1st I will appologize, I have no doubt this has been covered a zillion times, but I've not been able to find the answer to some of the questions.
I'm HO, DC building a new layout and will wire it to be ready for a DCC change over when I'm ready for a DCC change over.
The room is long and narrow and will require long curves, trying to keep them 24" or larger. Mostly short rolling stock and locos.
I've read here to solder joints in a curve, thats a given, not universally, but as close as I've seen in this hobby. Also that its best to solder striaght and THEN bend the track. Also cool.
HOWEVER that brings me two questions, I'd like to stager the joints where posible, seems to make sense to help avoid kinks, but I guess I'd want to lay the two pieces on the workbench, slide the moving rail (Atlas Code 100 Flex btw) into the other track to achieve the stagered joint, and solder away. My next assumption is that I'd need to lay (install) this double section of flex before I proceed to the next piece as I won't know how far the sliding rail sticks out until its positioned. This is the part I haven't been able to figure out in these fourms. So do I trim the sliding rail back, say a couple of inches longer than the fixed rail and repeat the process, (this to stager the next joint.) Is there any problem letting the slidig rail continue to move into the other piece of flex so that the stager gets greater and greater and only cutting it, the sliding rail, when the track strainghtens out into a tangent. See second question as to removing ties please.
I've read, here and eslewhere, about the ties under the joiner, Am I correct in my assumption that the plastic nail heads, the tie plate under the nailheads and a little of the tie itself, will need to be shaved off to allow the railjoiner room and so the track through the joint will be smooth and uniform? Is it possible to do this without actually removing the ties from the flex track, since with the stagered joints at no point in the curve will both rails be joined at the same tie(s).
If some of you would be so kind as to describe your methods for this I would really appreciate it.
thanks in advance, ain't this place great
Roypea
i solder all my joints except where it is convenient to use a plastic rail joiner, otherwise they all get soldered and then i cut in any necessary gaps with a dremel tool and cut off wheel.
in over 40 years, i have never worried about staggering the joints. i can see no advantage to doing so, but that is up to you.
if you don't have a good rail nipper (xuron is a good brand) get one now. you will also need a file to clean up the cut off ends.
i usually remove 1 or 2 ties from the end of each piece of flex track to make the installation of the rail joiners and soldering easier. after the track is down and tested i go back and slip strip wood ties in to fill the bare spots. when painted, i can't really see any great difference but i am 62 years old with failing eyesight.
i have always used code 100 flex track and when painted, the rails don't look too oversize to me. of course i already have several miles of the stuff and don't want to buy anything new if i don't need to. i do find that the atlas track has one tight rail and one that is loose and slides back and forth, i also have a quantity of the shinohara track in which both rails are pretty tight. the atlas is easier to bend into a curve but it does not hold it's position without fasteners like the shinohara does.
i do pride myself in my track work since it is about the only thing i seem to do well and encourage you to practice, practice, practice until you become proficient. without dependable track work all the other stuff you do goes for naught unless you like static models.
good luck, grizlump
My approach is the diametric opposite of the previous poster's. I DON'T solder rail joints, on curves or anywhere else. I DO stagger the rail joints on curves, specifically to prevent kinks.
If, as I do, you can expect temperatures to range from sub-freezing in January to 120 + F in August, soldering rail joints is not a good idea. Under more reasonable conditions (say a maximum of 40 degrees swing) I would consider the following:
Make sure every joint has been de-burred, and take a little bevel off the top inside corner of every rail end. You should be able to run the back of your thumbnail across each joint without snagging on anything.
On tight curves, the joints in the outside rail are the critical ones. Inside rail joints are far less likely to give trouble.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - with Atlas flex and hand-laid specialwork)