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 Posted - March 07 2007 : 10:12:55 PM
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I was looking through youtube a little while ago when I came across a video clip of an HO scale trolley bus, that picks up power from two overhead wires, and follows a third wire hidden under the road.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TthIGEfaAmg
Here is the video with the trolley bus. When I googled and ebayed "trolley bus" I got a lot of stuff by a company called "eheim". So far I've found out that Eheim made these back in the 50's and 60's, and was then made up until 2001 by another manufacturer. Does anyone here have an Eheim model or can anyone give me any info on them?
-cheez
P.S. Does anyone know of a company that is currently manufacturing trolley buses similar to the ones in the links?
Edited by - DaCheez on March 07 2007 10:17:24 PM
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obtrey
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Posted - March 07 2007 : 11:07:32 PM
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Living in Philadelphia and having a father-in-law that worked for the city transportation co, named SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority) tells me you should look up Trackless trolley in your search engine. I just did and one of the sites is Philadelphia. There was no 3rd wire, the trackless trolley used 2 poles attached to 2 overhead wires as opposed to a trolley that ran on a track with 1 overhead wire and getting the return connection through the rails in the street. I dont recall the voltage used but it was a high voltage DC current. Trivia point for you, the driver of a trackless or trolley did not need a drivers license here in PA because the vehicle was electric and could only go where the wire went, so if there was an accident and the local police asked for the trolley operators drivers license guess what?
My father-in-law had all Lionel trains going back to the early 40's and I remember in his collection he had a set similar to the one you refered us to on utube. Don't know what happened to it after he died but I do remember it ran and I helped him set it up 1 year and he had it repainted to the Philadelphia colors. Try changing your search to Trackless Trolley and see where that gets you.
Bob
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Posted - March 08 2007 : 4:11:10 PM
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Hey Bob. When I said there was third wire to guide it I was referring to the models. I think they have a magnet on the bottom of the car that sticks to the hidden wire.
Was the Lionel trolleybus your father-in-law had HO or O?
I found one site that had lots of info on the Eheim models, but it was mainly about the different models and when they were made. Nothing about how they actually work.
The ones I've seen on Ebay though seem to be going pretty high...$20 for one trolleybus with a broken...uhh...what are the metal rods on the roof called?[B)]
-cheez
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obtrey
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Posted - March 08 2007 : 4:57:48 PM
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Dunno what gauge his set was and I don't really remember how big it was only that he had 1 and I got it working for him and we set it up one year but that was back in the 70's and he never used it again something was messed up with the automatic steering, the wheele were supposed to turn the same way the poles turned when connected to the overhead and for some reason were not staying in line properly. It was in a flat green and white box with flat ribbon metal strips that attached to the poles and in turn provided power to the vehicle. That's basically all I remember about it, not even who made it.
Bob
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Posted - March 08 2007 : 5:09:26 PM
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I found a picture of an Eheim trolleybus with half the shell cut off so you could see inside. I couldn't tell how the steering worked, but on some of the old model trolley buses I've seen, the poles that connect to the overhead are mounted on a piece of plastic that swivels, and it is connected to the steering shaft. So when the overhead wires curve around a corner so does the trolley. I also found a site that was supposed to show how to convert a Faller bus to a trolley bus, but the site was down.
Here's the cutaway of the Eheim trolley bus.
-cheez
Edited by - DaCheez on March 08 2007 5:09:40 PM
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obtrey
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Posted - March 08 2007 : 6:34:30 PM
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That's how his worked. The poles helped steer the car. His car was a different color and the motor didn't take up as much space as the picture you show. It was an "old" set and he had it repainted to the local transportation co.'s colors. I can see the magnetic pick up on the bottom of the cut out in your pic that must be how it swerves around the parked vehicles in the movie clip.
Bob
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Posted - March 08 2007 : 10:35:11 PM
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[quote]..."The ones I've seen on Ebay though seem to be going pretty high...$20 for one trolleybus with a broken...uhh...what are the metal rods on the roof called?" [B)]
-cheez
Hey Cheez,
If the metal power collectors work on the same principle as the ones on trains, trolleys, and trams, then they are called pantographs... they get power from the cantenary, the series of connected wire.
John
I don't have a one track mind. It depends on the turn-out.
"I love your catenary!"
Is that a power-trip or just another pick-up line?
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Posted - March 09 2007 : 7:08:26 PM
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| So they are called pantagraphs? I assumed that was just the name for the larger ones on GG1's and engines like that.
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 Posted - June 21 2020 : 10:28:12 PM
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Update for Jeff and his motorbus. Maybe some helpful ideas.
Same video posted in an earlier post.
Edited by - wks on June 21 2020 10:32:04 PM
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Posted - June 21 2020 : 10:43:01 PM
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quote:So they are called pantagraphs? I assumed that was just the name for the larger ones on GG1's and engines like that.
Originally posted by DaCheez - March 09 2007 : 7:08:26 PM
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or trolley poles I've heard them called
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Posted - June 22 2020 : 06:20:10 AM
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That is some fancy foot work, as the overhead wires turn the front
wheels, and here the wires are clearly straight. I wonder if this
bus has been modified with an electromagnetic track under the
road bed to control the steering, like the of Faller trackless
vehicle sytems.
Presently I am trying to adjust the poles to the steering wheels, but
the problem appears to lie in the ground wire which is attached
to the pole baseplate. It is stiff and does not permit flexible
steerage from the overhead rails causing the bus to derail on
curves. Working at it.
Thanks for the video!
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Posted - June 22 2020 : 07:37:50 AM
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quote:That is some fancy foot work, as the overhead wires turn the front
wheels, and here the wires are clearly straight. I wonder if this
bus has been modified with an electromagnetic track under the
road bed to control the steering, like the of Faller trackless
vehicle sytems.
Originally posted by Chops124Â -Â June 22 2020Â :Â 06:20:10 AM
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That's an ingenious idea! Magnets to steer. Awesome!
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Posted - June 22 2020 : 09:25:29 AM
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quote:That is some fancy foot work, as the overhead wires turn the front
wheels, and here the wires are clearly straight. I wonder if this
bus has been modified with an electromagnetic track under the
road bed to control the steering, like the of Faller trackless
vehicle sytems.
Originally posted by Chops124Â -Â June 22 2020Â :Â 06:20:10 AM
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I noticed, in the video, there's a little foot that reaches down, very close to the road, and appears to move with the steering gear of the bus like a tiller. If that contained a powerful magnet, and there was a steel wire buried under the road, it would explain what is going on. Of course, that's a guess on my part, and guesses become rumors and neither is true. 
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - June 22 2020 : 5:02:37 PM
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I didn't see the foot, will need to look for that. Saw a Brawa trolley bus on eBay. Relisted at
only $175. Yikes, I'm already in deep enough. Considering taking the rabbit ears off the
defunct bus and putting them on the new bus if I can't get the new bus attenae to function
smoothly. Problem might be in an old, stiff ground wire.
I got my bus set up to veer around some obstacles, and at first it worked great, but the
new bus just plows right into them.
Edited by - Chops124 on June 22 2020 11:09:21 PM
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Posted - June 23 2020 : 07:43:32 AM
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quote:Problem might be in an old, stiff ground wire.
Originally posted by Chops124Â -Â June 22 2020Â :Â 5:02:37 PM
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Years ago, I got some very flexible wire from Northwest Short Line. I don't know if they still have it, but the stuff was great. It was small stranded wire, and the insulation was more like rubber than the usual vinyl plastic. I wouldn't use it for everything, but where flexibility is a must, it's great stuff.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - June 23 2020 : 08:59:07 AM
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It looks like the plate that the bus' trolley poles sit on is supposed to swivel freely, to the turn the bus itself. Maybe that isn't turning well.
I hope you intend to give the homeowners some compensation for that!
Edited by - BlaxlandAlex3 on June 23 2020 09:00:21 AM
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