Old Atlas Track

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

This summer I am going to finally install the track I have had pinned down on the road bed for quite some time. My track is a mix of Model Power flex track and older Atlas switches, with a few old Atlas sectional pieces used where needed.

Should I do anything to these old switches before installing- cleaning, improving electrical continuity, pre-painting - before fixing them down on the roadbed?

I will be setting them up for under table operation, so I will locate and drill access slots where required, as well as power drops, and intend to solder connections.

I also want to do the most effective attachment- all adhesive caulk or a mix of caulk and Brad nails, or all Brad nails?

This is a small engine yard/freight yard switching layout with some mainline thru-track that will later be integrated into a second larger loop track plan.

Cedarwoodron

2

Hi,

If any of the trackage is brass, don’t use it. On the others, depending on how dirty they are, I would swipe lightly with a bright boy abrasive (stroke with the rails, not across) and follow with a rub with a finger incased in an alcohol soaked cotton cloth. Keep in mind, it is much easier to clean it now than after installation.

Older Atlas turnouts can work perfectly for years, but some of the older generations don’t take too kindly to DCC locos. The locos can short momentarily at the frog, and while DC locos will roll right thru, DCC ones will stop and short the layout. Yes, I know this from experience.

I prefer attaching roadbed to the plywood base with cheap latex caulk, and affixing the track to the roadbed with track nails. Others will likely disagree, and frankly I think it just comes down to personal preference.

3

Rather then throwing away perfectly good track brass or not clean it and reuse it. I would inspect and clean the switches.

I never was one to waste money when I can use what I have on hand including brass track because it works and for the doubting Thomas I invite you to visit the Marion(Ohio) Model Railroad club to watch trains run on brass track that has been in place since the early 50s.

4

Well, I would certainly clean the railheads using your favorite track cleaning method. My self, I use Goo-gone, but you will find a lot of people who are agin it. Clean the stock rails and the points where the points contact the stock rail. Many turnouts rely on point-to-stock-rail conductivity to pass power onto the points. Some turnouts have auxiliary electrical contacts on the points, they could stand a cleaning too.

I might check them for flatness, lay the turnout down on something good and flat. It ought to lay flat, no air space under it, and when you sight down the rails they should NOT show a bow, a dip, or a twist. If the turnout is not flat, you can bend it flat with just your hands.

Then I might use my NMRA gauge to check track gauge, flange way width and depth, guard rail spacing.

Finally, if you are into hot frogs, it’s easier to hot them up with the turnout on the bench. Me, I don’t bother, my trains run fine over dead plastic frogs.

I drill a 1/2 inch hole thru roadbed, sub roadbed, and table top to let the Tortoise operating rod reach the tiebar. Use a 1/2 inch twist drill, a spade bit will make a mess. Do this BEFORE laying track. Then put the turnouts down first, centered up over the Tortoise holes, and route the flex track to mate up with the turnouts.

You can put turnouts down with just latex caulk for stickum. Taking up a stuck down turnout is possible, but messy and tedious. Track nails into wood road bed hold the best, in fact they hold so well that I don’t need the caulk at all. Track nails into Homosote are just about as good. Track nails into cork roadbed don’t hold that well, although they hold well enough to work. Track nails won’t go into plywood, the glue layers are so hard that the track nails bend before piercing the glue.

5

I have exactly what you have described in service for nearly three decades. Nearly 1000 feet of Model Power brass flex and 100 plus Atlas brass turnouts installed by nailing to Midwest cork roadbed. Cleaning total layout twice a year has proven sufficient. All rail is airbrushed after installation, cleaned, and ballasted with kitty litter. Layout changes are simple. Layout is DC with MRC Controlmaster 20 power supplies, BLI DC Master and Quantum Engineer controlling all BLI locomotives. With the costs of this hobby escalating rapidly, I make every effort to recycle all materials. Currently in the process of installing Walthers 130 ft turntable and roundhouse structures. All track is soldered and blocks cut using a Dremel cutoff wheel. With careful planning and solid construction methods my layout has proven reliable through the years. I check the Atlas turnouts with a meter for continuity prior to installation. They have proven reliable through the decades using both Atlas switch machines and Caboose Industries ground throws. I always file out a groove under the Atlas throw bar when installing on cork roadbed before nailing it down. Change is inevitable, therefore I always nail track down. Using care track-switches can be unsoldered and reused. I have no intention of going to DCC. Have fun and enjoy the build

6

I guess I should have been more specific- my old Atlas track is all nickel silver.

Cedarwoodron

7

After doing cleanup I would use a multimeter to check for continuity were you should have it and not where you shouldn’t. Then with temporary power connections, run a few engines with cars through them.

Good luck

Paul

8

To my mind that doesn’t matter since you already have it in hand clean and use it and what can’t be reused replace it… This will save beaucoup hobby dollars…

9

What are your “older Atlas switches?” Custom Line Mark 3s with the metal frogs? You may need to power the frog if you have not already tried out how your motive power does on insulated frog turnouts. The metal frogs on the Mark 3s are pretty large.

Dave Nelson

10

If you do not have a meter, here is one if you like to work on the cheap. I have been them for some years. Around two to three dollars.

I like them much better than the old D’Arsonval meters that I started with around 1955.

http://www.trainelectronics.com/Meter_Workshop/index.htm

http://www.trainelectronics.com/Meter_HF/index.htm

Rich

11

Frankly I have enough trouble with DCC and new Atlas turnouts. It’s one of reasons that I decided to run the new SIW on DC until I get a better DCC system to replace my old EZ command. So I can’t imagine using old turnouts.

As for the turnouts etc. My wife spend two afternoons nailing down the road bed and track and it works perfectly. So need I say more?

12

You did not mention if your layout is DC or DCC.

If it is DCC, a quick continuiity check is to place a coin on the track with track power on. The systen will give a short cicruit indication (5 beeps for Digitrax), telling you that you have track power and it is carrying sufficient amps to run locomotives. If it does not give a short alarm, it could be that the track does not have power, but it also could mean that you need to add additional feeders to that part of the layout.

13

My late wife used O Scale 2 rail spikes every third tie which worked quite well… Of course that is what I used every sixth tie and that is still my track laying method.

Ballast glue helps hold the track down.

14

Yes indeed Larry I noticed that the ballast glue was holding the EZ track on the old layout. Incidentally I just chucked a bunch of that not so EZ track into the round file as I no longer have need of it but I digress. I did find that a couple of spikes popped up not sure why. Still overall I am very happy with our track laying.

15

I find there is nothing wrong with using brass track if that is what your budget allows. I have some track that is from the 1970s and still works. If the choice is brass track or no track I’d go with brass track.

j…

16

As for securing track, what I use is 5/8" brads. They are long enough to go into most any wood you can think of. (The main 4x8 for my railroad is a 5/8" or 3/4" piece fo particle board. Yes, it is quite heavy. It was obtained as a weight for bringing a piece of paneling home many years ago. Those nails go into that board very well.) Either paint the nail heads or else get them wet and they disappear. (I ripped my hand up one time because I couldn’t see those nails.)

17

Most of track on my current layout, started spring of 2014, was from Atlas code 100 and code 83 track carefully removed from an almost finished layout 15 years earlier and stored in long boxes. In reality, much of that track was nearly 20 years old so it could be called “old”. Considering it included a great deal of flex, special curved turnouts and regular turnouts, it would have cost between $800 and $1k to buy all that track new so glad I saved it!

I had not gotten to the ballast stage yet and I used Atlas track nails and/or ME spike to secure it all down to homasote or cork on plywood, so it was easy to use needle nose pliers along with a fine tipped screw driver to pull out the nails and remove all that track and turnouts for storage. Where there were solder joints, I melted the solder and pulled the rail apart or simply cut the rail with a Xuron. No hassle or possible damage because no adhesives were used.

The Atlas turnouts, specifically the code 100 turnouts, were all “tuned” to help rolling stock to operate more reliably; I followed an MR article which recommended filing the points to create a bevel on the top and on the side to help avoid wheels picking the points.

The worst thing about getting all the old Atlas track back into good shape really was cleaning the rail to get it back to good electricity contuctivity. It required a good going over with a “bright boy” rail cleaner. I’ve used Atlas track nails and ME spikes to secure the same track on the new layout, although after ballasting track, I will remove the nails and touch up those spots with a bit of filler and paint so there will be no evidence of them later on.