ROSS DOUBLE CROSSOVER

Alex,

YOu'll love that crossover, I liked mine so much I bought 2 more!

 

Excellent products and good folks-can't beat it!

Steve is the man.  I have been friends with him for years and can say that nobody in the world can build the quality products he brings to the hobby.  We are in good times in the hobby and it keeps getting better.

 

Alex, I want to see trains running through that crossover when I come to your bash this summer.

It's a real attention getter; and, from personal experience I can say you were very wise to buy the pre-wired/switch machines installed version.

Glad to see you bought the version with the pre-mounted switch machines.  In the past two months our club bought over two dozen of the Ross switches.  I agree, their product is second to none and Steve is a class act as well.

 

 

Enjoy.

Alex

Nice!!!!!

Steve

Before you install it. Make sure it has the jumper wires you will want or need. A lot of his product does not have them. It's good or bad depending on how it is going to be used.

And yes Steve is good to work with when you have layout plans.

Simply the best on the market. Enjoy, Alex.

Recently I wanted to electrify some of my Ross turnouts using servos.  I was talking to a guy who makes a board to operate the servos for a time period and then shut them down  He was telling me that I should use one of two servos. A for light action or B for heavy loads. When I told him I could blow on the switches to move them back and forth there was a long pause.  He said, "really?".

Can't get much better than Ross.....great quality products and super service.

I have a few of there switches which are great.

I have a small fortune invested in RossBed....a fantastic product.

 

Steve is the best!

 

Peter

I have a number of Ross turnouts........very nice product.

I'd love to have a double X over.......but hard to justify it.

Enjoy!

I got more than a few questions on wiring this thing. Here is a possible relay solution

 

LINK

 

Dale H

I have one.  Are you planning on using the relay to power the inside tracks depending on switch settings?

Ross is a great track system. Good luck Alex with that cross over.

I am now a fan of these shows, because all are welcome. Need not be a member of any train organization. The other clubs on the block, need to do the same, to help build the hobby.

I have only spoke with Steve on the phone.  He was very helpful!

 

Yes, his products are second-to-none.  I have two of the 4-way switches and both are works of art.

Ross= Great products, now my #1 source. Best quality switches and track that I have used. All 100% reliable, good looking and USA made. You can't go wrong with Ross.

Steve B (the owner)  - great guy to deal with. Very helpful, customer oriented and he takes great pride in the workmanship of his products.

Price: Costs a bit more than some manufacturers similar products, but the best always costs more.

My layout uses a mixture of Ross and the "other guys" switches so I asked Steve to come out with snap together flat connectors that would enable easy switch replacement. He said that he will consider the idea and if he does it I believe that Ross will do more business.

As for the WGHOT show; it was great being at an all inclusive show with families and children. Much more refreshing, alive, upbeat and enjoyable than attending a morbid meet of cranky old folks run by an organization that can be compared to a nursing home for senior citizens.

Hi Alex

May I ask the Ross # for this xover. I think I can use it.  I have seen other Ross xovers but they were much longer about 48 ins long.  If this one is short enough it could replace 4 turnouts.

Tks

Tommy  

I'll sum it up.  No product is better made anywhere in the O gauge train world than Ross Custom Switches.  I think it is a privilege to know Steve Breneisen and to use his switches exclusively on every layout I have built for the last 25 years.  Having done a story on him and how he got to where he is today, I believe it is a marvel that this business has such a high quality professional in it as we do with Steve Breneisen.  You simply cannot go wrong with his products. 

The reason I ask about using the relay, I believe it's a DZ - 1008, with this switch is, well I'm not a big fan.  The relay is intended to power the inside rails so engines don't stall or hesitate going through the switch, which they will.  Problem is, to my knowledge you can't wire this switch for anti reverse.  You cheese out, which you will, and run a train over that switch turned the wrong way - poof - the relay is toast and you start over again.  That smell of a fried DZ 1008 is one I may never forget.  The eight small wires will break your heart if you let them.  That said, not trying to rain on a parade, just not a fan of the double xover.  Two separate xovers spread apart are more functional in most cases.   Big fan of Ross track and switches.  That's what I use.  Just not that darn switch.  Have fun!

I have over 400' of Ross Track. Can't beat it. As I've said before, the only problem with Steve is that he's a Chrysler man.

There isn't any need for non derailing on the diamond if you have both crossover switch motors wired together.   Never burnt up a dz1008 and we have over 50 of them.  The double crossover is great

I've had one on the layout for over 25 years. They didn't come ready in those days. I use Tortoise switch motors. Not sure what Ready means as far as wiring. I think it's best to solder a small feeder wire to each rail that is isolated. Before plunking it down on the layout. Even if you never hook it to anything.  I used solid 18 gauge bent in an L shape to the underside of the rail. I know the wire is on the wimpy side for O gauge. But you only need juice to get you over a trouble spot. Get it up and running with what Ross provides. It may run fine as is. There's always that one engine though and it may be years before the problem surfaces. I think it's best to have the solution in place if you need to add relays. From what I remember. Most problems centered around going through the diamond. There's a lot going on there rail wise and often times the center rail wasn't the issue. With traction tires, blind drivers not touching the rails. It was a ground issue. The manufactures have done a great job in recent years to eliminate these problems. Multiple pick up rollers, wipers on trailing truck axles and so on. An engine that creeps with speed control of today isn't much fun if it continually has trouble negotiating track. 

 Best of luck with your new layout Alex. I think this time of layout construction is the best. Watching it come to life.

Good morning everyone,

 

Thanks for all the nice comments, and great input.

 

Marty, I will be laying track starting in about two weeks. You will see trains running at the summer bash!!!!!!!

 

Jim, Steve did mention to me about installing the jumper wires yesterday.

 

William, not sure about that yet.

 

Thebeeman, the number of this crossover is 175M

 

Thanks again,

Alex

Can you tell me its length and the center to center measurements? what curve size is it? can it be used with ScaleTrax? may I ask what the cost is?

Of course you are going to wire the two mated switches together.  I should have mentioned that my issue arose because I took the relay wiring a step further and powered four more of the small rails, which if the switch was in the wrong position would blow the relay.  It gave great performance through the switch with all engines, but became problematic from taking it that further step. 

Wiring the two switches together doesn't have any bearing on the performance of the switch.  If the switch is thrown the wrong way without anti derailing, you are still going to roll through it from the back end with the switch points touching the outside rail, possibly derailing a car.  I had mine connecting two mainlines.  That might have had something to do with it.  In hindsight, and next time, I would use two single crossovers

Sam E ,  the length is 32 inches and center to center rail is 4 1/2 cost is 479.95

Not sure what you mean about curve size, and also not sure if this can be used with ScaleTrax

 

Thanks,

Alex

Tommy,  a primary benefit of the double cross-over is its length compared to using four separate switches to accomplish the same function.   

 

Also, RCS' website provides PDFs with dimensions for all the switches, so it's easy to compare them and the space they require.

Alex,

 

This is a great switch and it solved a yard switching issue that I had.  I have not yet fully installed it, but I expect it to perform very well like all my other Ross switches.  The switches on this Ross double crossover (DX) are #4.

 

William,

 

If the DX switch is wired properly, you should not have any problems with the DZ-1008 relay.  Below is the diagram I’m using to wire my #4 DX (the PowerPoint file is also included).  I’m using DZ-2500 switch machines while Alex is using DZ-1000 switch machines, but the basic wiring is the same.

 

The problem is making sure the diamond outside rails of the two crossing tracks are powered correctly.  This is done using the master switch in the lower right.  When the master (and #2) switch is set for straight (not crossover), the white wire (dotted blue in diagram) from the relay is AC positive energized (center rail power) and allows trains to cross between #3 and #4 switches.  When the master (and #2) switch is set for crossing, the gray wire from the relay is energized allowing trains to cross between the master and #2 switches.  The position of the #3 and #4 switches have no effect on this.

 

If all four switches are set for crossover, this would mean the gray wire is energized and a train going between #3 and #4 switches will cause a short as soon as it hits the diamond.  To prevent this, the green wire acts as a non-derailing input to the master switch and when a train going between the 3# and #4 switches hits those rails, it sets the master (and #2) switch to straight and all is well.

 

I did a quick test of this wiring setup but without the green wire when I first got the switch, but it should work.  If you don’t think it works this way, let me know.

 

UPDATE:  I mistakenly used an older file.  I've updated the correct files.

 

 

 

 

Trust me, I know exactly how it operates.  I had other DZ 1008s in operation.  What I did was connect four more leads to the switch rails.  The center rails leading into the switch.  I am prone to overdoing things at times.  You won't know how it operates till you run engines through.  I think I added more feeders because an engine or too would still stall or hesitate going through the switch with just the four jumpers.  Problem that arises by adding the additional jumpers is, if an engine rolls through the wrong way and if that rail is powered as an inside rail and the engine needs an ouside rail -  Zappo.

My layout is 100% RCS (turnouts and sectional track) and have not once regreted it. Looks great, has most varied variety available, works flawlessly, terrific customer support and made is the USA .

 

What's not to like?

Gentlemen,

   Simply put Steve makes the best double cross over switches in the business, I wish Lionel would design a similar set up in FasTrack for us Tin Plate guys.

PCRR/Dave

   

Vey cool!

 

-Eric Siegel

I have a spot reserved for one, I'm just waiting to save up for it.

This is absolutely true.  One advantage of using two pairs of switches, however, is that if using command, you can put them farther apart and use one of the sets of tracks in-between the switch sets as a passing siding. 

 

I have 17 RCS on the current layout, including 2 sets of yard switches that I am using as a cross-over.  However, I have decided to sell about a dozen of them.   I will be replacing these with RCS switches with a large radius turn-out.  I am (and have been) very happy with Steve's product.

 

Jim 

It's kind of funny, but I think of the Ross cross-over, every time I ride the Washington metro, and the subway cars use the cross-over at the end of the red line, to arrive at whichever side of the platform is open!

 

Jim

Much more refreshing, alive, upbeat and enjoyable than attending a morbid meet of cranky old folks run by an organization that can be compared to a nursing home for senior citizens.

 

The original train collecting organization, TCA, has, incidentally, been responsible for the steady upswing in 0 gauge products and services over the past several decades, and serves as the largest showcase for this Lionel-based hobby. Even this fine forum would probably not exist in its present form had not the nursing home for cranky senior citizens kept operating through the last 60 years.

 

I wish more people shared your disdain for the TCA York experience. It would make it easier for us cranky old senior citizens (you, know, the ones with disposable income, who support the new and old manufacturers regardless of the highs and lows of the economy) to creep down the aisles in our walkers and scooters, dropping hundred dollar bills wherever we go.

 

PLEASE stay away if you are so opposed to the meet. We appreciate the elbow room your absence creates.

.

 

I agree that by using two single crossovers you can create a passing siding.  Advantageous if this is on the mainline connecting two loops.
If you use the relay on a regular single Ross switch you will fry the relay if you roll through it the wrong way.  That's why it is best to wire the switch with anti reverse.  Roll through it switched the wrong way and the switch will change before the engine comes in contact with a rail powered the wrong way.  Which you can't do with the double crossover.

Gentlemen,

    Breaking news, Steve is a C-Man, which brings into question every thing he has ever engineered or designed.  Spence will be bringing Steve in for questioning in the near future, those Ross Track & Switch owners wishing to participate in the questioning are ask to contact Spence immediately.

PCRR/Dave