I have several pieces of Atlas code 83 flextrack that has the non slidy rail come loose from the ties. Is there any way to put the rail back without having future problems with it?
This is not a problem as long as you don’t have 3 or 4 pieces with the same issue in a row and as long as you watch your end gaps. When it is in place, where is it going to go?
P.S. I am assuming you have not broken off the little fake spikes that actually hold the rail.
If you broke the spikes off, I wouldn’t use it. If the rail just slid out, you can slide it back in. A few dabs of super glue will help hold it in place.(after the track is laid) Make sure the rails are “in gauge” (or properly spaced)
The "spikes are not broken off but the rail will not go back in place even with gentle tapping (OK hard hammering). This rail is not meant to slide so I don’t think that will work either.
What I have done, with good success, is to shave off the retaining tip, the 90 deg part of the fake spike head, so that the foot of the rail will still sit fully on the ties when weighted a bit. If you can do that, then situate the ties and sliding rail properly, cut to fit and with the one rail matching ends with the adjoining rail end. Then, starte fastening the loose rail into place, with some of the ties gobbed with tiny drops of contact cement or Gorilla GLue, or epoxy and place a weight over it. You won’t have to worry about gauge because you will be very close if you manage to keep the rail inside the groove betwen the spike heads.
Alternatively, cut the spike heads, but leave one out of every three or four. Then, feed the rail back into place and retention by using a steel pick or something to bend the 90 deg retaining bit out of the way.
This will require determination and patience, and hopefully you won’t break any of the retaining nibs as you bend them a bit.
Make sure the bottom of the rail is clean and smooth. Might have glue or crap on it causing it to hang up. File the end of the rail kind of smooth so it doesn’t catch on the spikes while your sliding it in.
A new piece is $4. Why take the risk and drive yourself crazy? Buy a new one.
With the spikes broken off and you cannot get the rail to go back under the spikes it’s best to discard the bad pieces and use new or good ones in its place.
Bill
I have deliberately shifted ties on Atlas flex (I even have a jig to assist in the process) and have found that there is frequently a burr on the bottom of the rail base at the cut end. Filing a slight chamfer there, and on the top and edges of the rail base, will make the ties - even the ones that aren’t supposed to slide - much more cooperative.
While you’re doing that, take the sharp corner off the top inside of the railhead where it will abut another railhead. That little bevel will do more to prevent derailments than anything else I’ve ever tried.
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Get a new piece and keep the old one to cut smaller pieces from.