So I now have 17 SEEP point motors with dropper wires soldered onto them. The next task is to fix them to the baseboard. This turns out to be harder than I imagined.
The problem with using SEEP motors with N-gauge points is that the points have a very small throw as they switch. Not a problem if you're just using them as a motor but if you're using the inbuilt switch to change track feed polarity or operate indicator LEDs you can be in for a rough time. The switching operates by a sprung metal disc moving along the surface of the PCB making and breaking contact between different tracks on the circuit board. Of necessity there is a small dead area in the centre. For the switch to operate reliably the motor has to be positioned with pinpoint accuracy otherwise the disc will be in the dead area at one end of the throw or another.
One often suggested method to ensure accuracy is to make a small jig out of cardboard or a carefully cut and filed clothes peg to ensure that the motor is at the centre of its throw. Hold the point in the centre of its throw with a little Blu-Tack, fit the point motor pin through the point and screw the motor into place.
This didn't work too well for me.
The method I came up with instead involved creating a portable switch/LED circuit. I attached this to the point motor which I then held in place under the baseboard as I carefully adjusted its position to ensure that the point changed properly and the switch operated reliably. I marked this position on the baseboard and screwed the motor in place, checking again to ensure that the switch still operated. For some motors, the act of screwing it down changed the operation of the switch. This turned out to be a very fiddly process. Nonetheless all point motors apart from those in the as yet unlaid siding area are now fitted to the baseboard.
I'm hoping the switches will be working by the time I've constructed the control panel.
