I also use a piece of hacksaw blade to clean the solder out of the frog flangeways but I super glue a piece of strip wood to one side to act as a depth gauge for the flangeway to make it easy to get a constant depth
This is one of rhe best tutorials I've seen yet on scratch building turnouts. I myself started making scratch built stub switches a few years ago. Sure would have been handy if you had posted this back then. Would have saved me a lot of grief. Thanks for sharing.
Charlie Comstock, thank you for the clear instructions on building your jig for frogs. Will be making one this afternoon to build custom turnouts and a wye,
James Moon Finished spiking down the first turnout last night. Test truck rolled through the frog with no derailment problem without guard rails. Will add the guard rails. Used Charlie's jig but spiked all rail to wood ties. The suggestion of using the Rolly Holders is an excellent one as I purchased a set before spiking down the track. They are better than three point gauges for assembling turnouts, in my opinion. Only PC tie used was for the throw bar as I could not figure a good way to insulate a brass bar stock throw bar. Again, thanks to Mr. Comstock for the excellent tutorial.
Hi. This is an excellent video! Unlike many DIY videos on TH-cam, you have good camera work, excellent narration, and all the necessary information. Thanks for taking the trouble to do this. Cheers!
Great presentation of some nice techniques. I've been fooling with turnout construction for some time and have been going down the road you have mastered. I will be looking closely at your strip wood jig and using that spike / pc tie holding trick to aid in assembly. Thanks for the clear, concise presentation.
Yes. A #5 turnout frog jig would be a 5" length and over 1". Remember, this is a ratio so the units don't matter as long as they are the same for both measurements. So you could use a 20cm length and over 4cm (which is the same 5 to 1 ratio).
Bear Creek_ South Jackson_ Sounds like Southern Oregon. I came here because I wanted to learn how to set rails directly on my home made bridges. I learned a lot but did not understand it all.
You make this effortless. I am I'm afraid, stuck with whatever I can find used on ebay. I don't stand a chance. I don't have the equipment or the skill that you are demonstrating. I am in awe of you!
I think every one has their own methods of making turnouts, and I liked your wood jigs. I also use roller gauges and paper templates, but I noticed you did not use a gauges when soldering your check rails into position. The position of these are critical for smooth derailment free operation. I would recommend you use your roller gauges to position your check rails as you are soldering them, then you will find there will be no need to adjust the check rails, most of the time.
No question / excellent tutorial. But it sure helps to be able to own those power tools...I wonder how it was done in the hobby before them. Anyone out there have success building switches without power tools ?
great video... i was wondering if or how to make my own frog forming jig; i want to make #4 & #3 turnouts in O scale.. esp as noone makes a #3 turnout in 148 O 2 rail..now with your video which i will be returning to for reference, i can..thank you.
Killer video. I would like to see a little more detail to better insure the jig is set up correctly, or maybe I missed something. At any rate this shows a very thrifty alternative to expensive jigs and forming tools that do not ensure good results. I would have to invest in a bench sander that would easily pay for itself on many projects. I have a dozen old dead frog turnouts in my yard and this is making me think that I could cheaply replace them all.
WILD !! I came back to this vid today and as I play classical guitar too, I was going to say the very same thing you said !!! You and I hold the deep secret as to why we know this !!..Yuk Yuk... BTW my Guit. is a Cordoba C10 ceder. M
Hello thanks for the tutorial I've been wanting to try this for quite some time now. I was wandering however, is it possible to use all wood ties instead of the pic ties? Are the pic ties there just for ease of rail placement?
I would like to add some information about turnout frog measurement. A frog is measured by the spread of the rails from the point but the line that is measured is down the center of the frog and the spread is measured perpendicular to the length line so 1/2 of the spread is on each side; this is an isosceles triangle. Because these are small angles and the models are small, the differences are hardly noticeable. The frog angle of a No. 6 frog is 9 degrees 31 minutes 38 seconds while the angle you have laid out is 9 degrees 27 minutes 44 seconds. I was more used to laying out No 8 's and No 10's which are 7 degrees 9 minutes 10 seconds and 5 degrees 43 minutes 29 seconds. If you check any table listing frog angles, you will find these numbers. The diverging stock rail should have the switch point angle about 6 to 8 inches in front of the straight closure point to help "hide" the point from wheel flanges. I realize my comments are years along but are from full size practice.
Charlie is also a guitarist who prefers not to use a pick but grows his fingernails long on one hand to make it easier to play the strings more precisely. It's not lack of hygiene, it's done deliberately for his other passion: playing solo guitar.
i play guitar the same way and find its better than a pick from classical and flamenco to heavy metal and neoclassical shredding.... oh yeah.... beside what dude comments about anpther dudes nails as dirty while he working in a shop? A girl maybe, no dudes i know would lol... we be more happy the turnout looks great
I also use a piece of
hacksaw blade to clean the solder out of the frog flangeways but I super glue a piece of strip wood to one side to act as a depth gauge for the flangeway to make it easy to get a constant depth
I've been building scratch turnouts for 60 years. A la jack works' article in MR a hundred years ago!😎
This is easily one of the very best tutorial videos I've seen. I've watched it several times, and will probably watch it at least a few more.
This is one of rhe best tutorials I've seen yet on scratch building turnouts. I myself started making scratch built stub switches a few years ago. Sure would have been handy if you had posted this back then. Would have saved me a lot of grief. Thanks for sharing.
THANK YOU! One of the best tutorials of any sort I have ever seen, let alone one on building turnouts.
Top stuff. Never gets old.
Charlie Comstock, thank you for the clear instructions on building your jig for frogs. Will be making one this afternoon to build custom turnouts and a wye,
James Moon Finished spiking down the first turnout last night. Test truck rolled through the frog with no derailment problem without guard rails. Will add the guard rails. Used Charlie's jig but spiked all rail to wood ties. The suggestion of using the Rolly Holders is an excellent one as I purchased a set before spiking down the track. They are better than three point gauges for assembling turnouts, in my opinion. Only PC tie used was for the throw bar as I could not figure a good way to insulate a brass bar stock throw bar. Again, thanks to Mr. Comstock for the excellent tutorial.
James Moon hall
.
You have the patience for sure...so thanks for showing!
Thanks for posting this is a really helpful informative video. Having a go at my first scratch built turnouts now.
Hi. This is an excellent video! Unlike many DIY videos on TH-cam, you have good camera work, excellent narration, and all the necessary information. Thanks for taking the trouble to do this. Cheers!
Great presentation of some nice techniques. I've been fooling with turnout construction for some time and have been going down the road you have mastered. I will be looking closely at your strip wood jig and using that spike / pc tie holding trick to aid in assembly. Thanks for the clear, concise presentation.
Yes. A #5 turnout frog jig would be a 5" length and over 1". Remember, this is a ratio so the units don't matter as long as they are the same for both measurements. So you could use a 20cm length and over 4cm (which is the same 5 to 1 ratio).
Great video! Thanks!
Thank you for sharing, It is a very informative video. I plan on using some of your techniques in the future on my railway system.
Thank you.
🚂
Awesome video I am for sure going to follow this again with all the parts and build my first Thank you!
Bear Creek_ South Jackson_ Sounds like Southern Oregon. I came here because I wanted to learn how to set rails directly on my home made bridges. I learned a lot but did not understand it all.
its a beauty to see you work! Thank you for sharing this knowledge!
I see now that it is fairly simple to set up the jig for the frog and point rails.
You make this effortless. I am I'm afraid, stuck with whatever I can find used on ebay. I don't stand a chance. I don't have the equipment or the skill that you are demonstrating. I am in awe of you!
nice tutorial video..for sure ,I will try it
I think every one has their own methods of making turnouts, and I liked your wood jigs. I also use roller gauges and paper templates, but I noticed you did not use a gauges when soldering your check rails into position. The position of these are critical for smooth derailment free operation. I would recommend you use your roller gauges to position your check rails as you are soldering them, then you will find there will be no need to adjust the check rails, most of the time.
Something I've been curious about. Why do homemade turnouts need PC board ties if commercially made turnouts don't?
Very good need some practice will have to get some parts thanks
For N scale turnouts, I have found the Rollee Holders to be out of gauge. They are a bit too narrow.
WOW! great vid.
''the closing rails aren't hinged anywhere, how hard is it to move them?'' mine's too stiff to change.
No question / excellent tutorial. But it sure helps to be able to own those power tools...I wonder how it was done in the hobby before them. Anyone out there have success building switches without power tools ?
FastTracks makes a filing jig known as a "Point Form" which you can use to shape the points and the frog rails. That's my plan, actually.
Fantastic video. Has helped me a lot. Thank you. ;-)
Nice guitar nails.
great video... i was wondering if or how to make my own frog forming jig; i want to make #4 & #3 turnouts in O scale.. esp as noone makes a #3 turnout in 148 O 2 rail..now with your video which i will be returning to for reference, i can..thank you.
John Allen is still my hero
Thank you
the closing rails aren't hinged anywhere, how hard is it to move them?
very informative.
Cool vid.
I wonder if milling a aluminum template that hold rail and ties, hell might even work with a hard wood.
Killer video. I would like to see a little more detail to better insure the jig is set up correctly, or maybe I missed something. At any rate this shows a very thrifty alternative to expensive jigs and forming tools that do not ensure good results. I would have to invest in a bench sander that would easily pay for itself on many projects. I have a dozen old dead frog turnouts in my yard and this is making me think that I could cheaply replace them all.
thanks!
what is PC rod ?
How did you make the holes for the spikes on your jig?
What brands of guitar do you own?
WILD !! I came back to this vid today and as I play classical guitar too, I was going to say the very same thing you said !!! You and I hold the deep secret as to why we know this !!..Yuk Yuk... BTW my Guit. is a Cordoba C10 ceder. M
how many turnouts can you build with one pack of rail?
awesome
Hello thanks for the tutorial I've been wanting to try this for quite some time now. I was wandering however, is it possible to use all wood ties instead of the pic ties? Are the pic ties there just for ease of rail placement?
how would you build a ladder turnout say for 4 tracks?
It's not 1 turnout. It's simply 4 RH or LH TOs of the same # (4 or 6) connected end to end. That comprises your ladder track.
I would like to add some information about turnout frog measurement. A frog is measured by the spread of the rails from the point but the line that is measured is down the center of the frog and the spread is measured perpendicular to the length line so 1/2 of the spread is on each side; this is an isosceles triangle. Because these are small angles and the models are small, the differences are hardly noticeable. The frog angle of a No. 6 frog is 9 degrees 31 minutes 38 seconds while the angle you have laid out is 9 degrees 27 minutes 44 seconds. I was more used to laying out No 8 's and No 10's which are 7 degrees 9 minutes 10 seconds and 5 degrees 43 minutes 29 seconds. If you check any table listing frog angles, you will find these numbers.
The diverging stock rail should have the switch point angle about 6 to 8 inches in front of the straight closure point to help "hide" the point from wheel flanges.
I realize my comments are years along but are from full size practice.
gross fingernails
Charlie is also a guitarist who prefers not to use a pick but grows his fingernails long on one hand to make it easier to play the strings more precisely. It's not lack of hygiene, it's done deliberately for his other passion: playing solo guitar.
i play guitar the same way and find its better than a pick from classical and flamenco to heavy metal and neoclassical shredding.... oh yeah.... beside what dude comments about anpther dudes nails as dirty while he working in a shop? A girl maybe, no dudes i know would lol... we be more happy the turnout looks great
Fabulous. Thank you!!!