Fast Tracks

I have made about 10 #6 turnouts in N Scale. I take great pains to see that the parts fit exactly, but all of my turnouts have the same problem: The wheels ride up slightly in the middle of the guard rails - before reaching the frog. It is clear that the gauge is correct on the turnout and on the template (NMRA) and the truck wheels I use to test are as exact in gauge as I can make them. I would like to send a sample for you to examine and perhaps reveal something I am doing entirely wrong.

I am 72 and a retired electronic and mechanical engineer (not sure that always helps, however!) and very frustrated that I can't get the precision from the turnouts that I need. This riding up lifts the locomotives off the track for an instant, causing stalling and a very unsightly bump. I would appreciate any help at all. By the way, if I file down the guard rail width (very difficult) I don't have the problem, but I shouldn't have to do that with a precision template. I have done all I can with positioning the rails in the template to try to eliminate this but to no avail.

Many thanks!

_________________
"Knowledge is not skill. Knowledge plus 10,000 times is skill." Shinichi Suzuki.

Hi,

Are these being built using Micro Engineering code 55 rail?

_________________
Cheers!

Tim Warris
Fast Tracks
http://www.fast-tracks.net
service@fast-tracks.net

Hello Jan,

It sounds like your back to back spacing is off. If the guard rails are too wide apart the wheels will ride up on them. Use the NMRA gauge when installing them (be sure to use the pins on the guage top which are for frog rail spacing). Insure the gauge slides freely through the frog area ( it should smoothly slide through, but not have excessive play) another words no side to side gap). There's a little play in that area and if you install the guard rail wrong the wheels will ride up even if the track guage is correct.

Rob

The question about rail manufacturer is important because the base and top of Atlas rail is a few thousandths wider (and rather varying) than that of Micro Engineering. I have been experimenting recently with Altas rail (because I have so much of it) but I'll go back to Micro Engineering to play around with the guard rail problem and perhaps pick up a few thousandths.

When I cut and shape the pieces, I do so with the ties removed from the fixture, so I get a more firm placement of the parts and can see the outline of the template cuts clearly. Base dimension differences notwithstanding, I find no "play" in the rail stock of either type with the ties removed. I suppose each "bottoms" in the groove as it can. With the ties in place, there should be more "play" during assembly with the ME rail, at least a few thousandths. Will try this (again!). But it probably wouldn't hurt to have the guard rail width in the template a little wider to make these adjustments easier. Even with Atlas rail, the NMRA gauge says all the form factors are correct.

Thanks for the two replies. I'll play around some more. How on earth does an inexperienced person ever make it with Code 55 rail?! It has been an incredible and expensive task to make the conversion from Code 80 to Code 55. Hope I live long enough to see some trains run around a track.

_________________
"Knowledge is not skill. Knowledge plus 10,000 times is skill." Shinichi Suzuki.

Don't sweat it! you will get the hang of it. If you think the code 55 is tough try it in code 40. If you sneeze the rail bends

Rob

Ok, Guys! 5 more turnouts under a magnifying glass and here is what I find:

1. I tended to slightly over-bend the guard rails when forming them. Doing so prohibits positioning the guard rail as far toward the center of the turnout as possible.

2. I did not have enough precision in the bending of the closure rails. The tolerance in the center point of this bend is about +/- 0.003" - and that's asking a lot!

The wheels pass through this area without lifting but I can still hear them rub. My best result is to make the closure rail a separate piece from the switchpoint rail to allow best positioning. Not for everyone, perhaps.

I truly think the closure rail area needs a little "fudge room" in the template, but maybe we just don't fool around with mathematical precision - even if not practical.

_________________
"Knowledge is not skill. Knowledge plus 10,000 times is skill." Shinichi Suzuki.

Hello, fellow handlayer,

On the bend, the easiest way I've found to do this, is first mark the tick marks on the jig with a sharpie to high light it. I lay the whole point rail (after its filed to shape) right up to the wing rails of the frog in one piece. All the bends including those of the wing rails are done before soldering.
How this goes is. after you shaped the points, dressed the rail, lay it in the jig, use a very fine tip sharpie pen (black preferred) and mark the locations of the bend center, (the two tick marks on the jig) and the end of the wing rails at the frog.

I use a very sharp file, that they sell here in Anchorage as a fish hook file, its has almost a knife edge. its finer than most jewelers files I've seen, I groove the rail base on both sides of the mark (exactly at the mark) until the web base of the rail is grooved.
Then taking needle nose pliers I grab the rail right at the bend, Just a 1/2 hair into the groove and bend it to match the jig, You'll be off a hair on the angle most of the time, and can adjust the rail at that point with your fingers. Double check the gauge using the NMRA gauge, I usually go pretty tight in this area and reduce the side to side slop the NMRA standard gauge allows.

On the guard rails, I bend a 45 deg angle, and then file only the angle's rail base on the side where it interferes with the jig. Its going to be chemically colored rust and after painting and weathering one hardly notices the rail base is filed thin. This allow the guard rail to sit in the jig no matter how much you over bend it.
Check the guard rail spacing with the NMRA guage for back to back clearance, and the bend for appearances (also for a smooth transition) You could also use the file to knick the rail base, (I use to do this but now I bend them by eye, I've been doing them that long)

Lately I've held off soldering the frogs wing rails, I use another pc tie closer to the point of the frog and let the frog wing rails float until its time to solder them up. Of course at this point the turnout is out of the jig and in the fine tuning mode.
There are two reasons for this, one I'm shortening the frog wing rails because I think they are too long (as NMRA wants them) and its easier to get the spacing eactly right when I use the gauge.
The wings get soldered in and then the guard rails, this insures that there is very little play in the frog area. What I'm looking for is when the wheels truck on through that they track through the
frog area without hunting side to side. I dont want to see the front wheels of the truck yank over by the guard rails when entering the frog, it should just smoothly track through without any sudden minute changes. It works for me.
This tightened up specs require your wheel flanges and back to back spacing to be right on the money. You will see operation bloopers if the gauge starts getting out of specs on your wheel sets.

Rob

I have been working with code 55 ME rail on #5 turnouts and had similar problems. I have found that it works well to underbend (VERY slightly) both the wing and guard rails. After soldering in place, I use a sharp tool to push the rail solidly against the edge of the groove and briefly reheat the joint. That way you are not trying to hold things tightly while handling the solder (a third hand would sometimes be handy). Using this method I can get the wing and guard rails very tight against the fixture which will bring them nicely into gage. Also, as mentioned in the instructions, make sure that the frog is pulled all the way back or the wing-frog flangeway will be too narrow.

Dean