My last layout I used Peco c55, and the track was very robust. I had no issues with it. When I decided to redo my layout, I opted for ME because of the more prototypical look of the North American tie spacing. The drawback, as mentioned above, was only having #6 turnouts available. It sounds like they may be expanding their offerings in this area soon, but I decided to build my own turnouts using Fast Tracks fixtures and tools. After I'd made 70 - 80 turnouts, I felt confident to tackle building from scratch using paper templates. They take a bit longer to construct, but now I can make any turnout for any situation an I'm not locked in to specific geometry. And an added bonus was that I fully understand what all the critical parts of a turnout are, and can troubleshoot much more easily if one is giving me problems.
Scott
Reliability has more to do with how you lay the track than the brand, imo.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
I have had good experience with Peco code 55 flex track and turnouts. The track doesn't look as good as Micro Engineering track, but Peco offers a much wider variety of turnout options. I think ME offers only #6 turnouts, while Peco has a broad range of turnout options. Peco code 55 looks a lot better than their code 80, but older stuff can run on the code 55 because it is actually code 80 on the inside of the rail where the wheel flanges go.
I was an HO scaler for around 25 years who converted to N in 2006 for similar reasons. My modern-era 4x8' layout uses Micro-Engineering pre-weathered Code 55 flex track and Atlas Code 55 turnouts and some sectional pieces. If you had Code 83 track in HO, then Code 55 is the N scale equivalent.
Kato Unitrack is popular and easy to use but not very prototypical as it has large Code 80 rail (the N scale equivalent to Code 100 in HO) and the tie spacing is not how North American ties are spaced. If things like that aren't a concern then go Kato Unitrack, but if you lean more towards the prototypical side then Micro-Engineering Code 55 track is the way to go. Atlas also makes Code 55 track (and the two are compatible in terms of connecting them with rail joiners and being used on the same layout), but it comes unweathered and only in wooden ties (Micro-Engineering flex track comes in wooden tie, concrete tie and bridge track (very narrow tie spacing) varieties. Peco also maks "Code 55" track but it is actually code 80 track buried into the ties and is not joinable with Micro-Engineering or Atlas track, only to other Peco Code 55 tracks or with Code 80 track from other manufacturers.I do not have every rain joiner soldered, but if you plan to use DCC, it's recommend to have feeder wires soldered to the track every few feet to ensure good pickup from DCC locomotives.
I'm thinking of switching to N from HO due to space limits and because I like to see trains just run. I've looked into the kato unitrack, but was now wondering what the group has found to be the most reliable brands of track to use. I've read that the N scale rail joiners are very fickle compared to HO. Do you have to solder every rail joint?
Thanks, Fred