I’m building a programming track on my layout. I know how to do when it comes to the electrical but… How can I insulate the gaps and still hold the rails together, as with rail joiners? The track is also located in a slight curve to make things even more complicated [:D]
Atlas makes insulated rail joiners, the orange ones and I have seen some that are clear. Easy to paint over. Also you can just lay down the track and after the glue is dry just cut a gap in the rail with a Dremel tool.
I don’t glue track down but the dremel is the way I insulate sections as well… If you are using a command station that has a seperate programming track option, install a toggle switch to select program/run… My programming track is on my yard throat.
Jeff
Electrolove…
Tigerstripe mentions insulated rail joiners. He is correct that these are what you should use to join rails together while still insulating the gaps.
These insulated rail joiners are made of plastic (I’ve only seen clear ones). They are similar in design to the metal rail joiners; but have a small plastic “pin” in the groove that prevent the rails from ever touching. No need to cut anything.
I forgot to mention that they must fit walthers/shinohara code 83, do they have their own insulated rail joiners?
if i want to isoate an entire track i use a plastic joiner instead of metal ones. if i want to isolate a small section like several blocks in my engine terminal i cut a slot with a dremel tool. then i put in a little strip of styreen plastic in the slot and secure it with dab of ca. when it sets up i trim the plastic to the shape of the rails. cutting a small gap on a curve shouldn’t throw the rails out of alignment as long as the curve is not too sharp but i glue my track down before cutting the gaps. i also paint the insulated joints red so i will be able to see them or so other operators will know where they are.
Hi,
I’ve used the plastic rail joiners and they work pretty good on straight track but oftentimes, if you use them on a curve, they won’t hold the track properly aligned. Therefore, I’ve switched to cutting a gap with a Dremmel tool. One of the best places to cut is between 2 ties in an actual turnout, without cutting through the plastic below…therefore, the ends of each rail on either side of the cut will still be held properly. I also use the technique mentioned above where I add a small piece of thin plastic in the cut and shape it to the rail with a knife. Thus, the rails can’t move into the space and cause a short.
Hope this helps.
Mondo