twommnewbie Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 Hi , Starting to build some Easitrac 60ft scale lengths for the show part of the layout. Using the jig is great and apart from having to be very careful removing the track from the jig when completed it has gone well. However, for the fiddle yard I want some longer lengths of track and I have tried using the jig for this and have failed misserably! Once 1 x 60ft section is done I have tried sliding the sleepers carefully along the rail fixing more sleepers to the jig and then trying to thread the rail back in but everytime the rail buckles and snags. I have cut the end of the rails to aid with threading and as I said the first section works fine. Any help greatly appreciated! Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelcliffe Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 I have had no problem with circa 18 inch lengths. I would expect to put the last moulding or two of the completed track in the jig, then thread a few more mouldings. Move it along again, and repeat. Its the same technique I used for solder construction in jigs ! - Nigel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
twommnewbie Posted January 17, 2012 Author Share Posted January 17, 2012 I have had no problem with circa 18 inch lengths. I would expect to put the last moulding or two of the completed track in the jig, then thread a few more mouldings. Move it along again, and repeat. Its the same technique I used for solder construction in jigs ! - Nigel Thanks for the quick reply, 18 inch length would be fine but once the first section is done it becomes very difficult to thread both sides of rail at the same time into the sleepers on the jig without buckling the track! Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Kris Posted January 17, 2012 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 17, 2012 For making longer lengths I don't use the jig. The longer the length the harder it is to move the mouldings but 3ft+ lengths are possible. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium nick_bastable Posted January 17, 2012 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 17, 2012 dont cut the sleepers from the sprues I found that they help keep the sleepers taunt I have managed to thread a 500mm lengths this way Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy157 Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 I make up 1200mm long sections using the jig, just take ya time, the rails will try and bend all over the place but it is possible! hth. Andy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim V Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 Did you try fileing the ends of the rails to remove any possibility of burrs? Examine under a watchmakers glass to check. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
twommnewbie Posted January 17, 2012 Author Share Posted January 17, 2012 Did you try fileing the ends of the rails to remove any possibility of burrs? Examine under a watchmakers glass to check. Hi yes I`ve done this and checked with my magnifier I think I will try with the sleepers attached to the sprues. My worry is that if I can`t even make progress with so called easitrac what happens when I try a to make a set of points..it doesn`t bode well! Thanks for all the replies. Simon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gingerbread Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 It sounds as if your experiences are rather similar to mine. I checked the length of rails for my prototype (GWR ca 1900), came up with the solution of 45 ft (44' 6" to be precise, IIRC), then made up a batch of easitrac in 45' lengths. Only later did I realise that fishplates aren't used (or are simply cosmetic, if used), so each rail will need at least one (and preferably two) electrical connection. Soldering wire to rail in close vicinity to plastic easitrack sleepers doesn't sound like a good idea, so the usual practice is to substitute brass sleepers at that point. Therefore the usual recommended practice is to make up track in longer lengths, then add small nicks at 60' (or 45') intervals. My next attempt was to make up lengths using the 500 mm sections, and I had the same experience as you - it kinked badly as I slid the rails into the sleepers, though I was able to un-kink it successfully. After the first one I now take more care, and it seems to work satisfactorily, if a bit slowly for the second and third jigful of sleepers where there is a long length of rail to slide through the jig. David Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanLister Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 Did you try fileing the ends of the rails to remove any possibility of burrs? Examine under a watchmakers glass to check. Hi yes I`ve done this and checked with my magnifier I think I will try with the sleepers attached to the sprues. My worry is that if I can`t even make progress with so called easitrac what happens when I try a to make a set of points..it doesn`t bode well! Thanks for all the replies. Simon. I started with this stuff back in May or June. After struggling with and giving up on the jig I found a way that works for me: 1. Make sure the rail ends are both filed really clean, and slightly pointed ( cut off later, only about 1mm or so, but I found it helps a lot) 2. Thread one rail onto one lot of sleepers, leaving attatched to sprue, and slide along a few cm 3. Thread other rail. Leave rail ends staggered by a few cm, so you can thread one rail first, then the other . 4. Add more sprues of rail, moving them all along gradually as you go with a few inches in between to keep the rail from buckling. Once you have 4 or 5 sprues threaded you can easily move the first ones along to the other end of the rail, but making sure you never leave a gap of more than 6in or so between sprues, as this will cause rail to buckle when sliding a sprue along. I'm sure there are easier and better ways, but I don't know them, and this worked consistently for me. I've made over 40' of plain track like this, all in 500mm lengths, not broken anything, it's all flat and works, and it gives you a great feeling of satisfaction when you see it down and running. Like all things, the first few steps are the trickiest.....I'm still taking them! Hope this helps Ian Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan76 Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 This is a puzzle. Like Nigel I make up 18" - or 50cm if you prefer - lengths of track using the jig and working my way along the lengths of rail. Thread two lengths of rail into sleepers in the jig. Release them, move the sleepered section along, reload the jig and thread the two rails in again. There should be even less chance of things going wrong because now the 'free' lengths of rail are shorter than when yoy first started. The jig should hold the sleepers firmly enough to prevent any buckling - so long as the rail ends have been filed free of burrs. I also file a (very) slight chamfer on the ends of the rails to encourage them to slip into the chair slots. I've made up maybe a dozen lengths of both bullhead and flatbottom this way with almost no problems. I'm sure you've checked, but are you also filing the underside of the rails too? Alan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Armchair Modeller Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I have managed to make sections up to 1 metre in length - although this will no longer be possible, as the new straight rail is only 0.5m long. I found it best to keep the sleepers on their sprue in the jig and move each newly-threaded section up to the end of the next bit of sleepering before removing from the jig. It does get a bit awkward as you add more sleepers, because the amount of bare rail between the finished section and the sleepers in the jig gets shorter and shorter, reducing flexibility. I find that just threading the rails through a few sleepers at a time, then the other rail, and so on is the best approach, rather than trying to thread one rail through one side completely before starting the other side. Be careful - don't force anything too much. Ideally, hold the jig with a clamp on a flat surface like a desk so that you have both hands free to guide everything through. This also stops the end threaded already onto sleepers from flopping around loosely, which could bend or damage it. Once you get the rails through the sleepers in the jig, pull the rail through a short distance at a time to move the sleepers along to the far end of the rails. Don't continue to push the rail from the other end. Make sure the rail is the right way up too. It can be difficult to tell which is the top on bullhead rail. It may be stating the obvious, but the thicker bit is the top of the rail. The thinner bit goes through the chairs. I have managed to get the rail upside down on one or two occasions and forced the first section through, only to realise my mistake. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
twommnewbie Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 Hi, Great advice from everyone who has replied many thanks - I will keep you posted. Thanks, Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
twommnewbie Posted January 20, 2012 Author Share Posted January 20, 2012 Hi, 1 X 50CM Length of easitrac completed successfully ! I followed the advice of not using the jig and leaving the track on the sprues. I have left a gap at each end to solder some pcb sleepers in place to join the track later. Thanks , Simon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Kris Posted January 20, 2012 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 20, 2012 Good to hear that it's worked for you. I find that alternating the direction of the sprues works so that you can get the sleepers closer together as you construct the track. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium nick_bastable Posted January 20, 2012 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 20, 2012 excellent another convert to the fold :stinker: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thos Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 How do you join Easitrac on a curve? Intuitively it would seem that one should stagger the ends and solder both rails to a PCB sleeper. However this will not work where a rail needs to be isolated for occupancy sensors. Does putting the join between sleepers cause problems? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Kris Posted January 20, 2012 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 20, 2012 With the curves (3ft+) I use putting the joint between the sleepers has not caused a problem. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted January 28, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 28, 2012 Ideally one would curve the rail before threading through the chairs. However this rather clashes with keeping the chairs held by the sprue to facilitate the threading. However it should be possible to curve the rails somewhat and still thread the chairs in the short sections as supplied. A bit of carefull tweaking of the rail between your fingers to ensure the ends are curved will help keepit in line. If you find you have trouble a brass pin inserted either side of the joint and soldering the rails to them could help after fixing blacken and disguise with ballast. In 16mm many recommend removing the rails from Peco SM32 track bending the rails and then reinserting them so its not just a 2mm problem. Don Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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