Hey guys I have the Atlas custom line code 80 trunouts as well as the coresponding sectional track from them. How do I go about sodering the joints and the rail joiners? I am looking to work on that this weekend and any advise before 2pm today would be helpfull. Thanks,
Curt.
If it works, you do not have to solder them. If you need to solder:
Good solder gun - high temp
Resin core solder
Clean the areas to be soldered. I use flux, but some will advise agaist it, can cause corrosian in time.
Heat the joint until hot enough to melt the solder, then remove iron quickly. You may have to replace some ties.
Wipe off excess solder or flux.
If you are new to soldering, you may want more detailed information. Ask. Have fun, but this can be a frustrating part of the hobby for osme.
I would leave some joints unsoldered, say every four feet or so, to allow for possible expansion and contraction of the rails. Use some sort of a heat-sink, even if it’s only a wet paper towel, on either side of the joint when you solder to absorb some of the heat. If you carefully remove two or three ties on either side of the rail joint you will be less likely to melt any ties. After a little bit of sanding on the top of the ties you can glue them back in place when the soldering is finished.
I can’t tell from you post if you are talking about sectional track or flex track.
I don’t solder joints and railjoiners on sectional track. If the track is laid with new tight joiners, and is laid well so that it can’t move around there shouldn’t be any problems. I had an N-scale layout done with sectional track that ran fine from 1983 until 2003. The only thing soldered was the wire leads to the track (about 30 of them on a 2x8). This is dispite the beating that a layout gets going through 5 house moves.
If you are talking about flex track on curves that is a different matter. I always solder joints on flex track curves. To do this make certain the track is aligned. Position the soldering iron so that the heat is applied to both rails and the joiner simultaniously. As Arthill implies the higher the heat rating of the iron the less time you will have to wait. From the outside of the rail apply a tiny bit of solder so it flows into the cracks. As soon as it flows remove the heat and cool the joint down quickly. I usually just blow vigorously on it. I’ve also used a wet rag from time to time. They do make a cooling spray that can be used to take the heat out of the rails quicker. If the ties melt, it is taking too long to heat the rails. This means the soldering iron is too small, it isn’t making good contact with the rails (don’t just touch a tiny piece get the broad part of the tip flat against it; also hold it firmly against the rail), or the solder is being applied too soon an acting as its own heat sink. Using small gauge solder helps too. The plumbers 8 gauge stuff is too thick to melt quickly.
As usual with soldering, it always helps to have three hands, but I’ve yet to met anyone who has mastered that yet. 
I would avoid soldering the rail joiners on turnouts. You may have mechanical problems some day and need to take one up to either repair or replace it.
As said, the real trick is to transfer a lot of heat quickly. Have the iron or gun hot BEFORE you touch it to the rail. Use rosin core solder, and a tiny touch of rosin paste flux (NOT acid flux - that stuff is bad news.) Practice a little on expendable parts before attacking your switches. Soldering isn’t an arcane art - even this old dog learned to do it.
Chuck (who builds specialwork from soldered pieces of raw rail)
Curt- If you are using a regular soldering iron get it good & hot before you start. I apply the heat to the top of the rail (either at the joint or where I am adding a feeder wire) using a chisel-tip in the solder iron. I use a very thin Radio Shack electronic solder (rosin core, so no additional flux is needed) and apply it to the outer web of the rail. As soon as the solder flows I remove the iron. After the joint cools I draw a jewelers file across the top of the rails to remove any stray solder. I work in N scale and find that I often need to replace, or at least dress up, a few ties as they can (and often do) warp from the heat. After ballast it becomes much less noticeable. I recently bought a “Cold Heat” soldering tool. It took a little getting used to but I find it works great. It is a from of resistance soldering where the iron only heats up when the tip is touched to the rail. It works fine but I do find that I have a higher “tie warp” rate that I do using a traditional soldering iron. Good Luck! -Seth
Thanks Guys I didnt do anything this weekend to busy with life. I will keep your tips in mind. I need to get everything wired up and the trains running I think before I take this step. I hope to get that done by christmas. I have a lot going on at the moment, We are planing a weding as well as orginizing the apartment, And I am trying to figure out how to get my bug back in to town to do the body work as well as get it painted in the next year as well. Any way thanks again,
Curt