I bought a Spectrum 4-8-2 a few months ago and am just now getting around to running it. The problem is at slow speeds it jumps the tracks on the curves which are 11" radius. At higher speeds I don’t have this problem. Anyone out there know why this might be happening ?..
Tracklayer
11"!? I assume you’re talking N scale here…
Does it jump the track or does it lay over on the inside of the curve. As weird as it sounds if it lays over on the inside of the curve you might have too much superelevation.
I have noticed, even though I am in HO, that my locomotives do better on some sections when they have more momentum than they do when I decide I want to walk them through those sections. Chalk it up to dynamics. At speed, the dynamics allow the loco to do the Evel Knievel over bad spaces, while at lower speeds they have time to find all the “bumps”.
The point is, the section in question is “bumpy”, and you should consider re-laying it. Look at what you have now from shallow angles and see if there are kinks in azimuth. If you see them, so will the loco at slower speeds…I guess. If there are no kinks in azimuth, perhaps they exist in altitude (vertically)?
You’ll have to re-lay that section, IMO, no matter what if you want the track to be 100%. If that leaves you cold, I hope you can take some comfort from the fact that I have already ripped out two sections from this, my second layout, because they didn’t work 100%. Cut the rails with a cut-off disk outside of the bad zones, or simply lift out the entire section of flex, and clean the roadbed down to the nitty…sand if you must. Then spread your caulking and lay a new section, but be more careful about the alignments at each end.
Yes, it’s N scale.
If you haven’t checked this, a common ailment with Spectrum N scale steam is wheels being out of slightly out of gauge. I have had to adjust a few. An NMRA gauge is a wise investment. I have a Spectrum Consolidation which had a pilot wheel with a bushing that was slightly eccentric causing the wheel to lope. Another thing to check is that all of the electrical wheel/axle point wipers are in the proper position. If any are out of alignment and putting too much pressure on the axle (or wheel), it could be causing the wheel to lock up at slow speed and crawl over the rail. I have found a shot of Atlas Electra Lube Cleaner does wonders at these points for freeing up sticky contacts. Binding side rods are another possability causing the engine to lurch at slow speeds and jump the rail. Binding siderods are usually caused by a driver being slightly out of quarter. To check this, disconnect the motor and turn each driver set slowly with your finger to feel any binding. And oh yes, bumpy track. N scale is not very tolerant with bumpy track. Especially with the smaller flange profile that comes with current engines.