I have prob a stupd question, but something that i would like alot of peoples opinions from, i have all atlas turnouts and track, and ill notice a little wobble of the cars, and like a clickity clack from the cars, and the engine may just shake a little, but nothing bad enough to derail it, and on some of my sidings i have some tight turns my eninges probably hate me for it, but right now thats besides the point, what i want to know is, is this a normal thing, or does your engines, and freight cars, do the same, just wondering, cauz i want to have amost perfect track work, but it seems almost impossible with n scale? but in my book that makes a railroad make a little more realistic.
I’ve found with my own tracklaying that when I hear the distinct clickity-clack of the wheels that there is a rail mis-aligned. One rail is either higher than the one it’s attached to or there’s a gap between the rails in the rail joiner.
I have one spot on my mainline that this happens.
I need to fix it, even though it does sound kinda cool with metal wheels going over it.
Especially the passenger cars.
I have several spots on my layout with a distinctive clickity clack and I’m leaving them just as is. Why? Because I can remember growing up in the north end of Toronto and on certain summer evenings hearing the train in the distance (3 miles) going over a "bump in the track and it was a distinctive clickity clack that brings back some found memories of home.
The wobble may not me as much a track problem as a car problem. Just looking at it from the other end… Mayeb go through and check the trucks and weights… See if the is alot of play.
And yeah, I had alot of small gaps in my track. (Laid it quick) and lots of curves that mad tough to line up perfectly. (the layout I built will be getting torn down soon and that was the plan from the get go, moveing to a bigger place, bigger lay out). Although it runs just fine with no problems, but now that I have been switching over to metal wheels, I hear that sound too. But I like it since it reminds me of the real thing.
I always thought trains were supposed to go clickity-clack. So, personally, I don’t see (or should I say “hear” ? ) a problem. I’d be more worried about excessive wobbling. A little wiggle is only natural, particularly on older-era tracks.
Guys, while real trains make a lot of noise going through turnouts, It is possible and desirable for model trains to do so almost silently. Real trains get away with this because of their size and weight.
Noise and bouncing are signs that something is not quite right. Often flangeways are too wide at the frog. Another possible problem is that some cars may have flanges that are bottoming out on the frogs.
This is where an NMRA gauge comes in handy to check dimensions. Manufacturers are not always perfect.
By the way, this may be why N scalers prefer Peco turnouts.[;)]
When metal wheels travel over metal joints, the click-clack
is normal. When you stop hearing the sound is when it is
no longer the norm. If you have a spot where the train or its’
consist are consistantly derailing, fix the area. I have found
that Atlas switches are not the greatest but are reasonable
in price and are managable. Try to add weight to the lighter
cars so they too can travel safely over the frog / switchpoint.
Sometimes the problem is not with the switch at all, it just
might be with individual equipment. Do a very thorough check
of everything before you go tearing up your hard work.
I have had the same issue with the sound and wobble on my HO test track through a switch. While I enjoy the sound, it is a concern for the eventual layout track performance.
Tim: Mine have that wobble too, and it doesn’t look right. You’ve got several answers on possible fixes. If any of your cars have screwed on trucks, rather than the bolster pins, then try having one truck really free swinging, and the other one just a little snug. Getting cars sufficiently wieghted is a good idea. The wheel flange depth issue is worht checking too.