ARC Pro - Curved Lane Changer Mod

[Blagard-01]

I have just completed a modification to a curved lane changer. It totally isolates lanes 1 and 2 requires chopping out a section of rails and two soldered wires.

The first step was to cut the links as below so the power from the lead in changer continued to power both rails into the lane change.

 

Then I chopped out what was close to 15mm of rail leaving behind some ragged bits on at the sides of each rails (Top cut clean through) The ragged bits were bent inwards to leave as a physical key to the filler I used to reinstate the middle

 

Next I tinned up some silicone insulated wire and pushed the ends into the rails I needed to get power to from the 2nd lane. The other ends wer soldered to the remaining sections of ribbon I had left.

 

So now the lead in rails all powered by what I will call Lane 1 - no mods required to wiring other than the two snips on the connecting ribbon. With the break now in the changing lane the lead out part was simply wired in parrallel to Lane 2. 

Finally using a former wrapped in clingfilm to keep the slot correct I filled the lot with a two part filler like P38 etc. The good news is it works! - Image may take some time to appear!

 

/media/tinymce_upload/c3f388b73c6e29b728a2159896e6fd53.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

[Blagard-01]

A few typos there as I put the post up. The main thing is that each main lane either side of the cut in the middle, powers the respective part of the change lane. The dead section is to ensure the pickups don't short across two main lanes.

 

So if you look at the 3rd image down, you can see the ribbon takes power from the lane on the right and feeds what is now half of the changing lane. The two wires do exactly the same on the left half.

 

The second image down shows the very simple way to isolate one lane from the other. 

[gorp]

congratulations 

 

looking left to right but believe is same right to left of pic 2 and 4

thought remembered that flippers do not conduct power 

if that is true, does stock left rail pass the flipper connect to left receiving lane

while the stock right rail pass the flipper is powered by original up to the exit flipper

 

if this is true, why not just cut out only the right rail just pass the original lane flipper

and just solder that section to the right receiving lane

guess thats 2 cuts and 2 solders

 

but if memory flippers  being nonpowered is wrong , ignore this

and again congratulations

[Blagard-01]

It is a right hand curve out to in with a fixed exit "flipper" that is electrically dead.

 

As you know the lead in flipper is live "left or right "depending on which way it is flipped so power is there right up to my cut

 

You could instead do one cut oppersite the dead exit flipper except in practical terms I think it would be more difficult to do due to the confined space. Certainly I found it just possible to do what is shown using nothing more than my dremel with a metal cutting disc and a hacksaw. Getting the rails cut out was the difficult bit!

 

Each rail is a channel section like a small "n" with the top being the visible part you see. I initially cut the top exactly where I wanted the dead spot but cut the verticals maybe 3mm nearer the middle leaving  "tangs" I could bend in to each other, taking care to make sure the upper part of the tang was well below what would be the final surface. The reason is normally the rails are anchored to the plastic at every see through space you see in the slot. When you cut the rails you get a free floating end of steel and I wanted that to be anchored into the filler. - I ended up putting black boot polish on the filler to make it blend in more!

 

 

I think the working oppersite a flipper is most likely going to result in damaging it. Likewise when I tucked the wires into the cut rails I did that rather than risk soldering direct to a rail and melting plastic. I found it very easy to tin the remaining parts of the ribbon to connect the other wire ends. In use I have not noticed any problem going across that short dead section I created.

 

Underside with the cover re-fitted as below

/media/tinymce_upload/6120a073be3ff25061dd675363dcbe7a.JPG

[gorp]

oh forgot this is on a previous modified curve digital changer so analog could run on apb

and 2 solder means 1 wire only required

and if this is correct

then first step to making curved changer arc pro usable would be to do original snip snip

then your mod

[gorp]

saw over at slot forum, digital, scaly

that they have a solution for curved changers too that modifys only arc pro powerbase which makes it usable for digital use only because analog then runs only in opposite directions

but adding a switch is suggested as a possible solution to racing analog again on arc pro

[dcurzon]

After making snips to the ribbon to isolate, and creating a gap in the lane, couldnt you just run taps across? from the tabs on the outer lane to the tabs on the now separated and unpowered middle bit?

Actually, couldnt you get away with one wire, from the inner curve of the outer lane, to the inner curve of the middle lane.  the outer curve of the middle lane would surely get connected by the next scalextric piece?

Maybe a top down pic, with arrows pointing to what is bridging to what would be really helpful.

Well done on this :)

 

[Dr_C]

I just modified a track section to introduce a dead spot... got a very neat result by lifting the rail then cutting with a dremmel. I cut out a 10mm section then filed each remaining piece back by 1mm then re-assembled all three pieces... this creates... track then 1mm gap then 10mm track with dead spot then another 1mm gap then the remaining section of track. This looks very tidy, isolates the track and creates a nice flush surface for the brushes to ride over... this approach should work very well alongside the fixed output flipper/wedge as per above discussion...

[Blagard-01]

How did you lift the rail without it buckling? Or did you undo the clamped over locations?

 

You will still need to wire the rail across to the rail the other side of the flipper (Same rail split by the flipper)

[Dr_C]

Yep - released the tabs on the back and then the rail easily lifts off - and if careful you can cut the rail without deforming it. And yes... one wire jumper required for the curve changer mod. This too could be done when the rail is removed to avoid the risk of melting/deforming the plastic track. We now have evidence that all three of the earlier discussed options will achieve compatibility, i.e.

Option A: modify the Arc Pro as per recent slotforum post 

Option B: modify curved lane changer as per your description above.

Option C: modify standard track sections on either side of the ARC Pro. This involves making dead spots in one of the lanes and then using jumpers to create a cross-over between the two rails of that lane. Electrically this is the same as Option A.

[Blagard-01]

Last bit  😉  How are you securing the rails back - nice touch with the small piece but I would be concerned with it coming loose or sliding and creating a short as pickup pass over it if it touches one end.

 

I certainly think your mod will look much neater and one less dead spot which is also a good thing. The main thing about modding the changer is that it leaves the Powerbase as it is and also keeps the track Analogue friendly.

[Dr_C]

I avoid the risk of the small piece moving by cutting it to align precisely with the retaining tab so it can’t move along the track once the tab has been re-locked. I use 5 min epoxy to hold the three sections of rail in place - but I only use the epoxy in close proximity to the cut positions. The result looks almost like a mass produced part... ;-)

[gorp]

still not buying your explanation of opt c

modifying curved changer is great

modifying powerbase can use glad inline to add analog

but those who insist on 2 race lanes into 1 will never race analog

[Dr_C]

Yes i see where you are coming from... for option C the modified track pieces enable an unmodified ARC pro to function with unmodified curved lane changers and unmodified digital lap counters. This is intended primarily as a digital solution where integration with unmodified curve lane changers is desiredd. If you want analog too, then can either remove the two option C track pieces, or with a bit of design effort could use double-pole double-throw switches on the track pieces themselves - it’s all very do-able... and I hope this helps...

[Dr_C]

Option C

modify two standard track pieces as below and then fit both sides of an unmodified ARC pro...

======= lane1

===X=== lane2

create a10mm dead zone in both rails at point X then ‘cross-wire‘ underneath using two jumper wires. Easy...

[gorp]

ok understand your digital only  solution

 

using 2 additional pieces of track to create 2 dead zones and 8 solder connections for adding 4 wires

instead of slotforum idea of unsolder 2 and solder 2

cheap n lazy m i , slotforum wins this easily

while

to then run analog,  you switch these pieces out or add a switch to go back to stock condition

however then original problem returns

just like slotforum digital solution and their resulting analog problem

 

so to me , if ever needed to run curved changers again, would do blagard mod

or glad

 

 

[Dr_C]

My position is that there are three valid options and they all work well with various trade offs. In terms of my option C it will work very well in digital mode. Removing the modified track pieces returns the system to an entirly standard ARC PRO format which of course is well suited to analog mode (so long as any curved lane changers have been snipped with the standard digital to analog mod). This is a potential advantage over the slotforum ARC PRO mod which would cause cars to run in opposite direction in analog mode. But just to reiterate...  I’m not yet coming down in favour of any one specific option at this stage.... in fact I’ll be exploring all three options... with the intention of seeking to demonstrate useful and effective modifications in each case :-)

[gorp]

asked this other day elsewhere

perhaps you have missed the discussions here and throughout the scaly community for the last month

about the fact that the curved digital changer, stock OR modified (snip snip) is a default no no on the arc pro

 

thats why the curved changer mod by blagard is the only solution for both digital and analog use on the arc pro

glad can do both too, perhaps best through the all digital slot forum solution

but for now will stick to stock arc pro here, happily without curved changers

 

[Dr_C]

The unmodified curved lane changers work perfectly with the APB where both lanes have the same digital signal polarities. With the ARC PRO the signal polarities of lane 1 and lane 2 have been reversed. The slot forum mod to the ARC PRO rectifies this polarity reversal by switching two wires so that unmodified curve lane changers will function in digital mode exactly as per the APB. My proposed Option C will also rectify this polarity reversal and so, again, unmodified curve changers will function in digital mode exactly as per the APB. I therefore firmly disagree with your assertion that the only solution is the modification of the curved lane changers. This is simply one of a number of compatibility options. In earlier posts I list three... A, B and C.

[gorp]

Yes your option c will give you a digital only track,  unsafe for analog use.

It is just the slot forum option moved from powerbase to track plus 2 deadspots plus twice as many wires and solder points.

You should suggest it there.

 

btw  sentence 2 is incorrect since sentence 3 is correct

[Dr_C]

Thanks Gorp for this - yes - I now see my second sentence was a bit ambiguous I should have more precisely stated that ’With the standard stock ARC PRO the signal polarities of lane 1 and lane 2 are reversed with respect to each other.’ Does that help with consistency and interpretation of my post?

Also I agree that my so called ‘Option C‘ is more complex to implement than slot forum simple soldering mod, however Option C enables rapid switching from full digital capability to full analog capability simply by swapping out the two modified track parts with two standard parts. To achieve the same effect with the slot forum mod would, as proposed within the post, require an additional switch and... perhaps some cutting of the brand new ARC PRO enclosure to make the additional switch accessible. Taking this into account the effort is probably reasonably similar for those users who need both full digital and full analog capabilities.

Thanks again Gorp for spotting the ambiguity in my second sentence - much appreciated!

[gorp]

2nd sentence now ok

 

what you seem to forget are the other track pieces you will need to change if you want to switch back to analog

 

yes slot forum will probably need to cut into arc pro to add switch for analog

 

 

[Dr_C]

I’m a bit puzzled by Gorp’s analysis that suggests that other track parts require changing/modification if using the stock ARC PRO in analog mode. Clearly the curved lane changers will require the standard ‘analog to digital’ snips to the flexible pcb tracks - but I would assume this a given and mentioned in one of my earlier posts. Meanwhile, the reason why the slot forum mod is incompatible with analog mode is that it (not surprisingly) results in the two cars driving in opposite directions when in analog mode i.e. unsuitable for analog racing. Would a table showing the pros and cons of options A,B and C add useful value to this topic/subject?

[Dr_C]

In above post... should read ‘digital to analog’ snips.... apols... :-)

[Blagard-01]

I don't think a table under this topic would help as the options of A and C take in a much broader scope of change than just the curved lane changers.

 

Option B the modification to the curved lane changer as originally started in the thread with acknowledgement of moving the the dead spot to one rail oppersite the exit flipper is the only option giving use of curved lane changers with the ARC Pro powerbase in Analogue or Digital mode at the flick of the switch on the powerbase. And will work in all other situations being backwards compatible. (note the ribbon snip in Option B is different to the orignal analogue snip for C7042) 

 

Option A will void the warranty on the powerbase and render it Digital only due to reversed Analogue power on one lane. It will allow the powerbase to have the same Digital capability as C7042 (Analogue rendered unusable)

 

Option  C will require replacement of a track sections to switch to analogue and the still require the original snip mod on the curved lane changers for analogue use (or better option B mod if you have not snipped the ribbons yet!). and will allow Digital capability as C7042

 

A and C  remove the limitation of Digital track layouts as listed in  https://www.scalextric.com/uk-en/forum/arc-pro-limitations-on-track-layouts/?p=1 

 

A new thread should be started for the pros and cons of different modifications that will affect ARC Pro in a broader sense than just the curved lane changers.