I have not experience any problems by using an index or business card between the rail ends. I solder the railjoiner solid to one side of the joint and run a small (#28-30) jumper wire around the gap. I solder a feeder to the bottom of the joiner at every other joint (feeds 6’ of track at a time. I try to stagger my joints in the curves. I have few derailments except for operator error. I also file a bevel on each rail end as was mentioned earlier. I use the same gap winter or summer, but my train room doesn’t vary over 25 degrees.
Sorry, I did not see the insert on this new style of page. I guess I need to post a complaint!
If you meant to reply to another poster’s thread/reply, when you have that page open, you can find “reply” at the upper right of the text box. As for this one, if you wish, you can delete it by going into the “delete” button. You cannot do that now, because I have already replied to your first post…new rules here.
Tweet;
regardless of where or how you made your post, the procedures you outline are excellent; that’s the way I lay my track. I picked up the small-gap-at-rail-ends and rail-joiner-soldered-to-one-end-of-track-length and feeder-wire-soldered-to-rail-joiner at a clinic at the Kansas City NMRA convention in 1984; been doing it that way/your way ever since. Had somebody tell me one time that I was asking for trouble doing it that way - what, I was asked, was I going to do if I had trouble with the solder joint; I never have but I guess I’d just put on a new rail joiner.