OK,
My question has to do with using the fast track curved and straight jigs in various radii. Has anyone hear used them? They seem pretty slick, but I’m wondering if they allow natural easements or does your section of track that you build act more like long pieces of sectional track when you connect them to turnouts, etc.
Chris
Hi,
I use Fastrack jigs straight and curved one for n°6 and n°8 turnouts in Nscale.
Even I use flextrack, the following method could help you to have a very flowing track.
I have modified the diverging angle of the frog in some locations to have a turnout to fit my track plan.
To have very flowing track, I use the same method of this wonderful modeler which is very easy to use (see links.).
Trace your track line, put a point when an turnout start and trace the line along the spline pine wood; you have natural easements in curves and a very natural flowing track; you can use your jigs to fit the ties or lay yourself your ties on the tabletop. Glue a paper tape on the ties in the jig and align them on the line you have traced on the tabletop; glue them whith white glue; lay the track as usual.
If a turnout don’t fit whith his frog, you can open or close slightly the frog, when building it, to follow the flowing track…
See the method at www.aorailroad.com go in the “construction” chapter, choice “gluing RR ties”.
Good luck.
Marc
OK Marc, I’ll check out the site, but I’m pretty up to speed on the turnout jigs they offer because they have been documentedt well. What they didn’t document well is how those rigid curved jigs that come in different radii, can create natural easements into and out of the turnout, whatever. Because you are soldering PCB ties every couple of inches which makes the curve rigid - like sectional track. I’m not sure if I’m explaining myself correctly or maybe this isn’t an issue after all. I’m somewhat familiar with traditional glue and spike techniques of laying in curves.
Chris
If you build something with the FastTracks jigs (or any similar jig where you solder the components), it’s fixed, just like sectional track.
It’s also possible to handlay in place to fit a flowing curve or easement, but you would not be using the full jig, maybe just the point filing tools or similar.
In my experience, most folks who use FastTracks jigs for turnouts do not use the curved or straight track fixtures, they use flextrack or handlay-to-fit between turnouts. Come to think of it, I don’t know of anyone who has used the curved or straight fixtures, but they are probably out there.
An alternative to FastTracks is Central Valley, which offers slightly curvable turnout blocks.
Byron
Hi Byron,
Yes I think you have right; to connect the turnout whith the track you need to let the ending part of the build in track jig “free” to make the easements to the turnout.
Connect the end of the track whith rail joiners and check the rail whith an NMRA gauge and now solder one or two PC ties or spike down the track to the ties.
We do the same thing whith flextrack somewhere, following the parallel line of track but gently flow the end of the flextrack to connect the diverging track of the turnout.
Marc
Marc, I did not pay close enough attention to the Original Poster’s thread title. He is talking about the FastTracks jigs for straight and curved track, not the turnout jigs. As I mentioned, I don’t know of anyone who has used them, and the results would be like fixed-dimension sectional track.
What you said is still true, these don’t work for providing easements or a smooth flow between components.
Byron
I just installed a ‘Fast Tracks’ curved turnout on my layout; it has 36" and 32" radii. It did not work as well as I had hoped because the lead in section of the turnout doesn’t have a smooth curve to it and I can’t bend or change the rails as they are fixed to the ties and PC board ties. Otherwise, it is the smoothest turnout on the layout, even my Big Boy runs through without a hitch but the short box cars show a slight ‘wiggle’ as it goes through the transition from turnout to flex track; something I will have to live with. I paid about $36 for the turnout on Ebay hoping it would be better than the Shinohara one I have elsewhere on the layout.
Bob
On one of the layouts on tour during the January OpSIG/LDSIG/PCR-NMRA meet in the South Bay, I saw a straight-track FastTracks jig on the layout. I don’t recall the owner’s or his layout’s name, but the layout was (uniquely) located in an office building. It seemed that the track-laying process was nearing completion. Unfortunately, I didn’t ask the owner to what extent he used that jig or if he saw any particular advantage with it.
Mark
I have both the straight and curved jigs for the track. When using the curved track jig, I work out the location for my cork roadbed as you would if you are using flex track. For a 30 inch radius I have a transition curve of 18 inches.
I start 9 inches down the straight track (A) and then 9 inches into the curve (B). I mark this location on both ends of the curve (C and D) so that the marks will show after the cork is down. I also mark the centre of the curve (E). So 9 inches before the curve is A then 18inches later is B, then the centre E followed by 9 inches from the other end of the curve C and 9 inches on the straight coming out of the curve is D. Using 4 long pieces of pre-curved rail use the jig and make a fixed length that matches the length between the B and C. Stagger the rail ends as shown in the instruction video. Solder the inside and outside rails to the pc ties for the entire length from points B to C. This is the fixed 30 inch radius section.
Remove the track from the jig and shift it to the right. Now solder pc ties to only the inside rail from B up to point A. Do not solder to the outside rail yet.
Remove the track from the jig and shift it to the left and solder ties to the inside rail from point C to point D.
Remove the track from the jig and place on the layout with the track centred in the curve. You can now check to ensure everything lines up with your 2 tangent tracks leading into ond out of the curve.
Assuming you are using pc ties the same thickness as the wood ties, glue down your wood ties leaving every 5th tie out. Then glue the track section down, lining up the inside rail so that it merges cleanly with your straight track. Once the glue dries, use rail spaces to set the outside rail in gauge and solder in place.
This will give you a curved section in the middle at your desired radius and easements on each end.
I would buy a Fasttracks Jig/PointForm tool and the stuff associated with it. I would then use that to learn on. Eventually you wont need said Jig, but the pointform tool is a gem! Turnouts are not rocket science.
In fact, when you learn the craft, you build the turnout for your needs…and you will find your trackwork will run better and flow nicer.
David B