Does anyone use this combination that can post some picctures? I initially was considering GG and Ross, but considering that I will be building my first layout I thought maybe O27 tubular would be cheaper and easier, especially if I end haveing to redo any part of the track plan. My concern though is the appearance of using O27 and Ross.
thx, Don
It’s going to look weird, even with extra ties, but it should work fine. Ross switches have spikes on every tie so it actually looks better than Gargraves when mated to Gargraves. WHen mated to standard O-27 tubular it’s going to be very noticeable. I’ve got photo’s of Atlas mated to Ross but I don’t think I’ve every tried to mate O-27 to Ross.
From what I have seen Ross track and switches are very much like GarGraves track and will mate up just as well, should be no problem mating 027 to Ross or GarGraves as long as you have the adapter pins for the track.
I have not tried GarGraves to Atlas track as yet.
Lee F.
If I go with O27 track, I suppose that Ross switches won’t look much worse than the solid plastic base of O27 switches, right? I initially wanted to use GG, but the cost, time to bend, etc, has me leaning toward O27. I guess I could start with O27 temporarily just to get something up and running, and then replace with GG later.
Don
Here are the photo’s. You would need to shim the O-27 to match the profile of the Ross switches. You could make additional ties from bass wood and paint the metal ties to try and disguise them.
Don…you might want to do a Forum search on this one. Can’t remember the specifics exactly, but someone posted I believe all track brand dimensions, pros/cons. radii, prices, and good side-by-side pics. If I recall, it was lionroar 88 (Brent) who provided the link to the post, within the past 5 months or so. It was an excellent guide for decision making.
Jack
Thanks for the photos chuck. I had planned on adding ties to the O27 track so I don’t think it will look that bad. For the adjacent tracks I could add more, thinner ties to make the transition less noticeable. The bigger issue will be the tie color and center rail.
Jack, the only thing I was able to find was a reply by Brent that had a link to a site with pros/cons of different track types, but didn’t find the one with photos.
I know the basics of each type of track, I was just wondering if anyone has actually used this combination and how it looked on a layout.
don
Hi
I use the mixture of track. Lionel O-27, GG, Ross. I plan to deal with the esthetics of the mix by ballast around the tracks. I use sectional not flex GG. I use both plastic/wood ties. I keep the runs of GG/Ross long around switches to blend better. I don’t plan to fool with the ties. My decision was simple, i wanted to build a layout and use as much of my existing [childhood] pieces and still use more modern features for switches.
A couple of items.
The GG/O-27 mating pins aren’t cheap. figure out how many switches you will have and get an idea of how many packets of 12 you will need.
The GG switches have a plastic look and generally come with a transition piece. USE IT, even if you have to cut it down in size. It will help getting the turnout portion of GG’s to mate easier with tubular.
Stay away from the solderless GG power connectors. They mimic lockons, are poorly made and don’t really work. Instead use spade QC or solder. Much better.
Use toothpicks [plastic or wood] instead of buying the hard-to-get and costly GG insulating pins.
Consider the GG OTC tracks [they have 3 versions] and work fine. The center magnet could be a bit high on some of them and needs attention to prevent derails and smooth running with PW cars. Just look up some feedback in forum on that point. For unloader functions consider the Atlas rails solution discussed in the forum as well.
In home constructin, molding hides mistakes and mis-matches. In rr-ing, landscape/ballast does the same.
enjoy
ralph
Don,
Have you worked with GarGraves track before?
I have worked with GarGraves track for about 10 years and have found that some of their older switches need to have power put to the exit sides of their switches. Look for a wire underneath the switch base for the center rail, no wire no power to center rail. Another thing of concern is that the outside rail will not always have power to it after the switch, you will need to provide power to the one outside rail if using only GarGraves track, if using 027 or 031 track you won’t have that problem as the track’s outside rails are joined together.
Also all GarGraves track has the outside rails insulated from each other unlike 027 or O gauge track. For me it makes better operation of signal lights, I supply the hot wire to my signal and when the train goes over the insulated section of GarGraves track it supplies the common or return power to the signal.
Lee F.
Don…I’ll do some hunting for the thread and post that had the pics. They really helped see how realistic each option looked along with the side by side views. I also want to know where to go when I decide to change from tubular I have been using.
Jack
Jack
I pulled some ties off of a section of GG Flex and placed them under a section of Lionel O-27. I’ll try to get some pictures and post them. It actually looks a lot better than I thought and it shims the O-27 to match the Ross switch. You should be able to make the ties from the stock bass wood strips available at most hobby shops or craft stores like Michael’s.
Sorry it took so long[:)]
Thanks to all for the info
Chuck that looks pretty good. With ballast it will blend right in.
Don