I have a small switching layout with only 2 Turnouts. Them being PECO #5s.
I love them and have had no issues with them. Just recently I noticed my engines stalling on the bakery turnout. The slightest nudge would send it moving again. Not the worst issue but very frustrating. Especially when running an opperating session. The worst part is it worked just fine for months after I ballasted it.
So running in DC using a RailPower1300, Engines sputter at any speed. Crawling they stall.
Ussing DCC through an NCE PowerCab, it's hit or miss. Sometimes my engines creep by on speedstep 1 and other times they stall on the turnout. Whats weird is sometimes its a hiccup where the headlight and becon will turn off and the prime mover will stay constant ( with a breif cut out) and others it's enough to make the engine go through it's whole start up sequence.
Smallest DC engines are either my Genesis MP15AC and Atlas MP15DC. Both stall at the same point. Tried with my longest, athearn RTR SD40-2, still stalls
As for DCC, it dosent matter if its my GP35 or F45. All either stall or make it though at random.
Any tips?
All track and wheels were cleaned
I had a similar issue with my Peco turnouts several years after they were installed. I believe your issue is with the point rails not making sufficient contact with the stock rails. I have since installed jumpers between the stock rails and the appropriate rails on the other side of the frog. No more stalls. I even did it outdoors with my G scale turnouts that had a similar issue.
Are they Peco Insulfrog or Electrofrog turnouts?
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
nycmodel I had a similar issue with my Peco turnouts several years after they were installed. I believe your issue is with the point rails not making sufficient contact with the stock rails. I have since installed jumpers between the stock rails and the appropriate rails on the other side of the frog. No more stalls. I even did it outdoors with my G scale turnouts that had a similar issue.
How did you add this jumper?
riogrande5761 Are they Peco Insulfrog or Electrofrog turnouts?
Insulfrog
Put another engine few feet down the track, idling but with the headlight on. When you get a "stall" at the turnout, does the other engine's light also go out? If so, you probably have a short, not a stall. The solution is to get a Goth girlfriend and borrow her black nail polish. Paint the spot on the frog where the rails are very close together. The engine wheels are bridging the gap.
Have you powered the frog? That's a common cause of stalls at turnouts.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Can't power an insulfrog. I'm going with poor/dirty contact between the point and stock rail. Jumpers between the stock and closure rails will help, but also needs a flexible jumper between the closure rail and point (around the hing - also a place for contact to go bad over time and use).
Option 1 and Option 2 called out on the Wiring for DCC page:
wiringfordcc.com/switches_peco.htm#a1
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
MisterBeasley Put another engine few feet down the track, idling but with the headlight on. When you get a "stall" at the turnout, does the other engine's light also go out? If so, you probably have a short, not a stall. The solution is to get a Goth girlfriend and borrow her black nail polish. Paint the spot on the frog where the rails are very close together. The engine wheels are bridging the gap. Have you powered the frog? That's a common cause of stalls at turnouts.
Will regular girlfriend nail polish do? Or does it have to be goth?
Will try with one farther down on the track
Red or pink polish just wouldn't look right. Clear is OK. But black is optimum. In a decade or two, you can see if black is wearing down. Not so with clear.
It's almost certainly the electrical routing through toward the frog. I know the frog is dead if it's an 'insulfrog' type, but you MUST have good power all the rest of the way along the closure rails and after the frog, the frog rails. If you get a stall, and not a short indication from your electrical system, then it's a break in power throughput along the intended path.
You might benefit from a single gentle swipe of 600 grit sandpaper between the inner point surface and the inner flange surface of the stock rail to improve contact, or try a CRC type contact cleaner. I use the paper sparing, then wipe with alcohol. That usually cures the problem, but for all turnout types and makes.
Note that it could be something else entirely, but still a problem with electrical throughput. It could be that the weight of the engine changes the lie of the turnout sufficiently that the formerly adequate contact of one of the joiners becomes inadequate, and that means a loss of power to one rail of the turnout...or both. Joiners could be the issue, or the supporting roadbed on which the turnout lies.
Ringo58How did you add this jumper?
Ringo, I think this picture accurately shows where to add the jumpers. The jumpers are shown in purple.
MisterBeasleyThe solution is to get a Goth girlfriend and borrow her black nail polish.
Getting a Goth (or better, a punker) girlfriend is the solution to all kinds of things!
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Heres a video I took last night.
Lastspikemike Instead of nudging the locomotive try pinching the point rail against the stock rail with your finger. If the locomotive moves then you've found the problem. I used a jumper wire to check for this, another alternative. A short piece of wire with bare ends touched to the aligned route rails (stock rail and matching closure rail) bypassping just the point rail contact point.
Instead of nudging the locomotive try pinching the point rail against the stock rail with your finger. If the locomotive moves then you've found the problem. I used a jumper wire to check for this, another alternative. A short piece of wire with bare ends touched to the aligned route rails (stock rail and matching closure rail) bypassping just the point rail contact point.
Tried that. If i push on the drawbar the whole time the locomotive is crossing the switch, no issues. Think I found my problem. I will clean the contact tonight with some 600 grit and CRC contact cleaner. I will post an update later
selector Joiners could be the issue, or the supporting roadbed on which the turnout lies.
Joiners could be the issue, or the supporting roadbed on which the turnout lies.
All rails have soldered joints. Could be the track is sagging on the foam. I did not use roadbed
Ringo58All rails have soldered joints. Could be the track is sagging on the foam. I did not use roadbed Add Quote to your Post
Not of it's own weight unless you leaned on the foam.
Your video does not appear in Firefox. Imgur videos apparently don't work like youtube on this forum. But a link does.
https://imgur.com/NDxA6ku
Looks like the stalling happens at the closure rails to me.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Ringo58 selector Joiners could be the issue, or the supporting roadbed on which the turnout lies. All rails have soldered joints. Could be the track is sagging on the foam. I did not use roadbed
Any turnout stalls I've ever had occur on the frog itself, your's seems to occur on the closure rail between the points and the frog.
As others have said, it must be dirt on the INSIDE, not the top, of the contact points or rails. Or, you might have dirt on the inside of the closure rail.. Its not a big stall, just a little hiccup, so make sure the inside corner of the rails are clean and free from any little dried glue bump tht might lift the wheel off of the track.
I'd use a finger nail or some type of mild scraping device rather than a liquid.
- Douglas
Ringo58Will regular girlfriend nail polish do? Or does it have to be goth? Will try with one farther down on the track
I used to use my wife's nail polish until she got mad.
So I started using my girlfriend's instead.......
It's definitely losing power, not shorting - as the lights never blink on the other loco standing there as would happen if a short was occurring.
Something else to check - make sure the loco is getting power from both strucks. Easy to test - over ont he other side of the layout, off the turnouts, put one truck on the rails and a piece of paper under the other. THe loco whoudl get power and move. Repeat with the other truck ont eh paper - same thing. These locos have all wheel pickup so if one truck is on a dead part of track, it should still get power from the other truck. By placing the paper in different spots, you can determine which side of which truck isn;t supplying power. Depending on the loco, there are various places to look next. Or it could be as simple as a wire has come loose from one of those plastic clips, resulting in no power pickup from one side of one truck.
Doughless Ringo58 Will regular girlfriend nail polish do? Or does it have to be goth? Will try with one farther down on the track I used to use my wife's nail polish until she got mad. So I started using my girlfriend's instead.......
Ringo58 Will regular girlfriend nail polish do? Or does it have to be goth? Will try with one farther down on the track
Hahah! That one gave me a good chuckle
Alton Junction
richhotrain Doughless Ringo58 Will regular girlfriend nail polish do? Or does it have to be goth? Will try with one farther down on the track I used to use my wife's nail polish until she got mad. So I started using my girlfriend's instead....... LaughYesLaughYesBow
I have 22 Peco code 100 Insulfrog turnouts from size #'s 5-10 on my switching layout , after a few years I found that dirty points against the main rail and track oxidation are the most common reasons for stalling, but The most challenging issue I've had yet is an uneven switch, the turnout must lay flat especially across the frog & end points, use mini tacks or rail spikes at opposite inside or outside ends of the switch where your loosing voltage, afterwards check the switch with a mini level and also with a voltage meter across the entire switch for power continuity, try using a needle file on the points & the main line track connection, clean afterwards with a quality track cleaner or alcohol, test by running 2 and 3 axel engins across and through the right or left turnouts, when the switch is working properly paint over or use ballast on the switch track pins. Happy Switching,
Bayway Terminal NJ
I too use Peco insulfrog turnouts and install power feeders on all sides of the turnout. This way I am powering the point rails from two directions. Cannot do it this way with the electrofrog turnouts.
Granted photo attached is for an electrofrog but same principal applies to an insulfrog except there is no frog wire. Basically I make an insulfrog from an electrofrog because the gap on the insulfrog is not big enough and tends to cause shorts as previously mentioned in this thread.
I solder a small jumper (think 30 gauge wire) between stock rail and point rail and also around the pivot point of the point rail. once the turnout is painted its unnoticeable and siginificantly increases reliability.
For the few insulfrog turnouts I do have, I also doe the nail polish trick over the frog to prevent wheels from bridging the gap and causing an intermitent short.
see below:
Colorado Front Range Railroad: http://www.coloradofrontrangerr.com/
If you need to insure electrical contact through the turnout, this video shows you where and how to solder the recommended jumpers. While some of the recommended mods in the video pertain only to electrofrog units, most of them apply also to insulfrog. Hope this helps.
Prepaing an Electrofrog Turnout for Installation