Question about rails

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 9:53 pm

I have a question about track: I am thinking of buying some to run my roundhouse "Billy" on. I don't have a garden but I was thinking of acquiring enough track that I could at least run the engine back and forth outside on a nice day.

I really prefer the look of 32mm track, however I have built the engine and its tender (which is not adjustable without buying new wheels) to 45mm gauge. I decided to do this because in Canada, it's far more likely to meet someone with 45mm track to run on, in case I ever do meet such a person it would be nice to run my own engine on their railway.

Is there any 45mm track that has smaller code rail than the LGB stuff? I notice that 45mm track seems to have a bulky appearance with abrupt corners and turnouts: the 32mm turnouts I've seen seem much more graceful. I don't see what gauge has to do with this and I wonder why 45mm track has to look so toy-like. Most 45mm tracks I see on youtube remind me of the silly sharp corners and trucated looking turnouts I associate with those G-scale plastic trains you often see circling a Christmas tree at a shopping centre. If I can't find nice looking track I may have to re-gauge my engine, which would be a shame, because I think it would reduce the number of opportunities I have to run it at a club track or something if I ever move far enough south to meet another steam enthusiast.

Is there a brand of 45mm track that has the small code rail and wide sleeper spacing that I see on 32mm railways? I suppose I could just order rails and make my own with wooden sleepers, but this seems like a lot of work.

mhlr · Post by **mhlr** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 10:06 pm

Peco G-45... MrBondoftheDVLR uses this now, but is unfortunately offline due to this malware thing. I don't know where you'd buy it over there, but the best place here to get it in my opinion is:

http://www.track-shack.com/index.php?ca ... e9c81aae94

pauly · Post by **pauly** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 10:16 pm

you can buy very gradual LGB corners you know, its just many poeple dont have ht espace so use the tighter ones.

I have to use R1 and R2 track piece on my line because my gardens so small (many members have huge gardens) and I dont mind the deep track because it holds well in ballest and isnt noticable once ballested in.

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 10:45 pm

Actually Pauly I had assumed you were using something different, because your track looks pretty good... It must be the ballast that does the trick, your rails do look "narrow gauge" in your engine pictures.

I do like the look of that Peco track. The trouble is, Trackshack says on their website that they will not ship outside "Europe".

Roundhouse has Peco track for sale on their website... I wonder if it's the same stuff...

mhlr · Post by **mhlr** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 11:15 pm

Keith S:49117 wrote:I do like the look of that Peco track. The trouble is, Trackshack says on their website that they will not ship outside "Europe".

Roundhouse has Peco track for sale on their website... I wonder if it's the same stuff...

Ah, hadn't noticed that.

Had a look on the RH site, the G-45 is, so they may be a good bet. Don't forget you need a couple of packs of rail joiners too to connect it all up

If you want a temporary outdoor oval or something, the Setrack is a good bet, 2 packs of those to make a circle, then add some yard straights inbetween.

Pendo Pilot · Post by **Pendo Pilot** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 11:17 pm

Keith S:49117 wrote:Roundhouse has Peco track for sale on their website... I wonder if it's the same stuff...

It is Keith, same stuff. Peco is a the major supplier of track in all normal gauges here in the UK (From Z to gauge 1/45mm). G-45/Sm-45 is the narrow gauge stuff with sleeper spacing correct & all that.

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 12:42 am

Thanks for the advice, guys. How I wish I had a railway. I just finished playing with, er, I mean running, the "Billy" in the stairwell outside. I have three feet of track, possibly the shortest railway in the world. I find I can get 45% longer runs if I take off the tender.

I have found a company in the united states called "Sunset Valley" that makes SM45 tracks with code 250 rail, and it's available in Brass, Nickel, and Aluminum. The Aluminum track is drastically less expensive.(by more than half

) Maybe I'll order a box of Peco from Roundhouse, and look into some aluminium track from Sunset Valley if I can find a place for a temporary railway.

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:15 am

I use Aristocraft European tie/sleeper spacing track for my layout, which as it is made for the North American market might be pretty easy to get hold of. I usually buy from St Aubin Trains in Idaho, they use Fedex and UPs to ship boxes of track. It uses Elephant-proof rail, but once ballasted looks OK. As you can see on my line here:

http://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ttac/SCLRTphotos.html

I would normally recommend using Aluminium rail as it is cheaper, but as you will be laying a temporary track on a convenient flat surface the weight of brass might provide a little more stability.

Most of the 45mm gauge track with code 215/250 rail made for the North American marke is flexitrack which gets you into railbender land. The only suitable 15/16mm scale track I know of that available as Setrack is Peco's and I don't know how obtainable it is in Canada. In the USA it is rare and bl00dy expensive.

Peter in AZ

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:52 am

Thanks Peter. Have you tried the sunset valley track?

I'm confused about your comment about the flexitrack. Do you need a railbender to make this track curved? I only have experience with small scale flex track, which you can just bend around corners with your hands as it is quite springy.

I assume set track is the kind which isn't meant to bend.

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 3:16 am

Setrack is track on a moulded plastic base that basically does not bend. a.k.a. Sectional Track.

When it comes to flexitrack, anything from code 200 upwards really needs a rail bender to get a smooth consistent curve. Your can achieve this using simpler rigs - the nails in a plank method - but you still need mechanical assistance to get a good consistent curve. This is especially true of brass, but it also applies to Aluminium.

The other garden railway guy in town uses SVRR track and speaks very highly of it. SVRR code 250 aluminium rail is hand bendable - just. However you'll need heavy gloves and a lot of patience to get a good result. You have to slide the rail our of the plastic sleeper strip and bend individually then assemble. Their track looks good, but their 30mm sleeper spacing is a bit tight for European lines where 2'6" was the commonest sleeper spacing except at joints where 2' was the norm was more usual. However it looks a darn sight better than the usual US 21/25mm.

I would use SVRR track on my line except for 2 inor considerations. 1. I had a lot of Aristocraft track already. 2. A rail bender is a lot of expense for laying at most 150' of mainline, plus sidings, I do not quite feel up to hand bending that much rail even with a jig.

Hope this helps.

Peter in AZ

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 3:59 am

It does help, thanks, Peter. Are you saying that you find the sunset valley sleepers are closer together than you would like? I'm not trying to adhere particularly to any scale in particular, but I do like the wide sleeper spacing of the 32mm track I have seen on this site and Youtube. It looks more rustic or something.

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 5:45 am

The SVRR sleeper spacing is American - roughly 24 scale inches - which is a little narrower than we used in Britain and Ireland. Anyone who is not a rivet - or in this case sleeper - counter will not notice. However, if your (imagined?) prototype is industrial or something like that then all bets are off. The little industrial lines I knew as a kid would space their sleepers any old how - usually quite narrowly due to the limited/non-existant ballast. Just look them in the eyes and say that's how they did it at the Edmonton Treacle Mines and they'l be none the wiser ;o) The Skebawn and Castleknoz has its sleepers thrown down at scale 2' intervals simply because I could not be bothered to mess with making my own track. The key thing is that it looks right.

When you do have a bit of space for a railway, think about industrial prototypes. The Bord na Mona has an extensive system of 3' gauge peat railways some of which used to convey workers in little corrugated iron 'Paddy Cars' built on a wagon chassis. Better still they had some Andrew Barclay locomotives at one time, as well as many a Ruston. Given that they were built in Lincolnshire and worked in Ireland I am surprise the blinking things were not designed to run on Potatoes.

Peter in AZ

Keith S · Post by **Keith S** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 6:43 am

I have no idea what I'm going to do. My engine doesn't look particularly "industrial", I am thinking, when I eventually get to build one, of claiming the railway is meant to be a latter-day preserved railway hauling bug-boxes full of 16mm scale(ish) holiday-makers around the garden. I want the track to look gap-toothed and meandering.

I think might just go totally free-form and if anyone asks me why I have a Koppel/Barclay-ish-looking tank engine, with a tender, all tarted up with brass bands, hauling Lynton&Barnstaple goods wagons along with Talyllyn coaches and a Ffestiniog brake van on three foot gauge track, I'll tell them to go jump in a treacle mine or go play with their own trains and leave me alone.

I needed to order some more steam oil from Roundhouse, and in the Email I asked about a box of PECO track. If it's not stupidly expensive, I'll start with that. My "railway" for now will be a thirty-foot straight stretch down the hallway of my apartment building. The neighbors will think I've lost my mind.

Sir Clothem Cap · Post by **Sir Clothem Cap** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 8:58 am

well done Keith, where theres a will theres a way.

James-Buzz · Post by **James-Buzz** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 10:02 am

Peco 45mm code 250 flexi track does not need a railbender on it. Bend it to the curves you want by hand, tack/screw/nail/glue it down to something and job done.

Narrow Minded · Post by **Narrow Minded** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:11 pm

A lot of the final appearance really is down to the ballasting

I've used LGB track for my 16mm line purely because I "migrated" from a G Scale track powered layout and couldn't afford the financial outlay to replace my existing track. (Even selling off the LGB would have meant a loss compared to the "new" prices I'd paid

)

Initially I turned a "blind eye" to the trackwork, but over time tried different methods of ballasting with a view to improving both the looks and maintenance of the line.
I've now arrived at "The Final Solution" for me since I don't feel that finescale standards are really necessary in the garden environment:D

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 3:03 pm

James-Buzz:49135 wrote:Peco 45mm code 250 flexi track does not need a railbender on it. Bend it to the curves you want by hand, tack/screw/nail/glue it down to something and job done.

True if you build a timber viaduct for the whole railway.

However, if you float your track in ballast - my preferred method of construction - you will still need the rail bender as you are not nailing/glueing it to anything.

Peter in AZ

mhlr · Post by **mhlr** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 11:16 pm

Some people have used the method of screwing sleepers onto stakes, then pushing them into the ground to hold it in place in loose ballast... don't if that would be any use?

Sir Clothem Cap · Post by **Sir Clothem Cap** » Tue Mar 01, 2011 10:29 am

I float my track on ballast but put wooden blocks in every foot to screw the track to.

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