Desperate to build something model railroad related, I finally broke down and bought a Fast Tracks #8 Turnout Jig in Code 83. I also purchased the #8 Point Form Filing Tool for Code 70-100 rail along with it. I did not buy the Stock Aid Filing Tool. Sorry Tim Warris, but at $75 that will have to wait.
For those who may not be schooled on it there are three main items that make up the Fast Tracks "system". There are certainly many other items available at Fast Tracks; really all you need though to build a turnout is a jig, a Point Form Filing Tool, and a Stock Aid Filing Tool. I did not use a Stock Aid Filing Tool and although I did have a bit of a hard time filing the point recesses in the stock rails, it was certainly not impossible without the tool.
If you want to buy the minimum recommended items to construct a turnout with, you would buy the jig for the desired turnout geometry and rail size (in my case #8 in Code 83), a Point Form Filing Tool that matches the turnout geometry and rail size (again in my case #8, Code 70-100), and a Stock Aid Filing Tool to match your rail size. Fortunately, one Stock Aid Filing Tool is all you need for any size turnout, but you do need to get a Point Form tool to match the size jig you want to use.
I would probably not buy another jig just to make the same turnout in Code 70; I dry-fit some Code 70 rail into the jig and it seemed to work just fine.
Here is my first #8 turnout built with Code 83 rail in a Fast Tracks jig. It is complete minus the two guard rails and the rest of the ties of course.
I won't go step by step here on the construction process but I will present an AAR for my first turnout. The photos above depict the nearly finished turnout with all rails soldered to the PC board ties and the points soldered to the throwbar. There are no guard rails installed yet.
First I must mention that my soldering skills besides sweating some copper pipe in the house are limited to what I learned building this turnout and also a few decoder installations that I've done in the past few years. I think I way over-soldered this turnout.
The standard Kadee RP25 wheelset (the one sitting on the rails) rolls through both legs of the turnout quite smoothly with no clicking or jerking. That is without frog guard rails installed! RP25 wheels are Code 110 (.110" wide) wheels and are pretty much the standard wheel size with any rolling stock purchased today.
The other truck (the one not sitting on the turnout) has Proto:87 wheels from Northwest Short Line installed on it. Proto:87 wheels are true scale size. The wheel is only Code 64 (.064" wide) and the flange profile is also scale size. This truck does not make it through the frog at all. It dips down into the gap between the wing rails and the frog and derails at that point. I expected this would happen before I even tried it because Proto:87 wheels require scale dimensions for the flangeways at the wing rails and the guard rails because those parts actually perform their duty just like on a prototype turnout. All of those dimensions are much tighter than standard NMRA dimensions which is what the Fast Tracks jig is built to. Of course I will try the Proto:87 truck again once I get the guard rails installed, but I don't think they will help much.
That being said, do I even need to worry about the Proto:87 wheelset derailing in this turnout? There was a day when I considered modeling in Proto:87 but researching the topic revealed that it is beyond my skills or desire for such a negligible payout for all the hard work. While a car definitely looks better up close with scale wheels on it, your trackwork also has to be very tight to use P:87 equipment. Maybe if I decide to get into photography I could build small dioramas to Proto:87 standards, but I think if I was going to get into model railroad photography to that extent I would probably go for Proto:48 (O Scale Prototype) so that I could really go all out on the details that scale allows. For everyday operation, I think NMRA standards in HO scale are more than enough accuracy. As a compromise though, NWSL does make Code 88 (.088") wheelsets that look better than RP25 wheels but perform better than P:87 wheelsets. That could be worth investigating.
Anyway, back to the turnout. In short, my main lessons learned are that I need a better soldering iron and I need smaller diameter solder, and I also need to improve my soldering technique because I think it was quite sloppy. My soldering iron is a 40w Weller but it is the "economy" model that you can get at Hobby Lobby for about $20. I probably need to invest in the better quality Weller model that runs about $40-$50. Even though mine is 40w it just doesn't seem to get that hot. I'm also using .040 diameter 60/40 (60% Tin, 40% Lead) solder, but I need to get some .020 diameter instead. The .020 is what is sold on Fast Tracks website. The larger diameter solder I used created some huge blobs of solder that probably would have been easier to control with smaller diameter solder.
Bottom line - I like the Fast Tracks system overall. The biggest concern when handlaying track is gauging it but I didn't have to worry about that at all here because the jig does that naturally. As far as cost, Fast Tracks is high cost up front but it pays for itself after building just a few turnouts. Considering that a commercial #8 turnout can run anywhere from $25-$35 each, after building a half dozen turnouts the Fast Track jig would pay for itself. Rail, PC ties and wood ties are an expense as well but if you buy that stuff in bulk it will make dozens of turnouts.
For those who may not be schooled on it there are three main items that make up the Fast Tracks "system". There are certainly many other items available at Fast Tracks; really all you need though to build a turnout is a jig, a Point Form Filing Tool, and a Stock Aid Filing Tool. I did not use a Stock Aid Filing Tool and although I did have a bit of a hard time filing the point recesses in the stock rails, it was certainly not impossible without the tool.
If you want to buy the minimum recommended items to construct a turnout with, you would buy the jig for the desired turnout geometry and rail size (in my case #8 in Code 83), a Point Form Filing Tool that matches the turnout geometry and rail size (again in my case #8, Code 70-100), and a Stock Aid Filing Tool to match your rail size. Fortunately, one Stock Aid Filing Tool is all you need for any size turnout, but you do need to get a Point Form tool to match the size jig you want to use.
I would probably not buy another jig just to make the same turnout in Code 70; I dry-fit some Code 70 rail into the jig and it seemed to work just fine.
Here is my first #8 turnout built with Code 83 rail in a Fast Tracks jig. It is complete minus the two guard rails and the rest of the ties of course.
I won't go step by step here on the construction process but I will present an AAR for my first turnout. The photos above depict the nearly finished turnout with all rails soldered to the PC board ties and the points soldered to the throwbar. There are no guard rails installed yet.
First I must mention that my soldering skills besides sweating some copper pipe in the house are limited to what I learned building this turnout and also a few decoder installations that I've done in the past few years. I think I way over-soldered this turnout.
The standard Kadee RP25 wheelset (the one sitting on the rails) rolls through both legs of the turnout quite smoothly with no clicking or jerking. That is without frog guard rails installed! RP25 wheels are Code 110 (.110" wide) wheels and are pretty much the standard wheel size with any rolling stock purchased today.
The other truck (the one not sitting on the turnout) has Proto:87 wheels from Northwest Short Line installed on it. Proto:87 wheels are true scale size. The wheel is only Code 64 (.064" wide) and the flange profile is also scale size. This truck does not make it through the frog at all. It dips down into the gap between the wing rails and the frog and derails at that point. I expected this would happen before I even tried it because Proto:87 wheels require scale dimensions for the flangeways at the wing rails and the guard rails because those parts actually perform their duty just like on a prototype turnout. All of those dimensions are much tighter than standard NMRA dimensions which is what the Fast Tracks jig is built to. Of course I will try the Proto:87 truck again once I get the guard rails installed, but I don't think they will help much.
That being said, do I even need to worry about the Proto:87 wheelset derailing in this turnout? There was a day when I considered modeling in Proto:87 but researching the topic revealed that it is beyond my skills or desire for such a negligible payout for all the hard work. While a car definitely looks better up close with scale wheels on it, your trackwork also has to be very tight to use P:87 equipment. Maybe if I decide to get into photography I could build small dioramas to Proto:87 standards, but I think if I was going to get into model railroad photography to that extent I would probably go for Proto:48 (O Scale Prototype) so that I could really go all out on the details that scale allows. For everyday operation, I think NMRA standards in HO scale are more than enough accuracy. As a compromise though, NWSL does make Code 88 (.088") wheelsets that look better than RP25 wheels but perform better than P:87 wheelsets. That could be worth investigating.
Anyway, back to the turnout. In short, my main lessons learned are that I need a better soldering iron and I need smaller diameter solder, and I also need to improve my soldering technique because I think it was quite sloppy. My soldering iron is a 40w Weller but it is the "economy" model that you can get at Hobby Lobby for about $20. I probably need to invest in the better quality Weller model that runs about $40-$50. Even though mine is 40w it just doesn't seem to get that hot. I'm also using .040 diameter 60/40 (60% Tin, 40% Lead) solder, but I need to get some .020 diameter instead. The .020 is what is sold on Fast Tracks website. The larger diameter solder I used created some huge blobs of solder that probably would have been easier to control with smaller diameter solder.
Bottom line - I like the Fast Tracks system overall. The biggest concern when handlaying track is gauging it but I didn't have to worry about that at all here because the jig does that naturally. As far as cost, Fast Tracks is high cost up front but it pays for itself after building just a few turnouts. Considering that a commercial #8 turnout can run anywhere from $25-$35 each, after building a half dozen turnouts the Fast Track jig would pay for itself. Rail, PC ties and wood ties are an expense as well but if you buy that stuff in bulk it will make dozens of turnouts.
Train Show Acquisitions
I went to the annual Kirtland Model Railroad Show (in Kirtland OH, duh...) and made a couple small purchases. This show is sponsored by NMRA Divison 5.
Since Spruce St is a PRR facility, I need to build up my PRR fleet. While I do have a decent amount of both heavyweight and lightweight passenger cars in PRR livery, I have very little head-end equipment, which I will need a lot of for modeling Spruce St and CUS. I picked up a 2-pack of Walthers PRR express reefers in wartime livery. These were limited run and have since been discontinued, so I was happy to find them and even happier to find them well below MSRP. I'd like to find more of these, and Walthers made them in pre-war, wartime, and post-war paint schemes.
The best find though was the Walthers Modern Coaling Tower kit. The NMRA Division 5 folks had their own table set up at the show and I was quite surprised to find the coaling tower still in shrink wrap for $30, which is less than half what the kit retails for. This will make a nice representation of the Spruce St coaling tower which served four parallel tracks in real life.
My PRR Heritage...
You wouldn't really know it from reading my blog, but my earliest interests in railroading and model railroading were of the PRR. Not quite sure what made me a PRR fan, but it has stuck.
I recently dug out my old "favorite locomotive", which is a vintage (1970's) undecorated Atlas SD35 that I painted and decaled into PRR livery myself. The road number is authentic too for a PRR SD35. I was probably around 14 years old when I did this, which would have been around 1977. I painted it with Floquil Brunswick Green using a Badger airbrush and a can of air propellant. The locomotive still runs in DC (barely) and would need a major overhaul to make it run smoothly, but I remember back then this thing ran great.
Hi Jeff,
ReplyDeleteIf it's worth anything, I use Code 88 semi-scale wheels here at Fillmore.
I have Peco Streamline 83 turnouts and the semi-scale wheels move through them without trouble.
I imagine that they would be quite good over Fast Tracks turnouts.
I use the Kadee type as they have the ribbing on the back wheel faces as found on chilled wheels.
These wheels are sintered metal (metal powder formed) and I know a lot of modellers don't like them.
They are blackened so the treads don't shine and removing the blacking isn't easy.
I soda blast them and then take 600 grit to the treads to polish.
A lot of work, I know, but they look much better than RP-25 wheels.
Other semi-scale wheels are probably a better (easier?) choice, but I committed to these a while ago when doing the coal train hoppers.
On cars like them, one can see the chilled wheel ribbing easily and I liked that.
They run fine and are my standard for 33" wheels.
That coaling tower will be an impressive structure on your layout!
I was studying your plan some more; you could have a number of operating jobs assigned there.
I find at Fillmore an operating session consumes about four locomotives an hour (no fast clock).
All things being equal, that's about 200 engines daily, of course there will be times where there is more action and when there is less. I'm using the June 7th 1942 NYC Buffalo Division Employee Time Table to zero in on specific times of the day to model (based on what I have available locomotive-wise). Even so, to get this volume of locomotive traffic I need it to be during the war so that Troop Extras figure significantly. I guess what I'm trying to say is a big-time engine terminal is big time because it needs to service a lot of locomotives. So there must be a lot of action and a lot of locomotives. For a three hour operating session, I need to have about 16-18 locomotives (some are already in the servicing circuit when the session starts and others are as well when ending). I am hard pressed to get a dozen for a 2-1/2 hour session now. When I have all my locomotives prepared (detailed, painted,weathered, etc) I think I'll have 16 mainline engines available and I'll schedule a couple of switchers for service too. Hopefully that will kept the boys busy :)
Running service trains (coal, ash, and box car loads) helps take up time in between. Another trick is having a snow plow to move around in case it is in the way.
Sorry for the long-winded comment; you've got a big fun job ahead of you.
With Best Wishes
Rick
Hi Rick,
ReplyDeleteI don't mind long winded at all, just look at most of my blog posts, LOL!
To me I think the most realistic look on a wheel would be the shiny wheel tread with the rest of the wheel being "dirty". On a lot of passenger and express cars the back of the wheel is almost impossible to see (for me anyway) so ribbed wheels or not is less important to me on those cars. I have been gradually been upgrading some of my old 1970's Athearn & Roundhouse freight cars with Code 110 Kadee trucks to get them up to modern standards and to pad my fleet until I can replace the older cars with newer. Kadee trucks & wheels are great if you can stand the black wheels. Yours is an interesting method to make the treads shiny!
The Code 64 wheels I have are NWSL weathered stainless steel, which gives them a golden brownish color and I don't like it at all, I think it looks toyish. I think they use chemical weathering similar to gun bluing which means I think some of the metal would have to be removed to get to the shiny metal, and in HO scale removing a couple thousandths of material would change the wheel profile. Fortunately though, NWSL also makes them in unweathered stainless which is nice and shiny. I think it would be much easier to start with a shiny wheel and paint/weather the rest of the wheel leaving the tread shiny than vice-versa. I also like how NWSL sells their wheels and axles unassembled and in insulated and non-insulated variety. I have an axle press so I can press the wheels onto the axle and can gauge them very accurately, which was what I was aiming for in my short period of Proto:87 interest.
The more I learn about the PRR Spruce St Yard in Columbus, the more I can see the operations there were also quite busy. Even in 1955 the PRR still had over 20 trains a day that came to Columbus. Back that up 10 years and it would have been even busier, although I haven't seen any timetables yet from the 40's. When I add in mail, express, coach yard, Pullman, and diner car operations then as you say I will have a big fun job ahead of me. I am retired US Army and the idea of modeling during the war years/immediate post-war is interesting to me. There would have still been significant troop traffic on the railroads even into 1946 as the US military was winding down from wartime to peacetime posture.
I am at the point right now where soon I will be able to start constructing benchwork. The plan I posted earlier is basically a draft plan and I have ideas for changes I want to make to it. Fortunately I have a basement and do not need to worry about having to pack up and unpack the layout, so I can build more permanent benchwork, although I still intend to incorporate some modularity into the construction. I am really interested in your concept of mobile/movable staging.
Cheers
Hi Jeff,
ReplyDeleteThanks very much for your detailed reply...I am very interested in what you have got going on there!
If you would like to bounce an idea or have a question about my staging design, please feel free to contact me off-blog at:
nycfillmore@gmail.com
I'm also ex-army (Canadian). I was in armoured cars and tanks and I gather from your photo your were in armour as well. Always good to meet a fellow tanker!
Cheers
Rick