I have some peco turnouts installed in my layout. this was before I knew about insulfrogs and electro frogs.
I have a DCC operation how do I tell the difference between the 2 turnouts
Insulfrogs have a black plastic frog. Electrofrogs have metal frogs and require both rails coming off the frog to have insulated joiners installed during track laying. If your layout was functioning ok before you install a DCC system it should work ok after.
I just went onto a site selling Peco turnouts, and the black frog thing doesn’t appear to be consistent. For example, I have their Code 83 Streamline Insulfrog turnouts and the frogs are not black…the frogs are isolated from the rest of the rail structure via small black plastic spacers. So the frogs are gapped.
The Electrofrog turnouts are all power routing, meaning that the routes through the frog and beyond are powered and aligned to polarity based on the position of the points rails. I don’t believe they would rely on iffy rail contact at the points, so there would be metal sheets under the points that provide more insurance.
-Crandell
Don’t forget Allan Gartner’s wiring for DCC
Wolfgang
No, they rely on the contact. It’s the built-in spring that pushes the points against the stock rails, making the contact far less iffy.
I have one Peco turnout that I didn’t install very well. I’m using 2-inch foam, and the opening for the Peco switch machine isn’t quite large enough. So, there’s a bit of resistance at the ends, and the points don’t always make contact. I ended up just putting in feeders to the tracks beyond the turnout.