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Constant derailments on my Peco code 83 turnouts

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  • Member since
    February 2007
  • From: Shenandoah Valley The Home Of Patsy Cline
  • 1,842 posts
Posted by superbe on Sunday, May 4, 2014 12:47 PM

RE: The guard rails

The guard rails on a couple my Peco turnouts were causing occasional derailments even though they passed the gauge test. At times a wheel would catch on the guard rail. The guard rail is plastic. I took a small flat bladed screw driver and put it between the rail and the guard rail at the entry point to the turnout and turned it ever so slightly to increase the opening. 

Perhaps the problem was with the cars but this was an easy fix.

Bob

  • Member since
    January 2010
  • From: Chi-Town
  • 7,712 posts
Posted by zstripe on Sunday, May 4, 2014 6:30 PM

Popbagz,

What you have just described about the frog area being too high, is exactly what I was getting at. With the frog area being high, it is causing the outside stock rails to be low, making your stock and guard rails to look like this:////, when a wheel trys to go through it, the flange picks the point, this will happen a lot, if your rolling stock/ boxcars whatever and especially six axle engines, that do not have much vertical to horizontal movement, in otherwords too rigid, So rather than follow a dip of high spot, one end floats, until it catchs something, causing your derailments. Take a straight edge ruler preferrably a metal one and stand it on edge from your frog extending out to your stock rails on Your turnouts. You should not see any space between the rails and ruler. Do that along all your track before and after your turnout and turnout included. It should become evident what your problem is. Athough having #8's is great, they are unforgiving in any twisting non-level area's.

It would not hurt to make your outside stock rail guards with a little more clearance.

Good Luck! Be methodical, You'll fix it.

Take Care!

Frank

  • Member since
    April 2014
  • 17 posts
Posted by popbagz on Tuesday, May 6, 2014 11:42 AM

Thanks Frank I'll try that.

Pops

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