Walthers 90' Turntable
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Do you need a 90' turntable for HOn3? That seems pretty long!
We took a regular one and shorten it down to fit a 9" cake pan that we cut down on a lathe. Using all the roller bearings it works well. We just manually operate it which is the way the East Broad Top is done now anyways. And it fits all our engines.
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Selector
Well-Known Member
The built-up indexed model or the u-build-it model? I trashed my u-build-it because it did not work out once it was assembled. I motorized the kit and had endless problems with it. I found a partial solution to the bridge binding against parts of the pit wall, and to the wobbles. I also had to modify the centre post assembly to keep the copper wipers in place against their brass rings.
The indexed built-up model is an out-and-out gem, and worth every penny.
You should mock up the interface between the roundhouse and the pit. Place the pit where you would like it to be, keeping clearances and such in mind....what will be around it? Any radial tracks outdoors leading off it besides those inside the roundhouse? Make room. How about landscaping around it? You can do this mockeup with pieces of trimmed cardboard, or invert the pit and do an eyeballing estimate of alignment and distances apart so that you know you are close...before you cut the hole for the turntable! The TT takes up a lot of room, but add a roundhouse, especially a five stall one, and you are taking up one chunk of space. Keep an eye on clearances behind the roundhouse and at its wide corners. Any tracks back there will need proper clearance, particularly with large engines and long passenger cars and such.
Then, place the house so that its centre axis is pointed very closely (essentially directly) at the pivot axis of the bridge, and place disposable, maybe leftover sections of flextrack in the bays. Ideally, it would be good to have their ends abut the stops at the back of the bay channels if your roundhouse has them. Then, line of the tracks with the bridge, moving the bridge to line up with each bay. Adjust the distance between the lip of the pit and the apron at the doors of each bay until you get the best alignment possible. In my case, I elected to trim the outer ties on both outer tracks of my 3-staller so that the flex sections could bow outward with a radial curvature of about 40", maybe 50"...never checked. That gentle curve allowed very nice alignment at the pit inner lip and the bridge rails.
Pay attention to the heights of rails as they meet with the bridge rails atop the lip. I use Code 100, so I felt obliged to Dremel in a shallow groove for each rail on the lip surface. Removing two ties, I glued the rails into those channels, making sure the channels were sufficiently deep to match rail heights with the smaller bridge rails. If you are using Code 83, I'd say you're almost all the way home already in that respect.
If using the built-up model, remember to not fix the pit in place where the electrical gap will interfere with power to the locomotives once the bridge is aligned with the track you place at that orientation, whether to a bay track or one of your outdoor radials. Dont' forget this step...verify once you have it figured out by powering the system temporarily and seeing if the engines keep power to them when they are aligned with all your intended radials.
Any other questions?
The indexed built-up model is an out-and-out gem, and worth every penny.
You should mock up the interface between the roundhouse and the pit. Place the pit where you would like it to be, keeping clearances and such in mind....what will be around it? Any radial tracks outdoors leading off it besides those inside the roundhouse? Make room. How about landscaping around it? You can do this mockeup with pieces of trimmed cardboard, or invert the pit and do an eyeballing estimate of alignment and distances apart so that you know you are close...before you cut the hole for the turntable! The TT takes up a lot of room, but add a roundhouse, especially a five stall one, and you are taking up one chunk of space. Keep an eye on clearances behind the roundhouse and at its wide corners. Any tracks back there will need proper clearance, particularly with large engines and long passenger cars and such.
Then, place the house so that its centre axis is pointed very closely (essentially directly) at the pivot axis of the bridge, and place disposable, maybe leftover sections of flextrack in the bays. Ideally, it would be good to have their ends abut the stops at the back of the bay channels if your roundhouse has them. Then, line of the tracks with the bridge, moving the bridge to line up with each bay. Adjust the distance between the lip of the pit and the apron at the doors of each bay until you get the best alignment possible. In my case, I elected to trim the outer ties on both outer tracks of my 3-staller so that the flex sections could bow outward with a radial curvature of about 40", maybe 50"...never checked. That gentle curve allowed very nice alignment at the pit inner lip and the bridge rails.
Pay attention to the heights of rails as they meet with the bridge rails atop the lip. I use Code 100, so I felt obliged to Dremel in a shallow groove for each rail on the lip surface. Removing two ties, I glued the rails into those channels, making sure the channels were sufficiently deep to match rail heights with the smaller bridge rails. If you are using Code 83, I'd say you're almost all the way home already in that respect.
If using the built-up model, remember to not fix the pit in place where the electrical gap will interfere with power to the locomotives once the bridge is aligned with the track you place at that orientation, whether to a bay track or one of your outdoor radials. Dont' forget this step...verify once you have it figured out by powering the system temporarily and seeing if the engines keep power to them when they are aligned with all your intended radials.
Any other questions?
Last edited by a moderator:
Thanks for the response. I have the roundhouse and turntable set in place and it seemed to go smoothly. Now I will take the turntable out and paint/weather it and install it completely. The only issue I came across was they only supply you with 1/2" screws and my benchwork in the yard is 3/4" plywood w/ 1/2" homosote on top, so somewhere I need to find longer screws that are super thin so they will still fit into the bottom of the turntable. I will attempt to add the pictures. If they don't come through I'll try again laterView attachment 10986
View attachment 10988
View attachment 10987
View attachment 10988
View attachment 10987
Selector
Well-Known Member
I have never installed a turntable using screws. I merely ensure that they are flat and flush against the hole edges, supported by the lip of the pit. This has worked very well, particularly since I also glue the bay rail tips and the lead tips, plus those of any outdoor radials, into the grooves I grind as I described earlier. Once the tracks are ballasted (or "dirted" in a yard and service area) that and the glued rails provide a ballast of sorts for the turntable, and I have never sensed the barest hint of instability. It is rock solid. So, if you are following much the same procedure, you can forget any other hardware in my opinion.
The turntable wasn't the object of this photo, more-so the yard. But here you can see what it looked like before I weathered it.
The turntable wasn't the object of this photo, more-so the yard. But here you can see what it looked like before I weathered it.
NYC_George
Well-Known Member
Engine house track power
I don’t see any power attached to the engine house tracks. Is it soldered from under the bench work or something? The photo below shows how I attached power to my tracks.
NYC_George
I don’t see any power attached to the engine house tracks. Is it soldered from under the bench work or something? The photo below shows how I attached power to my tracks.
NYC_George
Selector
Well-Known Member
That should do nicely. I did mine up through the bench top, but between the pit lip and the edge of the apron in front of the bay doors on my Atlas model roundhouse. The only thing I would worry about would be if a solder eventually let go for some reason, you have to redo it...the roof is removable? I had no interest in detailing my interior, so the roof is permanently glued. If one of my solders lets go, it is buried under plaster. It would be relatively easy to get at it.
I have not wired mine yet. What I was/am planning on doing is wiring the track leads between the roundhouse and turntable pit. These pieces will be approx. 5" long. My roof will be permanent as well so if I did have any problems I could get to them by scraping away ballast/dirt and re soldering the feeders. I do like the way you did yours on the inside also and may do that now just to make sure I have good connections throughout.
talbot-imber
New Member
HOn3 Turntable
Does anyone have a view as to how practical it is to convert Walthers 90' built-up turntable to HOn3?
Does anyone have a view as to how practical it is to convert Walthers 90' built-up turntable to HOn3?
Trucula
Drum Driver
Do you need a 90' turntable for HOn3? That seems pretty long!
We took a regular one and shorten it down to fit a 9" cake pan that we cut down on a lathe. Using all the roller bearings it works well. We just manually operate it which is the way the East Broad Top is done now anyways. And it fits all our engines.
Selector
Well-Known Member
It would be easy in the case of a dual gauge track system...just add the third rail between the outer two, and add a third rail to one of the bays.
But, if you are strictly HOn30/36, just offset the lead coming to the bridge and insert that third rail on the bridge. Removing the two rails and then re-establishing them set to gauge will be a bit of work, but not a monster project. Perhaps a couple of hours? You'd want to remove the power tower and the railings, and then use a sharp hobby knife to get the rails out of their channels. Once they are free, you could sand off any channel residue, maybe fill behind them (that would be a lot of work), and then gauge two more rails.
But, if you are strictly HOn30/36, just offset the lead coming to the bridge and insert that third rail on the bridge. Removing the two rails and then re-establishing them set to gauge will be a bit of work, but not a monster project. Perhaps a couple of hours? You'd want to remove the power tower and the railings, and then use a sharp hobby knife to get the rails out of their channels. Once they are free, you could sand off any channel residue, maybe fill behind them (that would be a lot of work), and then gauge two more rails.
talbot-imber
New Member
I have just bought Heljan 70 foot turntable which is ideal for narrow guage and just needs adjustment to fit HOn3.
This is identical to the 90 foot and 130 foot turntables as Heljan makes Walthers' turntables, so no need for reversing module as turntable rail polarity is reversed automatically in the design of the rail power feeds.
The size is ideal as many narrow gauge turntables were 65 foot
Thanks for all your help
This is identical to the 90 foot and 130 foot turntables as Heljan makes Walthers' turntables, so no need for reversing module as turntable rail polarity is reversed automatically in the design of the rail power feeds.
The size is ideal as many narrow gauge turntables were 65 foot
Thanks for all your help
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