Has anybody ever scratch built a working Z turntable?

JoeS Jan 5, 2014

  1. JoeS

    JoeS TrainBoard Member

    3,191
    1,211
    64
    Just curious if anybody has done so. I am contemplating maiking a yard and wouldn't mind a turntable with a roundhouse, but the marklin turntables are hard to find and quite frankly out of my price range. There has to be an easy solution. So has anybody made one that works and is willing to share the information with some pictures? Thanks.
     
  2. ZFRANK

    ZFRANK TrainBoard Member

    933
    549
    28
    Yes Joe, I have. It is not the best detailed turntable, but it works for me and it was not expensive.

    [​IMG]

    The bridge is made out of brass sheet.
    The bridge is directly attached to a slow drive mechanism. (I did use a drive mechanism which was used to tune air capacitors in an older MRI scanner). I'll guess you can find a suitable drive mechanism in an RC-hobby shop.
    Although there is a rail inside the pit, I did not install wheels at the bridge ends.
    The pit is a PVC end cap for a 110mm sewer pipe. I made a wooden inlay to make it less deep.
    Under the pit I have installed a pcb disk, which is electrically devided in to two halves. Two old relay contacts (attached to the mechanism spindle), which are conected to the bridge rails, supply track voltage.
    If you set up the yard tracks smart, this works fine. You should be able approx. + / - 75 degrees rotate and keep polarity. For a 180 degrees rotation, the polarity of the bridge rails rotates with the bridge.
    Although I have to align the tracks on sigh, it used to work great. Unfortunately I had to store the layout on my attic a couple of years ago, because one of my daughters needed a bedroom..waiting for better times. Meanwhile I try to keep up the hobby skills with my small switching layout and D&RGW rolling stock.
     
  3. Kurt Moose

    Kurt Moose TrainBoard Member

    9,813
    14,199
    147
    I've been toying with the idea too, since I got a real good deal on a Republic Locomotive Works #519-1 Nn3 pit. Very detailed but no turntable.
     
  4. ModelWarships

    ModelWarships TrainBoard Member

    80
    15
    16
    Joe D'Amato posted some video on one of the Z facebook pages a few months ago. Looked pretty cool, maybe he will post here too.
     
  5. zscaler

    zscaler TrainBoard Member

    1,286
    157
    28
    Cheap way to do it is get one of those cheap Atlas turntables, like $25, that self indexs every 15 degrees. Cover the HO track with some z scale track.
    Just saying....
     
  6. ztrack

    ztrack TrainBoard Supporter Advertiser

    2,182
    777
    49
  7. craz3474

    craz3474 TrainBoard Member

    156
    1
    17
  8. JoeS

    JoeS TrainBoard Member

    3,191
    1,211
    64
    Good information everyone and thanks, I am doing some searching.
     
  9. Kurt Moose

    Kurt Moose TrainBoard Member

    9,813
    14,199
    147
  10. HOexplorer

    HOexplorer TrainBoard Supporter

    2,267
    3,219
    70
    Hi folks, nice to see some of my old work still around. It is easy and you rotate the turntable by a pulley under the bench work. I think I used a big rubber band. Cheers, Jim :)
     
  11. Kurt Moose

    Kurt Moose TrainBoard Member

    9,813
    14,199
    147
    Lookin' for Roundhouse gondola's as we speak..... :)
     
  12. Kurt Moose

    Kurt Moose TrainBoard Member

    9,813
    14,199
    147
    And thanks Jim!

    ;)
     

Share This Page