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.

Why! Because I can. It costs money to try to find all the necessary parts and then no guarantee they will work.

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 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.