Once again, I am still trying to get some information about replacing and redesigning at least 2 of my unduly troublesome crossover sections on my E-Z Track layout.  I am seriously thinking of replacing certain sections of this layout with Atlas track.  Assume that I would be using Atlas Code 100 nickel silver track.  I would also be replacing the straight track on both sides of the crossover, probably with Atlas Code 100 flex track.

If you were designing a crossover between two parallel main lines using two turnouts in the middle of a long straight (well over 10', so there is plenty of room), which Atlas turnouts would you use...#4, #6 or #8?  The two lines are not next to each other.  They are approximately 5" apart.  Maybe it was a mistake for me to use 2 Bachmann #5 left hand turnouts each to make these two crossovers.  If you need exact center line measurements between the two tracks, just say so in your response and I will get them for you.

And why would you recommend that particular turnout?

Also, do you have any particular recommendations regarding the type of roadbed to use?

Thank you for your responses.

I am gathering information before I make the decision whether to just remove several sections of Bachmann EZ-track from my layout and replace them with Atlas nickel silver track and cork roadbed.  As part of this information-gathering process, I need the answers to a couple of questions:

1.  What is the difference between Atlas code 83 and code 100 track?  As far as alignment of the track is concerned, would there be any problem connecting the Atlas track to E-Z track?  I don't see any problem..I would just use the standard rail joiners and remove the interlocking parts from the E-Z track... but I want to make sure.

2.  Does Atlas have a switch/turnout that is the equivalent to the Bachmann #5 turnout?  If so, do they have a remote version that can be wired to a switch on the other side of the layout?   If there is any one change that I am most seriously thinking about making, it is those #5 Bachman turnouts.

I am not going to remove all of my track...but I am seriously considering removing the 4' or so of EZ track leading up to as many as 6 #5 turnouts and possibly a couple of 18" and 22" radius curves...

...but like I said, I am in the information gathering stage right now.  Although this move would require some major surgery on my layout, I want to get to the point where I can have some peace of mind with these turnouts and be done with it and I have pretty much gotten to the point where I just don't trust these E-Z track turnouts anymore.  I have already removed my layout background so I have easy access to all part of my layout.  I had to do that anyway to address my current E-Z track problem areas, so if I make going to make this move, now is the time.  Besides, Atlas track and cork roadbed is a cheaper to use, so the expense wouldn't be all that much.  The rest would just be cosmetic scenery restoration, but before I do any of that, I am going to make sure that my repaired track is working perfectly first.

I use Bachmann EZ-track on my layout and I still have not licked the problem of derailments at turnouts.  I think that the most maddening thing about this issue is how randomly it happens.  The same car can cross over the same turnout without problem for 3 laps and derail on lap number 4.  One car can derail consistently at the same turnout every time.  The problem seems to happen much more with longer cars, such as 50' freight cars and 72' passenger cars.  It can happen with brand new RTR cars or with assembled car kits.  It can happen with engines...especially the second engine in a 2 engine consist...so the issue isn't the weight of the cars or engines.  It can happen in the middle of a long straight.  I even modified my layout so that the turnouts aren't anywhere near a curve and I have two problem #5 turnouts.  One of the worst on my layout is a remote crossover  turnout (single piece) where the car switches from one track to a second track.

I have watched the cars as they cross a turnout closely and have observed that it is usually one set of wheels in a truck (usually a rear one) that is not making complete contact with the rails...it hits the frog and bingo!...the car derails.

Then I had a thought and I want to know what the group thinks about it.  Has anyone has had any experience using spacers (Kadee or others) as a way to keep the trucks and wheel sets level on the bottom of the cars so the it maximizes the  contact of all wheels with the track...especially as they cross the frogs on the turnouts?   We all know that the truck needs a certain amount of play horizontally and vertically as the cars navigate around the track..but that also seems to allow a certain amount of vertical wobble so that one wheel may not be on squarely on the track as it crosses a turnout frog.  It may be raised just a little bit...and that seems to me exactly what is happening.  Does anyone have any thoughts about or experience in this area or am I totally off track in more ways than one?

I have replaced turnouts and that solved some some problems.  I have adjusted the screws that hold the trucks to car bodies.  I have added weights to cars.  I have even tried thin strips of plastic on the inside of turnout frogs to keep the wheels close to the track as they pass through the guide and over the frog.  I haven't messed around with the frogs, but nothing so far seems to work consistently and I have a hard time believing that Bachmann's turnouts are that bad.

If the turnout frogs sometime sits a bit higher than the rails, should they be filed down?  What part of the frog should be filed?  Is there a demo video anywhere on the net on how to do this?  I believe this to be the case on my problem switches because I notice the cars (and engines) visibly wobble as they cross a switch, one set of wheels loses contact with the rails and the derailment happens.  I have also confirmed this using that clear flat car that Micromark sells.  If so, will someone please walk me through how to do this?  How far should the frog be filed down?    

It has been my experience that the derailment issue is the main problem with HO scale...as opposed to O scale or S scale.  Do I have start over and rip out all of my Bachmann track?

There ain't nothing easy about this issue and it is totally ruining any positive experience that I have having.  I have spent an awful lot on money on this hobby and still can't be able to have the basic experience of sitting back and enjoying simply operating my trains.  I still have to hold my breath every time my trains go around the track.  It is not a question of if a car will derail...it is only a question of when and which car will be be this time?  

That is not the way that this is supposed to be working out.

Can anybody tell me anything about Con-Cor and the quality of their 72' HO scale streamliner passenger cars?  Is their quality comparable to Athearn?  Is the quality better or worse and in what respect?  What other manufacturer would they be comparable to?  Do they use 4 or 6 wheel trucks and how do they handle on curves?  How do they handle on Bachmann EZ-track?

Can Con-Cor knuckle couplers be replaced with Kadees?  Can I use #5s pr #14 whisker couplers...or do I need to use a longer coupler?

I am looking at their 72' SP Golden State streamliner passenger cars.  Anyone who has had any experience with 72' HO scale Con-Cor passenger cars (or who just knows anything about them), please fell free to chime in.

Passenger cars over this length that have 6 wheel trucks seem to cause me too many derailment problems.  My turn radiuses range from 18" (inside track), 22"-26" (middle track) to 30" (outside track).

Does anyone know of a good hobby shop that might carry Southern Pacific passenger cars made by Walthers (other than the "Daylight" paint scheme)?  I am looking for both the "Budd" streamlined passenger cars  and the heavyweight two tone grey cars.  Walthers is out of most of them.  I checked E-bay with little luck and Amazon was no good either.

The sad news of the passing of Art Linkletter has a special meaning for me.

When I was a kid, I was one of 4 kids from my elementary school in South Central Los Angeles, California who appeared on Art Linkletter's "House Party" television show. It was a big deal back in those days (the mid-1950s) for 4 little Black kids to appear on a television show of that magnitude and we were the talk of the school. He gave me an Athearn HO scale electric train set which started my life long love affair with model railroading. I never forgot the experience. Nearly 20 years later when I was living on the East Coast, I met of one the women who also appeared with me when she was a little girl on that show and we talked for a long time that night about that experience. It brought back a lot of good memories.

Art Linkletter was a class act who made a tremendously positive impression on me. I know we all have to pass on one day, but I hate to see him go.

Art Linkletter put a lot of smiles on little kids faces...including mine..and made a lot of people laugh. I know that my experience was not unique and that a lot of other lucky llittle kids just like me who appeared on his program...of all colors...will never forget him.

In a way, it's kind of strange how one event can have a life-long effect...but that's the true story of how I got started in the World's Greatest Hobby.

There are many good things that people will say about Art Linkletter and I just wanted to say a few of them.

We lost one of the good guys today.

Hello again everyone:

It's been a little while since I have been in touch with most of you but I haven't forgotten you and the excellent advice that you have given me since I started building my layout in 2008.  It is now about 95% complete.  The only remaining stuff to do is the wiring for the Circuitron RR crossing signals at the two RR crossings and wiring the street lights.  Everything else has been completed.

It made all the difference when I installed an 18" high panoramic backdrop around 3 sides of my model railroad layout.  It is a total length of 30'.  Made by All Scale Backdrops in Utah (note – they are in the process of moving to Boulder, Colorado), it depicts mountains, hills and forests which are typical of the eastern part of Central and Northern California.  It really adds a sense of detail and depth perception...and it is so much better than a white wall and windows in the background.  

I just posted about 30 new layout pics last night,  If you want to take a look at my Photobucket site, my site address is:

http://s584.photobucket.com/albums/ss284/BradKT

To reiterate for those of who who have not seen the earlier pics that I posted, the basic theme is an industrial park, with oil refinery complex (Conoco oil refinery, storage tanks, natural gas unloading facility and tanker truck loading facility), rail yard, fire station, engine house (with overhead crane, passenger car washing station and diesel locomotive refueling station), cement plant, gas station, warehouse, construction equipment rental company, bus terminal, taxi stand, passenger station/freight depot  and truck-rail facility.

The locale is either central or Southern California...in the eastern part of the state.  The time frame is the early to mid-1970s.  The flags that I run are Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, Denver and Rio Grande Western and Santa Fe.

The layout is HO scale.  The layout itself is an a "L" shape (9' x 5' on the left side and 14' x 6' on the other, with an access hatch).  There are 3 tracks.  The outer and middle tracks go around the shape of the "L" and in the rear of the layout the outer track is elevated.   The outer track curves are 28" and the middle track curves are 22."  The inner track is a large oval about 11 feet in length with 18" curves.  All three tracks are connected by switches (#6 turnouts), which allow trains to be switched back and forth between tracks (there are two turnouts at each location so the trains can be switched off of one track and onto the other...each set of two turnouts is wired into and controlled by a single Atlas switch).  All of the turnouts are powered by a separate DC transformer (also Atlas).    There is a siding and small rail yard in the middle rear of the inner oval track.  The 24" square access hatch is located inside of and on the left end of the inner oval track.  Two more lines come off the siding to the small rail yard and engine house (these are #5 turnouts).  At the front of the layout (where the controls are located), there is another siding coming off the outer track (#5 turnout), which is to allow cars to be placed on and taken off of the track.

I have also installed three sets of manually operated diesel horns.  Once any of the 3 switches is turned on, the horn(s) operates on a continuous loop until I turn it off.  Each of the 3 horns gives the dash-dash-dot-dash signal that the train is approaching a crossing and is the sound of a different type of diesel locomotive.

Although I am still running the Bachmann EZ-Command Control System with a Bachmann 5 amp booster, I have decided that I will ultimately upgrade to a Digitrax setup, but that will be done after everything else is completed.

I am very pleased with the way that things are turning out...thanks to all of you, so if any of you want to take a look, you have my photobucket site address.

Once again, thank you.  There is a part of all of you who gave me some advice in this layout...especially Yampa Bob.

Hello again everyone:

I'd like to pick the minds of the group on this issue and get the benefit of your experience about the right Kadee coupler to use with my engines.  I know about the #5 and #14 whisker couplers for the freight and passenger cars (Athearn's passenger cars are shorter than those of other manufacturers).   

I am trying to settle on the right Kadee coupler to use with my engines, especially the longer Athearn engines...in particular the SD-45s, SD-45-2s and FP-45s.  Now that I think about it, this issue sometimes presents itself with some of my longer Atlas engines as well.

It seems to me that a coupler with a longer shank should be used...one with an underset shank that raises the knuckle slightly.  I have noticed that if I try to use an ordinary #5 or a #14 whisker coupler on the rear of one of these engines, the coupler knuckle seems to sit a little low when it comes to coupling to freight cars in particular...and can sometimes result in the engine uncoupling from the cars. 

Likewise, when it comes to the length of the coupler, would using a coupler with a longer shank help to prevent the derailing of the second engine in a 2-engine consist?

I guess the questions that I am asking are as follows:

1.  While the #5 or #14 medium length center set shank couplers are fine for your average freight cars or Athearn passenger cars, should I be using a coupler on the engines that is longer than a medium shank coupler? 

2.  If the answer to Question 1 is yes, is that also true for couplers between engines?  Every once in a while, I notice that the front wheels of the second engine in a 2 engine consist can derail coming off of a curve (these are 22", 26" or 28" radius curves) and I am wondering if the coupler is too short and is pulling the front wheels of the second engine off the track?

3.  Should I be using couplers with under set shanks on on the rear of the second engine in a 2 engine consist?  After all, you can't use spacers to raise the height of the coupler knuckle on the rear of an engine so that it lines up with the coupler on the first freight car (or passenger car)...nor do I know of any way to lower the coupler knuckle on the first car being pulled by the engine.  I don't really want to use an overset shank on one end of some of my freight cars because that means that I would be limited to only certain freight cars I could use as the first car in a train only to those which have a overset shank. 

I have been looking at the longer Kadee #21 or #31 couplers with the underset shanks for the engines and have been asking myself is this the solution to this issue?  Or is this an issue at all?

Does anyone have any experience with this issue or am I barking up the wrong tree?   Any and all suggestions would be welcome.

I do have a Kadee coupler gauge, but it seems to me that I just might be using the wrong kind of coupler on these engines.

P.S. - And by the way, if I do need to be using a coupler other than the #5 or #14, does these couplers come pre-assembled?  I hate the idea of trying to put a spring in the knuckle of an unassembled coupler.

Thanks for your responses as always guys.  I have learned a lot from you before and I am sure that I will learn a lot more from you in the future.

I am building a DCC layout that is about 80-85% complete. 

I have seen automated functions in layouts where a train stops at a stop (such as a station or a factory)  and then restarts and continues on after a set period of time.  I checked with Circuitron and, while they have the circuit boards that enable DC powered trains to do this, they don't have anything that would work with DCC.

Is there anything out there that would enable the automation of a DCC layout so that my trains could make automatic stops?

I am going to be putting several nonoperating RR track signals (the pole type) on my layout and have some simple questions about where to locate them:

Question # 1: Are RR block signals supposed to be mounted on the left or right side of the track?  I had heard that they were supposed to be mounted to the right of the track.

Question # 2: Does this depend on the particular RR?

Question # 3: Are the signals supposed to be located only at switches or just every so often for each track?

Question # 4: Should 2 signals be mounted side-by-side before each turnout?

Question # 5: Does anyone know where I could get some information on this subject?

I currently am in the process of trying to repair several old Athearn freight cars that were given to me, but I need some information first to see if my idea is doable.  The bodies of the freight cars are in excellent shape and this is why I want to salvage them.   There are 8 cars, so it would make the effort worthwhile.     

What needs to be repaired is that screws that were too large were  originally used to secure the trucks...resulting in trucks that did not swivel as smoothly as they would have had the proper screws been used in the first place.  The holes for the screws (in the bottom of the plastic body of the freight cars) are now too large to use the proper screws that you can get from Athearn, Accurail, etc. 

The idea that I want to try is to fill the screw holes for the trucks with some kind of plastic filler or sealant and then drill out the holes again with the proper sized drill bit. Using the right screws, I can then secure the trucks and will have some good freight cars that I can use.

I have a couple of questions:

(1) what type of plastic are Athearn cars made out of?  I want to use something that will adhere and bond to the plastic inside the holes than I can then re-drill.

(2) does anyone have any suggestion as to what type of filler that I should use?  Epoxy...or what?

First of all, I would like to wish everyone a Happy Holiday Season and wish all of you the best.

To all of you good people who have really helped me over the last almost 2 years to resolve a variety of issues, I have decided to update you on my layout so you can see the payoff...and the latest progress that I have made.

The last of the structures (the passenger station/freight depot and truck-rail facility) and the Tomar RR crossing signals at the two street crossings have finally been installed.  They came out great and make for a really realistic-looking layout.

I have posted a number of new pics at the following site:

http://s584.photobucket.com/albums/ss284/BradKT/

For those who wish to visit the site and who have not seen the earlier pics that I posted, they are there also and there are approximately 185 pics posted at the site.

To reiterate for those of who who have not seen the earlier pics that I posted, the basic theme is an industrial park, with oil refinery complex (Conoco oil refinery, storage tanks, natural gas unloading facility and tanker truck loading facility), rail yard, fire station, engine house (with overhead crane, passenger car washing station and diesel locomotive refueling station), cement plant, gas station, warehouse, construction equipment rental company, bus terminal, taxi stand, passenger station/freight depot  and truck-rail facility.

The locale is either central or Southern California...in the eastern part of the state.  The time frame is the early to mid-1970s.  The flags that I run are Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, Denver and Rio Grande Western and Santa Fe.

This is still a work in progress.  I still have to do the following:

1:  wire the street lights, wire the traffic light and getting the RR crossing signals working right; and
2.  install the background around the 3 outer edges of the L-shaped layout.

Yampa Bob took the time to teach me how re-size the files and how to post these images and they are a manageable size so they won't slow down your computer trying to load them.

I hope you enjoy what you see.  This has been a fun project and I couldn't have done anything near this quality had it not been for the contributions, cautionary notes and suggestions that so many of you have made.

Once again, thank you everyone.  There is a part of all of you in this layout.  Enjoy.

Hello again everyone.  It's been a while and I hope that all is well with you. I have been working on my layout intermittently while I have had to deal with some other things, but now I am back on it now and hope to get the least few details completed over the next 2-3 months.

I am still somewhat dissatisfied with the fact that some of my Bachmann turnouts (1 #6 and 1# 5 in particular) are still having some derailment problems.  Aftaer I replaced those particular turnouts, the number of derailments dropped dramatically...but every so often, one happens.

I want to effectively deal with this once and for all if I can.

I use Bachmann nickel silver EZ track on my layout.  I am focusing more and more on that plastic frog.  I know that when the wheels of a car pass over that one plastic piece, they rise slightly and I am pretty sure that this is what is causing this.  I found an excellent article in Model Railroading article which has persuaded me that the inside face of the plastic frog probably needs to be slightly filed but before I do that, I should probably check everything with an HO scale track gauge.

Does anyone know where I can get a HO scale track measuring gauge?  Any other thoughts that you have on this subject would also be appreciated.

Thank you to all, as usual.  I hope that all of you enjoy a Happy Thanksgiving.

P.S. - For those who had been following my progress on my layout, I have finally completed the truck-rail terminal and am installing it today.  I have already installed three operating diesel horn modules...a different one for each of the 3 tracks that can be manually triggered.  I am also in the middle of installing operating RR crossing signals at the two crossings...Tomar signals with Circuitron circuit boards.

Hi everyone.  It's been a while.  I have been working on my layout and then I took a few weeks off and now I am back to it.

I know that what I am fixing to say is sacrilege to many, but I have had very mixed experiences with Kaydee couplers.  Yes, I have a Kaydee coupler gauge, but getting them aligned just right (not to mention the ones that you have to assemble) has become a major pain in the butt! I have had a number of cars that just won't stay coupled.

I think that part of it is due to the fact that on my layout, there may be a few uneven spots on the track (nothing major), but as far as I am concerned, couplers should be able to handle that.

Question:  I know that Kaydee is (for most model railroaders) the gold standard when it comes to couplers, but has the coupler technology of other manufacturers almost caught up with Kaydee?  For example, Athearn RTR freight and passenger cars come equipped with plastic knuckle couplers that seem to work very well once I switched back to them on my Athearn passenger cars (Santa, Southern Pacific, Denver and Rio Grande Western and Union Pacific).  I am very seriously considering switching back to non-Kaydee knuckle couplers on my engines and freight cars as well. 

Your thoughts would be appreciated.  I just want the engines and cars to stay coupled so I can enjoy my trains.  It's not like I am part of a model railroaders club and I have to use Kaydee couplers, but if I don't go with Kaydee couplers anymore, do you have any thoughts and/or recommendations?

To all of you good people who have really helped me over the last year-plus to resolve a variety of issues, I have decided to unveil my layout so you can see the payoff...and the progress to date.

I have posted over a hundred pics at the following site:

http://s584.photobucket.com/albums/ss284/BradKT/

The basic theme is an industrial park, with oil refinery complex (Conoco oil refinery, storage tanks, natural gas unloading facility and tanker truck loading facility), rail yard, fire station, engine house (with overhead crane, passenger car washing station and diesel locomotive refueling station), cement plant, gas station, warehouse, construction equipment rental company, bus terminal, taxi stand, passenger station and truck-rail facility.

The locale is either central or Southern California...in the eastern part of the state.  The time frame is the early to mid-1970s.  The flags that I run are Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, Denver and Rio Grande Western and Santa Fe.

I made many of my own decals and got a substantial amount of billboard and advertising material from the 1970s era off the internet to re-create the era. 

This is still a work in progress.  I still have to do the following:

1:  wire the street lights, traffic and working RR crossing signals;
2.  install the RR crossing signals and actuators;
3.  install the background around the 2 outer edges of the L-shaped layout;
4.  assemble, paint and install the passenger station and figures; and
5.  assemble, paint and install the truck-rail terminal, vehicles and figures.

Yampa Bob took the time to teach me how re-size the files and how to post these images and they are a manageable size so they won't slow down your computer trying to load them.

I hope you enjoy what you see.  This has been a fun project and I couldn't have done anything near this quality had it not been for the contributions, cautionary notes and suggestions that so many of you have made.

Once again, thank you everyone.  There is a part of all of you in this layout.  Enjoy.

I think that I may have an electrical power issue (not enough).  I use a Bachmann EZ Command system setup withe the 5 amp booster.

My layout is L-shaped.  One side is 9'x5' and the other side is 9'x6'.  This makes one side of the L-shape 14' long and the other side 9' long.  There is an access hatch where they intersect.

There are 3 tracks.  The outer and middle tracks (tracks 1 and 2) go around the outside of the "L" shape of the layout.  The inner track (track 3) is a large oval in the middle of the payout.   Tracks 1, 2 and 3 are all connected by turnouts that allow trains to be switched back and forth between the 3 tracks.  While there are sidings and a small rail yard, there is no need to discuss them here.  I just wanted to give you the size and general configuration of the layout.

The switches are powered by a separate DC transformer.

The trains that I run are normally pulled by 2 engines (usually Athearn or Atlas DCC, but I also have a few Bachmann DCC engines that I run as well).  That would mean that when I am running 3 trains, 6 engines are operating on the 3 tracks.

Here is the issue.  When I run only 1 train on the layout, it runs noticably faster than if I try to run 2 or 3.  It's like when I try to run 3 trains, they are slightly underpowered. 

Does anyone have any thoughts about this and what can I do about it?

I am clear on the need to keep the wheels of a locomotive clean, but my question is what is the best, most efficient and easiest way to do it?

One of the ideas that I have in mind is to make a jig as follows:

1.  Take a 4" wide piece of wood (14"-16" long x 1" thick) and, using  my table saw, cut two grooves with the same width between them as the rails of an HO track about 1/4" deep (this would be for the wheels to fit om and the wood surface would be covered by a piece of cloth like an old white T-shirt).

2,  Using two wires with insulated alligator clips on either end, connect one end of each wire to the rails of the track and the other end to the posts of the power trucks.  I would then be able to adjust the speed at which the wheels turn by using the transformer.

3.  Fit the engine frame (with the motor and wheels into the grooves that I cut) that would have the cloth over them, with a little alcohol or some other clearing fluid that would remove any gum deposits on both the edges and the inside of the wheels.

4.  In theory, this would seem that it would work and should be able to clean the wheels really well.  I wouldn't be scratching the locomotive wheels and I got the idea of using a piece of an old T-shirt from a Model Railroading article.

It would probably take about one hour or less to make this jig. 

Another thought that I had would be to do the same as above, but, in addition, on one end, glue down  4" length of track that I would connect the wires with alligator clips to (the other ends being connected to the track rails).  The track section (not E-Z track, probably Atlas) would be aligned with the grooves cut into the wood so I could just press the power truck wheels on one end of the engine against that piece of track and get the electrical power to turn the wheels on the other end (that would be resting in the grooves).

The only reason that I am a little hesitant about the second approach is wouldn't the power truck wheels that are being pressed against the piece of track on the jig (which is connected by the alligator clips to the main track for power) be turning also and wouldn't there be a possible problem with  the gears if I pressed them against that piece of track in a way that restricted the ability of those power truck wheels to turn?

Am I on the right track here (if you'll pardon the pun) or does anyone have any better suggestions)?  If you have any comments, suggestions or alternative ideas, they would be welcome.

I am considering buying 1 or 2 Athearn Genesis SD-45 DCC ready engines.

I have dealt with converting older Athearn non-DCC ready engines to DCC using Digitrax decoders.  I have that down and I am sure that this should be easier.  I just haven't done it before.

Before I make any purchases, can anyone explain to me the difference in the installation of a Digitrax decoder in a DCC ready Athearn engine (as well as the proper decoder to use..is it the DH 123D?).  If possible, can you walk me through the process?  I already scanned the Digitrax directions, but I still have a hard time envisioning this procedure due to the fact that I don't have a DCC ready Athearn engine in front of me yet.

Any comments would be very helpful.

I read some very interesting comments from a 2008 thread on this site about how copper adhesive tape was being used to secure to the underside of a plywood layout and then street and building lights were connected to it.  If anyone has any experience doing this, I would like to hear from you.

My layout is L-shaped.  One side is 9'x5' and the other side is 9'x6'.  This makes one side of the L-shape 14' long and the other side 9' long.  There is an access hatch where they intersect.

One of my major questions is how do you connect the wires from the street lights to the tape?  Would you use metal screws?  Somehow, I don't think that soldering would be a practical, effective or secure way to do this. I am assuming that you make two runs of tape (for the positive and negative) and connect corresponding wires from the lights to the tape.  Assume that the on/off control would be one or more Atlas switches, so the wires from the buildings and lights would have to run to the tape from the switch and the switch is connected to the transformer.  I use a separate transformer for the lights and switches, as well as the railroad crossing signals (which I also intend to wire this way).

Any thoughts on this subject would be appreciated.  If this can work, it would certainly solve a problem for me re: wiring up the street and building lights on my layout.  I have about 75 total lights on my layout that need to be wired.

Has anyone had a problem where either engines or cars (especially longer cars such as 50' boxcars) derail when they pass over a Bachmann E-Z Track switch/turnout?  What can be done about this?  I have this problem intermittently whenever a train crosses a #5 or #6 switch/turnout.  It only seems to happen with certain switches/turnouts.

I looked closely at the switch/turnout(s) in question and noticed that, as the cars cross the second rail of the track that turns out, there is a grooved plate (made of either plastic or soft metal) that appears to raise the wheels of the cars as they cross it.  Can or should that groove for the wheels be deepened or am I on the wrong track here? 

What I am talking about here is where the switch/turnout is closed so that the cars are going straight down the track.  It seems like the wheels  of some cars want to go with the turnout (as if the switch was open) instead and it makes the car derail.  This also happens with some the longer engines like the Athearn SD-45, especially if I am running a 2 engine train.

Your thoughts would be helpful.  This appears to be the only problem with my track layout.  Otherwise, the trains and cars run fine.