I started my new layout last fall using atlas code 100 flextrack and peco medium rad. insulfrog turnouts and DCC powered by MRC Podigy advance2. I ran all my locos and rolling stock on the layout for several weeks to make sure there were no problems before ballasting. Anyway, a couple of days ago Mr. Murphy paid a visit. While my BLI Pennsy 4-8-2 was creeping through the straight leg of a turnout a direct short occured. I inspected the track work and found no apparent reason for the short so tried it again and the same thing. I thought something must be loose or dragging under the loco, but nothing seemed amiss there. I ran the loco through the turnout again at a faster speed and noticed the head light flicker once but it seemed to roll through ok. I then ran it though at a crawl and bingo-short so I shut the system off and got my bright flashligt out and found the problem. As I suspected, it was the locomotive. The number two driver was causing a short between the diverging rail and the straight rail. There is quite a bit of side to side movement in the drivers of this loco and after checking with my NMRA gauge, the wheels are all in gauge. Some may cringe at my remedy, but I put clear scotch tap accross the rails to cover them about 3/16" past the frog. I then took a razor blade and trimmed the tape so only the top of the rails were insulated. Problem solved and all my locos run through that turnout with no problems.
Hi,
Never heard of that solution before, but if it works, it works! Of course DCC locos are much more finicky about shorting as opposed to DC locos, and the problems tend to flare at turnouts.
I suspect the turnout may have rails at the frog too close together (allowing the loco drive wheels to bridge them) and I have had this with older Atlas turnouts.
ENJOY !
Mobilman44
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
At our club we use clear finger nail polish, swiped from a wife. Most of it has lasted over 25 years.
josephbw At our club we use clear finger nail polish, swiped from a wife. Most of it has lasted over 25 years.
...unlike the wife?
Can you guys post a photo of exactly where you put the polish/tape/where you filed? I have the same problem on a few of my older Atlas turnouts.
Thanks!
Terry
Terry in NW Wisconsin
Queenbogey715 is my Youtube channel
Ok, I don't have a camera good enough yet to get a good closeup, I'll try to explain the best I can. Where the two rails meet at the frog is where the short occured. On the peco insulfrog turnout the rails are seperated by very thin (hair width) plastic. The wheel was bridging that gap. Since no wife = no nailpolish and filing was not feasible, tape was my answer. Hope this helps, Ken
Bah! LION has many double crossovers and some double slip switches.
LION does not power the switches at all. It is a SUBWAY layout, and with 48 wheel power pick up, gaps as short as two feet (190 scale feet) simply make no difference whatsoever. Saves a lot of wiring, relays and frustrations.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
So hate me. See if I care.
If you had hot frogs (electrofrogs in Peco-speak) and powered them through contacts on the point-throwing device, you would NEVER, EVER have this kind of problem.
Peco relies on the wheels having the proper six degree angle conical tread, then hopes that the traffic will not wear down one side of the frog more than the other. Unfortunately, some manufacturers still live in the stone age and don't taper the tread. Others use blind drivers, which shouldn't be tapered but sometimes are. I'm primitive in a different direction, much preferring the dependability of solid metal under the wheels.
Brother Lion, I just thought of something. To be prototypical, your car lights should go out when passing through one of those unpowered (and third-rail free) spots on your layout, one car at a time. Always panicked non-Noo Yawkas when first encountered.
Chuck (Native Noo Yawka modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - with all frogs hot)