Ross has a full track line and are far more than mostly switches. The only thing they lack is flextrack. They have the widest track and switch variety of any manufacturer.
Gargraves makes both track and switches while Ross mainly makes switches. Ross has a very wide selection of switches and they look much better than Lionel switches, and Ross switches don't quit on you like brand L will do.
The track height of Ross and Gargraves is about the same as 027 track. I like to use insulating pins in my track, sometimes the track rail can move on you with a heavy loaded train and without an insulating pin I have found that the rails in Gargrvaes 36.25 inch straight tracks will move.
Lee F.
If you want to keep to as small of a budget as possible I'd say use the GG flextrack and then bend your own curves. This assumes of course that you don't need anything smaller than about O-72 or so as it gets pretty difficult to bend tighter. If you would rather go sectional or tighter in radius, I'd use the Ross track although it will be a bit pricier. In both cases I'd recommend Ross switches.
Well, the principal difference between Gargraves/Ross track and tubular is the wooden ties. This means that your outside rails are not connected to each other electrically, and that you will have to run a jumper from one outside rail to the other every few feet, to ensure you have a good ground connection.
The plus side is that making an insulated section is easy: just use a dremel or similar to saw through the rail at the beginning and end of the insulated part, creating an electrically isolated rail. Don't really need insulating pins.
Gargraves makes lockons--really more like spades, which you can push up into the underside of the rail. But for a permanent installation, most people prefer to solder the wire directly to the rail. Gargraves solders very well (as long as you don't get stainless steel track). You do need to buzz the finish off the blackened center rail with your dremel before you solder to that, tho.
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I am sure this has been hashed out countless times but I am a newbie and am looking for everyones opinion as to what they prefer. My layout will be 12X16 ' with a fairly decent sized yard, passenger terminal, freight terminal and oil loading facility (tank farm and truck and rail car loading rack). I get the idea that perhaps a combination of GG and Ross may be the way to go. I have had some experience with Lionel Tubular track, are the other types of track wired up on the same principal? Insulating pins lock ons etc etc?
Regards Brad in Iowa
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