code size and flex track

[jbrock27]

Martha, using 1 power pack to run trains and another to run accessories, is always a good idea.

[Martha]

I think I will be in business next week, yippee! flex track, rail joiners and 2 pin male/female connectors should be here Tuesday. All of these are crucial to my Christmas Village layout. I am not going to sleep well until they arrive. I don't sleep well now plotting and planning it all. I actually wake up in the middle of the night wiring something or plastering a stand alone something or other. Last night was adding "waterfalls" and pond "water" to the layout. That Water Effects and Realistic Water is pretty cool. I also added a 'dirt road" winding up the hill that will house a house or two over the train tunnel. I bought a string of LED soft white Christmas lights to use instead of the night light bulbs that go inside those ceramic house to light them up. The houses I have are small 3 to 4 inches long. they don't need much to give them a glow. Now I need to research if I can shorten the string. I pray the flex track will do what I hope it will do. If not you might see me offering some trains, tracks and trestles and X crossings and box cars etc etc really cheap! I am on such a budget to do this project, the last thing I need is stuff that doesn't work for what I want. I am keeping positive the flex track will do the trick. Is it here yet!? Well guess I better go and untangle all those mini lights and hedges and bushes and trees, some how they all became one over the course of them being stored! Going to make a couple of wreaths to hand on the tunnel. Might add a light or two to them. Thanks for the tip about looking how to share photos. After all the hours and hours I put into something that is set up for a few months, I'd like to share it. I think people on this site understand the time, effort, imagination, expense, lack of sleep, detail, detail detail that goes into something like what you all do and what I am doing with a simple Christmas Village.

[JNXT 7707]

Hey martha, how about another cup of coffee? 

[jward]

have you ever considered leaving it up all year round? it is a shame to redo it every year, when if it was permanent you could add to what you've already done.

[Doneldon]

Martha-

Craft stores like Michael's and Hobby Lobby have inexpensive acrylic paints which are great for Christmas villages. Among them are white and clear paints with very fine glitter. The white adds a believable sparkle to snow and the clear makes great ice, including icicles if you build it up layer by layer. You can also use the clear for waterfalls. (Another trick with waterfalls is to put lights behind them. Keep the lights small so they don't overwhelm the whole thing.)

Stay positive about the flex track. The size platform you described should be large enough for the flex track and, more important, the trains you will run. Stick with small locomotives and rolling stock for both operational ease and a cute, funky look with your village. The village items I've seen tend to be smaller structures so large train cars will ruin the effect.

If you have the option, use LEDs as much as possible. They are safer than any other kind of lights, don't generate potentially damaging heat and are a snap to wire, as long as you pay attention to polarity.

I'm guessing that you are under construction by now. I hope things are going smoothly for you.

                                                                                                                                                  -- D

[Jhanecker2]

To martha : they now make night light bulbs  as LED s . I recently boought some at Menards to relamp strangely enough for nightlights . John2.

[Martha]

Well I got the flex track and thought it would be easy to install but I am having some problems and any and all advice is welcomed. going to ask questions.
1. how do I get the track to stay in place for me to mark it and see if it will work properly? I have been trying to use long headed straight pins but the locomotive won't go over them obviously. Do I just trust in faith I will get the track laid down right the first time and the the locomotive and cars will go around like I want?

2. once I get it in place and trace out its layout, how do I attach the track to the foam board? (I am not using track bed, I think that is what it's called, just laying it directly on the foam board). I don't plan on removing it from this foam board.  Nail it or glue it?

3. How to I get each rail to move? I know the outside rail will curve more than the inside rail, is there a tool to use? I can't seem to get the rail, rail joiners and the other rail to line up. is there a trick?

4. Solder the rails together or not? Solder some of them and leave others unsolder in case I need to adjust or move them?

5. Is flux something I have to have to solder? If so do I need it to solder my wiring I am working on? or just use it for the rails (if I decided to solder them in place.).

I was so excited to get the flex track delivered yesterday and then so disappointed I was having such a hard time figuring it out. Gave up on it and went to soldering my light connections, got the 2 pin connectors in, just what I was looking for. I know I am not the first person to realize soldering takes three or more hands, my cat isn't obliging and so now I think I need one of those contraptions that looks like something Dr Loveless in a James West series invented.

I appreciate all the input everyone has given me. I may not comment on it all but I am taking note of all of it. Someone asked why don't I leave it up all year long. Well I live in a one bedroom apartment that is about 600 square feet total. The top of my entertainment center is where I place this. I have a front door to one side and the door leading to the bedroom/bathroom. As it is now when this is in place, one has to turn sideways to get past this monster!Three months of doing this is enough plus I put out a Fall Village and an Easter Village on top the center, neither of them are the size of this. Trust me if I could leave Christmas up all year long without fear of being committed to a hospital, I would!

I experimented using my additional ac/dc train power box to operate the lights, not sure what watt or volt they were but I tried it on these two tiny bulbs inside a train tower, originally they were lighted with a adapter that was plugged into 110 power. I eliminated the adapter and well long story short, the bulbs got real bright, started to smoke and then tiny flames shot out of them before they burned out. So, since I don't know enough about current, voltage, wattage, adapters, transformers and resistors. I will just stick with what I did last year but with the new 2 pin connectors will make it a much nicer wire layout.  Some things I have to admit defeat and that is one of them.

Thanks for any and all advice!

[Catt]

Martha,if you have not dicovered it by now one rail of your flex track will not move.The other rail will slide ,always lay the flex with the sliding rail as the inside rail then after you have formed your curve the inside rail will stick out from the end cut this piece off even with the other rail .If your curves are big enough to need more than one piece of track try to stagger the joints to help relieve and kinks at the joints.

[Martha]

Watched a very good step by step video of a novice model railroader and he explained how to tell the rail that should go inside. Also discussed joining them and laying them out. Unfortunately for me I have no one to help me hold the tracks while I try to lay it out. I've tried pretty much everything and it is still laying on the platform incomplete. Now I think I have bitten off more than I can chew and will probably just give up and put it all for sale on craigs list. I am also disgusted with some yea who on ebay who i purchased rail joiners from . cheap price, brand new in the package and cheap shipping only problem is they never bothered to ship them until I put in a formal complaint today (six days after purchase) with ebay and wow just like that they are supposed to be on their way. What really ******* me off is the comment from the seller saying they are coming from Michigan to Nevada 2000 miles apart and will take some time getting here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What??? they are being sent first class mail not on a Conestoga Covered Wagon. So I am down in the dumps and probably shouldn't take it out on this forum. I just wanted to thank everyone who has responded to my questions.

[Doneldon]

Hey, Martha! We all get bummed from time to time. Just ride through it and imagine how neat your Christmas village will look with a train chugging through it. And remember that some eBayers have no business running a business because they don't understand the fundamental need to take care of their customers. Don't let such a jerk to discourage you or influence your behavior.

As for bending the flex track, you can use push pins to temporarily hold the track in position. Once you have your basic configuration figured out and track cut to size, glue it to your layout with clear caulk or plastic-safe construction adhesive. Run a small bead of caulk down the centerline of your track, spread it thin and put your track in place. Because flex track has a tendency to straighten itself out a bit, use the push pins to control the track until the caulk sets.
                                                                                                                                                                             -- D

[jbrock27]

Martha, I would likely be frustrated like you, over the shipping time from that seller.  But maybe this can be turned around into a positive.  Perhaps it turns out the delay is better bc of your frustration level.  It is never a good thing to continue to try to work on something when frustrated with it.  Bad things can  happen more times than not.  With this delay, you can step away for a while, and this will give you a break as well as time to think, maybe come up and or research some methods that will help you.  Maybe if you think that it does not matter that the joiners come in 6 days or 12 days time, as you still will have plenty of time to get this ready for Christmas, you will feel better about it.  I would look at it that way, especially if I thought I got a great price for them-I would trade longer shipping time for better price, any day of the week.
Doc's suggestion of keeping the track down is a good one.  You are using foam board under the track, correct?  It is my understanding you can also secure the track down with white glue (a good friend of mine uses white glue for just about everything).  I am referring to Elmer's or any generic brand that is like Elmer's.
Now, if I understand correctly, you would like to try to run the train on the track first, before securing the track down, correct?  To make sure it operates correctly, which makes sense to me.   I know, putting pins in the middle of your track will not assist you in that.  Maybe what you can do is use the pins to set the track they way you would like, mark the outside and inside of the track with a marker (like a giant outline) then take painters tape and tape the track down to the foam board by taping the outside, where the ties are (not tape over the rails) to the foam board, then once secure, take the pins out  so you can run the train w/o interference several times to make sure everything runs like it is supposed to.  If no adjustments are needed, you can take the track up, put whatever adhesive you chose down between the lines you marked and lay the track back down, holding it in  place with the pins until the glue dries.

[jward]

i have a couple of questions for you.

1. do you not have a hobby shop nearby? even hobbytown usa sells rail joinars. unless you live in an area without a hobby shop, there is no reason to buy rail joiners online. you won't save enough to cover the shipping.

2. have you tried doing something else when you get frustrated, then coming back to what you were doing asfter you've calmed down? sometimes, stepping away then coming back clears your mind so that you can see things you didn't before.

3. not a question but a comment. don't feel like you have to know everything. none of us do. I've spent a lifetime in the hobby and still learn new things all the time.

[jbrock27]

One reason to buy on line would be not having a hobby shop close enough buy to justify the cost in gas to drive there.  When compared to the cost of gas used to shipping fees in these instances, paying the shipping cost is the better deal.  This is what I am faced with all the time.  While there is a LHS in town, the guy stocks very little HO stuff  bc it is no longer popular like radio controlled cars, boats and planes are now.  I understand he has to use the space he has for what gives him the most bang for his buck.

[Jhanecker2]

To MARTHA : regarding flux . you do need it to solder .  It cleans the joint and removes contaminants to allow proper bonding . Rosin core solder is the type solder you will need. it has the correct type of flux . Soldering is something that you do have to practice to get good results . Every hobby has aspects that provide frustration aglore ,triumphing  over them is what gives you that feeling of satisfaction . So take a breather , rest , and start anew .  J2.

[Doneldon]

Martha-

A good soldering technique for newbies (it's a useful technique for just about everyone in some circumstances) is to tin both pieces separately and then solder them together.

First clean both contact points. Then either put a tiny bit of flux on each piece (NEVER use acid core solder or acid flux) and heat the pieces (NOT the solder) separately, touching the solder to the heated material, not the soldering gun or iron. This lets a small amount of solder make a good bond with the pieces to be attached to one another. Last, put the tinned surfaces together and apply heat to the larger of the two pieces, as close to the contact point as possible. Hold the heat source on that point until enough heat transfers to melt both tinned surfaces so you get a good bond. You can add a little solder if needed to strengthen the connection but add it by touching the solder to the heated joint, not the heat source. Don't let the soldered pieces move even a little bit until the joint cools and the solder hardens to a shiny surface. A frosty surface means a bad connection and the need to redo the job; the main cause of that is movement between the two surfaces before the solder hardens. You can usually succeed without additional preparation. Just hold the two pieces still and apply heat. 

You'll have a few so-called cold joints at first but keep at it and you'll quickly have the hang of it.
                                                                                                                                                       -- D