My layout in some places has 3 inches of foam board below the track. I want to use tortoise machines instead of servos. My only problem is that getting the linkage to actually move the switch points through 3 inches of foam. Any ideas on what to do for linkage? Thanks.
On a layout that I had from 2001 to 2013, I mounted the turnouts and Tortoise on a piece 1/8 inch acrylic and mounted that into a cutout in the foam. There were two like this and they never gave me any trouble. The photo below was taken while I was dismantling the layout.
I am interested how folks solve this issue. Simplifying the mounting of under table switch machines partially drove my decision to replace 2" foam with 1/2" homasote on my current layout.
I flip the tortoise pivot bracket up-side down so that I can get it even closer to the moving point. I also substitute a larger diameter wire, I think it is .032 inch diameter. I have to drill out the pivot bracket hole and the hole in the moving arm in order to accomodate the larger diameter wire.
Its kind of hard to explain and I don't have photos handy - yet. If you look at the typical solenoid-style horizontal throw, you make a linkage out of steel wire in 1/16" brass K&S tubing, with a "J" bend at the top (tip goes in the throw rod) and another "J" bend at the bottom. The tip of the bottom "J" goes to the solenoid throw, usually with an extension on the solenoid arm made out of more steel wire. Solenoid throws sideways just like it does on a top mount, in any orientation. I've done that for years. The real trick with a Tortise is to figure out how to mount one sideways and do it easily. I've taken standard 2" wood framing reinforcement plates (galvanized steel) and bent them in a square "J" shape so that the base of the "J" is the same dimension as the usual top of the Tortoise, and secured them to that with self-tapping screws into the plastic case. I drill a 1/16 hole through both the tip and the side of the J, so that the long side of the J is on the bottom of the layout benchwork - secure that with screws. The brass tube goes through the side and tip of the "J" so it is steady and perfectly aligned. Long side of the J mounts to the table, tortoise mounts to the base, throw rod ends up on the bottom throwing horizontally just like a solenoid. You assemble the solenoid on the plate, thread the rod through the hole you drilled, bend and adjust the linkage to fit. I take that steel wire that comes with it and just rebend it into a narrow hook shape to catch the steel wire from the switch. Those steel plates are easy to use, sturdy, cheap, predrilled, and allow you to swing the machine around in any direction that works to fit. It's really rugged and not hard to adjust, either. And stays put. I had to come up with this on the Ross Run module simply for clearance reasons - it's a table-top module and I can't have Tortoise machines hanging down. They have to tuck up inside. But when you do this with the 1/16" brass rod and a steel wire linkage, there's almost no limit how much 'stuff' you can go through vertically to get up to track level. I have one that's six inches deep. I have solenoid mounts on my main layout that allow the solenoid to be mounted under the table and the rod to pop out two track levels above - so I can maintain the solenoid easily from the bottom. Works just as well with the Tortoise if you mount the whole thing sideways. Yet if I have to, I can take a couple screws out and drop the whole works for maintenance or adjustment.
I would very much like to see a picture or three. I am trying to visualize but having not much luck. I tend to be a hands-on type when doing mechanical things, so a picture is worth thousands of words. I will try re-reading slower and see if my mind can catch up...
Here you go. There are four jammed in this shot, on two levels of hidden trackage on a 21x42 inch tabletop module. The most 'conventional' mount is straight ahead with the J-bend, there are two 'no clearance' mounts on the track in the front, but you can see how the front of the Tortoise is attached to the steel reinforcement plates. Basically, once you get them sideways, you can set the vertical distance as long as you want. There's no precise dimensions, and as you can see, once you put a steel plate on the nose of one you can flip and mount it in almost any orientation to the actual switch you want. I've got ten of these on this module. Two of them are flipped horizontally so that they go up and down to raise and lower .015 wire between the rails to hold cars on grades to keep them from running away during switching operations. That same orientation also works to power grade crossing gates on my larger layout.
I believe what you are looking for is the Remote Tortoise™ Mount. Note the upside down "J" that randgust described. And it comes with a sideways mount that can be up to 18 inches away. http://www.circuitron.com/index_files/Tortoise.htm
I think the metal plates I bought were 59 cents each; K&S tubing and steel wire maybe another buck. But yeah, same idea. Convert the vertical motion to horizontal motion and use a conventional solenoid linkage approach. If you do home-brew, the distance between the top bend above the benchwork and the bottom bend to hit the crank is completely variable. One think I'll note is that on that design, the throw rod is on the top, between the machine and the benchwork. You can't see it or adjust it. On mine, I put it on the bottom so I can bend and adjust both the wire and the position of the pivot block. That steel wire can take a lot of motion to convert it to about 1/8" above the benchwork on the top by the time you're done. I've got three turnouts on the module that require a remote throw where the distance between the roadbed and the bottom of the module is only 3/4". That took some rather bizarre mounts to achieve. Two of those mounts are in that photo. The entire 21x42 portable layout is designed to simply set on a folding table top, so nothing, but nothing, can protrude out of the bottom below the benchwork. Tortoises made a lot of sense because I used as many Peco C55 electrofrogs as I could; I had to hot-route power to several areas using the contacts. That four-turnout 'Cramfest' is at the top center of this photo; that was taken before they were all installed on the two levels:
So true on the price, but for ten bucks, it was worth my time. Just a small correction... The remote is supplied with a three inch piece of piano wire. Since you have to bend it yourself into the J shape, it is completely adjustable to board thickness. Of course the OP would just need to bend a longer wire to get through the 3 inches of foam. I don't mean to sound like a pain in the neck, but... The switch mount uses a sliding block attached to a fully adjustable cam arm. No throw wires attach to the switch. This set up can be adjusted for very short or very long throws. If you note the picture, the block attached to the cam moves back and forth. A sheathed wire then attaches to the block with the other end attached to a similar block on the remote up to 18 inches away. As a bonus, the remote can operate two turnouts. Here is a SMAIL (DCC equipped Tortoise) operating two turnouts on my shelf track using two remotes. In this situation, I am also using the Tortoise's two built in SPDT switches to juice the frogs.
I think I'm gonna do something with that L bracket set up seems cost effective and I just picked up a six pack of tortoise machines...wish me luck. This should keep me busy for a while!
Now how about adding power to the frog? If I am using DCC on the layout and DC to power the tortoise can I still add power to the frog?
I actually came up with an easy solution. I installed the tortoise using heavier gauge steel wire and slid that into a brass tube and that made everything really rigid. It works great!
