 Joined: 05/07/2020(UTC) Posts: 326 Location: Mississippi, Vancleave
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The following sketch is for my catenary system. Everything is brass except for the rail which is code 70 rail. The catenary wire is made of 1/16" brass rod with a 1/16"ID brass tube on each end and a rail joiner on each end of the code 70 rail. Following the dimensions on the sketch will give you a 2-3/4" distance between the pantograph and the catenary wire. Dimensions may vary as long as you maintain the 2-3/4". All the pieces are soldered together using a resistance soldering transformer (not a regular soldering iron) That is so soldering a connection won't "un solder" previous connections. 
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 7 users liked this useful post by Mr. Ron
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 Joined: 09/08/2008(UTC) Posts: 1,919 Location: Auckland,
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1 user liked this useful post by mvd71
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Joined: 05/07/2020(UTC) Posts: 326 Location: Mississippi, Vancleave
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Why! Because I can. It costs money to try to find all the necessary parts and then no guarantee they will work.
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1 user liked this useful post by Mr. Ron
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Joined: 29/01/2009(UTC)
Posts: 301
Location: Sheffield,
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One might ask why about the hobby in general? For me making stuff is a big part of it as I presume is the case here too. |
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1 user liked this useful post by scraigen
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 Joined: 01/01/2007(UTC) Posts: 643 Location: Alberta
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I have thought about doing something similar with 3D printing. I have a resin printer so I could print several masts at the same time. Please post pictures I would really like to see how your catenary wire turns out.
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Joined: 09/08/2008(UTC) Posts: 1,919 Location: Auckland,
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Originally Posted by: Mr. Ron  Why! Because I can. It costs money to try to find all the necessary parts and then no guarantee they will work. Ok, fair enough. I was thinking by the time you bought all the materials and did the work…… but each to their own 
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Joined: 05/07/2020(UTC) Posts: 326 Location: Mississippi, Vancleave
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Originally Posted by: mvd71 Originally Posted by: Mr. Ron Why! Because I can. It costs money to try to find all the necessary parts and then no guarantee they will work. Ok, fair enough. I was thinking by the time you bought all the materials and did the work…… but each to their own I used code 70 rail, 1/16", 3/32" brass rod and code 70 rail joiners and 1/13" ID brass tubing. The material cost is a lot less than buying ready made poles and catenary wires. All told, I think I came in at around $35. I should be able to get 20 poles and enough cat wire to cover about 24 feet. BTW, I used the code 70 rail upside down so the pantograph makes contact with the rail head. With the rail joiner, a nice smooth contact is made. I'm not sure if I will solder the joiners. I will see how continuity is; same with the tubing. I still have to design and make some structure for spanning 2,3 and 4 tracks.
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Joined: 05/07/2020(UTC) Posts: 326 Location: Mississippi, Vancleave
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Originally Posted by: Darren W I have thought about doing something similar with 3D printing. I have a resin printer so I could print several masts at the same time. Please post pictures I would really like to see how your catenary wire turns out. I have made one 14" length of catenary and it turned out so-so. I need to make a jig to hold everything in alignment while I solder it. Jigs are absolutely essential for repetitive work. Time spent making a good jig is time well spent. I'm having health problems (my wife's), so I can't devote as much time as I would like. Traditionally, I work slow as I am not in any hurry. I find the thinking, planning and actual making is satisfying, but I will try to post some pictures after I figure out how to post them. I went from an XP computer to a windows 10 and am still trying to figure it out.
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1 user liked this useful post by Mr. Ron
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