Aluminum Tracks

[AVM]

With the price of SS and Brass, what do you think of powered aluminum tracks?   Is there a brand that is better then others?

[Lawrie]

aluminum tracks are fine to power, they have much lower electrical resistance than either SS or brass, however for outdoors they must be kept very clean or arcing and pitting becomes an issue, I can't comment on brands as I do not know what alloying may be used

[Jim Banner]

I, and many of the fellows I model with, use aluminum rail both outdoors and indoors.  Some like code 250 rail, others prefer the heavier code 332.  Mostly we use Micro Engineering rail, but have other brands mixed in.  They all work well.  Mostly, we hand spike the rails to cedar ties.  But I understand slip on plastic ties are also available.  Our only exception to aluminum rail is for frogs and point rails in turnouts, all the rails in crossings, and rails in direct contact with concrete, such as where people cross (and walk on) the track.  The code 250 fellows use nickel silver in these places while the code 332 guys use brass.

As far as cleaning goes, yes, aluminum does require a bit more attention than stainless steel.  But if treated right, it requires no more cleaning than brass.  "Treating it right" for us means cleaning all the crud off the surface with a drywall pole sander fitted with fine sanding mesh, then wiping off the sanding dust with the same sander with an old sock slipped over it.  Finally, it means preserving the clean by lightly oiling the rails with a light weight, conductive oil.
Good choices are Bachmann E-Z Lube Conductive Lubricant, Hobb-E-Lube, or Labelle #108.
Bad choices are 3-in-1, automotive motor oil, WD-40 and many others.
Acceptable with metal wheels are Singer Sewing Machine oil or Wahl Hair Clipper oil.  There may be others, but these are the ones I can personally vouch for.

The trick is to avoid using too much oil.  One drop on each rail every 100 feet around the track is all it takes.  Then let the wheels of the train spread the oil around for you.  Going up hills, you may want to run the train backwards first time out so that the wheels on the cars spread the oil without causing the locomotive wheels to slip.  Once spread by running the train once or twice around the layout, the layer of oil is so thin that it does not interfere with traction.  But the layer is still thick enough to suppress arcing between the locomotive pickup wheels and the rail.  It is this arcing which coats the rail heads non-conductive crud and which pits the locomotive wheels, both of which cause poor pickup.  You can tell very easily when it is time to add a little more oil - the locomotive headlight starts to flicker.  Depending on a host of factors, that may be as soon as two hours of running or as long as five or six hours.  And if you end the session by reoiling the rails just before you put the trains away, your track will be ready to run days or even weeks later.

Does oil really work?  After using track power and DCC in the garden for over ten years, let me say that it certainly does.

[foureyes]

I have experience with code 250 aluminum track from Llagas Creek and Sunset Valley.  Both work, although I've seen samples of SV track where the rail broke off from the ties.  Llagas Creek is very nice.  I've used their plastic ties for about half a dozen years with no problem, and I've hand laid a 20+ foot siding with my own hand cut ties.

Keeping the track clean is not near the problem aluminum's detractors say it is.  I did have problem with brass rail joiners corroding, but now put a piece of aluminum foil between the rail and the joiner and now no problem.

[Cascade Northern]

I run on Aluminum Llagas Creek track, and it is great track.  We run only Battery RCS so I would not know about electrical, but I would say it would be fine.

[Jon D. Miller]

Aluminum rail has worked well for several of our club members.  One uses only track power and he doesn't seem to have any serious problems with his aluminum rail.  It's been in service for at least eight years.





Just don't let the squirrels get to it.  These are pictures of aluminum rail that the squirrels have used to sharpen their teeth.  Or they like it better than corn.  

JD

[Jim Banner]

JD, I find a bit of light oil helps my aluminum tracks.  But I think it would take a good dose of habanero pepper oil to help the rails in your photos!!

[yrfavdob]

With the price of SS and Brass, what do you think of powered aluminum tracks?   Is there a brand that is better then others?

I used Llagas Creek code 215 aluminum rail building my track 10 years ago because it is the cheapest metal. Aluminum oxidizes easily and I'm within ten miles of the Pacific...nothing battery power couldn't overcome. I did have track power for a short time but it was too much trouble for me.

Dennis O

[Jim Banner]

Dennis, did you oil your aluminum rails when you were using track power?  It forms a barrier to keep moisture and ozone away from the surface of the rails.

[Chuck Hanson]

Squirrels chewing on aluminum track..that's funny 

I've been using SV aluminum code 250 track indoors for about 3 years now and I love it! Last order I placed came in at about $3.50 a foot including using the new Accucraft mainline tie strips.