Do all rolling stock contain a metallic weight?


C

cpsk

New Member
Hi;
Can someone tell me whether all rolling stock contains a metallic plate in the bottom used to add weight to the car, and if so, is this plate normally made of steel?
I want to use an inductive track detection circuit, and therefore, all rolling stock would need a ferrous (steel) plate in the bottom to be detected.

Thanks

CPSK
 
I don't think you can say "All" for anything related to model railroads. Maybe "most", "a lot", or "all models produced by".

I think you'll find that some resin cast models do not have weights. Also, even for those that do, some have them in odd places, for example, hopper cars have them on the side slopes, so they sit at an angle. This will make calibrating your device difficult.

For this reason, most circuits of this type use optical detectors.
 
Ah - hoppers. Thanks for that heads-up.
Reason I even have to ask the question on weights in the first place is that I do not actually operate a model railroad at this time. I am attempting to come up with some sort of track detection system that does not require the addition of resistors between the wheels of rolling stock. I believe some modelers have successfully used inductive detection methods, but not with the level of reliability of optical or current detection. Of course, if you're modeling in O-gauge you can simply isolate one of the running rails and detect a current between the rails without any modification to rolling stock - assuming that the axles are still made of metal (as they were when I had O-gauge trains).

CPSK
 
You can detect whole trains without modifyin anything aboard the locomotive or rolling stock. This is done my means of infrared detectors mounted either under the track (reflecting off the bottom of the cars), or above grade on either side of the track (interruption of the beam between detector and emitter). Azatrax makes the systems and there are other manufacturers. That way you needn't worry about metal weights, etc. I use such detectors for triggering grade crossing signal, indicating track occupancy, etc. Just depends on which system components you buy, how much you want to spend. (Modules can come in in the $50-100 range, depending on what you want to do and how many blocks you want to set up. Works at night in a darkened room, unlike visible spectrum photo cells.
 
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