13 ft of fiddle yard in 4ft x 2ft

Having finished the installation of my wall hung baseboard framework, below, I decided on a sector plate to operate my fiddle yard in preference to the turntable I made in another thread.








It is made from reclaimed 1/2" plywood from the demolished village hall, as is the base board frame, hence the emulsion paint on one side.






The darker shade surface is French polished [only to seal the grain] before being sanded smooth, and a little talc applied to make a slidey surface. Each track is esigned to take 3 carriages or 9 wagons and the small sector plate has an 11" table.




Accurate repeatable indexing of the larger table is achieved by drilling and countersinking a piece of perspex at 2 3/16" centres and screwing it to the table edge.

The face of the perspex bears against a cabinet ball catch.




 Once the five positive stations have been achieved, the track is laid up, starting  by running a continuous down the centre track, cutting both ends with a thin disc cutter then spacing subsequent tracks at 2 1/8" separation using a parallel batten.  The curve ends are lead into the entry/exit points with a length of batten planed to fit accurately between the rails of the Code 75 track.  The track is secured using Peco track pins, nailed through the sleepers for about 3/8", nipped off with side cutters and then hammered the final fraction.

The exit extension is screwed and dowelled in position, but not glued, lest it should become necessary to re-adjust it, or to replace the ball catch. The cross member supporting the pivot point is fixed in the same fashion.

All work was done with a 'domestic/hobby' type jigsaw. I have avoided giving dimensions as each persons situation will be different, save to say that the overall size is 4ft x 2ft.




Operated by hand, the movement is smooth and light, no 'fiddling' is needed.




I hope this gives someone an idea for their own layout,

Doug

Beautiful work as always, Doug. Ingenious design too :thumbs

Mike

Now that is …is…. I am lost for words. :thumbs

A fiddle yard & storage ( dead end &/or through running). Have a small one each end, a large saving in points & associated costs.
A very BIG Elephant stamp indeed.

 

Doug how is electrical contact made between the tracks on the big bit and the track on the little bit with the loco on it?

Mike

Beat me to it, Mike.

[user=8]MikeC[/user] wrote:

Doug how is electrical contact made between the tracks on the big bit and the track on the little bit with the loco on it?

Mike

And me being a so-called "sparky",  forgot all about that - yes, come clean, Doofer - how is the magic done?

Sorry, Sol!

Not even a whiff of smoke or a flash of mirrors, no magic, as you'll see below………..

I thought about sliding contacts, live pivots, jack plugs etc but as it's non scenic have gone for the 'KISS' method.

Doug

Ahhh, I see, perfect for DCC then. Nuff said.

 Thanks Doug.  I think I understand that - all five tracks are always 'live' and the single track has its own separate feed….?

Mike

[user=8]MikeC[/user] wrote:

 Thanks Doug.  I think I understand that - all five tracks are always 'live' and the single track has its own separate feed….?

Mike

No, but, er yes, I think so, I'm almost definitely sure, maybe….As it will be my first try at DCC, I'm 'winging' this, but they will all be powered up from a common bus bar under the top.  I'm waiting on Ian's DCC book to be available again, so in the interim all 'sections' are to be wired to terminal blocks, etc. until I know what I'm doing, after all, DCC is only two wires…..

Also, I've just realised that I could have an additional short track spliced to the side of the big plate via a turnout just to keep a rail-car on……Hhhhmm.


Doug

This sector plate is a work of art ! Recently someone on CRM has asked about sector plates, and this is the best I have seen for some time ! Would you have any objections If I shared  one of your pictures on there, of course referenced and credited to you. I would just put a link to here from there but non YMR members wouldnt be able to see it.


John

John - Would you have any objections If I shared one of your pictures on there….

Not at all, John, this is after all a 'hobby', it's a shared thing.

I did this to avoid having a traverser to put locos onto different tracks because believe me, they are a PITA, but probably easier now with DCC.

Cheers,

Doug

Now thats a clever idea mate, always knew you was clever, unlike what the others said

Phill

That's brilliant Doug :thumbs:thumbs  For me, it answers many, many problems as I try to build my layout in modules.  I can run - sorry, test trains as I go along - all I have to do is make sure I've got an "interface" between the main layout and the sector plate. :pathead

Can you elaborate on this "KISS" method :roll::roll: - I've never heard of it.

Also, I presume the ball catches are only just in contact otherwise the jolt as they lock in might derail some of the stock. :hmm

It's a masterpiece and I can see many DSP's (Dooferdog Sector Plates) appearing all over the world.

Did the village hall make it to the dechetterie or did you beat them to it ? :cheers:cheers

KISS "Keep It Simple Stupid !"

Thanks doug I have shared a couple of your pictures..

http://crmforum.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=help&thread=2312&page=1

John

[user=6]Petermac[/user] wrote:

A - Also, I presume the ball catches are only just in contact otherwise the jolt as they lock in might derail some of the stock.

B - Did the village hall make it to the dechetterie or did you beat them to it ?

Hi, Peter,

A - The ball catch is in quite firm contact with the countersunk holes on the perspex strip, the inertia of the large piece of ply stops any jerky movement. Being a cone shaped indent rather than a square sided hole sort of 'eases' it in and out.

B - I beat them to it! [The workmen were using the Bar Marche and two pressions secured the deal……livraison inclus!]

Doug

Lucky you !!!

Thanks for the info regarding trhe ball catches.  I'll certainly be filing that one under "important". :cheers:cheers

… and BINGO!

I suspect I can use the same ball catch method to "latch" in my cassettes on Newcastle Emlyn. It's just what I've been looking for.

With the ball on the layout frame and the perspex (or brass for connectivity.. hmmm) on the cassettes they will be nice and tidy and easier to store.

Thanks Doof, your woodworking skills and ingenuity never cease to amaze me.

What a brillaint idea for a fiddle yard, most ingenious. It's filed away for possible future use ;-)

[user=6]Petermac[/user] wrote:

It's a masterpiece and I can see many DSP's (Dooferdog Sector Plates) appearing all over the world.

Peter - You may see one at Carn Brea in September because this looks like the answer to my problem. Sadly I dont have Doug's woodworking skills but I've printed it out now so that I can sit and study it whilst SWMBO watches the soaps.

Very many thanks to Doug.

Now where is the nearest village hall.:hmm

Les