I use Allien's tacky glue, if there are no holes, use pin vise to drill small hole and use straight pin's. Allien's let's you make fine adjustment's before it drie's, easy to remove track after dry with a spray of alchohol & water mix. When track is weathered and ballasted the pin head's are invisiabale.
Work's for me.
Larry
SodorAdventures How will I lay the tracks if my new code 83 flex track has no nails?
How will I lay the tracks if my new code 83 flex track has no nails?
If you mean your flextrack doesn't have nail hole openings in the ties, be aware that some brands (like Walthers) have four holes per tie about every 7th or 8th tie, one hole on each side of each rail. They're designed to use track spikes rather than nails, with the head of the spike touching the bottom of the rail. The idea is that if you do it that way, the result looks a lot like handlaid track (which normally is only spiked down every 7th tie or so.)
SodorAdventures Wow! Thank you everyone for all your input. I will find some nice clear adhesive caulk! Would DAP sealant caulk (for bathrooms) work? Or would I need to use strictly adhesive. Thanks again!!!
Wow! Thank you everyone for all your input. I will find some nice clear adhesive caulk! Would DAP sealant caulk (for bathrooms) work? Or would I need to use strictly adhesive. Thanks again!!!
I would advise against an adhesive caulk. They are very durable and hard to break apart. Just get the latex acrylic caulk, not an adhesive caulk. The DAP Alex Plus with silicone is what I use, and it can be pared easily with a paring knife.
As for turnouts, I don't usually adhere mine in place. I make sure they are lined up properly and level, but with ballast under them. I then glue the ballast and that supports the turnouts nicely. If a turnout fails, just wet the ballast, wait two minutes, and work it out of the ballast.
SodorAdventures Would DAP sealant caulk (for bathrooms) work?
Yes. I used that for most of my layout. It holds fine, and track peels up easily if you need to move it.
Rob Spangler
Regardless if you need to secure the turnout or not, once ballasted all the trackwork will be held securely, just need to take those precautions around throwbars and points as not to glue them or jamb the operation.
Modeling B&O- Chessie Bob K. www.ssmrc.org
I have about 40 Walther's turnouts in service, including several curved T/Os. The curved T/Os need to be caulked down as I found larger heavier Loco's would torque them out of gauge if they weren't held solid. As far as the rest, I just caulk up to the joiners and that seems to hold them solid. I would not hesitate to caulk any of them down if need be though. My feeling is, when I tear up the layout, the easier it is to remove the turnouts the better. That way those pricey items will be in good shape to use again.
As far as caulk goes, I tend to caulk down about a six inch strip at joints and again in the middle of a piece of flex track. This makes it easy to take it up for adjustments. Once happy, it holds things fine until ballasting finishes the job.
I wish I had used grey caulk instead of clear for the roadbed. It helps the ballast go further.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
peahrensMost folks don't caulk their turnouts but let them "float" since they may need maintenance on occasion.
I know, and that just floors me. Turnouts are the most critical areas of trackwork, and I make sure I glue them down securely to maintain alignment. They're easy to remove later if need be, just by sliding a putty knife under the ties. Just my way of looking at it...
I got back to the hobby this year and just completed the trackage on my HO layout. I also used the Alex Plus (clear) caulk to secure my Atlas code 83 flextrack to cork roadbed. I found it quite easy, using a few pushpins and books to hold it down tightly overnight. It is relatively easy to make corrections if needed; if you haven't overdone the caulk a thin putty knife can be slid between the ties and roadbed to separate two and make revisions. Most folks don't caulk their turnouts but let them "float" since they may need maintenance on occasion. I used Walthers Shinohara turnouts, which needed a 0.015" shim to make up for the Atlas to W-S tie thickness difference. In my case, I make the shim needed from turnout box cardboard (lacquered) (one can also use 0.015" styrene sheeting) and caulked the shim to the roadbed, then lightly caulked the turnout also to the cardboard shim, making sure to keep the caulk away from the moving points areas. Since it seems so easy to separate the items if needed, I decided to caulk the turnouts a bit. If one needs removal after ballasting, the ballast may be the bigger issue.
I used about 1-1/2 tubes for a 5' x 10' HO layout with a fair amount of track...the point is you won't need a case.
Good luck.
Paul
Modeling HO with a transition era UP bent
wp8thsub I use clear acrylic/latex sealant or adhesive caulk to lay track, and hold it in alignment with push pins until the caulk sets. All those nail heads down the middle of the track ruin its appearance for me. I there's a situation demanding a mechanical fastener, I drill a hole adjacent to the rail and use a small spike (not a track nail) on either side of the rail base.
I use clear acrylic/latex sealant or adhesive caulk to lay track, and hold it in alignment with push pins until the caulk sets. All those nail heads down the middle of the track ruin its appearance for me. I there's a situation demanding a mechanical fastener, I drill a hole adjacent to the rail and use a small spike (not a track nail) on either side of the rail base.
I'm another one that uses the acrylic caulk and push pins method to hold flex track in place.
Marlon
See pictures of the Clinton-Golden Valley RR
SodorAdventures What type of caulk should I purchase? Clear? White? Adhesive?
What type of caulk should I purchase? Clear? White? Adhesive?
SodorAdventures Thank you for all your responses! Just a question about this post, from Mr. Crandell. What does the custom dremel tool look like? I am having trouble visioning it. Also, I think I will be using clear adhesive caulk, but would liquid cement (elmers) work? Just bringing up ideas. Thanks, Tanner
Thank you for all your responses! Just a question about this post, from Mr. Crandell.
What does the custom dremel tool look like? I am having trouble visioning it. Also, I think I will be using clear adhesive caulk, but would liquid cement (elmers) work? Just bringing up ideas.
Thanks, Tanner
Tanner, I meant a rotary hobby tool that is like a Dremel tool. Dremels are excellent, and sometimes can be got for a good price, but some outfits, such as Canadian Tire up north where I live, make their own at a better price. So, it would have a small motor housing and a chuck at the end of the shaft, and it would come with a small container with different bits, saws, burrs, and sand stones on shanks. Most will also have at least one small cut-off disk. There'll be a key to lock the chuck while you tighten the collet. Such tools won't have a handle and look like a cordless drill, for example, but look more like an angle grinder without the grinding head. The rotary too should be smaller, though.
Crandell
“When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.” -- John Lennon
DAP Alex latex caulk has a type that is white and dries clear. I tried this method (which I learned from this forum) and I really liked how it worked.
But if putting the track down with glue isn't your think you could always drill a hole in the tie where you want to put the nail.
If you have no track nails, and/or none of the usual holes appear in the middle of every 8th or 10th tie, try drywall screws snugging up to the ends of the ties. It takes a bit longer, but providing you don't pinch or damage the ends of the ties by starting the tips too close, just drive drywall screws partway into the cork or homasote roadbed, or foam roadbed, and hold it that way if you don't want to use caulk and weights.
My method with flex is to use needle nosed pliers that I have modified with the cut-off disk on a Dremel to hold track nails reasonably well. I lay my curve as I think it should look, drive a nail, continue with more of the curve, drive a nail, and so on. Once I am happy with my line in an area, I lift the nails, smear caulk thinly, and relay each length of flex, and do drive the same nails to ensure it all stays in place until the caulk cures. I also use filled soda tins on their sides between the rails to ensure the grade is constant.
Later, and this is important, place your fingers on the tie, straddling the nail, grasp it with needle-nosed pliers, and pry it up. It is important to support the ties because the caulk may have welled up in the hole and adhered to the shank of the track nail. As you lift without the fingers, you'll either break the tie or lift the track.
You want "adhesive latex" caulk. Any brand should do.
Clear is always an option, but I match mine to the color of ballast (gray).
Connecticut Valley Railroad A Branch of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford
"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right." -- Henry Ford
SodorAdventures How will I lay the tracks if my new code 83 flex track has no nails??
How will I lay the tracks if my new code 83 flex track has no nails??
Some brands of code 83 flex track have pilot holes on the back sides of the ties. You can drill through them with an appropriate size drill bit in a pin vise. Or you can drill through the tie from the top.
A thin layer of latex caulk with weights put on the track until the caulk sets (20 minutes to several hours, depending on the brand of caulk).
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Hey all,