This page describes how I built my first scratchbuilt turntable. In 2001 I bought the Diamond Scale Products turntable, motor kit, and indexing kit. This was a fairly pricey investment, but at the time I thought it was worth it. I started building the turntable itself, and soon found it to be a very difficult project. The instructions that come with the kit are not easy to follow, and it truly is a "master-craftsman" type of kit. In the end I was unable to create a bridge that ran smoothly over the turntable pit rail. I gave up. Over the years I have moved, and the turntable disappeared. I do still have the motor and indexing kits. Here are a couple of photos of the original Diamond Scale turntable as far as I made it.

I am now going to build another turntable from scratch. However, I plan to use as many of the parts from the original Diamond Scale kits as appropriate to control the turntable mechanically and electrically. The topics below cover the different parts to building this turntable. The dates indicate when the page was last modified. The last column indicates the status of that sub-project.

Although I am not 100% happy with my first attempt at a scratchbuilt turntable, I wouldn't buy a kit again. Even the new Walthers kit looks appealing, but it lacks some of the niceties that a scratchbuilt model can offer. This scratchbuild project was enjoyable. I think with practice I will get better. I have some ideas for an even better running model, so as soon as I have time I will start to implement that idea.