HO Scale Layout GAME CHANGER: Swing Gate Edition

[@pherretlord]

This, for old, disabled, vets such as myself, is a real game changer. Thank you!

[@tomlewis6533]

One recommendation, on the free hanging side of the gate I would ad a small bock of wood to the stationary structure, like you have on the hinge side (at 2:52) for the end of the swing table to rest on. This will prevent downward pressure from warping the structure over time because when the gate is closed it the table top will be supported by a lip on both sides. Nice job. Great feeling when a complicated piece of engineering works.

[@dathanpoole871]

I was thinking also the same thing. Even though he does have those angled supports underneath I was definitely thinking the same thing.

[@genejordan9983]

Great job. I agree with another viewer, I would put a support block on the swing out end just for added support. As for your wires, go to automotive store and buy coiled flex conduit. It’s split down the side so easy to put over the wires. It helps protect them and looks neater than loose wires. Love it man. 👍👍

[@stevesmoba]

Hi, I found your video about this swing out. Pretty cool idea. I will start to build a new layout in another room and my idea is to create a layout following all 4 walls in it (including the door). How can I do that?! Your video gave me a perfect hint! So during my planing phase I will including your pretty cool idea of a swing out. If it will become reality I let you know 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 Greetings from Cologne Germany

[@RayBoebel]

Nice looking swing out! My old layout had one that was 3ft long (bridged a doorway at one point). To hold up the free end, I had casters under it and also an "alignment block" so it would match up. My new layout is a free standing one so that swing bridge is long gone.

[@johnjohnston2962]

This is a really clean install of a gate. Really enjoy your videos.

[@wanndanneisenbahn]

9 months later watching this. Great Idea! I had the same thoughts on power, my thought was a push button switch to a relay that would control power. The other add would be a support on the "hanging" side of the gate. Over time and stress of moving it, the hinges will wear and some sag may occur. Preventative engineering.

[@stewarttrains98]

For the electrical, you can put a copper strip on each side and run wires to the gap. Or you can use a plunger switch. Wire it so when the plunger is pushed in trains run, it comes out, power dies. That will probably be the easier way to do it. And set the gaps back far enough so train stops in plenty of time if gate is open.

[@davidcurrie8429]

Hi, an interesting and different access method. I also use 5 minute epoxy to secure the track over joints, I spread the epoxy quite thickly over the joint area and lay the track on it and also sprinkle ballast on the epoxy, then cut when the epoxy has cured. Regards, David.

[@ProScaleModels]

Ooooo thank you for that...

[@JosephMusgrove]

Nice swing gate design. Your back will thank you! Went with a swing-up design for my layout that has worked out really well.

[@robertwillis4701]

Impressive. Great job. Hope to see more of you as the builds continue.

[@pjmuscat401]

Very good. Good job keep it up 👍 You gave me a great way to do the gate. I am planning to do a large N scale layout that will need one too.

[@scottkew6278]

AWESOME...and YES it is a GAME CHANGER..I discovered this technique too late for my railroad which ended up in the land fill. But I have since helped others employ this simple but awesome tool with layout designs. TOO COOL !!!

[@monkeymike8797]

Awesome work bud. If I may suggest when you put your fascia on the gate extend it down from the bridge section right down the the vertical 2x4. That will give you a solid structure to help stop any sagging that could happen. Keep the videos coming. looking forward to them.

[@ProScaleModels]

Oooooo I likey that suggestion bro. Thanks a bunch man.

[@CassidysWorkshop]

That's very cool. Now, for an added challenge what would be even neater, and you being a Master Builder you can do this; put a structure over the gap on the hinge side that is closed with the gate, but when the gate is opened it exposes the interior! Ha ha.

[@thomaslarsen5057]

Great build and layout it will be awesome 🙂

[@derekalexander4030]

You did a very nice job on your swing gate and the rails line up very nicely. Thanks for sharing it.

[@FBMRR]

Love this video came out great. What you need is a NONC 5anp switch and some cooper tape. The copper tape will help connect the bench to the gate to transfer power, real easy. The NONC switch should control power to the 1ft of trach before the gate. So if the gates open, there is no power to that 1 ft. So the train doesn't go off the bench. Hipe that helps.

[@NEC_Amtrak]

Nice swing out. I'm getting ready to build one myself. I'm going to do something similar. I don't think you need to use a contact system (which is not always reliable) to get power to the tracks on the bridge. Just route the wires closer to the hinge side and leave some slack. Could even coil the wires like a phone cord too to make it look pretty. The power cut off right before the bridge (when open) only works if you only pull and never push, and don't have engines with keep alive. Otherwise, you have to cut the power farther back to cover the length of your longest train plus a bit more to cover engines with keep alive.

[@Longshadowsmodeltrees]

Nice job on your new gate. Lines up great.

[@leemildon5163]

I have been having trouble getting my flip system working well, just come across this and....game changer! Will be converting to this asap, looks awesome well done my friend.

[@vincenthuying98]

Dear Pro Scale, definitely would add two triangular braces on the ‘door’ base. Meaning the 2” by 4” construction which is the base on the left hand side, on which the entire swing gate rests. With the two compartments of the 2” by 4” frame, I would recommend the braces to start at the lower corners; which butt up to the opposite of the hinges. Then the triangular braces can go to the higher ends of inside (part of the layout) part of the framing. That will prevent sagging of the frame from the hinge point in the lateral of the hinges. Further, for eyeballing the swing’s curve, you did an excellent job!

[@acrranscaleandlifejourney4330]

Very impressive. Be proud of yourself and skills!

[@BearOfTheBeach]

Love the vibes of this video! You definitely have a unique style of format to your videos that other model railroaders have on their channels and you deserve more subs. You just earned a new one but keep up the work so you can get some more! 😊

[@ProScaleModels]

Many thanks Bear!

[@Crookedriverandeasternrr]

Nice job on your gate. I agree it’s a game changer. I love mine

[@BradLobregt]

Great video. Carry on my friend….

[@TheNorthwestWind]

Glad I found your channel!

[@dundasjunctionmodelr.r-jam8267]

I decided to build a lift gate using power points from DCC concepts, and I built a lift out for my staging yard using DCC concepts power points , your build looks fantastic

[@dundasjunctionmodelr.r-jam8267]

There is also Rail-aligners from the UK for keeping your track incline at your hinge points , I will be using them on my lift gate

[@derekalexander4030]

James, you put your comments under someone else’s comment. You did a great job on yours and your comments are pertinent so you may want to put them in the general comment area so he can see them.

[@dundasjunctionmodelr.r-jam8267]

@@derekalexander4030 I am not too worried about

[@fallnflags5587]

Very nice. I think I’m going to have to rebuild my lift gate into a swing. What/why is that 1x2(?) For near the top hing? I notice early on there was almost no gap near the top of the gate above top hing and about an inch near the bottom. I couldn’t tell later in the build did you correct this? Reason for the gap? Thanks

[@lordnikon981]

you could use that latch for your power to go to the swing out

[@MarkTheLostTraveler]

When you have an awesome god giving talent. Everything is just easy to do.

[@adlerhobby1]

This was awesome thanks for sharing 🏁

[@eukaryon]

Very clean work. It was helpful you showed all the filling and leveling you added, other vids show their stuff kinda worked like magic which does not really happen. The free end could benefit from a support.

[@JoeG-firehousewhiskey]

That swing is really nice

[@dathanpoole871]

Love the swing gate idea vs lift up. What I've seen people do to repower that isolated section is they had power wired to a plate and that plate would then rest on another plate that had wire soldered to that and that wire would run to the isolated track so when the two made a connection when the lift out was down would then transfer power. On your hinge side, I don't know if you're able to apply that same technique. You mentioned wanting to do the mechanical lift next time, id encourage you to check out sean's train depot on KZbin, he had one for a while and then he removed it, I would say go back maybe 8 months ago, and he talks about why he removed it, although it was functional and cole, it ended up not really being a benefit. Something about having to duck under it even though it was all the way up. And the functionality was kind of slow. Idk just some things to think about. But I like your design. Good luck.

[@Brian--jonas]

Thank you fo sharing this with us all as im currently building a outdoors shed and was looking for a good way to design a way to upgrade the door etry point instead of always climbing under it so i did a lift out section but was always a pain to have to do this all the time so this has rebooted my thoughts now so thank you kindly for that bro absolutely awesome 🤠👌

[@cprtrain]

Impressive.

[@grandparails8858]

You did a great job on the swing gate. I like how you keep your track aligned, I don't do that screw method either for the same reason.

[@jeffheins6624]

Looks like it's time to have fun

[@user-jd8of6up1o]

Great video, done very well, easy to follow. Thank you

[@TravelinginMiniature]

Love the honesty in this video, it helps us understand the design considerations you had to consider. How do you lock the gate in place?

[@dnhman]

Nice what I saw on similar swing out was he had rollers on the non hinged side that helped with the weight. So long as floor is level

[@pezi1]

FAM i love your videos. Very informative and the vibes hit hard they remind me of ATCQ. keep up the excellent work

[@chrisshoulders4066]

Awesome work bro

[@joannefigs641]

Because you're ao amazingly talented ❤

[@whereman1199]

You did a great job. Thanks for sharing.

[@geesharp6637]

Looks great. I have similar but smaller swing bridge. Keep it simple. I didn't have epoxy, so I just used NoMoreNails. You have a brace at the hinge side, but you didn't add one at the other end which I think it needs more to prevent sagging.

[@japeterson61]

Have you checked out Larry Puckett’s page. He has a video of a lift out bridge with a device he found from a supplier in the UK that needs no wiring for the lift out.

[@japeterson61]

The video is called rebuilding my Lift out bridge from 10 months ago.

[@craigpalmer9196]

good job

[@edtoomuchfun957]

Awesome video!! Thank you for sharing!

[@williamwatson9166]

Thank you, looking to build another railroad which will need something for the entry door.

[@thomasboese3793]

As far as cutting the radius of the swing bridge: Build a legless module longer than the gap so both the swing part and the non-moveable part have only a saw cut width difference when done.. Mount the hinges on one end/side. Remove the pin from the top hinge and replace it with a rod long enough to be above the top of the module. Use a length of string looped on both ends and a marker to draw the perfect arc for your cutting line. (Be sure to build the module thinner than the saw can cut.) **Before the cut be sure both ends of the module are screwed into place, so once the cut is done all you need to do is add a thin block in the cut area for a nice finished look. (If you plan ahead you could have it in place before the cut.) A lip should be added to the fixed side for the swinging end to rest on when closed.

[@richardbedard1245]

You could try a "push button" similar to what is used on a car's courtesy lights. I've seen them used to turn on closet lights.

[@JohnS-jj9by]

Very nice!

[@andrewbarlow1042]

Thank you great idea s

[@AegisPupus]

2:00 Hinged frames need a diagonal brace from bottom on the hinge side, to upper left on swinging side otherwise the swinging side will sag... In your case 2 short diagonals would do since you have a middle block.

[@goat_horde]

Getting back into ho scale and your content hypes me up. This shit is fun lol

[@jerryfrederick6610]

Nice job.

[@anfieldroadlayoutintheloft5204]

good vid on the channel thanks lee

[@Shelvington_Railway]

Just stumbled across you channel. Nice videos and nice job on this. It looks awesome. Thanks for sharing. Liked and Subbed! Cheers, Andy

[@grecomodelismo]

Helloo John, nice job with your new Gate. Here in Brasil(South American) I need one for my Free-Mo module Layout. I Like you and your channel, I´ll Follow you to help me make a gate and weathearing the trains and cars.

[@ICEMANTap]

wow this is nice!!!!

[@tonywaldon7801]

Cooltastic 👍👍

[@trainman2k]

Your electrical problem can be solved with a single SPST Normally OPEN switch. To Kill the track, you only need to interrupt one side - with the normally open, when your gate is open, so is the circuit. Closed the gate, the plunger depresses and closes the circuit.

[@Alwaysanerdy]

Aligning things very accurately is sometimes called "registering". I am very interested how the track is regiseterd by .025mm or 0.07 in the vertical and horizontal. The first installation may work. It may become out of alignment by termperature or humidity changes, or if someone (me) accidentally kicks the legs supporting that location,

[@johnbutler8388]

Look g00d

[@scottkew6278]

I installed a pair of phosphorus bronze whiskers at the hinge end for the contacts.That stuff NEVER wears out ! The whiskers are REALLY small...no power drop at all.

[@SiincereARC]

Recently found about your channel. Dope. Planning to do my first wall mounted setup. I don't know if it's an odd question but are there any Black-centric Model Train fb groups or IG? It's not a deal breaker for me as I'm already intrigued by the hobby but it would be dope to know some exist.

[@UBME2]

just use the wires like you have for feeders. Engineering something else not necessary. I would "sheet" the box you built (the door so to speak) which will help limit movement in the future. I would put a small sheet with the radius, just under the swing so the swing can "sit" on top of it when shut. Look at NSmodeler24 and the swing his father built, very nice. glue everything! looking pretty good though. Here is the link: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nWPFaaWer6mZgc0

[@atsf-3415]

How about a coiled trailer wiring line? That way the line could stretch out and retract.

[@adlerhobby1]

Have you thought about sealing the wood. With a polyurethane to stop seasonal wood expansion ????

[@majikglustik9704]

👍👍👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@elleryparsons2433]

When My Wife And I Built Our Layout we Weren’t fancy we Went what Looked Good Nothing Fancy We All Built our Layout Differently and Yes We Are Our Biggest Crittic people Don’t Like It Ah Well.

[@TheRichardEmsley]

😊😉😎👍 🚂🚃🚃🚃🚃🚃...