Hello everybody,
like any good modelrailroader else I'm planning empires im my head :-) Now I'm trying to nail down my dreams and was wondering: I'm trying to make #8 turnouts the minimum requirement on my pike and I wonder: are there any #8 3way turnouts on the market? and while being at it: #8 single slips? The only I've found so far is the Walthers #8 double slip. ( I found handlaidtracks.com, but 200$!
)I'd even use a kit, though handlaying tracks is not yet a pastime of mine.
Side question: how often have single slip crossings/ turnouts been in use on the US prototype anyway? I can't recall to have ever seen a picture.
Thanks for enlightning me!
BL2
Well #8 minimum is a great goal - just what minium RADIUS are you planning for this pike? The smallest radius in a turnout is the radius of the closure rail (RCR) and a #6 has an RCR of 43". Unless you are using a much larger curve radius, it's fairly pointless except for cosmetic reasons to use a #8 as anything less than the RCR of the turnouts is the actual limit as far as what sort of equipment can get through reliably. It might be more reasonable to plan #6's for most places with a couple of #8's out front for a nice mainline crossover or something up front where everyone can see it.
There are tricks to the Fast Tracks jigs, lke using the double crossover to build not only double and single crossovers but individual turnouts as well as crossings. So one jig does a lot. 3-2ays, you're on your own. I was going to use Fat Tracks jigs on my current layout, but after trying a few turnouts, it's just not for me so I went back to my old reliable Atlas.
--Randy
I suggest you take a look at Peco turnouts. They are well made and have a large radius turnout which is probably close to a #8. They also have double slips, 3-ways, and I believe crossovers as well. I've used their mediums (approx #6's) exclusively on my layout and are very satified with their performance. They are a bit on the pricey side, but it pays off in the long run. There's nothing like a smooth running layout....
A belated welcome to The-Gauge....
Welcome to Big Blue BL2.
About how many turnouts are you planning to use on your layout? I was in the same predicament a few years ago. I designed a switching layout with about 16 turnouts. When I added up the cost of these turnouts, (I was planning to use Medium Cd 83 Peco) my jaw just about hit the floor. I came across the Fast Tracks site by accident and figured the cost of building 16 turnouts as opposed to buying factory made ones would be far cheaper after making the initial investment in one of their # 5 T.O. kits. An added bonus is that once you purchase the jig, you can make as many turnouts as you want with it. The more turnouts you build the more the individual cost of each turnout made comes down. It is a learning curve though. The first couple of turnouts you build won't probably be your best. For my part I was able to crank out a good reliable turnout on the third try. It just takes time and some patience. After building about 30 plus of them I can now crank out a good turnout in less then an hour. Once painted and weathered they look great to boot, better then most commercial turnouts I've come across. The skills I learned also gave me the courage to try hand laying a # 6 Double X-Over and a Double Slip on nothing more then paper templates from the FT website. They both came out quite well and I'm still using the Double X-Over on the latest incarnation of my Layout.
That said, if I were to purchase a turnout kit all over again, I'd pick up a Double X-Over Jig. Just as Randy mentioned it is a more versatile jig and can be used to make more then just one track configuration.
Just my two cents.
S.
Once you learn how to make a turnout using Fast Tracks method, you can easily figure out how to make most anything you'll ever need. I was doing fine with the six FT #8 turnouts (which I love and will never do without as long as I have the room), and with one of their #6 double-slips, but when it came time to close my folded loop in two places, the usual and cumulative errors reared up their ugly heads and I was faced with two turnout loop-closing problems...neither one was available commercially. Well, I says, I do know how to make turnouts, and these I need are just turnouts, so....
The result was a curved #9-ish and a curved two-way, or wye, turnout. The curved wye won't be retrieved when I move on...I can do better now, but the curved #9-ish is salvageable and works well at speed on my main.
I don't know what a great how-to clinic would cost with the materials thrown in, but when you think about all Tim Warris makes available to you on his site, plus the cost of a jig for the rails and another for the points and the frog points (one jig provides channels for both rail types), the cost is close to what a giant in the hobby would charge to run such a clinic for 20 people for an entire day.
If you just can't wrap yourself around hand-laying, I would strongly urge you to use the Peco Streamline Code 83 #6 turnouts. They are wonderful...if pricey.
Crandell
Hi everybody,
thanks for your input. It's not going to be a complete pike, but more of a transportable station 20ft long that'll go into a free-mo modular setup. #10's where slated for the main siding, and #8's for everything else. This is about the smallest turnout you'll meet on the prototype, aside from some specialities in industrial areas. Flawless operations is a goal not to be neglected (6feet cuts of cars may be pushed over these turnouts) but looks count for me, too. This station will have about 16 turnouts, minimum radius is around 60"
On the #8's standard turnouts I'm not decided between Walthers or Peco. Any suggestions?
BL2
Another consideration for the Fast Tracks jigs is that a few guys get the jigs, build their own turnouts, and get good enough at it that they build more and sell them on E-bay or other auction sites. I'm going to use Joe Fugate's method of making turnouts for my layout with Central Valley tie strips and rail with a few pc board ties in strategic locations for strength. The advantage of either one is that once you get past the learning curve, you can make inexpensive turnouts that will out perform most commercial turnouts that you could buy and the price comes down tremendously once you have built enough turnouts to off set the initial investment.