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N scale turnouts

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  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, October 4, 2002 10:01 AM
Hello Snowey,

Peco offers two types of N scale turnouts -- the ElectroFrog and the InsulFrog.

The ElectroFrog style, or "selective" turnout, has a "live frog" that routes power only to the normal or diverging route, depending on which way the points are thrown. Make sure to power these turnouts from the point end.

This type of turnout can be made to be DCC compatible with a little extra effort. The diverging rails past the frog need to be insulated from the frog to prevent short circuits, such as occurs when wiring a passing siding. Insulated rail joiners or cutting a gap in the rails with a cuttign disk in a motor tool will do the job nicely.

Peco's InsulFrog is much more DCC friendly right out of the box. Peco's term "InsulFrog" means the frog, which is made of plastic, doesn't conduct electricity and route power, so the frog's polarity isn't affected by which way the points are thrown. Both routes, normal and diverging, are live.

In my experience, most brands of turnouts can be DCC compatible; it depends on how much effort you want to expend. Cutting a few gaps with a motor tool cutting disk is no big deal. But it's more convenient for some modelers to have DCC compatibility right out of the box.

Hope this helps,

Paul Schmidt
Contributing Editor
Trains.com
  • Member since
    February 2001
  • From: US
  • 506 posts
N scale turnouts
Posted by snowey on Wednesday, October 2, 2002 3:27 AM
are PECO Nscale turnouts DCC compatible?
"I have a message...Lt. Col....Henry Blakes plane...was shot down...over the Sea Of Japan...it spun in...there were no survivors".

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