Novice needs first build advice please

[scotsoft]

You could have the passengers exiting the platforms through underground subways, they have this in York station for some platforms 

cheers John.

[daveg]

Good idea or perhaps let them have access from the 'North East' end of the platform via a footbridge.

Whiteswan (Caz) has done a fantastic high level station with footbridge down to the platform(s).

Lots of scenic possibilites!

Dave G

[justintime]

Thanks again to Sprintex who has helped me adjust the design following the ideas/tips you folks have kindly given an updated plan is below.
I think it's getting there?


updated 18:10 30/12/12

[bbdave]

i like the look of that it's coming on well

Dave

[justintime]

Thank you bbdave, much appreciated. 

[scotsoft]

Hi Ian,

If you look at the middle square along the bottom of your grid you have a set of points that lead to the sidings, if you replaced that point with a three way you could mirror what you have and end up with five sidings.

I guarantee you will need the space as you will acquire extra locos and rolling stock sooner than you think due to the addiction.

If you don't understand what I mean, tell me and I shall attempt to illustrate what I am trying to get over 

cheers John.

[justintime]

Did you mean something like this John? Cheers, Ian.

[Jack]

Hi Ian,

If you look at the middle square along the bottom of your grid you have a set of points that lead to the sidings, if you replaced that point with a three way you could mirror what you have and end up with five sidings.

I guarantee you will need the space as you will acquire extra locos and rolling stock sooner than you think due to the addiction.

If you don't understand what I mean, tell me and I shall attempt to illustrate what I am trying to get over 

cheers John.

Please can I beg to differ, as this is justintime's first layout keep it simple. Three way points, while ideal, add extra complication. There isn't much leeway when mounting point motors to get it slightly misaligned, although a Hex Frog Juicer could make it easier  . Maybe at a later time perhaps with a little experience under the belt?

[daveg]

...

I guarantee you will need the space as you will acquire extra locos and rolling stock sooner than you think due to the addiction.

cheers John.

He's absolutely right! I'm having to rework my yard area since the 'small, low cost, era 3' layout expanded into 13 locos, loads (sorry  ) of wagons and ever-expanding rakes of coaches with equally growing era range, currently 3 to 5!

Brilliant! 

Dave G

[scotsoft]

Jack9465 will have more experience than I have since I use Kato Unitrak, so I would heed his advice and keep it simple.

I apologise for putting complicated ideas into your head 

cheers John.

[justintime]

No problem John, I like the idea but like you say Jack is probably right.  It's worth keeping in mind for expansion later though.

Thanks Jack, I'm sure you are right, getting the track laid and soldered as it is will be hard enough I guess.

I have to ask though, what on earth is a "Hex Frog Juicer".  I hope it's not a hexagonal shaped object you squeeze frogs in to extract their juice! 

[scotsoft]

You are thinking of a liquidiser and that gets rid of the lumps at the same time     

[justintime]

 

[Jack]

I have to ask though, what on earth is a "Hex Frog Juicer".  I hope it's not a hexagonal shaped object you squeeze frogs in to extract their juice! 

Ah the old jokes are the best! 

If you use a three way points, you must use frog polarity switching. Because of this you have to get your point motors absolutely center to the points throw bar so as to align the switch that is part of the seep point motor or the Peco point motor for them to work well.

Because you have opted to use DCC you can fit a Hex Frog Juicer (HRJ), which takes no more skill than soldering a wire to the frog of your points, (3 way points have them fitted by Peco) and literally connecting them up to the Hex Frog Juicer which can handle up to 6 different frog polarity switching automatically.

There's a video in this link http://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?topic=7707.msg87301#msg87301

It looks complicated but it is literally a matter of connecting two wires to your DCC bus wires and then six individual wires to six different point frogs (3 way has two frogs).

While 'normal' points work out of the box, they rely on clean contact of the switch blade to the track to switch the polarity of the frog, having frog polarity switching helps with this, enabling good creep motion of locos across points.

Fitting point motors well, can be frustrating, HFJ's take away some of the frustration. Some will say there are cheaper ways of achieving the same outcome and yes there are, but HRJ's are simple to fit and work first time. I currently have three under my board with possibly another one to follow.

[edwin_m]

That's one for the ribbit counters. 

http://www.tamvalleydepot.com/products/hexfrogjuicer.htm

Electrofrog points need the polarity of the frog area (where the rails cross) switching to match the setting of the point - either the left wheel or the right wheel passes through this area and the power has to be switched to suit. 

Peco rely on the contact of the point blades to do this but this can become unreliable especially if the track is painted or ballasted.  Hence many people fit an auxiliary switch or relay to do this.  A Hex Frog Juicer is another alternatlve (for DCC use only) which is more costly but needs less wiring.  Particularly useful for complicated track layouts where it is difficult to figure out how to switch the polarity.