Insulated Rail Joiners

I have a peculiar problem with insulated rail joiners.

I am using Atlas code 83 flextrack. The Atlas soft plastic joiners are too soft to use in curves etc so I purchased the Micro Engineering Code 83 HO insulated rail joiners 26-084. They are so small that they will not go on the track. I first thought that the package was mislabeled but buying more somewhere else clear across the country brought me the same joiners. Can they only be used on Micro Engineering track? Or is there a trick to get them on the Atlas track. Or are there other brands available that will not have that problem. Any experience that you can pass on will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Werner

Reply to
Werner Anschutz
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I really don't think you want to use insulated joiners in curves - to hold a curve, you really need to use metal joiners and solder them to hold them in radius. Is there any particular need to have the insulated sections in a curve?

-- The Conductor Digital Railroader LLC snipped-for-privacy@wi.rr.com

Reply to
Digital Railroader

Yes, as in a curved Shinohara turnout that needs to be insulated.

Reply to
Werner Anschutz

"A> Yes, as in a curved Shinohara turnout that needs to be insulated.

When you use flextrack, you *never* use anything but metal rail joiners. Insulated rail joiners are only for snap-track, never for flextrack.

For this situation, use metal rail joiners, *SOLDERING* them. *AFTER* you have both tacked down the track with track nails *AND* ballasted the track, use a Dremile tool with a cutoff wheel and carefully cut a gap in the rail you need to isolate. You can fill the gap with a thin piece of styrene, which you carefully carve in place to the profile of the rails, lightly sanding with *very, very fine* sandpaper. Add a drop of Zap (CA) to fix it in place. You should have placed track nails close to both sides of the gap, to keep the rails from moving. Mark the gap location when tacking down, say with a felt tip marker on the rail's top surface (you'll clean it off later).

The gap does not have to be just at the joint between the turnout and the flextrack. It can and should be a little further down the line, like 6-12", something like that -- you want to leave some spare clearance, esp. on curves.

"A> > I really don't think you want to use insulated joiners in curves - to hold "A> a "A> > curve, you really need to use metal joiners and solder them to hold them "A> in "A> > radius. Is there any particular need to have the insulated sections in a "A> > curve? "A> >

"A> > -- "A> > The Conductor "A> > Digital Railroader LLC "A> > snipped-for-privacy@wi.rr.com "A> >

"A> >

"A> "A> "A> "A>

Reply to
Robert Heller

Have you thought of just cutting the track after it has been placed. I don't use the fancy tracks, but I lay my track and secure it down. Then cut a gap in the tracks. I also glue a small peice of thin plastic between the rail if the rail does happen to move it is still insulated.

Richard

Reply to
Richard Small

On Tue, 22 Jul 2003 21:43:14 UTC, "Werner Anschutz" wrote: 2000

There is a noticeable difference in the size of Atlas code 83 rail and ME rail. The answer is ME joiners will not fit on Atlas rail. OTOH with Atlas joiners on ME rail you might as well not have joiners :-).

Reply to
Ernie Fisch

=>Any experience that you can pass on will be greatly appreciated. =>Thanks, Werner

Don't put gaps on ciurves, if at all possible. Try to locate the gaps on the straight sections. However, that's not always possible. In such cases, do not use plastic railjoiners. Cut the gap _after_ you install the track. Solder all the flextrack together before you lay the curve. Where you need a gap, install spikes for two inches or so (10 ties or so) on either side of the future gap. You will have to drill through the ties to prevent distortion. Cut the gap, then glue in a piece of plastic. When the glue has dried, cut and file it to match the rail profile.

Code 83 refers only to rail height, not rail profile. MicroEngineering and Atlas have the same height rail, but the base is different.

HTH&GL

Reply to
Wolf Kirchmeir

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