To float or not to float - switches that is!

[nucat78]

Sorry to so new but what is the advantage of "floating " the turnouts in th e forst place. I have never heard this term before. I don’t mean to interupt the stream but I have no idea what this means!

No interruption at all! In fact, the idea is that switches are a single point of failure on a layout track system. And with moving parts (points) they can become stuck at times, especially when ballast is applied around these parts. The technique of “float” means that the switch is either not affixed to the roadbed, or as one post mentioned that the rails are not soldered to the adjoining tracks. This also allows for easier removal and replacement of the switch should it fail.

I neither glue down, solder or ballast my switches very much. I do superglue down small pieces of non-flex track at all three “routes” of the switch. I do this because I have had mixed results pulling up track that was caulked down and / or ballasted. Cutting through or mutilating some sectional track to “release” a switch is much less painful than ruining a switch when you pull one up.

[SilverSpike]

nucat78, that is an interesting technique and I see how it would prevent having to take up large sections of flex track when having to remove a switch.

Thanks guys for all your great ideas on floating a switch! [tup] [:D]

I now have a better idea of my plan for putting down track and switches.