OK, I learned the hard way about ballast seeping into my turnouts. So I dismantled 3/4 of them to clean and restore to their easy switching. Finally done with that I have been wiring them into my control panel. Now I am finding many of them will not switch at all, some buzz, some don't, some switch a few times and then quit. I've had these things apart so many times I think I have memorized the layout of the inner workings. Does anyone have any insight into getting these turnouts to function reliably?
The Rokuhan turnout is two wire control so only a single coil and a magnet are used. They require 10vdc to control them and the polarity of the DC determines which way the points are thrown. you need a three position spring loaded to center off lever switch on-off-on, with two poles and you only need a momentary contact to throw the points. You do not need much current so only milli amps of power not amps. There was resource from David K Smith with all the info you might need but I can not find this evening when I googled looking for it.
About the only way I can think of for these units to buzz are to power them by an AC/DCC source. Garth, As far as I know all of DKS's work is offline. Mark
Yes, unfortunately all of DKS's work is offline now, but fortunately the internet archive has most if not all of this treasure trove available. Try https://web.archive.org/web/20140107225157/http://jamesriverbranch.net/ Hope you get that problem sorted out Adrian
I am using a 9 volt DC wall transformer for power and DPDT center off momentary switches. I did do a little homework before starting. Some of the switches work just fine, even several that are paired with a single switch. Some of them do indeed buzz with no discernable movement of the points. I have them all so they will switch manually just fine now, but baffled by the electrical issues. I can't see anything wrong on the inside. This layout is in a coffee table under glass and manual switching is not an option. I am thinking I may not be able to have full operation.
I have had this problem with one of the two switches on my current micro. I am working on an extreme solution. I will write up the results when I have them ;-)
Those turnouts are prone to freezing up by glue and ballast by design. The sliding mechanism is not covered by a bottom plate like the MT turnouts. So any stray glue or adhesives that can work its way under will gum them up quicker than the MT turnouts. I like the power routing, but I am not going to be using any more of these turnouts, I will order some more MT for my layout extension. In my humble experience they are not as robust as the MT, plus they still look so darn clunky. I wish we had a turnout with the sizes of rokuhan, but the tie spacing and internal design of MT.
I guess I'm not the only nit picker on these switches. I'm not very happy with the stamped switch points. I get a lot of malfunctioning in the switch points.
UP Clark: Can you define 'malfunctioning' ? Many of us have vivid imaginations, others . . . well, just don't understand. Me have answers, solutions or suggestions or, it could be something uniquely new to us. For those that are reballasting the turnouts, it is possible to seal the turnout base and periphery entry points (like the manual position). While it generally takes a lot of 1:1 Glue:Water for typical flex track ballasting, less is needed for just the sides. At the turnouts themselves, use a bead of Acrylic caulking to fill the bottom edge, run your finger over it to smooth it. Quickly (but lightly) mist with fine spray water (to keep it 'tacky' a bit longer). Then distribute the ballast on. Use just enough, as you will need a finish coat after the first Glue:water session. After lightly misting with Soap water (1 guart/liter with 2-3 drops of dish soap), use just enough Glue:water to wet the ballast. You can re-glue it after a final touch-up of additional ballast
So the Acrylic caulk keeps the underside free from the later glue and ballast? Interesting. I never thought of that. I had success ballasting with the MT turnouts in the past but I just had to keep turning the points while the glue/ballast was drying. So with patience I've keep those "free" so to say. When I did a rokuhan every time I turned the points I got more glue deeper into that slide mechanism. Real pain. However, that caulk idea makes sense. once dry the rest should never touch the underside, like a tub in the bathroom. Great tip! I'll have to experiment as it seems very bullet proof too.
You will also have to do the underside, at the joiners. You can 'transition' to the outer edges, trackside (you don't have to put any under the turnout). Just think where liquid could get in from outside. On the turnouts (märklin, MTL, Rokuhan, Peter Wrights or the N-scale ones), I place a micro drop of oil (or Conduct Lube, Neverstall, etc). on the Points-to-Stock rail contact, electrical contacts to the rail (bottom on märklin) or points pivots. Use the ultra-thin syringe tips like A-West models, NOT the large tube on the Labelle, Atlas, etc. That's too much. Water and glue won't stick !
