my son & I built a setup on 2 4x8 plywood boards. we have 3 turnouts. when we hook up and pull out of one of the sidings everything is ok. when we try to back the cars back into the sidings, the first car will turn as it should but the second car will want to go straight. WHY?
Hard to say without actually being there and keeping an eye on a few things. It could be that the point rail that should nudge the flange on this second car is sitting a bit too low, or it could be that the flanges on this bad axle or truck are too widely set apart and the point, itself, is not as sharp and snuggly against its stock rail as it “could” be.
I find that most commercial turnouts need dressing of some kind…tweaking so that their rates of error fall to almost nothing. Sometimes, though, it isn’t the turnout when things go wrong. It might be that some flashing between the truck that wants to pivot and its body mount prevent smooth swining. Couplers can bind in shove, but do well in pull mode.
If it really is this one car every time, swap its ends and place it back in the same place. How does it do now? If better, I’d suggest taking a closer look at wheel gauge, axle location, relative positions for each wheel to the axle bearings (are both slid to one side of the axle a wee bit?0, or for rough surfaces or flashing that might inhibit movement.
Well there are a number of potential problems. Get an NMRA gauge - most hobby shops sell them. First make sure that your cars’ wheel sets are in gauge and the trucks swivel freely. Make sure your turnout is in gauge. Make sure that your turnout is laid flat. Make sure that your couplers swivel freely. If all that checks out, rearrange your cars and see if the same car still wants to go straight - it may have something else wrong.
One thing to understand is that truck mounted couplers (as opposed to body mounted) have problems backing up.
Good luck
Paul
As you have been told “there are numeous” possibilities. Simply, the wheels are not following the track. Until you get your nose in there to see what’s happening, it’ll continue.
If your cars have ‘TALGO’ -truck mounted couplers- backing up pushes wheels out of alignment. Body mounted couplers back up better.If your derailing cars have ‘body mounted’ couplers, I’d look to the wheels or points being out of gauge. This is where a LHS earns its pay.
If you don’t want to ‘fuss’ with it, better quality cars and turnouts are the real answer.
We need lots more information.
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What brand of track are you using?
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What brand of cars are you using?
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Body or truck mounted couplers?
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How fast are you running?
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Is the turnout and trucks in gauge?
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David B
Any time you have a situation involving multiple moving parts, you have to some investigating to get at the root. If other cars roll through with no problem, then it’s probably the car. If other cars derail right there, it’s probably the switch.
If all else fails, you can always use the All Purpose Model Railroad Adjustment Devise…
Lee
Silly question, but so you have any kind of mechanism to hold the switch in place?
If can be a switch machine like on some Atlas switches, a ground throw like is made by Caboose Industries or even something as simple as a piece of piano wire (thin spring wire) bent so it hold the switches when lined over?
If you don’t have anything holding the switch when it is lined one way or the other than the points are “floating” and may derail cars.
What are you using? What brand of switches?
Dave H.