TEMPLOT 3D PLUG TRACK - To get up to speed with this experimental project click here.
To watch an introductory video click here.
See the User Guide at Bexhill West.
Templot5 - To join this open-source project on GitHub click here.
For news of the latest on-going developments click here.
Templot5 is now included with Templot2 - download. WIKI
The Plug Track functions are experimental and still being developed. Some of the earlier pages of this topic are now out-of-date.
For an updated overview of this project see this topic. For some practical modelling aspects of using Plug Track see Building 3D Track.
The assumption is that you have your own machines on which to experiment, or helpful friends with machines. Please do not send Templot files to commercial laser cutting or 3D printing firms while this project is still experimental, because the results are unpredictable and possibly wasteful.
The Plug Track functions are experimental and still being developed.
For an updated overview of this project see this topic. For some practical modelling aspects of using Plug Track see Building 3D Track.
The assumption is that you have your own machines on which to experiment, or helpful friends with machines. Please do not send Templot files to commercial laser cutting or 3D printing firms while this project is still experimental, because the results are unpredictable and possibly wasteful.
If you use those settings and still finding the loose jaw slots blocked it is almost certainly down to inadequate washing. The swirl action in the wash/cure machines is hardly adequate.
Ideally use a water-washableABS-Like resin such as this one (same settings as above):
Then for a second wash use a bucket of water and vigorously plunge the build plate up and down in it, so forcing wash water through the tiny slots for the loose jaw pins.
That must be the tenth time I've written about the importance of vigorous plunge washing for the loose jaw slots. I can't keep repeating everything for the rest of my life.
Thanks for your replies, many apologies for asking a repeat question. I have been backwards and forwards through the posting and missed that one.
To be honest I did not associate blocked holes that as rinsing problem and thought it more likely a slicing or mesh fixing error.
I have only had the printer a couple of weeks and never had any experience until now of any of these processes.
Thank you for the resin settings they were quite different what I had used, it is something I hoped could be provided as a starting guide to novices.
As this not my first attempt at coming to terms with Templot the box file is probably full of failed attempts and deleting these files could be a good idea.
Many new users have recently discovered plug track, often not realising that this whole thing is still an experimental work-in-progress, and barely ready for regular use. A full user guide is in preparation and will appear here eventually:
I am thankful for all the help I can get, I have ben experimenting with C&L, smp, soldered PCB and plastic based, when I saw James Bexhill programme I thought it had great possibilities.
I had tried to get the hang of Templot several times, but this gave me confidence to have a serious try.
It has occurred to me that a set of instructions for a simple point, set out like a cooking recipe, would be a simple introduction that was printable and straight forward understand. This 73 year old brain does not pick up or remember quite so easily as it did.
It has occurred to me that a set of instructions for a simple point, set out like a cooking recipe, would be a simple introduction that was printable and straight forward understand. This 73 year old brain does not pick up or remember quite so easily as it did.
For the basics of 3D plug track, a lot of recent new users are failing to grasp that this is still an unfinished experimental work-in-progress. James and Steve are preparing more videos and a user guide which will eventually appear here:
But it's not there yet. Anyone struggling to make sense of it all might do better to wait until it is. In the meantime I'm afraid the only option is to wade through 3 years of topics and posts on here, a great deal of which is now out-of-date as the project developed. There will be a program update later today with some further changes.
p.s. a "simple point" is in fact a simple "turnout". In railway track engineering a "point" is a single moving switch blade, so called because it is pointed. Two together, with the associated stock rails, form a "set of points" or "switch". When linked to a V-crossing (frog) the whole assembly becomes a "turnout". So much to learn before you can even make a start.
My apologies for asking this question as it seems so basic. It must be my fault as I assume I have missed something along the way. This morning I successfully printed the chairs for an O gauge piece of track. All OK so far, but where do get the outer jaws from?
Hi Les,
There are several routes to this.
One is.
Delete to the control your success fb ul chair template.
Then Real > chairing >chairing opt ill ons
Click on the loose jaws option & confirm.
Store to background.
Then export, & take the review option to check the result.
I might not have the wording ex azad ctly correct as I am away from templot at present, but the principle is ther.
Another riot us ri access the chair options from within the export dialogue by
Show settings
Chair & plu tab, then chair options from there.
Then having set the loose jaws button & confirm & then apply to group (if you are exporting a gro UK p)
Assuming you mean you created a length of 7mm/ft plain track, here is a very scruff video clip showing how to create a raft of S1 chairs with slots for loose jaws, and then how to create a matching raft of the loose jaws for them:
I have made a similar clip several times on Zoom meetings, etc. already. Hopefully someone would index and link them all, I'm afraid I'm not feeling well enough today to do it. Or to add commentary to this clip. Sorry.
Hi everyone, this is my first post. I have been following the development of templot for some time using it as a template for turnouts but have been excited by the recent developments of plug track, so much so that I have invested in both a resin and filament printer. I have struggled with both making all the beginners mistakes despite having seen the warnings on youtube. I seem to have got on top of the FDM printer and now trying to get to grips with the resin printer. I have had most problems with the holes for the loose jaws and I have got to the point where my washing is becoming aggressive enough to actually work. My first target is to make a 60 foot section of track in OO SF scale with clips at both ends. The stumbling block I have come to a dead end with is the S1J chairs at each end, again with the holes for the loose jaws. On my latest print which included both S1 chairs and S1J chairs (although on different rafts), the S1J chairs appeared to have no holes at all. I have used both stl and 3mf files and chitubox and Tango to make and create the slicing and all come up with the same result. From layer 20 to 39 above the raft the S1 chairs compared to the S1J chairs have twice the gap in the supports. Then the S1J gap gradually increases to about 60% by layer 39 but then decreases until it is none existent by layer 77. The slot starts to reappear at layer 111 reaching what appears to be full size by layer 132 to end at layer 140 the top of the slot. Am I not ticking the right box at the 3d file creation? I have created the file using the same steps as the S1 chairs which appear to be ok. I know Martin is moving check boxes about as he creates this masterpiece, is there a move I have missed?
From layer 20 to 39 above the raft the S1 chairs compared to the S1J chairs have twice the gap in the supports. Then the S1J gap gradually increases to about 60% by layer 39 but then decreases until it is none existent by layer 77. The slot starts to reappear at layer 111 reaching what appears to be full size by layer 132 to end at layer 140 the top of the slot
I'm struggling to follow your description. Could you post a screenshot from Chitubox showing what you mean? Also please attach your BOX file.
This is what a raft of S1J chairs should look like. The slot is straight sided through the chair and plug, with a wider angled space between the supports below:
When getting strange results, the first thing to check is that you don't have duplicated templates in your storage box.
Thanks Martin. I have only used files selected by 'group' and run ungroup first to try to eliminate spurious inclusions but that may explain what has happened but not with the S1 chairs. I put a raft of S1 chairs along with two rafts of S1J chairs on the build plate. One raft produced from a file saved from 3dbuilder in the stl format and one in the 3mf format. I did this in both chitubox and tango. I then examined all 3 files slice by slice in Tango and the chitubox with the same result that the S1J chairs only had a slot for the loose jaws in the top 8 slices. This is after having printed the chairs and trying to find out where the problem was.
Thank you again for looking at my problem, I now feel guilty taking up your valuable time.
It's a bit confusing because you have set flat-bottom rails but are exporting bullhead chairs.
It's better to shorten the control template to a single sleeper using the length function, rather than by blanking. Also it avoids confusion if you save separate BOX files for each raft, rather than mixing S1 and S1J rafts in the same file.
However, I was able to group and export your S1J templates, and after repairing in 3D Builder they sliced normally in Chitubox.
Did you remember to do the mesh-fix repair in 3D Builder and then Save the repaired file? Have you got Chitubox set to add supports? None are needed on the files from Templot.
Sorry, I know nothing about the 3MF format or the Tango slicer.
Here is a raft of S1J chairs created from scratch and mesh-fixed in 3D Builder. It appears to slice normally in Chitubox. Perhaps you could try it yourself and compare with your own results.
Thank you. I will try your file and do a separate box file in future for chairs of different chairs. I didn't know anything about chitubox or tango a couple of weeks ago or Cura or 3D builder.and I am now of an age when I question why I entered a room.
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TEMPLOT is Martin's hobby project. Everyone is welcome to use it and join in the ongoing developments. Thanks for visiting Templot Club.
