Outside 3rd rail.

I to have been playing around with outside third rail. I put outside third rail on a prewar 701 switcher, the tender, and a 717 caboose. It was never very popular and has been gone for a long time, so parts to put this together are very difficult to come up with. I am still looking for insulators to do another 701.  No track to run on yet.  Lots of fun. 

I have a collection of 3-rail New York Central (P-2b and S-2) and New Haven (EP-3, EF-3, EF-4, EP-5 and FL-9) electric motors by MTH, Lionel and Sunset. All would be realistic to run on outside 3rd rail. The idea intrigues me but it would be a huge effort to convert them and build a layout. Very interesting thread though.

MELGAR

Outside third rail is also still in activity in France. Even if it is certainly the last layout in operation here it must be seen as an historical place to visit.

Here is a nice report of the layout in the East station in Paris. It dates back to the thirties and has been maintained by members of the club since this time. Actually it is in the processed of being restored to keep it running old school. Even modern models are modified to run on that layout as for example the MTH 241 mountain you can see running, and many others.

Sorry if it bother you as it is in French, so start at 2.50 minutes to skip the intro.... 

I have some engines that have spent their life on this layout and they are still running well even if they have a high milage.

Daniel

That is really nice,I wish that I had known about the Layout as I go to Paris every other year.

Mikey

Carey, your trackwork looks great!  Really a giant leap forward in realism to move that center rail outboard.

The pickups are not difficult - a lot of folks just used speedometer cable.  I hate to say it, but I have sent a lot of outside 3rd pickups to the recycler.  The rest will go to Carey, if they show up here.

Hello all ...Daniel thank you for posting the link to the great layout ....interesting that the layout and the first sign of outside 3rd rail ( that I've found ...so far) is 1929 ...  next time in Paris it will be a must to visit ..

Bob thank you for your kind words ....and saving future 3rd rail sweeps for me .

Melgar ...good to see the Lionel switcher and caboose with the sweeps .... outside 3rd to center rail ...is the easiest conversion possible ... on those few Lionel products ...      in Model Builder ( Lionel's magazine) they had an article about adding outside 3rd rail shoes for the City of Portland ...and Hiawatha .

Cheers Carey

FRENCHTRAINS posted:

Outside third rail is also still in activity in France. Even if it is certainly the last layout in operation here it must be seen as an historical place to visit. Daniel

Amazing that it survived the war. If I ever get to Paris, that will be a required place to visit.

I picked this up from ebay a couple of years ago and may either gap it for two-rail (but leaving the third rail in place) or just use it and the section of double track that came with it as a display.

Daniel,

That is a very interesting layout. The outside 3-rail construction is beautiful. One thing I especially liked about it is that the trains operate at high speeds over wide radius curves. I'm also interested in whatever you can tell me about its history during World War II. During that time, my father was in France with the U.S. Army.

MELGAR

Hello Melgar, I am sorry but I do not have any specific information about the layout during World War Two, I can only imagine that it has stay in service, it has not been damaged. Many German soldiers where also very interested in trains so may be it has help to preserve it.... who knows. Now all members from that period time are gone and it is very hard to have informations.

Thanks for the service your Father have done in France and help us to be free, and happy Fourth of July.

Kind regards,  Daniel

B&O pamphlet, date unclear. Look closely and you will see that it was an O scale, outside 3rd rail layout. I know very little about it, except for what is contained in the text. It reads..." This miniature system can be set up or taken down in eight hours. There are more than fifteen hundred electrical connections between the control box....and the track. Seventy four relays govern the signals and train control......."

It also boasts of "miniature reproductions of B&O Signals....."

Many things unique to the B&O are featured in 1/4 inch.

          Look closely above,  and you can see the 3rd rail.

          From a time when railroads valued public perception.

C.J.

Here are a few more outside 3rd rail layouts ... two more views of the B&O layout ...that now lives in Cincinnati...open at Christmas....John Armstrong with his layout ....and Frank Ellison's Delta Lines 

Cheers Carey