Model Railroading > "Working as Intended" - Grade Crossing on the Onondaga Cutoff

Good morning!

I've been spending most of my modeling time (generally after my children are in bed, with some additional hours thanks to my supportive wife!) since the turn of the year on installation of a grade crossing on my HO scale Conrail Onondaga Cutoff layout.  Here's a few photos of that process, and a video of one of the first trains through the completed installation with gates, lights, and bells protecting the county road as it crosses the busy Conrail double-track main line.

This was a challenging project from start to finish - developing a vision for how it should be installed, where it should be located along the main line, what products to use for automation, and then actually installing it.  After some research I chose the Azatrax product for its one-stop shop approach.  There's 32 wires for the infrared detection system alone - before even starting on the 7 LED lights on each signal, or the sound!

1.  It turns out that just west of CP 277 is the best spot for an automated grade crossing.  This part of the modeled territory is open main line with no local industry.  Big freights working Onondaga Yard to the west will leave their trains on the mainline while picking up and setting off, blocking most locations west of this spot.  A few other spots are better candidates for bridges due to vertical elevation changes adjacent to the right-of-way.   Checking my maps of the area, this spot would be about where Onondaga County Rt 92, (Highbridge Road) crosses the tracks.  And so, my road now had a name.  Jason Wormeck who has assisted with roads before measured, painted, and weathered the roads for this installation as well.  Here's the grade crossing going in, with timber rail guards on each track and asphalt beyond.

2.  I built the terrain up around the road with Sculptamold, then painted and installed basic scenery.   

3.  Ballast was installed to finish up the pull-off areas next to the road.  Most of the scenery should be done before installing the gates, due to the complexity of trying to scenic around the masts with all the wire, activation arms, and lights.  

More....
  

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4.  After ballasting the approaches to the area, I proceeded to install the Azatrax infrared detectors.  Each uses an LED and a receiver, and can be set up as "across-the-track" or "reflective" modes without modifying the board.  I chose the reflective mode so as to better hide the installation.  Beams are continually shot out of the LED, and only seen by the receiver when equipment passes overhead.  The directions are excellent and if you follow them, installation of each isn't too bad.  Make sure to use a new drill bit and a high-speed setting before drilling through flextrack and finished ballast!

5.  However, after doing 8 of them, your setup looks like this.  No real effective way to avoid a temporary rat's nest here.

6.  Looking down on the installation, you can see the holes for the LED and the receiver.  Some adjustment was necessary, even some re-drilled holes after I missed the correct angle in a few spots, but they all work reliably now.  

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7.  When standing next to the layout, this is how the install in #6 above looks - nearly invisible.  I was glad I chose the reflective mode here.

8.  Here's the completed installation, ready for testing!   Of course, one of my LED installations on the gate arm shorted out, and required me to re-wire two LED's while the installation was on the table.  That was a frustrating night, actually series of nights, although I eventually was able to get it set properly.  

9.  We ran the crossing, without the bell yet hooked up, for an operating session - and it went very well.  The installation worked as intended.  So, this weekend I installed the bell, and now we are as complete as we will be here for some time:  'Working as Intended'.  That's prototype-railroad-speak for a crossing with automatic protection that is doing what it is supposed to do.  

Thanks for watching!   Full details are available on my blog at the URL below.

~RGDave
https://onondagacutoff.blogspot.com/

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WoW!  Mind blown!   Excellent stuff RGDave!

Awesome modeling!  All the effort was well worth it in the end - so realistic, functionally and visually.  Congrats!

Animated road crossing with gate and lights is a very cool feature to add!  Looks great!.

I loved how the car came up to the gates at 28 seconds in, with the help of a nudge from behind!  :-P  Seriously, it still looked cool.
Cheers, Jim



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/18/19 07:29 by SPDRGWfan.

Very Nice. John of Azatrax is working with our Sherman Hill Model Railroad Club with signaling and has helped with grade crossing flashers and gates too. It adds a bit of realism to a layout and really catches the attention of our visitors.

Bob Krieger
Cheyenne, WY

Wow, looks great! 

John Parker
Longmont, CO
BNSF Fall River Division

Nicely done. I have a pair of operating Wig Wags to install on my layout this year..They will operate from a protoypes stick circuit. The semaphores and searchlights operate off prototypical track circuits as well. 

That was awesome, loved the car rolling up the the crossing. Excellent work Dave, you have a great looking layout.

Nathan

Posted from iPhone

Worth every minute and dollar you invested into the project.

If there is any down side, it's the Lake Effect snow, or are you too far sound!

The car rolling up was definitely chuckle-worthy.

The overall effect is impressive. May I suggest, though, that the bell on the crossing should also ring when the gates are going up?
 

Now the "real" challange. Who wants to try an 4 gate Quiet Zone installation?

Again, again!

Looks absolutely amazing!

I have to admit though, the first thought that went through my mind was of a Looney Tunes cartoon with the Roadrunner painting a fake road to make Wiley E. Coyote run into the wall!

Excellent modeling!

I was impressed with the gates and as the train went by, I was fixated on the trailers. Then, my peripheral vision jerked my eyes to the right, and a PT Cruiser rolls up. Now I'm thinking to myself, wtf am I watching? Lol. # Mind blown. 

All excellent of course, but I think my favorite detail is the whistle post! Thanks for sharing.

Azatrax is also my choice excellent products and support.

Don Allender