I'm glad it worked!
If anyone wants to try the graph-paper method I described, you can get 5 times better accuracy with 12 divisions per straight and with a curve in a 12 x 5 box. However, you have to put up with the awkward scaling of 5/6 inch per division.
Bob Nelson
Traditional O27, O31, and O34 tubular track is designed so that a siding made with a turnout and a single piece of curved track will be parallel to the main line, with the joints aligned, so that the same arrangement at the other end of the siding ("loop" in British) will fit without cutting track. Because a straight piece of O31 is exactly 10 inches and there are 8 curves to a circle, this makes the O31 radius to the center rail 14.142 inches. The "31" of O31 comes from doubling this and adding the 2.25-inch crosstie length to get 30.534 inches, then rounding to 31. (I have seen "O30" used as well. Lionel just called it "O" in the old days.)
The curved part of an 022 switch is the same as a curved track piece, 8 to a circle.
O27 track is based on a radius of 12.5 inches, which results in the 8.839-inch straight piece, often rounded to 8 7/8.
O34 uses a 15.75-inch radius, with an 11.137-inch straight, although Marx wasn't as careful with the rail lengths as Lionel.
You may be able to sketch your track layout by hand on graph paper. For O31, use 1 inch per division; so a straight piece is 10 divisions long. A curve should fit into a 10 x 4 box. It's not exact, but very close.
ATSJer: You can still use the Atlas program to make O-31 curves, or O-42 for that matter. All you need to do is use the Shape Flex Track tool-- it's in the special drop-down menu. It will display a setup for straights, left or right curves. choose a curve, type in the radius(15.5") for O31, and choose how many degrees for the curve. Repeat as needed.
I know that Lionel's O31 isn't measured the same as Atlas-- Atlas curved track is measured center rail to center rail, Lionel (i think) is outside rail to outside rail---[PLEASE correct me if i'm wrong!!!] Hope this helps--- Oh by the way I just remembered-- The MTH Railware CD/DVD has the RR-track lite version on it, and has the MTH Realtrax library which contains O31 curves---They are usually available on Ebay in the MTH listings, and usually sell for less than $10--
A Day Without Trains is a Day Wasted
I have the Atlas freebie software, but the only thing I can use it for is to get the general idea of my layouts. Since they don't have an O-31 track selection I have to use the O-27, this gives me a general idea, but the measurments are all off so I'm not able to plan effectively. Not to mention that their O-36 track isn't the (8 piece circle) so planning with that is out too. GRRRRRRR.
I know I'm asking the impossible, but does anyone know of a decent free track planning software that will do O-31? I just can stomach paying $15-$30 for a program that I'm only going to use to plan a single layout.
I agree, only good for Atlas. I only have Atlas though, so it's been pretty easy to put stuff in place and try stuff out for size. It even has a way to size stuff out first and that does make things easy, including all the switches, cross overs, etc. Jake
PS. I REALLY like the Atlas track!
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