Ya, I'm with you. Yes, a transfer table would be nice, BUT I would really like a single cross over, reliable pre-wired track, and the winning lottery ticket. Arrrrg.
Sorry for the dupe link, I thought the one today was something different from the previous. I think my socks are sufficiently displaced, but I need to see what it has under the hood. It's obviously indexed so the next questions are... Is it DCC compatible? Is it DCC controllable? Natively with a built-in decoder? Or via an external decoder/power source? Price for turntable? Roundhouse? Stall tracks? Availability? This is about perfect for my needs, size and looks-wise. I'm leaning toward modeling Amarillo as a visible staging yard, but quasi-sceniced and this turntable and roundhouse are both close enough to give the "flavor" of the former-ATSF facilities there, and with the durability and functionality of Unitrack. SO, yeah, 100% sock separation here.
Because they are still the standard for N scale outside North America, all Kato's Japanese locos come with replacement knuckle couplers. The loco is the lastest run of the D51 2-8-2 with Hokkaido specific detailing and oblong Giesel Ejector smoke stack, the fourth version of the D51 they have released in two years.
Rats, nearly exactly what i asked for, but it doesnt look big enough for big steam. I hope a manual atlas table can be rigged for dcc, even though i'd have to manually turn it, its big enough and economical Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
Yep Marty... that is also what I was looking at. Looks too small for the big steamers. Certainly a good product for someone that has Unitrack and will only be turning diesels and smaller steamers. I would imagine this table will be rigged for DC/DCC... otherwise there might be fewer takers here. Again... probably a great item for the Japanese market, generally speaking... it may be less well received stateside... unless the price is reasonably lower than the alternatives (e.g. Walthers DCC turn table). Oh well... my socks are coming off... but only because my feet were sweating this announcement and now the socks need to be washed... LOL
The video shows a large controller box. It would be nice if Kato could make a controller as slick as the one Arnold Rapido once had. It looked like a miniature turntable with an outer dial to select the track and a center indicator that followed the movement of the bridge - similar to the controllers for some tv or ham radio antenna rotators.
I counted 32 ties on that table. Looks to be typical Unitrack tie spacing. I just measured 32 ties on a straight piece of Unitrack. That makes that turntable bridge only 6 1/4 inches long !!!!! :wideeyes: Definately NOT a 'knock your socks off' moment !!! :uhoh::closedmouth:
Am I in error thinking that Kato single cross over would not be that difficult to construct within certain limits of center to center tracking spacing? All one would need to do is cut rail and roadbed to fit together at the correct length. I would do so removing more roadbed from one that the other and sliding rails into the tie and rail holders of the other. Feeders could be soldered from beneath to make wiring easier and sufficient. Just my thoughts....FWIW Respectfully Gary L Lake Dillensnyder
Calzephyr I am thinking, as I also would like a transfer table, that it would be an easier scratch built structure than a turntable given is rectangular shape and straight rails in the pit. Of course I get it that a manual operating one would be not be as nice as an automated--providing electronic starting and stopping at any pre-determined position. But, I would guess manual is better than none. Also, would this not be something that could be made in shapeways process, making the bridge and pit as two separate pieces to which hardware would be applied? Any thoughts? Thanks....respectfully, Gary L Lake Dillensnyder
Very possible... Either way...I dont think its a 'knock your socks off' item for most Unitrack users ;-) JMO...YMMV
The turntable is a prototypical size for Japan where you don't find all that many Big Boys. A turntable long enough for one is not going to sell to the majority of Kato's customers.
It is a perfect product for the Japanese market and the types of steam and diesel locomotives typically found in Japan. It unfortunately is a limiting size for the US market where it would not be useful for large steam locomotives and A/B lash-ups of diesels. Let me guess... the Japanese DON'T turn their bullet trains on a turntable... LOL (You know I'm kidding... right?)
Many years ago, a German manufacturer made a transfer table for N Scale with optional extensions. Back then, I didn't know what they were used for... so I ignored them. When I found out they were similar to turn tables... used in the maintenance areas... I was not impressed. They were expensive in their day (1970's - 1980's)... I wouldn't be surprised if they were not drawing much interest from N scalers. I believe the manufacturer was either Arnold or Fleishmann... and the cost was over $100.00 for the main unit... extensions were not much cheaper. Building a transfer table from scratch is certainly much easier than building a turn table from scratch. The motorizing and indexing is a real concern... and there-in lies the reason 'I' for one won't consider building one from scratch. A manual transfer table... just like a manual turn table just doesn't have that "WOW" factor like the remotely controlled ones. BTW... here's an article from Model Railroad Hobbyist magazine on how to build a motorized transfer table. http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/4293
