32mm Gauge Point drawings by Phil Thompson

Click on the links below to download Phil’s drawings. They’re all right-handers for now – to copy for left-handed, you will need a photocopier that will give you a mirror image.

Print them out on A3 and then cellotape the two parts together for the larger radius points.

32mm Gauge Point drawings by Dave Watkins

Dave writes:

I use Peco rail, sleepers and rail fixings. I don’t use the slide rail fixings since they only sit on one side of the rail so the sleepers tend to fall off. Instead I solder the rails to brass strips about 4mm wide which you will see on four of the sleepers on the point drawing. I also solder the frog and wing rails to a piece of brass to form a solid structure. I fix the brass down by drilling small holes and pressing a small brass pin into the sleeper with a hot soldering iron.

I have not drawn in the remaining rail fixings. Where the check rails fit, I cut a third or so off the standard rail fixings. This allows you to push the check rail up close to the stock rail. Rail fixings are fixed with liquid poly cement or similar. If I am feeling enthusiastic I also push in more brass pins with a soldering iron through the fixing holes.

All this brass looks a bit garish to start with but the weather tones it down nicely after a matter of months.

The point blades are pivoted to the wing rails by joining with a standard peco rail joiner opened up a bit to give free movement. I use a strip of metal for a tie bar, sometimes a short length of rail, a bit of aluminium or whatever comes to hand. I drill holes and push pins up from underneath, fold over and solder to the point blades. By pivoting the point blades and tie bar the points operate very freely. They are free enough for a weighted point lever to be used at the end of loops etc. so a train can pass through a point set against it.

I normally build points on a spare piece of shelving chipboard or similar with a flat surface. I fix a drawing down with double sided tape and then temporarily fix down sleepers.

Peco point drawings

Those who use Peco pointwork may find their drawings useful in layout planning: