Atlas Turntable Operation, Good / Bad?

Count me in the plus column.  Mine's been in service about 12 years.  I've had 1 broken drive belt that was easily replaced and I lost power to the table bridge once.  It seemed that the spring that applies pressure to one of the rollers underneath broke and needed replacing.  I replaced them both with a set of brushes and springs from a PW trolley.

Recently I added an ERR DC commander to the mix and now have TMCC remote control of the table. 

 

AF

I think it is a very toy like TT.   It is too small for anything "scale" and has a very cheep feel to it.    

Artie,  Thanks!

 

Trevize, I think you misread the question...

I've had one for about 4 years and I think it is great for the space I have and certainly the price.   So far I have not had a hitch at all.  It indexes at the right spots all of the time and just works fine.

 

One of my long list of projects is to try and add some detail to it, weathering, etc.  I think with just a little effort it can be made to look really nice.

 

Naturally there is no comparing it to the $1k+ ones that are out there

 

So to answer your question it works fine all the time.  The only thing I wish were a little different is the noise from the motor.  It could be a little quieter.  But for what I paid this is ok by me.

 

Thanks,

Ed

I own two. They look good. As stated prior, there is no competing with the fine tables available around the O scale world.

 

I will find out soon if they are good or have issues. I hope with both tables I will have one good and a batch of spares. To that end, a wye is planned to turn engines bigger than the table.

I have this Atlas turntable in operation for over 6 years.  Had to replace one belt about 2 years ago that took about 15 seconds to do. (I ordered some more belts from my Atlas dealer and they are very inexpensive.  I use the original so not to put undue tension on any bearing points.)

I'm happy with it. 

Bill, I picked up a bowser with a millhouse upgrade for $500 and it works amazingly. I remember reading a review in CTT or OGR when the atlas first came out. The one thing I remember is that when they took it out all the ball bearings fell out. Too toy like for me. But I think you can get it to look how you want. Plenty of used good one though out there and I would go for one of those.

I have one for a couple of years now and it still works fine. It MUST be mounted on a flat surface for trouble-free operation. If the turntable hangs up for any reason while turning (turntable track touches stationary track, debris, etc), the belt may be thrown. You can order a handful from Atlas.

Works great. Use low voltage at 4.5 - 5 volts. Nice for someone like me who doesn't have a permanent layout & don't have to cut a hole in the table. Motor on mine is more noisy in one direction than the other, but other than that, no problems.

Does anyone out there have one using Lionel FasTrack? 

 

TEX

Steve

I have just installed an Atlas 0-ga. Turntable on my layout. 

 

I'm having some problems that atlas is trying to work out right now. 

 

One problem is my Lionel 2032 ERIE diesel can't stay connected while on the turntable. Atlas now knows the problem and is working on a correction.

 

The second problem is the motor jams often while turning CCW (counter-clockwise), but  has no problem turning CW. 

 

There is some postings I am involved in over on the Model Train Forum. 

 

Link follows for anyone interested:

 

http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?t=12622&page=2

 

Norm

 

I don't have one myself, but my club layout has one with the Fastrack (Glancy Modular Club).  I've tried a little to get ours working again at a few of the last shows, but no luck. Haven't really bothered digging deeper because we mainly just stage locomotives on it and us it for show.  It does attract crowds when operating though (same with our Lionel transfer table that I cleaned up at the last show).  The fastrack itself requires some cutting and shimming to work right, but it does work.

Just got an Atlas TT and made a few observations. Most people complain about the belt falling off. Being from an engineering background, I figured that would be easily solvable issue and it is. Still can not figure out why Atlas never addressed this years ago.

Even Atlas cautions not to run it "TOO" fast with out giving any parameters.

 

first problem is that the unit should be shipped without the belt installed. After long trip from China and sitting on shelf for a year, it looks like a triangle with an indent where it rests on the idler sheeve.

second issue is that the belt is too wide or sheeve to narrow (pick one).

the belt sits on sheeve at an angle which means that on a square profile belt, it is already half off and overstretched.

 

OnceI changed the belt and thinned it up with a piece of fine sandpaper, I test ran it for half an hour at full 18volts and had my son slam it into reverse a few times just for fun.

Never skipped a beat.  I do not advocate this a a general opperating procedure. 

 

also if you recommend lubing the gears than they should provide a small starter tube.

goes a long way toward customer relations.

 

I had another issue with the little guy in the shack was bouncing around and shack glued up tight. Atlas tech says this happens because the glue does not stick well to the rubber.

 

Customer service actually told me to send it back at my expense so he could cut the bottom off, re-glue the man and then ship back.

Said it did not affect the turntable from working.

 

Hello???

Me paying to ship, him spending the labor to dismantle and ship back has to cost more than popping a cheap plastic piece in the mail. And that still does not address the glue issue.

 

The Geneva index is a great idea. too bad whoever decided to use it could not figure out how to spec a simple rubber band.

 

Otherwise, for the price, it it a good option.

 

 

 

It is very toy like as said by someone on here. If I had one, I would first paint it a dark color. The white looks terrible.

Had mine for several years & it works well & since I have a temp. layout & don't have to cut hole in layout. Only problem I had was the belt came off a couple of times, but easy to replace.

After reading Dennis B's Guide to Hi-Rail and studying for a few months(it is already dog-eared) and buying his fence kit and ballast, I finaly decided today to attempt my first weathering project. While I do not consider myself a Hi-Railer but more of a Hybryd- Railer, as a custom high end architectural fabricater for the last 35 years, I can really appreciate his skills and attention to detail. I feel the same way about my dentist. How many guys do you let put the equivent of a high speed Dremel in your mouth.

 

My son and I are big fans  of functionality but also fun. An old Marx drum loader competing against a couple of American Flyer barrel loader fork trucks (can not figure out why they call them "carts") to see who can load faster is also a big part of the hobby for him. For me it is getting them to perform flawlessly. 

 

Well anyway, the Atlas turntable fit in the budget and after fixing the belt issue, we wanted it to look a little bit older for our steam engines.

 

I have an idea of putting it into a gentle slope, filling in the open bays with granite blocks topped with  a fence kit to give it the illusion of being more "pit-like"

With on side submerged and the roundhouse and approach tracks mid-slope and level and then maybe an embankement bolsterin the low side like an earth dam, it may look a little more interesting and less flat.

 

Also getting the roundhouse from another forum for a good price. Looking forward to it.

 

 Unfortunately, after dealing with the folks at Atlas on this first purchase, I do not intend do any other business with them.  I just got 5  40" pieces of Atlas flex track used for $30.00 so I will in the future only buy used. 

 

I always welcome feedback, positive or not. Nothing is more appreciated by me than an opportunity to learn from or at least listen to someone who has alreay been down a path that I am contermplating.

a couple of more

That looks a lot better than the white.

Eddie,

Actually your original comment is what made me decide to blow off yardwork today and

fiddle with the turntable.

When I opened the box, that was the first thing I remembered from this forum.

 

I initially just washed it with india ink to tone down that god awful white but even that was not enough.

 

Thanks for pointing that out so concisely. 

FMH

I have one that I've had for 10-12 years. Had it on 3 different layouts over the years,  and it's faired pretty well. Broke one drive belt, and had to also replace a contact under the deck with a brush like home made repair. But it's plastic, so considering the wear and tear its had, I have no complaints. Easy to maintain, easy to operate, and it works. If you don't want to dump 5 or 6 hundred into a turntable, this one will function well for locos less than 24 in .

 

Hi

I have had one of these for the past 3 years, cheap and chearful construction would best describe it, but having said that functional and very good value at the price. The only problem with it is the silly underpowered rubber band drive which has no chance to turn a heavy loco as it suffers from serious to terminal slippage, my answer was to modify the drive and I installed a direct drive DC motor, now no problems at all and its in daily use.

 

The article on how to do this was posted on the OGR by me some time back

 

"Ted"

 

"The article on how to do this was posted on the OGR by me some time back"

 

I have searched for this post and could not find it.  Is it possible for you to re-post your "how to" again.

 

Thank you.

HI, sorry in fact the instructions are on a different site, I dont feel I should post the link on the OGR Forum, not proper,  but anybody can email me directly for the details and I am happy to help with details of how I did it,  regards

Ment to mention, I must distress my turntable like Fred, it looks very nice, I have to agree the white is very stark

 

Nice job ! thanks for the photos

 

I'm in the process of installing one now. It is priced right for my use on this addition to my layout. It has tested very well. The fact that I use fasTrack has added some additional issues with track alignment , but after making a pattern on cutting the track it is working out well with no alignment problems. A band saw and misc metal files did wonders.

Larry

Hi Larry Sr.

 

New to the forum but was intrigued by your post.  I am also considering a turntable but have a large investment in the fastrack system.  Any insight or photos you could share would be greatly appreciated. 

 

Happy holidays. Scott

LocoZNB

Here are a few pictures to give you an idea of how I cut the straight track. It also shows the small shim under the track for a very good fit (ice cream stick). It can be hid with ground cover of any method you want. I did use a band saw to cut the track, then file the ends smooth. I started with cutting the track end off straight, then the notch so it would fit flush with the turntable. The Atlas 6910 is by far not the high end but it has worked very well for me. It was a pain getting the first one completed for a pattern. Then the rest were easy to make. Hope it gives you some help.

Larry

PS Note the black ties for measurements to cut.

Thank you so much, Larry.  It looks like a pretty painless process and I've been looking for a reason to buy a bandsaw! LOL  Anyway, happy holidays and thanks again for posting.

 

Scott

Somewhere I read that the belt that breaks was replaced with something else to improve it.  Does anyone recall a conversation about replacing the belt on an Atlas Turntable with something else?