Re: Home made pine road bed takes first track.

"Henry Murray" <hmurray@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message 
news:_e2dnSuz_7uPI9vVnZ2dnUVZ_gCdnZ2d@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> The truly hateful part of installing the torti was fi****ng the crank rod

> back up through the hole and into the hole in the points and connecting
it 
> to the switch machine. I finally wised up and "invested" in a roll of 
> piano wire the correct diameter. Now I cut off a 3 or 4 foot long piece,

> wrap one end with some duck tape drop it down through the hole in the 
> points, go under and comfortably bend and attach to the switch machine, 
> mount, check to make sure it works (looks sort of funny with the duck
tape 
> waving above it), then cut off the excess with my trusty side cutters. I

> have found it helpful to orient the "curl" parallel to the main
direction 
> of movement through the turnout. I use one piece for several mountings 
> until it gets too short for convenience working under the table.

    We do the same thing, tho' be bought a tube of 0.039" piano wire from 
K&S.  They are about 36" long per piece, which works rather nicely.

> If you're sitting round with nothing to do sometime, try installing
torti 
> under existing turnouts. Drilling the hole up from the bottom without 
> damaging the turnout is a challenge.

    Done it, didn't like it.  :-)  What I did was use a lot of masking
tape 
wrapped around the drill bit, but it still wanted to go through.  A drill 
set screw (or whatever they are called) would be better.
    What I do these days is just pull the switch.  It's a pain having to 
unspike and respike the switch, but it's a lot safer over all.

Paul A. Cutler III
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Weather Or No Go New Haven
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