First layout track testing- more education- 6 axle issues-solving

[tc1961N]

What I learned:

6 axle engines can rock on and off of the track, pivoting off the middle axle... especially around turns.

I discovered this when I was testing a six axle engine and around this turn it kept getting stuck or derailing. ran it real slow and I saw the the front axle leave the track and as it went around the corner it derailed. There was a track joint right there and a very small vertical "kink" caused the front axle to lift off the track as it crossed the joint and come down off the track after passing.

4 axle engines don't seem to have this issue.

So I adjusted the track mounting screw (removed it) so it is level across the joint and the problem went away. I need to do some final track joint adjusting for total flatness, but I saw the cause and effect of vertical joint issues.

So now I will be checking all my track joints.

As a side note I had also noticed if the joints aren't perfectly flat I can see the couplers move up and down and it helped me determine why cars would mysteriously uncouple for no apparent reason. That and I'm sure a lot of my cars need couplers adjusted for NMRA height.

 

[Rico]

I have the same issue with all my Athearn 6 axle locos on a couple spots.
I can either tear out the offending sections or just sell off the locos.
I should mention both trouble spots would not be easy to replace and all other brands of 6 axle locos sail across no problems.

 

[Canalligator]

Six axle engines don’t like going around tight curves. What radius are you using?

You’re learning how good is good enough. That’s an important part of learning about the hobby, or any hobby for that matter.

 

[tc1961N]

Six axle engines don’t like going around tight curves. What radius are you using?

You’re learning how good is good enough. That’s an important part of learning about the hobby, or any hobby for that matter.

I'm using Tru Scale sectional track for curves, and the problem starts where it leaves a 46 inch curve and goes to a 22 followed by another 22. It is not an S turn. I know some if not most of the issue is the area of my problem is where I added benchwork to turn my layout from an "L" to a rectangle donut, 10x12. Try not to laugh....I don't have this issue on other areas where the layout is one continuous piece of plywood. I have 1/2 inch foam board on top of the plywood. The white caulk is me filling the gap on the right side of the left track to compensate for the benchwork lack of skill.

I'm beginning to understand the importance of proper benchwork and the effect it has on reliability

The engine I have the biggest issue with is a Kato SD40 I got at the train show at the Timonium Fairgrounds at the end of January.

I'm really anticipating at some point in the next year or so I'm ripping the entire layout down and starting over due to the MIL moving in, selling her house and then me my wife and MIL moving to a 1 level house with a huge (LOL) basement.. Wife and MIL having trouble with steps.

I have all my track semi permanently installed, (screws on tru scale and track nails in cork) but I could have it all disassembled with minimal damage within an hour or two.

 

[RhB Michael]

You might want to check the rail gauge on the section of track closest to the camera where the screw has crushed the sleepers. This is something you never want to do. As the screw digs deeper into the sleeper it starts to (or can) draw the rails together and even start tilting them at the rail head. This will squeeze the wheels as they run through this area and can cause the wheels to climb out of the gauge.

Nails are usually preferred for track attachment on wood sub-roadbed and the nail head is set right on the tie without crushing or otherwise pushing the tie down. You will need a nail set or punch, a light tack hammer, and a good eye for this. You will develop a feel for when that track nail is set correctly.

Some track like Atlas flex track has false holes on the bottom of the ties. These should be drilled through and used as needed. Do not drive a track nail directly through a tie without a hole. You will split the tie, or it will expand around the hole and may affect track gauge too. I've used Micro Engineering track for long straight sections and yards, but I don't recall if that track is predrilled, has false holes underneath, or nothing at all.

 

[Jacob Z]

I encountered this exact same problem on my N scale layout, also my first. My Broadway Limited Pacific's leading truck kept derailing at a specific join on a curve. After much fruitless futzing I finally figured out there was a tiny vertical kink and when the leading truck was on one side of the kink and the driving wheels on the other, the truck was lifted just enough to clear the rails, and when it came back down it would not rerail. I ended up relaying that segment of the track.

There should be a beginner's guide to tracklaying that says in big, bold letters "Do you have an almost invisible vertical kink in your track?"

Oh, and elsewhere I also had the squeezing problem @RhB Michael described. I could not for the life of me figure out why the driving wheels were rising up on one side at that point, exactly as if there was some obstruction stuck to the inside of the rail. Finally somebody on my Request for Help thread suggested that the gauge might be off. And yep, sure enough.

 

[Canalligator]

My tightest radius is 21 inches. Most long equipment goes around it OK, but I found that proper easement and superelevation makes it go around better. Even with that, an 86 foot Rapido center beam car just wouldn’t go around, so I converted to 50 foot center beam flats and bulkhead flats. My long TOFC cars do go around OK.

I also use no sharper than a number six turnout on mains. Only one #4 crossover at industrial trackage.

 

[tc1961N]

My tightest radius is 21 inches. Most long equipment goes around it OK, but I found that proper easement and superelevation makes it go around better. Even with that, an 86 foot Rapido center beam car just wouldn’t go around, so I converted to 50 foot center beam flats and bulkhead flats. My long TOFC cars do go around OK.

I also use no sharper than a number six turnout on mains. Only one #4 crossover at industrial trackage.

Yes, I'm seeing the wisdom longer radii!