Standards
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Ends shall be 1X6 birch (birch plywood works well) or equivalent to provide
C-clamping to adjacent modules. Single track ends are to be 24 inches wide, Double
track ends are to be 26" wide, Mini-mo ends are to be no smaller then
8" wide. For Mini-mo, however, 12" is prefered for Mini-mo end widthm.
Roadbed to be 1/4 cork or equivalent on 1/2 inch plywood or equivalent (Foam
tops are acceptable) , braced to prevent sag or flexing. The module (set) shall
have at least four legs and stand alone, this does not apply to Mini-mos.
Mini-mos must have legs for adjustment but not need to stand alonew.
Nominal and Minimum height of railhead from the floor is 50 inches. Maximum
height of rail is to be 62 inches. On modules with grades, the elevation of the
high end shall be some multiple of 3/4 inch above low end. Legs shall have
adjustment of plus or minus 1 inch. The bottoms of the legs shall have rubber
tip or equivalent floor protection. Mainline maximum grade is 2.0 percent (1/4
inch per foot) with the track level for 6 inches from each end. Vertical curves
shall be appropriate for mainline operation of contemporary long cars. Modules
may be used with spectators on either side.
m - 1/14/04
- Added provisions for double track and minni-mo widths
w
- 1/14/04 - Added provisions for mini-mo leeg configurations
Track shall be code-83 nickel-silver on the mainline, allowance for
code-70 on the through route for modules specifically designated as branchline
onlyd. Modules may use Flex or handlaid.
Minimum radius is 42 inches (preference to 48 inch for minimum radius, modules
built with 36 inch radius curves will be used but usually limited to branchline
service, this is now official) with at least 12 inches of straight track between
reverse curves. Spacing between tracks on curves should allow for long cars
to operate without fouling each other, observe NMRA Recommended Practices for
curved track spacingi. Mainline turnouts
shall be at least #6. At the ends of the single track module, the track shall be
centered on the 24 inch width, double track modules shall have the first
track located 12 inches from a side on the 26 inch wide end, and the second
track 12 inches from the opposit side allowing 2 inches between the two tracks-.
Track must be perpendicular to the end, also straight and level for 6 inches
from each end of the module. Rail shall be cut off 1 inch away from module end;
ties and ballast shall be continued to the module end for good appearance and
matching with the adjacent module. Free-mo printed circuit board tie
plates are recommended for endsl.
d -
1/14/04 - Added allowance for smaller rail for modules built exclusively as
branchline modules
i -
1/14/04 - Added provision for multiple track spacing on curves
-
- 1/14/04 - Added double track module trackk locations
l -
1/14/04 - Modified langauge to make more clear
Turnouts shall not rely on points to power frog.
Wire shall be #18 or larger stranded. Feeder wire can be of 24 gauge or
heavier. There shall be a 4 (or more) position barrier strip at each end under
the module for wire hook-up.
Wiring consists of 4 separate bus wires and 6 conductor DCC Digitrax Loconet
bus. All ends have a pair of male and female 2 pin jones plug (Part Number P-302-CCT
and S-302-CCT) for the mainline, a single 2 pin trailer plug Radio Shack(PN
270-026) for the accessory power, and a surface mount 6 conductor RJ12 box
mounted to inside of module 1X6 end.
Mainline wiring is as follows for Jones
plugs (must be facing module end for correct perspective):
Accessory power is wired straight through. A bridge rectifier and filtering
capacitor, may be used to convert AC or DCC signal to DC. Applications that
require AC or DCC signal may utilize power directly from the bus.
Each module needs a RJ12 Loconet connection point, one on every end, mounted
on the inside of the module, and one dual flush mount 6 conductor RJ12 faceplate
mounted on each exposed side of module, for throttles.
All of the Loconet connectors and associated cables need to be connected
together straight through (i.e. pin 1 - pin 1, pin 2 - pin 2, pin 3 - pin 3,
etc. ...note standard telephone cables are NOT wired straight through).
To connect the DCC bus between modules, a 2 foot RJ12 to RJ12 cable is
utilized.
To connect a DCC booster to a module, a 4 foot RJ12 to RJ12 cable is
utilized. A 4 foot cable with one female and one male 2 pin Jones plug on one
end, plugged between interfacing modules, connected to the output of the
booster.
]
- 1/14/04 - Added Double track wiring proviisions
Digitrax, and/or rather Loconet compliant,
DCC and accessories are standard for interoperability among Free-mo clubs. For
more information about Technical specifics consult Digitrax
website.*
,
- 1/14/04 - Added Loconet compliance to suppport non-Digitrax systems that use
the Loconet protocol
General module fascia color shall complement scenery and not draw
attention from the scenea. Mainline shall be
ballasted Woodland Scenics Fine Light Gray or equivalent, and some form of
scenery hiding the benchwork. Standard mainline rail color is Floquil/Polly-S
Roof Brown or equivalent. Scenery at the Free-mo standard end(s) shall have a
flat profile roughly 3/8" below top of mainline rail.
a
- 1/14/04 - removed reference to a specificc legacy paint color
All standards below this point are specific to Colorado Free-mo
Fascia Color
Fascias must be smooth and made of a solid, sturdy material (plywood, hard board, Masonite, etc.). Fascia color must be Glidden "Great Desert" beige.
Public Displays
Skirting
Both sides of all modules must have a skirt for use at public displays. The skirt color must be flat black. Each end of skirt must extend 2” past the module endplate to ensure adequate coverage and no “gaps” at module joints. The bottom edge of skirt must be even with bottom of leg vertical member (i.e. at the level of the T-nut) to prevent dragging on the floor regardless of the module height setting.
Crowd Control Barriers
For every 4 feet of module length contributed to a setup, a module owner must provide two crowd control barrier stands. If the module contributed is a corner, one additional barrier stand must be provided. The barrier stands consist of bases and uprights designed for simple construction and setup, and which may be separated for more efficient storage and transport. ¼” yellow nylon-style ropes (available at any hardware store) are threaded through the stands as a barrier. Stand bases are 12” square made from 1.5” plywood (or equivalent multiple plywood layers). The plywood base of the crowd control barrier may be painted. If painted, they will be Glidden Great Desert in color. A hole is centered in the base to accommodate a ½” white PVC pipe end cap or coupler, firmly wedged into the hole and used to receive the stand upright. Stand uprights press-fit into the base and are 36” tall ½” white PVC pipe with a PVC “T-junction” mounted on top, through which the nylon rope is threaded. Uprights are to be white.
Page last updated: 03/31/2006
For information regarding this website, contact Roger Smith at ragoplen@msn.com.
