Subject:
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Re: Motorized Switch using Monkey Motor
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.trains
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Date:
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Fri, 10 Sep 2004 13:29:19 GMT
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Viewed:
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1497 times
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In lugnet.trains, Mark Riley wrote:
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In lugnet.trains, Ed McGlynn wrote:
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Hi Mark -
Great design, and the DCC stuff pointed out later in this thread is
exciting.
I’m curious - your switch designs seem to be updated from time to time to
get a better base connection between the switch track itself and the motor,
so does the monkey motor allow for a more rigid design? I’m guessing that
since the base of the monkey motor has more inverted studs than the other
new style Technic motors, you’re able to get more grip from it in your
design. Also, you point out that the stiffness of the thin-walls helps out
to maintain integrity of the design. Can you comment on those two items
please?
Also, what happens (dare I ask...) if you use full power from a 9v
controller on the device?
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Hi Ed,
Thanks, glad you like the design. If you count the number of posts I’ve made
about DCC in the forums, you’ll see I’m pretty excited, too! :-)
It’s hit-or-miss when using the full 9V when operating the switches.
Sometimes it holds together just fine, no matter how many times you throw the
switch. Other times, you’ll build one and after a few dozen throws, it just
self destructs. Usually the roof pops off, one or more of the side panels go
flying, the yellow switch lever sometimes gets disconnected or sometimes the
base disconnects and the whole unit flys up and back and just lays there
pathetically where it happened to land. So far, no breakage of anything,
though.
But, that’s with the full 9V. Chris Masi, in this
post, originally had the idea to
reduce the voltage going to the motor. Ever since using the lower voltage, I
haven’t encountered any problems.
As to the side panels, I found using the transparent panels worked better
since they flexed less when absorbing the impact. When using the opaque
panels, the flex would tend to work the roof loose. Since using lower
voltage, I really haven’t tested the units with opaque panels, so it may turn
out that it’s OK to use them in that case.
Also, it’s true I have changed the base attachment a bit. The
TSwitch2 just didn’t
have enough grip. TSwitch4 and TSwitch5 introduce an extra row of studs that grips the switch better -
probably because the switch base plate is straddled on both sides, unlike the
earlier design.
Cheers,
Mark
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Excellent insights and explanations, Mark -thank you.
“...the whole unit flys up and back and just lays there pathetically where it
happened to land.” LOL Man, I’ve been there. It’s sad, but funny at the same
time. It’s like these contraptions play along with our wishes for just so long,
then say the heck with it and spaz out. “OK, pal, that last command from you
was the last straw...grawnk.” Gotta love it!
Thanks again,
Ed
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: Motorized Switch using Monkey Motor
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| (...) Hi Ed, Thanks, glad you like the design. If you count the number of posts I've made about DCC in the forums, you'll see I'm pretty excited, too! :-) It's hit-or-miss when using the full 9V when operating the switches. Sometimes it holds (...) (20 years ago, 9-Sep-04, to lugnet.trains, FTX)
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