# G scale and tortoise switch machine



## UncleHans (Jan 8, 2008)

Greetings!

Anyone out there with any experience with the Tortoise Switch Machine? It gets great reviews for HO scale etc., but how about G scale? The product claims that it works for G scale too, but does anyone out there know how well it works for G scale? Heard anything? Weather is not a factor in my decision. 

Thanks!

UncleHans


----------



## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Indoors they should be fine, double check the throw distance, but I've heard of people using them. Are you going DCC?

Greg


----------



## Homo Habilis (Jul 29, 2011)

UncleHans:

I have six of them on my indoor railroad. The operate my SVRR stainless steel switches without any problem. I recommend using the Card Edge Connectors as it makes wiring everything up really easy.

p.s. as Jim states below, so did I but I forgot that I did (old age sucks). Not certain where I read that, it's either in the provided instructions or I found it wandering the net.


----------



## Jim Agnew (Jan 2, 2008)

I had to increase the diameter of the piano wire to get enough force to throw my LGB switches.


----------



## UncleHans (Jan 8, 2008)

*Going DCC?*

Right now, all I am doing is simply plugging in my transformer and letting the trains run. My layout is still too early to decide how I am going to run things, but I am heavily leaning towards battery power. For the immediate future I am building my own turnouts, so I am looking around to see what can throw them accordingly. SwitchMaster comes to mind as well (anyone heard anything about them?) but the Tortoise looked like a very reliable mechanism. 
Why do you ask if I am going DCC? 

HW


----------



## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Just about how you will control the torti and also look to the future.

I cannot see why you would go to the extra expense of battery power for an indoor layout, but that's your business.

Greg


----------



## Homo Habilis (Jul 29, 2011)

HW:

For what it's worth, I use battery power with the G-Scale Graphics RailBoss 4 R/C. The rail is SVRR aluminum. I am very satisfied with my choices.

I'm not very "operations" oriented and for the most part will just let one or two engines wander around the layout with perhaps a small bit of switching, picking up and delivering cars.

All things considered, I felt that DCC was too much of a commitment for such a small RR. I have previous experience with HO and feel that battery addresses all of the issues that I did not enjoy with track power; i.e. cleaning, continuity, reverse loops, and such. I really didn't want to be bothered with those types of details for what is probably my last RR experience.

As others are wont to say "model railroading is fun" and "different strokes for different folks" !


----------

