Catenary System- Does Anybody Make one

That type of overhead wire is no longer made by Marklin but there is lots of it new and used on E-bay. Don

scale rail posted:

That type of overhead wire is no longer made by Marklin but there is lots of it new and used on E-bay. Don

Thanks for the reply.

With some paint, the MTH catenary can be made acceptable.

Awesome. How far apart are the poles? Also I just got that engine in the Amtrak Version.

Danr posted:

With some paint, the MTH catenary can be made acceptable.

This is simply an A+ layout.

The catenary wire is 20" long so poles are 20" on the straight sections.  Poles are closer together on curves.  Because the bridge you see is a lift bridge the catenary through the bridge is made from 1/16" welding rod with 1/4" brass for the supports.  The catenary can be powered however, that is not an option if you are using a VL GG1.  Geometry of the curves is extremely important.  Because our curves are much sharper than the prototype the pantograph will extend over the center line of the rails.  Bend and fit your catenary wire BEFORE you anchor the poles.  Use your locomotive as a gauge and keep the wire as close to the center of the sliders as possible.  One last thing, the VL GG1 pan is more scale size than most others so it is a little more narrow.  It is also bolted to the body so, unlike most other pans that will just pop off in an accident, any accident involving the pan is sure to cause damage to the pan.  At $80 a pop for a new pan, you will want to be careful.

Thanks for the comments, everyone.  The poles were painted with a leather brown to look like they been there a long time.  The catenary wire is painted with sea glass green to duplicate the green patina of copper.  If you are going to power the catenary don't paint it, or dry brush it after installation or you will have conductivity problems.

To risky for my blood. I’d rather not damage a $1200 train. I’ll just pretend because they’re unavailable anyways.

Smoking now! Here is the panto situation. 

Looks good and works well.  You’ll have to make the call on the pan.  Most people, probably, won’t notice.

Here is a video of my layout 4 years ago when I was beginning to detail it.  The catenary is modified MTH and you will see the Lionel Acela operating on it...about a minute or two into the video.  By the way, lots of changes have taken place including most of the raw wood you see is now covered and/or painted.  Make sure you click on the HD symbol on the bottom right and then set it for 1080...then click on the expand/full page symbol in the bottom right corner.

OGR CEO-PUBLISHER posted:

Here is a video of my layout 4 years ago when I was beginning to detail it.  The catenary is modified MTH and you will see the Lionel Acela operating on it...about a minute or two into the video.  By the way, lots of changes have taken place including most of the raw wood you see is now covered and/or painted.  Make sure you click on the HD symbol on the bottom right and then set it for 1080...then click on the expand/full page symbol in the bottom right corner.

Great video Alan, may I ask what camera you are using for this ?

Great video Alan, may I ask what camera you are using for this ?

Hi Roger!!!

The camera is an ION Air Pro Wifi.   I had a GoPro but I didn't like it so took it back and bought this one....WOW, much better and smaller.  It is about the size of one of those giant tootsie rolls.

Can everyone put an order for catenary so they will make it for me? Haha Mth 40-1035

Robert Cushman posted:

Can everyone put an order for catenary so they will make it for me? Haha Mth 40-1035

Robert...I need more too!  It was in their catalog for a long time but nearly impossible to find....now I can find any to finish up!

Glad I bought mine when I did.  I purchased my last set about 3 years ago from Train World.  I hope MTH will produce more, I still have a lot of track not under wire.

I'll check my local train store, last time I looked he had some new old stock.

Alan, at the risk of sounding like I'm patronizing the publisher, your video is the very first video of scale proportioned trains that I have watched from beginning to end. And several times too. What a treat.

Normally, watching videos with the start up of these new trains going as slow as they possibly can, so you can count the chuffs to the wheel revolutions, bores me to tears. Next, please. No imagination in that. But to each their own.

Then there's the videos from folks who are constantly chastising the train companies for "not getting it right," who have their layouts on indoor/outdoor carpeting or green felt... there's nothing high rail about that. It's just a modern version of the postwar green painted sheet of plywood. But again, to each their own. Every sale, be it a starter set or a high end item, helps keep the train companies in business. I just find it ironic how critical some people have become... to anyone and everyone but themselves.

So watching your video Alan, I thought "Now that's a high rail layout!" There was just so much to look at and take notice of. Even not being finished as you noted, it was still a feast for the eyes, with all the details. It was not quite 5 minutes for the train to return to the starting point. Wow, that's a BIG layout. There are museum and club layouts that don't have as much to take notice of.

There's nothing that is going to move me away from conventional control 027 trains. But I sure enjoyed the artistry, the attention to detail - and not immediately evident - also the well-conceived planning that went into executing your entire layout.

Like I said, I watched it several times, and each time was as enjoyable as the last. 

OGR CEO-PUBLISHER posted:

Here is a video of my layout 4 years ago when I was beginning to detail it.  The catenary is modified MTH and you will see the Lionel Acela operating on it...about a minute or two into the video.  By the way, lots of changes have taken place including most of the raw wood you see is now covered and/or painted.  Make sure you click on the HD symbol on the bottom right and then set it for 1080...then click on the expand/full page symbol in the bottom right corner.

Alan:

Your layout is breath-taking and the video is fabulous! I love large city scenes. I have one rather odd-ball question. At 1:30 into the video, there are 2 Tuscan red, interurban cars. Because the train goes by them so fast, I couldn't be sure of the railroad name on them, but, they look to be Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines. Is that correct? If so, who made them, Lionel, MTH, Atlas?

Thank you.

Any luck finding any? I have a GG1 looking for some lines to touch..

My LHS has three 8 packs and one 4 pack listed at $150.00 each for 8 and $80.00 for the 4 pack. New old MTH stock.

Those prices are not to bad.  If your ready to build a system, go for them.  Maybe the shop owner might make a deal if all are purchased together.

Dave Ripp. posted:

My LHS has three 8 packs and one 4 pack listed at $150.00 each for 8 and $80.00 for the 4 pack. New old MTH stock.

Can you tell me the name of his shop?

Thank you Dave!

I currently have a 16x8 with a hole cutout in the middle with 1/4” plywood for the top. Should I grab some foam to lay over it or would it be better to screw the catenary to wood instead? I imagine wood would be sturdier but I wanted to quiet down my track a bit with the foam underneath.