Selector Plate instead of a Yard Ladder
I found this article in my facebook feed from MRH...it is such a great idea I had to share this with you guys....enjoy!
Well here it goes! I'm going to try and explain how I used a "Selector
Plate" instead of using switches in my staging yard. I found this
technique works well to save money, time and space. Lets face
it....turnouts are expensive! One benefit is that all staging tracks
are of the same length and you can space the tracks any way you want.On the East End of my layout I have a 5 track staging yard.
I first started out by using a single piece of Atlas Code 100 flextrack. The "plate" itself is made out of 1/4 inch luan Plywood. And is roughly the same height as my roadbed. I cut the plywood down to shape and drill a hole for the pivot opposite of the staging yard.
For the track leading up to the selector plate I left the outside rail normal and filed the inside rail to a point. (roughly 1" but it will depend on the amount of swing of the plate)
On the "point rail" I soldered an Atlas rail joiner to hold the rail of the selector plate. I soldered the joiner from the inside of the rail so be sure to keep it clear of the wheel flanges!
For the track on the selector plate. I left the outside rail normal and soldered it straight to the approach track on the layout.
The inside rail will "slide" in the rail joint
The selector plate itself is held in place by a pivot opposite of the staging yard. For this i simply used a 1/4" bolt and left it loose enough for the plate to swing.
At the end where the Selector plate meets the staging yard I used pieces of Atlas Rerailers to keep everything lined up. And to safe guard against derailments! (however the author stated in a comment to this article that you should use at least a 50% section of the rerailer instead of a 33% section as he did in this case)
The track on the selector plate is not glued in place. It is free to move and is only held in place by the glue under the section of rerailer.
The selector plate has been very reliable over the last few years and is very easy to maintain!
