Hi all. Well here we go again this is a steep learning curve this n gauge fun. Seep point motors what is the difference between PM1 and PM2's? Also which are considered the best Seep or Peco also seen a few H & M's kicking about,bet we got three camps out there on this one but lets hear what you think so I don't drop a biggy right at the start of getting set up.Cheers for now.Andy ???
Andy
Partly to answer your post.
Last night on our club layout, I had yet another SEEP solenoid's drive pin fall out. Putting them back (if you can find them!) is not easy. If you do manage to secure them back in place, getting the pin back into the hole on the point's tie bar is bl***** difficult.
On the other hand, my home layout uses a mixture of Peco solenoids in the fiddle yard and Tortoise point motors on the scenic section. The Tortoise's once fitted have never (yet) been a problem.
The only draw back with the Peco solenoids is that, when they are located below the point (there is a version which is surface mounted but I have no experience of those), you have the palaver of cutting a rectangular hole under the point to accommodate the solenoid. I also found that fitting the Peco polarity switch to the solenoid so it works properly can be a bit hit and miss.
On balance SEEP v Peco I vote for the Peco solenoid but the Tortoise beats them both - but then again they cost significantly more.
The difference between SEEP PM1 and PM2 is that one of them has a built in polarity switch.
Regards
PM1 has a built in switch (usually used for switching the polarity of electro frog points), PM2 doesn't.
Seep are considered harder to initially install, but the easy way to do the Peco motors (by attaching directly to the point) requires a very large hole in the baseboard. Cost is around the same for a Peco motor and a PM2, but if you need switching capability the switch to fit the Peco motor is considerably more than the difference between a PM1 and a PM2.
My preference is for Seep PM1s.
H&M are ancient and almost bomb-proof, but require a much higher current to shift than the others and can be very fierce. I wouldn't recommend them for N gauge.
Hi Terry thanks for that I have to say I didn't want to cut holes in the board more than I have to and what I have seen of the surface one it looks a bit odd unless you bury it in undergrowth! Probably showing my ignorance of these matters but is there a reason the Seep polarity pin can't be loctited in? I will have to look at the Tortoise,I would be happy with manual operation to start with but it seems the good old days of adding a nice lever with a worm drive is a thing of the past,although I did win one with such a device last week and very well it works to,pity the point is on it's last legs but with a bit of fettling it will be ok for a yard.Many thanks again for the enlightenment I am getting to grips with all this slowly but surely.Cheers Andy. :thumbsup:
Hi PLD,well like I was just saying to Terry I am trying to avoid a board that looks like a Swiss cheese! The initial layout is quite small and therefore not a lot of board to cut out,I have to say I sort of favour the Seeps,so will probably go that route even allowing for the pin problem Terry mentioned.Thanks for the info I will be doing a blow by blow photo shoot of the build up once it's all ready to go which should have started today but best layed plans and all that! Cheers.Andy :thumbsup:
I have 20 odd Seeps and they work well for me. They are a little harsh in their movement and perhaps a little noisy but they do the job well.
As a complete electronics dunce, I managed to wire them all up reasonably easily. You do need to be able to solder the wires to the Seeps though.