Civil War Is there an 027 track that has a wider radius than 042? I thought I heard of something like 054 or 072.
Is there an 027 track that has a wider radius than 042? I thought I heard of something like 054 or 072.
Lionel catalogs O42 & O54 in the O-27 profile, & K-Line used to make it in O42, O54, & O72.
Rob
Terry Thomann Fredericksburg, Virginia That is me on the left. My brother got the train TCA 09-64381
GPJ68ADCX Rob ...Shipping for tubular track costs about what it's worth...Rob You must be lucky enough to live close to some good shows...
ADCX Rob ...Shipping for tubular track costs about what it's worth...Rob
...Shipping for tubular track costs about what it's worth...
You must be lucky enough to live close to some good shows...
I believe you are correct. I live right in the heart of the primary TTCS(Toy Train Collectors Society) geographical area, and they do very regular, well attended, and well dealer/seller populated meets from mostly Erie, PA to Utica, NY. These are on top of (layout/operating)club shows, traveling shows(Greenberg, eg.), TTOS shows, & the RIT 2-day show.
ADCX RobMost all tubular track is still very bountiful & cheap under the tables at train meets for a fraction of the online going rate(s). Marx lots of 034 - straight & curve - are typically under .50 a piece. Shipping for tubular track costs about what it's worth.Rob
Shipping for tubular track costs about what it's worth.
You must be lucky enough to live close to some good shows - been at least 4 years since I've gone to one (good or bad), lately they've always been 2+ hours away. I'd scour the few I could get to each year before then for any 034 Marx, but rarely turned up more than a few scattered usable pieces. Now standard 027 would be plentiful - bought a box of @ 150 sections for $5 in Raleigh once, mostly straights - but the 034 Marx curves always remained elusive. Start adding up the gas and time for long distance shows where you might get lucky and find a few, and fleabay - even inflated as they can get - starts looking like a better source.
Another track that you can use is Ives 027, it is from the 1930's, the track looks like Lionel O gauge except that the straights are a little shorter and the curves are 027 radius with 031 rail height. All you have to do is change the track pins to Lionel.
Lee F.
Good idea. I have a set of Swiss files that would work well for that. Thanks.
Civil WarI would like to find a tool or brush that will fit inside the track to clean out rust/dirt and corrosion.
I would like to find a tool or brush that will fit inside the track to clean out rust/dirt and corrosion.
There are small round files available that will fit inside the track to help clean up any corrosion in there.
Robert
http://www.robertstrains.com/
GPJ68...IMHO, nowadays anything under $2 a section for good usable 034 curved is doing alright. I ustacould score good ones for anywhere's from .70 to @ $1.20 a section (curved and straight), but not anymore, and not for a little while...
...IMHO, nowadays anything under $2 a section for good usable 034 curved is doing alright. I ustacould score good ones for anywhere's from .70 to @ $1.20 a section (curved and straight), but not anymore, and not for a little while...
lionelsoniThe groove is on the end that is crimped into the rail and therefore hidden from view, to keep the pin from coming out. That's a reasonable price.
The groove is on the end that is crimped into the rail and therefore hidden from view, to keep the pin from coming out.
That's a reasonable price.
You are correct. The pins that remain are mostly original Marx. A few are missing and a few are really nails or something else. I assume Lionel pins will work as replacements for the missing ones and the nails. Some are pretty rusty and will need to be cleaned up a bit or replaced.
Thanks.
It was a "Buy it Now" auction for 20 pcs for $24 + $11 shipping, shows as sold on the 22nd (#200365468032, just realized from off to the east of me in KY). I was watching it just to see how long it would last - I've already got more than I'll likely ever need. Was a decent price assuming the track was in good shape, which going by the one pic it looked to be. Over the past few years I've seen it hit as high as $4 or more a section for curved, more regularly @ $2+ a section, and some of that high $$ track was in mighty rough shape. IMHO, nowadays anything under $2 a section for good usable 034 curved is doing alright. I ustacould score good ones for anywhere's from .70 to @ $1.20 a section (curved and straight), but not anymore, and not for a little while.
The powered 034 switches are what I should pay a little more attention to now - only have 7 pair at the moment.
Bob Nelson
GPJ68 don't squeeze the tube itself, work up from the flat to slowly press the tube back into shape.
I have a track plyers that has a groove in the tip. I have gotten pretty good at fixing Lionel 027 track. I have also found that a needlenose can be helpful in reshaping the end. I would like to find a tool or brush that will fit inside the track to clean out rust/dirt and corrosion.
GPJ68Did you do the BIN from mwinternetauctions several days ago? I've seen 034 go for alot more than that in the past.
I am not familiar with this auction. Can you tell me more? I bought this track on ebay "buy it now". With shipping it cost 35.00 for 24 pieces. I don't think that is too bad. They are all in pretty good condition. They will need some cleaning but all are useable.
lionelsoniI'm glad you like the O34. You say that the pins are not correct. Are you familiar with Marx pins? They are rather different from Lionel's; so they may be what you have. They usually have a duller finish, blunter ends, and a single very narrow groove.
I'm glad you like the O34.
You say that the pins are not correct. Are you familiar with Marx pins? They are rather different from Lionel's; so they may be what you have. They usually have a duller finish, blunter ends, and a single very narrow groove.
I am not familiar with Marx pins so I'll check. I didn't look at them very closely. They did look like pieces of short nail or thick wire. I didn't see any grooves. Most of them are pretty rusty.
I'm getting into this conversation a bit late, but here's a picture of Marx O34 in the front with O27 behind it:
J White
Unless there are pins missing or damaged/bent beyond use, I wouldn't waste time and effort to swap them out for Lionel pins - the Marx ones will work fine. Marx track/pins can be a little more suceptible to a loose fit, but all it usually needs is to tighten up the receiving rail with some needlenose pliers - don't squeeze the tube itself, work up from the flat to slowly press the tube back into shape. If the pin is loose/sloppy in the "pinned" track section, do the same under the pin.
Did you do the BIN from mwinternetauctions several days ago? I've seen 034 go for alot more than that in the past.
I have had a couple of people ask about this track. I will have some extra and will notify you when I know how much I have left over. It is pretty good condition. The pins are not correct but should be able to be replaced. There is some minor rust, but not bad at all. Some of it has black ties, and a few pieces have a gray tie. These could be repainted if need by to match what you have. Thanks to all who suggested this track. I think it will be a great solution to the curve I need.
Please contact me about the 034 track if you have some to share.
I found some. I did another search for Marx Track and found 24 pieces of 034 in pretty good shape. I'll be glad to share what I don't need.
lionelsoniI often recommend Marx O34 as an alternative to O31. It matches traditional O27 and takes not much more space than O31. It's true that it hasn't been manufactured for many years; but there's a lot of it out there and not hard to find.
I often recommend Marx O34 as an alternative to O31. It matches traditional O27 and takes not much more space than O31. It's true that it hasn't been manufactured for many years; but there's a lot of it out there and not hard to find.
I need enough 304 Marx to make a 90 degree turn. I thought about using GarGraves Flex, but it is so different from Lionel track that it just would not look very good. If anyone sees some in very good condition, please let me know. I just checked ebay and didn't find anything. There was a good looking turn out though if anyone needs one. Thanks
Ditto what Bob suggested - 034 Marx is your only option for tubular 027 profile track having larger than 27" curves but still smaller tham fastrack. The track, and powered and manual 034 switches tend to show up on fleabay fairly regularly, but prices tend to jump around alot (coincidentally seeming to jump way up at times shortly after being mentioned on certain model train forums...)
Look for 5 tie curves @ 12.75" long, and 5 tie straights @ 11.25" long. Powered switches look like:
The white strip is a guide rail I added to improve reliability with lighter engines and cars.
Forgotten what I knew...
They (K Line or Lionel) did make 031 low profile curves didnt they????
027 is too small, fastrack too wide, super snap non existent, and the old school tall 031 "O" is too tall for the low straights.
If so, are there compatible switches that can be used.
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