This distortion ain't right.

[on30gn15]

Had taken track apart to paint since black and shiny silver looked a bit toy-ish.
During that time had forgotten about something which bugged me.

Now, putting track back together, here it is.
This distortion ain't right.



That is going to overstress those ties and eventually damage the track.
Thought, "oh, that might be the wrong connectors?"
Nope, they are the correct connectors.
See where it says STRAIGHT TO ST AND STR TO CURVE.


Any thoughts on how to remedy this before it breaks the ties?
It's on pretty much every straight piece from that set.

[Joe Satnik]

Dear on30gn15,

Wow.  I haven't ever seen that before.  You are right, it shouldn't do that.  I'll start by assuming it wasn't that bad to begin with.   

So, what caused it?

Bad reaction to paint?  Outdoor exposure to UV  rays?  Contraction from cold?  (Plastic and metal contracting at different rates)?

So, was it that bad to begin with?

Sincerely,

Joe Satnik

[altterrain]

Are you sure that's a Bachmann track clip? I have a bunch of them in 3 different sizes and none have and writing on them.

-Brian

[Joe Satnik]

I've had Big Hauler sets from 1993, 2001, and 2006. 

I've never seen track clips without writing on the side. 

I can't see the writing without reading glasses or a magnifying glass, but it is there.

1989-1992 I'm not sure of. 

Joe Satnik 

[on30gn15]

So, was it that bad to begin with?

Yes, it was like that fresh out of the box.

I forget which set it was, have a couple sets and track is all mixed together now.

[on30gn15]

Are you sure that's a Bachmann track clip? I have a bunch of them in 3 different sizes and none have and writing on them.

If it's not a Bachmann track clip then somebody is hacking the boxes somewhere between here and China 'cause it's what came out of the box

[the Bach-man]

Dear AT,
Track clips come n two lengths; replace this clip with the longer one.
Have  fun!
the Bach-man

[on30gn15]

Track clips come n two lengths; replace this clip with the longer one.

Uhh, dude, Wrong Answer, you did not pay attention and thereby have succeeded in ticking me off.

That is going to overstress those ties and eventually damage the track.
Thought, "oh, that might be the wrong connectors?"
Nope, they are the correct connectors.
See where it says STRAIGHT TO ST AND STR TO CURVE.

The "For St to St and St To Crvd Trk" IS the longer one.
"For Crvd to Crvd Trk" is shorter.
That's why I put this photo up in order to show that I AM using the longer one.


Perhaps this will assist in clarifying the apparent confusion?

[on30gn15]

Now here's something, tie strips have a numeral molded into underside of tie at one end - mine have 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, probably a mold number?

It appears the tie strips with either a 6 or a 3 are the ones which distort.
Turns out had painted four of the "6" straights but there was still one "6" unpainted so hooked it up with a painted one.

Here's the unpainted 6 hooked to a painted 6 and yep, it distorts.


"3" strips appear to distort some too. "5" doesn't seem to.

"1" and "2" tie strips, no distortion at all.


I'm going to apply some theoretical deduction and hazard a guess that it's something about how mold "6" is cut.

[Loco Bill]

You probably checked all this, but....  look at all that rust on that one piece of track, you sure it is new out of the box?   

I did notice that the distortion on the new track isn't too bad, and is definitely worse on the painted track.  maybe the paint locks the ties to the rail and there is no give? 
A simple quick fix might be to cut one of the plastic webs two ties to the rear of the ones the the clips atttach to. 

I just talked to my buddy Pete about it, he has an extensive layout with 20 plus switches and two crossovers (all Bachmann) and he has never had a distortion problem, his opinion was that it is probably a mechanical problem or the track may have been stored near high heat.  High heat will definitely shrink plastic a little, not as bad as shrink wrap of course.  He also says to double check the rail joiners to see if they are catching on the tie strips, He has had that problem in the past.   A lot of his track is used, bought cheaply on Ebay at that!  He also reported that sometimes the joiners do not connect firmly.

Maybe Joe Satnik can come up with something else?

[Joe Satnik]

Dear C,

You show only straight to straight.  Any problems with curve to curve? 

[on30gn15]

You probably checked all this, but....  look at all that rust on that one piece of track, you sure it is new out of the box?

First line I wrote in this thread:

Had taken track apart to paint since black and shiny silver looked a bit toy-ish.

maybe the paint locks the ties to the rail and there is no give? 

Ahhh, there's an idea - that's something I hadn't thought of!