I am building an N scale layout and will be building a yard. I am using Peco turnouts, mostly large radius, amd am wondering if the small radius (#4) will work OK for the yard?
Also, I would like to install a RR crossing for one set of tracks to cross another set. I would like to know if Peco makes one in the neighborhood of a 60-70 degree. I have found them in 90 degree and about 20 degree, but nothing around the 60 degree area.
Thanks so much. Mike
Number 4’s should work unless all your cars are 80 foot ones or longer. Then you might want to go with number 6’s. If you are using some long equipment, keep all of your mainline turnouts at 6 or greater. If you are running 4 axle locos around your industries, those TO’s can be 4 as well with 6 off the main. Your coach yard should have 6’s minimum.
As for the crossing, I would expect that Peco would make a 60 degree crossing at least. Check Walthers and Tony’s if you haven’t already, and mabe the Peco web site to see if they make one. (Assuming you are in the US). You may have to look at Micro Engineering and see what they have in crossings.
This Peco question apprears on a regular basis on the forums. The answer is that ‘it depends’ on the scale rail size, etc. Here is a link to a chart that explains the relationship of various Peco track components. If you are talking about the ‘code 55’ line for N scale, the ‘nominal radius’ is aroung 12" radius - quite tight, even in N scale. If you are talking about the code 80 line, the ‘SetTrack’ turnouts work out to a 9" radius.
http://www.rmcq.mixedpk.com/worksheets/peco_turnout_dimensions.pdf
Jim
One consideration for peco in yards is that unlike other turnouts, these have a continuous curve in the points and the diverging route. This is fine, and often a good thing, but you have to be extra careful of S-curves created by the turnouts.
I have the small radius on a small layout and have had little trouble but I am using 40’ cars and 4 axle diesles. I am not shoving long cuts of cars through multiple turnouts. I was very careful to make sure that I didnt have anything going through two diverging routes in a row.
Personally, I would not go below medium radius. I actually went out of my way to use up the small turnouts I had purchased for this test layout and will be using only medium turnouts for my next project. The smalls are fine for an industrial area, but because you can be shoving longer cuts of cars forward through multiple turnouts I would not do so in the yard.
As for crossings, I needed something in a similar range and ended up having to get an atlas code 80 crossing for the job. I chose the code 80 to mate with the peco code 55 because the peco code 55 is actually code 80 in disguise and other then differences in tie height I had to overcome they mate better then it would to the atlas code 55.
Here is a pic… it looks much more natural since I painted the rail. I dont have a recent pic of that, sorry:
Good luck!
Chris
Just to clarify something that is nearly always stated incorrectly in this forum, the PECO small radius N scale Code 55 turnouts are not a #4. All the PECO Code 55 turnouts (small, medium, and large) are a #6 frog. The difference is in the radius of the diverging curve (12", 18", 36" respectively).
The 12" radius makes the small turnouts a little tight for use in yards where you will be pushing cuts of cars through the s-curves created by a typical yard ladder, especially with truck-mounted couplers. The good news is that the mediums are a very compact choice and can be used without much loss in yard length (since they have the same frog number as the smalls). If your engines and cars are short, and if the cars are mostly the same length, you’ll have less trouble – but mediums will always be better.
Might be a false economy to go with the “small” turnouts you have now rather than buying a few "medium"s for the yard ladder.
In PECO N scale code 80, there is no “small” turnout, of course, just the “Setrack” turnout that’s about a #2.5 frog. These would be a very bad choice for a yard ladder, but I don’t imagine you are talking about those.
Byron
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