Catenary on your layouts

do model pantographs really wear down that fast?

The idea of staggering the catenary is only really done where Amtrak has gone and redone sections on the NEC, which isnt alot at all suprisingly, or on railroad that has Constant Tension catenary. The idea of using the straw makes sense. Real pantographs have the carbon strips in them instead of metal on metal. Otherwise the metal would wear down so fast you probably wouldnt get past newark penn from NY if all you had was the metal to wire. Carbon strips provide a smooth sliding surface for the wire to guide on, which a straw or some other similar smooth device would as well.

Sounds like a plan. I think i might try and put something the applies on clear though. It might not be a bad idea to put a thin layer of super glue over the top of the pan. If you do it right, it will look like nothing is there.

Well, here are some pictures! If anything looks funny, blame Penn Central's lack of maitenance!

For the wearing,Use 35mm film negative glued to the pant,if you do it right you wont even see it.

Dieter wrote:How about pantograph wear? Someone told me they had a problem with wearing a rut in the pantograph shoe from the wire

Never had any problem like this. I use a hard copper Kleinbahn catenary on the larger part of my railraod and a self built catenary at the smaller part (see my pictures at the beginning of the topic). The self built catenary had been made with electric welding coppered steel wire (like the Sommerfeld catenary parts). The pantograph shoes usually are hard copper parts too, most of the electric model locomotive manufacturers use this material. I think the important thing to preserve ruts is a zigzag adjustment of the catenary contact wire like it´s done in reality too. Besides that the zigzag running wire removes dust and dirt from the pantographs and this avoids electric interrupts too.

I think you've done a great job with the catenary supports. I think the biggest challenge to is to make sure you have enough support BELOW the surface of your layout. Your catenary will be tensioned, so you want to make sure each tower is secured like an anchor!

Nice Penn Central-era models! Paint those towers black/rust and you're all set.

-otto-

Otto Vondrak wrote:I think you've done a great job with the catenary supports. I think the biggest challenge to is to make sure you have enough support BELOW the surface of your layout. Your catenary will be tensioned, so you want to make sure each tower is secured like an anchor!

Nice Penn Central-era models! Paint those towers black/rust and you're all set.

-otto-

You're right. I didn't notice the lean until after I took the photo (its ironically fitting that i have a Penn Central model in the picture considering the usual state of their infastructure...) I'm thinking of making "concrete bases" to help mount them, as well as filling in the holes with glue, so that they are solidly affixed (though i'm tinkering with some other ideas that would allow me to remove the supports easily).

Right now its loose in the hole on one side,so i'll have to fix that.

Right now, i'm trying to build a K-brace bridge. the wire cross span is sturdy, but there are way to many connections, and i have a funny feeling they are going to pop on me. I'll build a few more of those just to keep things mixed up, but my new plan is to use some sturdy steel wire as a reinforcers on the horizontal beams. I think if i solder them to the horizontal beam and bend a hook in an end, i can get additiontional strenght at the joint, rather than a pure soldered joint (which easily fell apart).

I've been doing some more experimentation, and in fart, I've got insulators and brass structural shapes on special order. My first order of business is to hopefully replace my original wire cross span seen in previous photos with finer wire and more realistic shapes, and this time I'm also going to add the transmission lines.

Here are some mock-ups I've made with code 100 rail and some 1/32nd steel wire (the actual catenary wire is .025 steel wire). Its incomplete and not ultra prototypical, but it certainly looks attractive enough with a lot less work.

there is a new structure i've built, a double track pole. this is because of a siding. As i understand it, in real life, rather than build on someone else's property, which would cost more money, they'd build a pole to avoid this. Because of changes to my layout, i'm seriously considering removing that siding, so it may not be there in the future, but for now i have build this pole.

PRR Silverliner IIs accelerate away from a suburban station



modeler's note- It took me three years to get this SEPTA train to run reliably. at least now i have something few others do!





older mock-up span rebuilt. it needs some cleaning up still.



the structure of the pole can be more easily seen. I used a dremel drill press to drill mounting holes into the cross arm. I then hooked the support wires into the holes and soldered them. believe a little mechanical support makes a world of difference, since it takes the strain off the solder, which i don't think is as strong the hooked wire. that said, the hooks are shallow, and the solder holds the hooks in place. I used CA to temporarily hold the catenary wire in place.



I hope this has inspired some people to try this themselves!

Awesome job! I'm jealous! Just for that boost of inspiration when I move again, and there's Real basement I'm setting up an elevated, and catenary system.
BTW-are those silverliners from IHP? (also only one pantograph needs to be up LOL.)

deandremouse wrote:Awesome job! I'm jealous! Just for that boost of inspiration when I move again, and there's Real basement I'm setting up an elevated, and catenary system.
BTW-are those silverliners from IHP? (also only one pantograph needs to be up LOL.)

good luck with the catenary. what do you model exactly though? so far the only northeastern commuter agency i haven't seen you try to model is SEPTA and MARC (MARC might be getting south though).


also, nope, these are brass models from "GEM". they also do need BOTH pantographs up. Silverliner IIs are independent units, unlike a lot of the married pair EMUs (Metroliners, some silverliner IVs and Arrow IIIs) so they need to grab power for themselves.

You will not find a picture of any silverliner II set working with only one pantograph up. In fact, the only EMUs i've seen working without at least one pan up per car/married pair set are the really old EMUs with the roof-top connections, and Metroliners.

anyway, yeah, i'm kinda wondering where the Silverliner IV sets are, but i'm still in the market for additional Arrow IIIs. hopefully i'll be able to nab enough to get a good sized train.

green_elite_cab wrote:

deandremouse wrote:Awesome job! I'm jealous! Just for that boost of inspiration when I move again, and there's Real basement I'm setting up an elevated, and catenary system.
BTW-are those silverliners from IHP? (also only one pantograph needs to be up LOL.)

good luck with the catenary. what do you model exactly though? so far the only northeastern commuter agency i haven't seen you try to model is SEPTA and MARC (MARC might be getting south though).


What have I attempted?- NJT, LIRR&NY&A, SIRT, MNCR, MBTA
Not- MARC & SEPTA
Well for the SEPTA thing Ive got an old Athearn BB RDC that Ive heavily modified (plus theres a big hole in the roof where the motor was) right now if I can find trucks that hold and have bigger axles, I can add the pantograph on the roof, ditch light, MU cables and some styrene. It should look like a Silverliner I or something close.
And for MARC my brother wants to get an HHP8 (go figure.....) and my dad wants to get a True Line Trains MP36. (but with a $400 price tag that might not happen....)
So i guess I'm an NEC brancher... Wierd. Anyway I got to go work on that Metro North Geep I have.

deandremouse wrote: What have I attempted?- NJT, LIRR&NY&A, SIRT, MNCR, MBTA
Not- MARC & SEPTA
Well for the SEPTA thing Ive got an old Athearn BB RDC that Ive heavily modified (plus theres a big hole in the roof where the motor was) right now if I can find trucks that hold and have bigger axles, I can add the pantograph on the roof, ditch light, MU cables and some styrene. It should look like a Silverliner I or something close.
And for MARC my brother wants to get an HHP8 (go figure.....) and my dad wants to get a True Line Trains MP36. (but with a $400 price tag that might not happen....)
So i guess I'm an NEC brancher... Wierd. Anyway I got to go work on that Metro North Geep I have.

Or you could just make the RDC into a SEPTA RDC and call it a day. that might be easier. they ran RDCs for long time.

Silveliner Is (did you mean the Pioneer III (original silverliner) or did you mean Silverliner II?) would be tough to do with an RDC, they aren't really all that similar. they have very different shaped bodies, and nothing is quite like them that i can find. I'm working on making a mold and casting of these shells though, so if i ever finish that project, i'll let you know.

Note- Something like an Silverliner I/ Pioneer III
And instead of just calling it a day I chose to get creative that day. And well it was worth it so far the car looks ok.( besides the big hole in the roof) it can be classified as a fantasy Silverliner class....
BTW- today I finshed track work on 1/4 SIRT modules I made.

deandremouse wrote:Note- Something like an Silverliner I/ Pioneer III
And instead of just calling it a day I chose to get creative that day. And well it was worth it so far the car looks ok.( besides the big hole in the roof) it can be classified as a fantasy Silverliner class....
BTW- today I finshed track work on 1/4 SIRT modules I made.

if thats the way you want to go, so be it. maybe you can get a Silverliner IV roof hump from one of those god awful SEPTA store models. they were meant to be toys, i think, so they look miserable on the ends, but the roof detail might work. they are cheap to. If you interested, i'll pick some up for you if i find any. I've been thinking about checking out the SEPTA store to see if they have any interesting equipment in there.

also, the SIRT is easy. Make the tottenville terminal, and i'll be impressed.

hell, i think you REALLY should backdate your modules. there used to be a huge smelting operation near the outerbridge crossing, its gone now, but back in the day you'd get some Chessie/ B&O units in there, deep in jersey territory. you can find some pictures if you look hard enough.