@Brian R 1 posted:

I currently run a trolly, with a timed stop on each end, using a device that was distributed by W.F. Services from Perry Hall Maryland.  The item is #5001 "Automatic Reverse Unit" .  The electronic piece is old and the owner has been deceased for a long time now.  He also use to sell an item #5002 "Timed Stops" that could be used with the 5001.  I am looking to  expand my garden and I would like to add a station stop for my 3 rail trolly.  I doubt I will ever find a #5002, but  does anyone have any knowledge with the products made by W.F Services and if so, would there be another item on the market that may be a substitute for the 5002

Mmm, no joy on the specific request, but with the help of others, I was able to create a similar trolley stop a while back, using insulated and isolated 3-rail tubular track sections and some cheap electronic boards (if you look carefully, you can see the blue activation light peeking out from under the platform):

BTW, you mention the unit you had was an "automatic reversing" unit. One of the things I struggled a bit with was the reversing unit on some of my trolleys, which would auto reverse (or shift to neutral) if power was interrupted, so I had to find the right resistor to 'bleed' enough voltage into the isolated section to defeat the auto reverse (more than a bit of fiddling required, but ultimately successful!). If you're counting on a similar built-in auto reversing feature to reverse the trolley at each end, this may be an even simpler solution to your needs.

Look for a book called "

Easy Electronics Projects for Toy Trains"

By David Greenwald. There is plan a easy to build station timer in there. It's been out of print for a while, but copies are available through used book retailers

I have a Lionel 137 station that can stop a train for a variable length of time chosen by the operator. I have not taken it apart, but my suspicion is the main components are a variable resistor and bimetallic strip making a SPST contact. The capability you seek was readily available before solid-state electronics were invented.

@Ken Wing posted:

I have a Lionel 137 station that can stop a train for a variable length of time chosen by the operator. I have not taken it apart, but my suspicion is the main components are a variable resistor and bimetallic strip making a SPST contact. The capability you seek was readily available before solid-state electronics were invented.

Oh, for sure . . . but I guarantee you can have the electronic gizmos to do the same shipped from overseas at a fraction of the cost of their electromechanical equivalents, or what it would cost to buy the vintage pieces like yours that did so. Don't get me wrong, I love the old stuff -- I'm a Marx and three rail tubular track enthusiast -- but IMHO you just can't beat the plethora of cheap PCB-mounted assemblies when it comes to manipulating and controlling electrical and electronic flows.

@Steve Tyler Until the PC board fries. I loved the sound, smoke, and lights in my MTH PS2 2-8-2 until it stopped working altogether. I once bought a B&O EM-1 2-8-8-4 that did nothing but light up the headlight and classification lights. Fortunately, I was able to return it. I have two other steamers with fried boards that are currently shelf queens. Just the boards are $300. I suspect my Lionel 137 station will still work long after I'm gone. To be honest, I did have to replace an E-unit in a 1941 Lionel loco several decades ago. I paid $25 for the replacement part. More recently, refurbished E-units are about $50--about the same as an electronic reversing unit. Choose your poison.

@Ken Wing posted:

@Steve Tyler Until the PC board fries.  . . . . To be honest, I did have to replace an E-unit in a 1941 Lionel loco several decades ago. I paid $25 for the replacement part. More recently, refurbished E-units are about $50--about the same as an electronic reversing unit. Choose your poison.

Fair enough . . . but in the case under discussion, I can replace both boards I used for less than $5, shipping included, and I have spares on hand awaiting future projects. I stand by my point.

Ka-ching...Walther's printed 'Easy Electronic Projects for Toy Trains' for $17, and I checked my used book folks and none had it. But one is for sale on epay for around $26, and Amazon has it for $80.  Ouch.

@Brian R 1 posted:

I currently run a trolly, with a timed stop on each end, using a device that was distributed by W.F. Services from Perry Hall Maryland.  The item is #5001 "Automatic Reverse Unit" .  The electronic piece is old and the owner has been deceased for a long time now.  He also use to sell an item #5002 "Timed Stops" that could be used with the 5001.  I am looking to  expand my garden and I would like to add a station stop for my 3 rail trolly.  I doubt I will ever find a #5002, but  does anyone have any knowledge with the products made by W.F Services and if so, would there be another item on the market that may be a substitute for the 5002

You should look at z stuff for trains. They make several products to stop and reverse trains. The product that seems to fit your needs may be the dz1220 trolley control system. Worth a look.

I searched the OGR Forum and found this O-Gauge-Timed-Train-Stop-Circuit

Thanks for all the replies.  Dale H (Rest in Peace) was a GREAT GUY to the train world.  He rewired several Marx lights for me making them LED before LED became a common thing.  He also made me two boards that operate several accessories (Like Lemax rides and other items) on a timed duration off push buttons.  I miss Dale H a ton.  Thanks for relaying that article of his.  I could never make that but reading his old post was like i was talking with him again.  Thanks for the memories. 

I made one using Stan's idea.  It was really inexpensive to make.  I attached a couple of neodymium magnets to the bottom of the MTH Bump N Go trolley to trigger the inexpensive delay timer device via a reed switch.  You need a reed switch at each end or stop, but only one device.

https://ogrforum.com/...need-a-timer-circuit

John