I seem to be in the same boat (or, gondola) as PRRRich at this point. Been reading various opinions on track continuity. Brass, stainless steel, grease, clamps, soldered jumpers, slip joint connectors, one power connection or many… what to do? I’ve even considered chuckin’ it all and gettin’ a battery conversion. I, too, tend to over-think, over-plan, over-study, and over-build, so maybe I’ll just toss the dice. My layout will be faily lengthy, but simple (few switches and sidings), mostly for the entertainment of my new grandson who will be 1 year-old next summer when construction begins.
That’s why I’m skipping track power from the get go. I also weigh options heavly.
To the starter of this thread:
One question you asked but I think no one answered, if you are using clamps at every joint, power every 10 feet is overkill. Try every 20 to 30 feet.
In response to another question, using clamps at every joint is probably overkill in terms of what you need for conductivity, but if you can afford it, you will be happy forever (or at least while running trains!).
I use clamps at every switch, feeds about every 20 feet, and insulated joiners every so often so weak (from a conductive point of view) rail joiners show up.
If you feed a piece of track from 2 directions, if one direction is poor, then it’s harder to spot, usually you don’t notice it until feed from BOTH ends of a section of track is bad.
By putting electricity into blocks (while having enough feeds), weak areas are easy to debug.
Regards, Greg
Thanks Greg. This has turned into a real project but I think there is a light at the end of the tunnel! It is amazing how much dirt removal is involved with leveling an eight percent grade! I am currently waiting for the last eight split jaws to arrive and I can “Get-R-Done”! I will have to challenge myself to precisely hack a couple of lengths to join east and west. The entire pike is a little under 100’, which apparently is relatively small. I knew I’d never have been able to tackle anything much bigger. I did go the expensive route with clamps at every joint not only for conduction but also for strength. In GR terms, I guess I aspire to be a “sparker” and a “puffer”! The real challenge has been making the track as unobtrusive to the landscaping as possible as my wife hates model railroading! I used a lot of river rock, shale, lava stones and can’t wait for the brass to dull! Sometimes I feel guilty as I am only doing this for myself. It’s a sickness, I just love trains!
Rich
Hi PRRRich
What is important with track feeds is not so much the number of track feed but that they are evenly spaced.
Multi feed is put in so if feed fails one way it works the other it also helps
quite a bit with your worsed enemy Volt drop.
I note one respondant advocates terminal blocks don’t out doors theses are
a failure waiting to happen use good soldered joints covered with heat shrink.
If for any reason it is nesasary to use terminal blocks strip your wire long enough to go under both screws and make both the screws hold every wire in the block put the whole lot in a sealed weatherproof box at a point where it can be convieniently got at mark all wires by writen down colour code
or an electrical lable bead I repeat terminal blocks out side are trouble waiting to happen.
Do not take any short cuts on your wiring if you do you will compromise reliabilaty and worse enjoyment of the line.
Make sure you graphite grease all track joints on assembly this does two things helps conductivety on the track joints and also makes it easy to take apart should that be needed for track mods or repairs
An LGB cat no 50110 ( US equivelent No will need to be found) transformer and controler of your choice should be adequate for you train requirements and layout size.
But remember keep the domestic supply where it belongs in the house
and well away from low volt RR wiring we don’t want any nasty suprises
I run all my train wiring through pipes and pits made from plumbing pipe buried beside the line it makes for easy installation of wire modifications and protects it from gardening mishap.
don’t put the wiring under the track like I have seen sugested in the model press it will be a pain if there is a problem think about it!!
For ballast I float my track in crusher dust and only have one spot where a pinch of cement might be needed at some point.
My temp range is 40+ degC too aprox-2C have not had problems I just use greased joint
Good to hear from you John. Also good advice on encouraging my wife to get in on the fun, besides, she is much better with the gardening piece! The great news is I was able to complete my track layout and run my LGB PRR passenger train starter set! It was a beautiful autumn day, sun and in the high 60’s. I am very impressed with outdoor railroading, it is truely something I hope all model train lovers get a chance to experience. As with my O gauge three rail indoor layout, the true test of a layout and/or engine in my opinion is the “crawl test”. That LGB set was able to crawl the entire loop with no evidence of voltage drop. The hard work was well worth it. I sat and just watched that train all afternoon. There is one area that my LGB 40’ box cars frequently derail negotiating a 90 degree R1 curve. I am not using R1 curves in this section by choice but by necessity. When running my full scale stock, the GP30 (USA Trains) seems to pull the box car immediately following off the track by the coupler. The couplers are the stock hook and loop type. I was surprized because these couplers seem they would be more forgiving than knuckles. Is there a optimal coupler to use when you are forced to use sections of R1 track in your layout? What is an “idler car”? I thought I had read somewhere about putting one behind an engine to help negotiate tight curves. Anyway, just wanted to let everyone know I’m up and running and thanks for all your insights! You are a great group!
PS- I still have lots of questions!!!
Rich
Long trains on R1 curves do tend to derail. My fix was to progressively wieght the cars. Heavy right behind the loco to light as you go back. Also, make sure your heavier cars are closest to the loco, i.e. passenger coaches and boxcars right behind the loco. Gond’s and flat at the back end.
An idler car is usually a flat car or gondola. It is used where you don’t want the loco to be on that section of track because of weight. Like loading cars on a rail barge. It is put between the loco and the car or cars that you want to spot. The loco is so heavy that it would list the barge too much if it rolled onto the barge or crush, or damage, the ramp.
Thanks Capt Turk. Sorry for not responding sooner, but been very busy. I’ve been doing well with my electric trains, then again I only have been running six car consists. I think my original problem might have had more to do with the terrain. I’ve got so much money in track, transformer, rail clamps, etc, I can’t afford cars! Is it safe to assume the loop and hook European style couplers are more forgiving negotiating R1 loops as opposed to knuckle couplers?
Yes, that’s a safe assumption. They’ve got a tremendous amount of lateral play. While I’m not a big fan of truck-mounted couplers, they are far more adept at handling tight curves.
Later,
K