I've built an 8x8 double track layout. It's all ez track with Bachmann turnouts. Problem-Many of my locomotives tend to derail on the turnouts. This is particularly true of steamers with pilot trucks. I have standard remote turnouts, #5 turnouts and a #6 crossover turnout. Why can't a copmpany as big as Bachmann build a turnout that doesn't require filing and fiddling? About half my "fleet"are Bachmann and the rest mostly Rivarossi and Mantua, but they will all derial on the turnouts.
I've been "playing with trains" for over 50 years now and I can tell you that this has always been a tinkerer's hobby. It just sort of goes with working with lots of moving parts. Did you ever own an MG? Nobody asked why MG couldn't build a car that ran right. Part of the mystique was spending Saturday afternoon tinkering with the carb and the ignition system so you could take your girl out for a spin on Sunday.
Bachmann could make turnouts that would be derailment proof. Years ago Tru-Scale made turnouts that had the points and frog fabricated as a solid piece...the whole thing moved very much like the old tinplate turnouts from Lionel. They almost never caused a derailment, but they didn't look much like the real thing and they were very expensive. Today, it seems like a lot of manufacturers are trying to be "good enough." Excellent costs a lot more than good enough and may not perform much better. I don't use EZ-Track for reasons that have nothing to do with quality, but from what I read, Bachmann has made a product that is good enough.
If you stay with model railroading, you will come to learn how to deal with these little annoyances and take some pleasure from making something that wasn't quite up to snuff work well.
Just my two cents worth.
OldTimer
From Experience most of the derailments I have seen at turnouts are caused by coupler trip pins being too low and snagging on the points. As Old timer pointed out this is a tinkerers hobby.
One of the lessons I have learned from reading other modeler's threads is that building your own turnouts is the best way to make them nearly foolproof.
The FastTrack jigs make this easy and the finished product is so much better than anything you can buy.
I do not find these answers to be acceptable.
First, my remote turnout derails ~100% of the time.
Second, my manual turnout rarely fails so blaming it on turnouts in general seems to be an over generalization.
This is a product that should not be sold like this.
One thing that helps with the turnouts is to try to have them connected to leading straights. Do not have the track prior to the turnout be a curve. That seems to help.
A little more on the topic. Posters at another forum are suggesting that you file the top of the points on your turnout. I haven't tried this but it is something to pursue.
you don't file the top of the points. you file the inside edge of the points, to sharpen them. to file down the tops of the points would increase derailmants by encouraging the wheel flanges to ride the top of the point instead of the inside edge. what you want is a knife edge on the end of the point, and for the point to be held firmly against the stock rail.
jward,
Thanks for the clarification. I should have been more clear myself that I was just passing along the report and that I don't know exactly what to do myself. Looking at my turnout, however, I wonder if I need to file the end of the point off. It looks like the point contacts the rail before the tip and then bows a bit away. I'm not sure sharpening it is going to do any good. This may be an example of individual issues over one size solutions.
Thanks for clarifying, though.
atari, in your case, i'd try to carefully straighten the point so that the end touches the stock rail. there should be no gap between the point and stock rail. if there is that will probably cause derailments.
I think I agree with the OP and atari. If My brand new Bachmann Spectrum locomotives won't run reliably on EZ track nickel silver turnouts, and I'm talking about even reliably going straight through , the product needs a little more development before it is released on the public. None of these items are inexpensive when purchased and they ought to be reliable when properly set up right out of the box.
I agree with atari and geno-a product should be reliable and not require "tinkering" or "filing' or any other user activity if it is NEW. I have no problem fixing Ebay stuff
and other 2nd hand equipment, but a NEW product should function properly out of the box. No excuses.
I had previously tried EZ, and then gave up for the same reasons given. The problem that I saw, and that has been discussed in other forums, is that the movable rails are way too wobbly, the engine hits them, they wobble out of line, the truck then slams into the solid rail and you are cooked.
I just got back into EZ, hoping this was a fixed deal by now. So far, all of the standard turnouts - yeah - I know- yucky full 18" r diverge - all seem to be working fine.
Also - much gratitude given for the newer(whenever that was) added line of smaller pieces of track. This has virtually eliminated all problems of previously needing to cut your own filler track.
Tim
My manual turnout seems to work just fine as well. It's just the remote that has a 100% fail rate. In fact, it is so bad, I wonder if I just got a defective part.
Quote from: atari on February 20, 2011, 08:49:52 AM
My manual turnout seems to work just fine as well. It's just the remote that has a 100% fail rate. In fact, it is so bad, I wonder if I just got a defective part.
My experience with Bachmann turnouts has been the same. The manual turnouts seem to work with no problems. However, the same can't be said for the remote turnouts. I have had nearly a 50% faillure rate for them. Some could be fixed by "tinkering", several were so bad, they had to be returned to the hobby shop or to Bachmann.
That doesn't say much for Bachmann's qualitycontrol.
I have three of the DCC turnouts. The only problems that I have had with them is some "squirrelly" DCC behavior.
I've read elsewhere about some odd DCC behavior with the turnouts (maybe here?). However, it is encouraging that they at least do not derail. Which ones do you use?
Quote from: atari on February 20, 2011, 12:18:54 PM
I've read elsewhere about some odd DCC behavior with the turnouts (maybe here?). However, it is encouraging that they at least do not derail. Which ones do you use?
If you are referring you me, I have three of the Bachmann EZ Track DCC turnouts . I would change over more of the troublesome Bachmann remote turnouts, if it weren't for the expense and the occasional weird DCC behavior.
So which DCC turnouts do you use? #4,5,6?
Quote from: atari on February 20, 2011, 03:03:01 PM
So which DCC turnouts do you use? #4,5,6?
I have both #4 and #5.
It occurs to me that he Bachmann product info does not state the radius of the turnouts. What are the dimensions of the different turnouts?
Ever since I added a capacitive discharge Unit the regular Bachmann remote turnouts work fine.
I searched online and found a capacitive discharge unit but I still don't know what it is or does. Care to explain?
Quote from: atari on February 21, 2011, 07:26:56 PM
I searched online and found a capacitive discharge unit but I still don't know what it is or does. Care to explain?
Be happy to :)
Non DCC Bachmann and most other entry level turnouts use a twin solenoid or coil to throw the switch. Basically what happens is when you push the button to move the switch you create an electro magnet which pulls the frog in the direction you want it go. There is one coil for each direction.
Normally non DCC turnouts get their power from the AC or accesory outputs of the power pack. What I and others have found out is that in many cases the 16 or so volts AC of the power pack just isn't enough power to reliably throw the turnout.
Enter the capacitive discharge unit(CDU). This is a simple circuit that you can build or buy that uses an electical capacitor to store up a charge which is higher (I believe around 21 to 25 volts) So now when you throw the switch there is a much more powerful electromagnet (for a second or so) causing the turnout to operate more reliably . Then the current stops and the capacitor recharges generally in under a second and is ready for the next time. According to the instructions in my unit they claim it can throw up to 10 turnouts at once though I have not tested this.
You should wire the CDU in between your power supply and the switch panel so you should generally need only one CDU per layout.
There is one other advantage of installing a CDU. While it puts out a higher voltage the pulse if you will lasts a fraction of a second and then dies. This protects the coils from overheating and burning out.
I hope thi helps.
atari - per the RR-Track software, the Standard Turnout of course is 30 degrees, the #5 is 12 degrees, #6 is 10 degrees, the wye is +- 6 degrees, and the #4 seems to be good at 12 degrees.
The 33.3r Curves come in a pack of 4ea, and have a 12 degree and a 6 degree, so they will match up with the #4, #5, (12 deg) and the wye (6 deg) - the #6 however is a pickle, as the only 10 degree curve available w/o cutting your own, is an 18"r curve, kinda violent after a #6.
Tim
So which one matches up to the 22" curves?
I just ran a short layout on RR Track - 7 22R curves, with a #5 RH, followed by a 1/2 piece of 22r curve is the closest one can get(the #4 switches have not been added into RR Track program yet) Even so, there will bee some fudging, as the switch is 12 degrees, a 22"r is 22.5 degrees. 22.5 minus 12 = 10 degrees. The 1/2 22"r curve is 11.25 degrees, thats 1.25 too much. In other words, they dont make a piece that allows what you want. Youd have to hand cut a 22"r curve, or fudge in the 11.25 curve - that is push the resulting minor crookedness of the straight side loop back into straightness. You would have to mess with it IRL in real life-
Dear All,
http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,15000.0.html
Scroll to bottom.
Hope this helps.
Sincerely,
Joe Satnik