tuning, and for long term reliability... I'd first try to modify the benchwork.. Move the leg, or stagger the leg, or partially skelotonize the leg/benchwork.. ie.. metal brackets or braces..

 

[notabob]

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone! Brett - you bring up a great point about future serviceability. I'm going to try to see if I can cut a groove in the top of the leg deep enough to reach the control rod hole below the throwbar and mount the tortoise with its back to the plywood and top/fulcrum facing the leg. That should allow for future servicing/maintenance without having to do anything to the foam.