Wiring a crossover for DCC

[DWP]

Need some help here. I am hand laying the track for my narrowgauge layout. At several areas I will have a crossover. I would like to have power
to all points where the rails meet. I think thats the term.
Now the fun part, I want to runs the trains without having to throw a switch every time. Thinking along the line of a auto reversing unit to check the polarity?
thank you
Dave

 

[Gary Pfeil]

Hi Dave, are you talking about crossovers between two parallel tracks? There would be no polarity problems as long as both "north rails" of the two tracks are wired to the same DCC bus wire. Or are you talking about a crossing of two routes?

 

[DWP]

If I can get the terms right. I'm talking about track "A" crossing over track
"B". Like an X??
Looking at a template from Fast Tracks there are two opposite points
that are isolated from the rest of the rails. As train on track "A" passes
over track "B" I need a way to change polarity.
Hope this makes sense.
Dave

 

[Gary Pfeil]

Yes Dave, it makes sense. I'm at work now and can't post a drawing, which would be worth a thousand words. I will try to do so from home later. Basically you have four spots where the rails intersect. As you stated above, only two of these bring rails of opposite polarity together. What I do is use styrene strip the width of the rail to create the point where the two rails come together. It can be filed with to the shape of the rail web. The two rails butt up to it. It provides a gap which won't be spanned by the wheel threads. And is so short it doesn't present a problem for electrical pickup. Then the four rails which form the diamond have feeders soldered and are laid. Instead of using solder for the frogs I use epoxy. I use the solid kind you mix together in your hands. It can be filed for the flangeways. This method eliminates having polarity problems at the cost of an insulated section which is wider than the flangeway by the width of a rail. Let me know if this makes sense to you.

 

[DWP]

Gary
Thanks That is something I didn't think of. Another idea I had is to wire it to the turnout as the train will only use the crossover when the turnout is thrown. This is a back woods narrow gauge, so some "duck tape engineering" would of been used.
Dave

 

[Gary Pfeil]

Dave, heres a link to a photo of a crossing I posted in another thread. I haven't painted the rail or epoxy yet but when I do it ought to look fine.http://www.the-gauge.com/showthread.php?t=11388&page=2&pp=15