Turnouts with 22" radius

[jward]

wonder why atlas didn't make them in code 100?

[Kris Everett]

they might have i just don't know where to find them

[Joe Satnik]

Kris,

Fire up Anyrail and try a Bachmann #5 right, a half 22"R, and the rest full 22"R.

If you made a complete early cutoff, (#5 right, seven 22"R curves, #5 left) the #5 turnouts would force you wider than a 4 foot sheet.

(True 22"R curved turnouts would still fit within 4 feet.)

Hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Joe Satnik

[Doneldon]

Kris-

Flex track will help you fudge this all together.

                                  -- D

[Kris Everett]

ok now that i got my brain working again.
i have got a question.

will atlas's code 100 rail joiner and bachmann's track be compatible or will i have to get some universal rail joiners?
also can you cut the flextrack?

please let me know.

Kris

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVE

[jward]

to answer your questions....

any code 100 rail joiner should work.

and flex track is designed to be cut to length. invest in an atlas snap saw, or better yet, a pair of xuron rail nippers. after you cut any rail, be sure to lightly file the ends on all sides. a couple quick passes with a jewelers file should be enough to smooth out any burrs resulting from the cutting. you'll also have to trim the molded spikee heads away on the ends of your cut track, just enough to slip a rail joiner all the way on. then you can drop the section in place and line up your rail joints, then slide the rail joiners out to connect to the rest of the track.

remember, you need to keep the curve smooth, avoid any kinks in the track where you join them together. the outside rail on the curve is critical, on the inside rail you don't have to be as careful as long as the rails are in guage it shouldn't bother you.

if you are intending to do ling runs of flex track, here's a trick i used to use to help keep the joints in line ( i build my own track now so i haven't done this in a few years.)

you will notice that one rail will slide completely out of the flex track. on the first section to be laid, cut this rail in half and set one piece aside, the other piece goes back into the tie strip. fasten your track down and mark where the end of the sliding rail is, then cut the spike heads off a couple of ties where the rail joiner will be. slide the rail joiner on theis rail, then connect the second piece of flex track to the first. slide the sliding rail on the second section into the tie strip of the first and butt it up against the rail already there. finish fastening down the second section, mark the rail ends and cut away the spike heads like on the original section, repeat this process for each section, then on the last section, slide the cut rail from the original section into the tie strip to compltet the track.

by staggering the rail joints, you use the rigidity of the solid rail to help keep kinks out of the joint on the opposite rail.

[Kris Everett]

ok ill have to read that a few more time right now its time for bed so ill read it in the morning.

thank you.

KRIS

[Doneldon]

Kris-

Some folks solder the next section of rail to be laid to the previously laid rail before actually bending the curve so you don't get any kinks or trip spots where the rails join. Using rail joiners as jward described helps with this potential problem, too, but soldering is more of a sure thing. Also, don't try to have the joints in both rails adjacent to one another. In fact, don't even do that if the joints happen to line up that way by themselves. Stagger the joints a bit for a more reliable job. This is good to do on straight track and absolutely necessary on curves. Joints on curves will generally not line up, however, so you are unlikely to have that situation on curved track. It can happen on tangent (straight) track though, so stagger those joints at least a few ties.

                                                                                                                                         -- D

[jward]

i always soldered my joints after laying the track. you have to be careful not to melt the ties though. if you've laid your track on a material that holds spikes well, you can often push the rail joint into alignment, then use spikes alongside the joiner to hold the alignment. that's a method i use all the time on my handlaid track.....

[Joe Satnik]

Dear All,

Thanks to jbsmith for the heads up on the 22"R turnouts.

I wonder why Atlas didn't start making these in code 100 back in the fifties?  It seems like a perfect follow-up to the 18"R Snap-Switch. 

An oval with early cutoff would fit perfectly on a 4' x 8' sheet (the most popular layout size), and you could have an 18"R oval (with early cutoff if you wanted) on the inside.

If not then or since then, why now in code 83?

Anyone know any present or former Atlas CEOs?

Thanks.

Sincerely,

Joe Satnik




   

[jward]

a few years back atlas also came out with 24" radius curves. i've always wondered why they didn't make them say 24 1/4" radius so they could be used with the 22" radius curves to make double track with adequate clearance. in n scale they have 9 3/4 and 11 inch curves, and they make nice double track curves. they also have a #4 switch which is a drop in replacement for either a 5" straight or a 19" radius curve. it makes track planning a breeze........

in HO a 22" radius switch with a curved section of 15 degrees would work well with either 22" radius (it's a pair of 1/3 22" curves) or 18" radius (it's a half section of 18" radius.).......

i truly wish bachmann did as good a job of documenting their track pieces as atlas does. when you have switches where the straight section can easily be matched using standard track sections, and the degrees of curvature in the switches are a known quantity, with appropriate curved sections and crossings designed to work with them it's alot simpler to figure out a layout  plan on paper.

[trainman1248]

That really cool i had no idea that they made so many cool thing i have so many possibilities no that i have never dreamed of before.

[jward]

i lay my own track. outside of curved switches, there are very few track configurations that i make now that can't be duplicated using either atlas or bachmann track. i do things the way i do more out of cost considerations than anything else. if i had the money, i'd probably go back to regular track.

and yes, there are a world of possibilities out there. if you can dream it, and are resourceful enough to make it fit your space, nothing is off limits.