LGB turnouts

[IRB Souther Engineer]

Which of the LGB switches has the same diameter of curve as the Aristocraft wideradius switch? It looks like the "R3" but I'm not sure.

[altterrain]

There is no direct match up as the Aristo wide radius switch matches up with 10 foot diameter track.

LGB R3 is a bit less than 8 foot diameter and R5 is 13.5 foot diameter (I think).

-Brian

[gbbari]

Brian is correct in that there is no equivalent radius in LGB to the Aristo Wide radius (approx 5 ft radius) switch. LGB R3 equates to approx. 4 ft radius while R5 is approx. 7.7 ft radius. You can see the differences. But don't let that stop you from interchanging the brands. You can make up the differences with custom cut sections of the appropriate radius curved track.
More important - especially if you are using mostly sectional track - is the degree of arc covered by the curved section. The Aristo wide radius switch has what is essentially a 5 ft radius (10 ft dia) curve that is only 18 degrees of arc. It does not replace a full Aristo 10ft dia curve track section. You need an additional 12 degree 10 ft dia curved section to create a 30 degree curve - which is what their regular 10 ft dia curved track is - 30 degrees (12 sections to make a complete circle).
LGB's R3 switch has a full 22.5 degree curved section that fits perfectly into a track plan using R3 curves (which are also 22.5 degrees per section or 16 sections to a circle). Interestingly, Aristo's 8 ft dia curves are also 22.5 degrees of arc - very closely matched to LGB's R3. LGB's R5 switch has a full 15 degree R5 curve built into it (R5 = 15 degrees per section of 15.5 ft dia curve; 24 sections to a complete circle).
To conclude, I haven't a clue why Aristo chose to make an odd degree arc in the curved branch of the wide radius switch.

[g. gage]

I’m an operator using a car card forwarding system for switching. I use both LGB 1600 switches designed for 8’ diameter track and Aristo X-Wide switches designed for 10’ diameter track. I’ve found that long car cuts track better when pushed through the Aristo switches so I limit my LGB switches to short spurs.

 

Have fun, Rob