To Flex or Not to Flex


E

EngaugeAndGo

New Member
I'm designing my layout in AnyRail and I got to the point where I just couldn't make the tracks meet using any combination of regular radius track (Bachmann). So finally I just removed them and used a big piece of flextrack. Seems like cheating, but then again - why wouldn't/shouldn't I just use a bunch of turnouts and flex?

Hopefully you can see on the left side there's the flextrack. And on the right, all the regular radius track.
 

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Great idea Gary!
And there’s nothing wrong with using flex track, the prototype does it all the time!
Whatever track plan you end up with there is almost always a way to modify using prefab curves in one brand or another. I think Kato makes several curves that fit together to make a passing siding like the one you show.
 
You have a sensible solution. Just make sure your 'fix' works in practice as well as on the plan. For example, just looking briefly at the unenlarged image you show in your OP, that low-left curve looks very sharp. You should take a close look at the geometry to ensure the curve doesn't slide under your self-declared minimum radius, or the minimum radius declared by any two coupled items of rolling stock you'd hope would go around it.
 
It depends on just how tight your curves will be. In HO scale, I have found that 22-inch radius curves or tighter tend to work better using sectional track, as it is too easy to get kinks with flex track. For larger curves, flex track will work just fine, often allowing alignment with the sectional track that would otherwise prove troublesome. There used to be metal guides in various radii that could be used to align curves as tight as 22, 18 and IIRC evern 15" curves with flex track. Bottom line: whatever works for you! In my current layout, I have an outer main line using 20" radius sectional track that used to be available from Shinohara through Walthers in Code 100, but I think it has been discontinued.
Stay well and safe!
 
And in a similar vein, the kit I got has Bachmann EZ Track, with the built in roadbed in shiny light grey - yay! Not. But I'm stingy and track isn't cheap. I'm thinking of mixing EZ with cork roadbed and just cutting off the knobs that stick out of the EZ. Has anyone done something similar, mix EZ track with regular? (N gauge in my case).
 
Can EZ-Track in any gauge be separated from the plastic 'ballast'? I don't believe so, but could be wrong. In any event, the fake ballast is designed to look as realistic as possible, so adding cork roadbed would simply add height. I don't understand why that would be desirable...?
 
Apart from it's noise absorbing qualities, cork will probably be a necessity beneath the flextrack to match it's lower profile with the deeper one that most set track of the trainset type comes with. Even then it still might not match perfectly. I'm not familiar with the Bachmann one so take what I said as being spoken of from ignorance. i.e. 2c at not face value.
 
I wasn't thinking of putting cork under the EZ track fake roadbed, but next to it under track that isn't EZ track. So to put fake EZ roadbed next to "real" cork roadbed I'd need to cut off the knobs. And then there's the styling issue too. Maybe I can paint the light grey plastic?

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