G`day Folks, This is an update to the original Fiddleyard Cassette video which was covered in Episode 37 way back in the dim, dark days of Gormo`s Shed on the fledgling Platform 1 MRC forum. The principles are still the same, the system still works really well, but now we have a storage solution for the cassettes and also a home made system for turning a cassette. These methods I suppose, are purpose built for my railway, however I thought it was worth putting it out there for anyone who can gain some ideas from it. Gormo
Briiliant video once again Gormo. Could I suggest placing a locating knob in your drawer that matches up with the centre hole of the turntable ?? This will stop the cassettes from moving around to a certain extent and locate them neatly in the drawer. Cheers, Gary.
G`day Gary, Good idea mate.... I reckon dowels would do the job. I think they should be added as the cassettes are built, because some of the cassettes may be of different lengths. On the other hand, removable dowels that can be relocated like a peg board, to suit various sizes of cassette within the drawer, would probably be the ultimate answer.? Gormo
A great video Gormo. I can see this idea being taken up by many. Simple to do if you just take your time and get all the tolerances worked out. Very smooth transition between cassette and layout as well. Flawless. Thanks for posting this up. Toto
Thanks Toto, Yes mate, it`s all about the tolerances and standardizing parts. For example, all the cassette bases were cut in one session. This means that the saw fence was set up to 76mm and test cuts were done and carefully measured. When happy with the settings, the whole batch of bases were put through the machine and stored for later building. The angle is standard and readily available, so future builds will not be compromised, and the same applies to the flat bar. The rest is just screws and time and effort. Gormo
I like the forked connections from both a guiding and good electrical connection point of view. Solid stuff. Toto
Yes.... well the forked ends / connectors make life considerably easier when connecting the cassette to the dock. During my research I found a few systems where people had used clips as in bulldog clips, alligator clips.......basically jump lead connections....which I thought were a bit clumsy even though they worked well enough, and the cassettes still needed to be aligned correctly to boot. So I thought the forked end connectors would deal with the two issues.....the electrical and the alignment. That said.....it requires much more accuracy and consistency with the build of each cassette. These jobs are difficult at the time, but they reward your efforts with no fuss operation in the end. Gormo
Well presented and informative Gormo. Thanks for explaining the benefits of the forked ends and slide in connection that does both align and power the cassette. My local bunnings (hardware) has the aluminium angle at ~$7 per meter (about twice the cost of flex track because need two lengths per meter), so I always wondered why people used it, but you explain why and it is a side barrier too. ;-) I had never considered the difficulty and risks of rotating a train length cassette in a room, and you explained that well, I like your solution and may have to re-purpose the lazy susan.
Dear Gormo, an excellent update to a well thought out cassette system, I particularly like the cushioned end stop design, elegant and practical. You also demonstrated why 4 foot was the practical and safe maximum length. Best wishes and regards, Echidna.
Thanks Echidna, Yes I think 4 foot is enough to deal with, especially when moving about taking note of your footing, whilst trying not to tilt the cassette too far off the horizontal. It`s all well and good when you have a loco within the cassette to hold the wagons or coaches and stop them from sliding about, but yesterday I was moving a cassette that was wagons only, and they were rolling from end to the other. In light of all that, cassettes longer than 4 foot would be quite difficult to handle especially if you have to turn them. A straight put on take off would be OK, but the whole point is to be able to rotate the cassette I feel. One of my subscribers on YouTube was thinking of going up to 6 feet or possibly more.........that`s a recipe for disaster I think.? Gormo