Rich...
Good outline for dependable operation.
Add one point perhaps........
In a long curve using flex track, solder the next section to the one fastened down FIRST, with the sliding rail on the inside of the curve, holding it straight out off of the curve, then pull and nail it into the curve. That will minimize kinks at the joiners on curves under 24 inch radius.
see ya
Bob
selector Some of us probably should lay track temporarily and then fasten it more permanently once we have tested it. I am on my third layout construction, and I lay and ballast as I go this time.
Some of us probably should lay track temporarily and then fasten it more permanently once we have tested it. I am on my third layout construction, and I lay and ballast as I go this time.
Wow, that is gutsy, Crandell, ballasting as you go.
I lay flex track, soldering the curves, and nail it down on WS foam track bed. Easy to remove the nails and shif the track, if necessary. I won't ballast the track until I have fully tested every locomotive, especially steamers, running them in both directions.
When laying track, I have become extremely diligent at laying level track, one rail should not be higher than the other except on superelevated curves, no kinks, no humps, no valleys, no vertically or horizontally mismatched connected between sections of track.
Rich
Alton Junction
With sectional track, your can do a trial fit, put it on the roadbed, mate up the rail joiners, and run trains on it to make sure it's good. When it works well, nail it down, if your roadbed will hold nails. With flex track, which is springy, tries to spring back to straight, and needs to be fastened down to keep it curved, this doesn't work. Might as well lay it carefully and fasten it down.
If you are gluing down the track 'cause your roadbed won't hold nails (for example foamboard, camper tape or cork) then a trial fit doesn't mean all that much. You have to lift up the track to get the glue under neath it, which disturbs it, and you have to take the usual precautions against kinks at track joints, too tight curves, abrupt curve entry, and so on.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
selector I have been known to remove an entire length of flex, smooth the roadbed, or correct is geometry, and lay the tracks again. It happened to me the first time four years into running the layout. It was a new locomotive that kept derailing on a curve, and I decided adjusting the geometry wasn't such a big deal. Later, I felt it was the right thing to do as the new loco ran well and the others did no worse. Crandell
I have been known to remove an entire length of flex, smooth the roadbed, or correct is geometry, and lay the tracks again. It happened to me the first time four years into running the layout. It was a new locomotive that kept derailing on a curve, and I decided adjusting the geometry wasn't such a big deal. Later, I felt it was the right thing to do as the new loco ran well and the others did no worse.
Crandell
A lot of us have had to do exactly what Crandell did. I one ONE curve that gave me grief for my "Big Boy". Not only did I tear up the track, I widened the benchwork leading into the curve, allowing me to increase the radius. Thinking beforehand what era and what type of equipment I would be running would have been the SMART thing to do. But, sometime wisdom comes from mistakes we made.
Marlon
See pictures of the Clinton-Golden Valley RR
If I know that some of my curves will be close to the minimum radius, I use snap track curved sections to lay it out, then mark the center line. Then lay the roadbed material and then flex-track. Then I test it right away. If it doesn't work, I fix it right then.
For most other sections, I just lay it down as I go.
I also solder most of my rail joiners and come back and cut gaps as needed for blocks later.
Elmer.
The above is my opinion, from an active and experienced Model Railroader in N scale and HO since 1961.
(Modeling Freelance, Eastern US, HO scale, in 1962, with NCE DCC for locomotive control and a stand alone LocoNet for block detection and signals.) http://waynes-trains.com/ at home, and N scale at the Club.
We lay the track and test as we go after a section is large enough to run a train, maybe just back and forth with pushing and pulling cars. We use cork and nails, then ballast with some diluted white glue. We don't do the last step until we're sure we like the track position, etc.
We slightly compress/bend track joiners near the ends(about 1/8" to 3/16" away from ends) with rail nippers to tighten them up some. Not a lot, just enough to make them tight on both rails. Also, on curves with flextrack we offset the joints by around 2" or so. This makes the curves smoother and connections stronger. You do this by inserting one rail(side) of one piece of flextrack into the ties of another. But, first you may have to cut a short piece of rail out of the mating piece. Also, we use ribbonrail rail radii gages, the longer ones. We also solder many but not all joints right before ballasting. Since wood shrinks/expands having a little slide in the joints can be helpful. Also, not tieing down/gluing the curves all the way around can help with expansion and contraction. Some now use metal frames to help with this. We probably will do so on the next layout.
We have 2 locos and 2 pieces of rolling stock that are the most prone to derail and so we test with those.
Richard
Not a bad idea Otto, just a little late I think. Pretty sure the GE 6000's got them all!
Ken
I hate Rust
Ken- A quick idea to keep the spikes out of your engines speaker's is to mount a strong bar magnet on the bottom of a flat car ( the clear track inspection car from Micro-Mark would work great as you could see if you are picking up any thing ), and push it around the layout ahead of the engines for a lap or two. It would also pick up any particles from the ballast. Otto
On the rail joiners, if the slip on the rail easily, I throw it away. They should be a little hard to install for a tight fit. On soldering joiners on my flex track's that turn, I solder them all.
I use cork roadbed when I am laying track and use spikes. When the flex track is making a turn, I will drill a few extra holes, some time in the center, some times on the outside of the rails if it is being a pain. Now here is where I cheat a little. I found larger rail spikes, not sure what gauge that hold better than the Atlas spikes.
Reason I don't glue down the track? Well if I ever finish ballasting all the layout, the white glue will hold down the track along with the nails. Areas I have not ballast are still holding just fine with just the spikes. Layout has been up and ran a lot for 6 years now.
Only down side on using spikes so far is I have a few sound engines with belly mounted speakers suck up a few spikes.
Cuda Ken
I just laid out the track and joined it as I went. Not to test it, but I wanted to be able to shift it in places to work with different track arrangement angles and put broad bows into flex track to not have perfect straights, etc. for whatever looked best. Throughout the whole process, I never had problems with joints coming loose or electrical contact the entire year I played with the track arrangement (infrequently, and I'm slow). I have smooth and level benchwork with no poor fitting seems, etc., which helps things work on a temporary basis. I then soldered the track after the arrangement became set. Most of the track is not on roadbed. I tried both caulk and white glue in places to secure the track to the table. Either one worked fine for me.
I have taken up some previously secured track, and the white glue came up easier than the caulk, after misting the track with water first.
- Douglas
Some of us probably should lay track temporarily and then fasten it more permanently once we have tested it. I am on my third layout construction, and I lay and ballast as I go this time. I know what good track looks like (finally), and I know to watch for rail heights that don't match well, joints that slide open during final gluing or ballasting, or when adjusting curves for a last time. If you know what a good track plan looks like (for your interests) and take your time as you go, you can do it all a section at a time.
Fact is, though, nothing is cast in concrete. We can always pry up a bad section and start over. It is best to avoid that in the first place, of course, and that is why testing one's trackwork for a few days at least is a good idea. But, if you have to correct a spot, just wet the ballast, slide a knife between the ties and caulking or glue, and adjust the curves or joints. I have been known to remove an entire length of flex, smooth the roadbed, or correct is geometry, and lay the tracks again. It happened to me the first time four years into running the layout. It was a new locomotive that kept derailing on a curve, and I decided adjusting the geometry wasn't such a big deal. Later, I felt it was the right thing to do as the new loco ran well and the others did no worse.
I'm using HO Kato Unitrack which snaps together. I like the fact you can test it out in real space first. Eventually when I have everything the way I want it, I will add extra ballast along the edges to keep the track in place.
I am curios as to how other have layed down their track. Do you lay it out, test it to make sure the trans run smooth, then fasten/glue it down? Or do you attach it by nail/glue then run the train on it. Do any of you have problems keeping the rail joints tight? Any ideas of keeping them tight? I do plan on soldering some or most of them when I finally have mine up and running.
Right now, since I am unable to fully layout the bench work for mine, I have been running it on a flat surface (kitchen table) until I am able to complete.
Thanks for the advice in advance.
Sean, the unknown train travler,