Good tip. I also saw a tip where a guy used part of a paper clip to get a similar result.

It's a nice and simple enough method for people to try out. What you make there is actually very similar to the little spring inside PECO turnouts which works on the same principle . Thanks for showing it.

Helped me out, already picked up supplies awhile back after watching this vid. Probably here within a week I'll be adding these in. Only place I won't put one will be my main yard which will have tortoises. Thanks for putting this out here.

A oldie but looks great

Great video.....Just tried it myself for one of my Atlas turnouts, took me 3 try's but I got it to work! and works great!...thanks!

Hi Deryk! That's a cool, cheap and easy solution! That center spring was the only thing that kept me buying Peco turnouts - at $10.00 more than Atlas!! Since I have no money for anything, till I don't know when, this trick will really come in handy. Can't wait to try it! This is Carmine, new channel, starting over from scratch.... no better than I was before, but still optimistic, sorta. We're really not much better than we were. Still hungry, still no cable or Internet (I go to spots with free WiFi to do things like this). Frankly, asking for help was too humiliating, and got more bad responses than help. I do truly appreciate the help that some of my friends gave - including you!!! If we get anymore, we'll be grateful. If not, I'm just not asking.... God Bless and Thank YOU! Carmine 🚂

Great Job buddy. .keep up the great work. .thanks for sharing. .

Thank You very much! I just did one on an Atlas switch where I have no room for the small switch! It works !!!

Thanks for sharing your skills with others.

Tension rod throw, between the rails. Nice.

Just ran across this video - GREAT! I believe that I'm going to try to adapt your method and logic for use on my N Scale Code 55 tract turnouts. I expect difficulty because of the smaller size and profile of CODE 55 Atlas code 55 N scale track, but it's worth a try. Thanks again for a great approach.

I’m a new subscriber who found your channel very recently. This is outstanding. Thank you for sharing it. Once I saw a ground throw made from two lengths of music wire-it also used brass tubing through the roadbed, and the spring was actually formed on the underside of the roadbed. In my experience it was unreliable without frequent adjustments. Instead what I have used almost exclusively on my railroad for manual ground throws is a single piece of music wire attached to the throw bar (sometimes alongside the turnout but other times under it, depending upon the space available) and inserted into a DPDT slide switch that is inserted into the roadbed adjacent to the track. (Homasote makes this easy.) It is reliable and much smaller than the Caboose Industries ground throw. It doesn’t look prototypical, but neither do Caboose throws. 😉 It is discreet and easy to use (just slide the switch to throw the turnout). There are a few places where there is not enough space even for that small manual throw, and this is perfect for those spots. With some practice in finding the right amount of tension created by the bends, this is easy to install and use.

Wow... You just saved me a lot of money and time. Thank you and great video...

hey Deryk... just been going through some vids & came across this one... great how to...... thanks for sharing vinny

This is pretty cool, I have a couple of Atlas points on my OO/HO scale layout, so I'll have to give it a try... thanks!

Great video. Watching you drill through the roadbed made me think of a trick we use at work to not scratch heating grill surfaces while installing them. Take a small piece of cardboard and run your drill bit through it and use it as a "soft" guard for the drill. My turnouts thank you btw lol.

I just watched your video and gave it a try and I think it works great. I am for sure gonna use it in all of my switches that are not gonna get a machine. This video has been a great help for me and in return just a little suggestion for you. I noticed how hard it is for you to make the "spring" and I tried it like this, first I made both of the 90 degrees bents and then I made the V shape, do this and you will see it is so much easier and fail proof. Hope this helps!!!

Awesome video Derek, with great information. You got my brain cells firing. With just a bit more engineering I could see how you could attach a bit longer down tube to an additional piece of music wire, then run it out through the fascia of the layout so you could operate the throw with a pull/push knob at the fascia. Mmmmm... might have to give it a try. Thanks for sharing.

Very good! That will definitely work for me.

nice how to, when I installed the switch machines on my layout I took out the springs so it would be more smooth.

I have made similar home brew ground throws by unbending and rebending paper clips. I believe this system with the piano wire and brass tubing will be more reliable. I will be trying it shortly.

I made these manual throws on 13 turnouts per video and only had to redue 3. One note the V in the piano wire can be adjusted one way or the other a little bit and sometimes makes all the difference. Also be careful handling brass tubing it bends real easy and then you have to throw it away and start over. They work great

thanks brother good job i am going to try this when i have the money

Nice video and great idea...

Thanks for sharing. I works.

I have places where there are many tracks close together with no room. I cut a groove in the roadbed from the headties to where I wanted the switchstand. I used coffe stirers, and paperclips and made long throw rods and the apparatus is under up to three tracks. I used caboose 206s ground throws. wish I could send a pic here...

THANK FOR VIDEO ON YR IDEAR HOME MADE GROUND THROW. THINK MADE LITTLE LONG SO OUT OTHER SIDE They ADD HAND OR SWITCH UNDER LAYOUT AT OTHER TIME TO WORK SOME LED TO TELL IF STRAIGHT OR TRUN ON POINT

awesome how to video brother

Quick tip - to prevent the drill chuck from hitting the rail - use a small block of wood on top of rails to prevent rail damage.

Thanks, D. perfect for my single track branchline - not a ton of switches to deal with, and like the operator "friendly" idea. What about switch stands? I think i'm gonna play around and see if i can work a ss in. Really like your vids and your straightforward approach to building a layout. Thanks again.

Another thing, I made this an under the table thing and it works just as good.

here's a problem I ran into. two types atlas turnouts, the turnouts with the draw bar riveted to rail this system works fine. Howerver the draw bars that aren't riveted will break loose from the rail. I had two turnouts to do that. Atlas needs to go back to riveting the draw bar. ended up using reg ground throws on these two

Thanks. Very useful. I must have missed it--I didn't hear you mention drilling a hole in the drawbar. Should this be .032, same as the piano wire? I hear your throw nicely snap back into place, but I don't really see where the spring action comes from. I guess there must be tension between the brass tube and the drawbar, perhaps because of some slight difference in the distance between them and the length of the bent wire?

I'm definitely going to try this. Would paper clip wire work?

Mr D Glass 77 , That ground through idea is the hot to do item for ALL modelers . In the past I have seen simular ideas but nothing as easy or as simple as the one you presented . We you and I need to start a business and call it Ass Through . LMAO . The video was fantastic . Yes I have one but , please get a better camera for close-ups . Befor I forget Vinny sent me . LOL and I just clicked on the subscride box . Randy

Will this technique and these wires/tubes work with n-scale turnouts?

So you don't have any switches to change direction of track? Just you using finger?

...nice video....you can go even cheaper....I used paper clips...the large ones.

Great idea. Savs mucho money. If you would like to send me a note, I will email you how to light these tutorials better with a very cheep item. I have tried to tell others about this but I get nasty notes to the fact that I don't have any videos on you tube so how could I know anything. I wass a professional photographer for 30 years and in that time I have picked up a few things. If interested, let me know...

And then they become better than sprung Peco. Why ? Because Atlas switches look American proto..Peco switches have a British look to them, which is Ok.. But I like Atlas for US MRRing....