My N gauge moving car system design concept

N gauge moving car system design concept

This YouTube video, which is available to DIORAMA.DESIGN members only, demonstrates how the moving car system works:

For the road surface I use two 1.5mm thick cardboard sheets glued together to give 3mm total thickness, as shown in the above photo.

The power units driving the vehicles are Kato 11-108, 11-109, 11-110 pocket line series, and Tomytec TM-20 power units. The Kato power unit each can drive one car or small truck. The larger Tomytec power unit is used to drive a small bus and car.

N gauge car system driver assembly

The photo above shows how to assemble the N gauge car system driver assembly, using Tomytec TM-20 power unit as an example.

Magnets are glued to the bottom chassis of the N gauge vehicles and to the 24AWG wire. Usually two stacked magnets under the vehicle is needed to get the magnet close to the road surface and attract to the opposite pole magnet on the power unit side. Similarly 2 to 3 stacked magnets on the power unit side is needed to give the needed magnetic strength. I bought Neodymium magnets from Amazon.

The 24AWG and 18AWG wires are tied together with Tamiya tape and the 18AWG wire is taped to the power unit body. The position, height, and length of wires are adjusted to properly position the vehicle onto the road lanes.

The 18AWG wire is solid copper wire stiff enough to keep the magnet up close to the bottom side of the cardboard road surface. The 24 AWG wire is flexible so can adjust to changing directions and height of the vehicle as it moves along the road, especially around the curves. This helps keep the magnets on the power unit and vehicle attracted together.

CAUTION: as noted in the YouTube video, since the Kato and Tomytec power units are not designed for this application, the power units should not be operated at high speed or high DC voltage for a long time. If the power unit struggles or stalls trying to drive a vehicle, the vehicle is probably too large or heavy for the power unit. I am able to run up to 6 vehicles on a single track up to 6V maximum, with speeds that simulate real vehicle speeds. Taking this precaution will help ensure your power units will last a long time without damage.

I am continuing to improve the design of this N gauge moving car system for better performance. I plan to make roads out of plastic sheets instead of cardboard and it is my goal to make this moving car system DCC!

Thank you very much for taking the time to view my videos and learning how my N gauge moving car system works!! I hope you will have an interest in adding N gauge moving cars to your diorama as it can add realism to your layouts!

Lastly I apologize for posting articles in English. My Japanese language ability is limited, but I will use translation software to post future articles in Japanese.