Barchester

If you have installed all your turnouts and have decided to fit them with Peco motors, for example, then you have to decide how to operate them. Peco supply all the items to do this, by different means, as a quick glance at any of the model suppliers lists will show. However, if you want a virtually free method, and one that you can make yourself, then try this electric pencil and stud system. Very easy to install, simple to operate and trouble free.
To be fair I must point out that Peco's version of the electric pencil only costs a couple of quid so financially you aren't gaining much. I have both of these pencils and prefer the larger version I have made to the very small one that Peco produces. You might just as well have a go though as it will only take an hour of your time. If you go for pencil and stud operation and buy a commercial model then you will have a spare pencil in case anything should go wrong. Can't be bad can it?

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So, here we go then. The first picture shows an old biro, in this case it was one that had coloured ink in it, stripped down to it's component parts. After stripping it down make sure that the metal end where the ink comes out is clean. Poke a bit of wire down it and waggle it around a few times, that should do it.

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The next photograph shows that the only bit we have discarded is the plastic tube that holds the ink. Now we need a length of wire that will lead from the tip of the pencil to the solenoid power supply. Ensure that this wire is long enough so that the pencil will reach all the studs you want to operate after it is connected to the power supply.

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The  next sterp is to drill a hole in the plastic end big enough to take the size of wire you are going to use going from pen to power supply. If your choice of wire is too thick for the bared end to fit into the metal end of the biro, as mine was, then use a short length of copper wire as shown in the photograph above. Solder the wire into the metal end of the biro, the bit that holds the ball, and if required clean up after soldering so that the plastic sleeve slides over the metal as it was originally. If your wire was thin enough to solder into the tip then all you have to do now is reassemble the pen and that's it. If you had to use a short length of copper wire then after soldering to the metal tip solder the other end to your length of cable and assemble the pen.








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The final photograph shows the complete 'Electric Pencil' finished and ready to use. Neat eh?









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