What brand makes the best turnouts?

[TrinityJayOne]

I'll throw my $0.02 in here for N gauge.

The basic Atlas snap switches are poo, avoid them. They have the switching lever on the opposite side of the diverging rail with the mechanism inside a black plastic casing running parallel to the track. Throwing the switch gives only a very mild click, and the mechanism is obviously plastic because it is easily broken. My brother accidentally pulled a derailed carriage over one and the underside got caught on the blades, pulling them to the center while the switch was still closed. Ever since then trains would regularly hop the blade and derail when set to diverge. Additionally the rails are very poorly "locked" into position, so a trailing point movement without the switches set correctly would cause similar issues if your train is heavy enough to force the blades. They also pass current to both the through & diverging routes at the same time, something which DC users might want to avoid.

Peco Streamline insulfrog switches are great! The switching mechanism in locked directly to the blades so there's no play like you get in the Atlas snap switches. The mechanism is also spring loaded and gives a very satisfying click when it locks into place. I can go over them at a snail's pace without any stalls and I can't think of a single turnout-related derailment occurring since I made the switch (sorry) from Atlas.

Both of the above were code 80.

 

[bigB]

Are there issues using Peco HO turnouts with Atlas Code 83 flextrack? A search of google provides conflicting answers. Anybody on here care to share their experience?

 

[sd24b]

I was just wondering what the best brand of turnouts are? Because i will be building a layout soon so I would like to replace all my old turnouts with nice, new turnouts. I also want some with realistic ground throws or something. Any thoughts?

Depends on what you are looking for. I like Shinora/Walthers code 83. Micro Engineering makes a very nice turnout, however they only do a #6 and their railhead is smaller than Shinohara and Atlas rails. A bonus though, is their turnouts do require a ground throw or switch machine

 

[Selector]

Are there issues using Peco HO turnouts with Atlas Code 83 flextrack? A search of google provides conflicting answers. Anybody on here care to share their experience?

Apart from a different tie height, thus leading to a slight difference in height at the rail head's running surface, no. Gauge is identical, the rail profile looking edge-on is close, and the ballast will hide any other differences once you shim at the joint where the two meet so that the rail heads match at level. Oh, the joiners may be a be sloppy, too, but some rail foot filing can take care of the hard-sliding fit. Otherwise, solder.

 

[tmiller]

I am a newcomer to this hobby, modeling in HO. I decided to go the Bachmann EZ track route. While the turnouts aren't to bad, I would probably prefer the Peoc turnouts if I was doing it all over. What I have found with the Bachmann turn out, is the movable rails just snap over and touch the outside rails. To get a good transition, you should file the movable rail to as sharp a point as possible. This is acceptable, but I still have the occasional derailment when it splits the rails. But what I like about the Peco turnouts is that the outside rail has a notch in it, where the movable rail slides into, making a real smooth transition, and no chance of the cars splitting the rails like sometimes happens with the Bachmann turnouts.

Just my opinion.

Ted.

 

[ChevelleSSguy]

Everyone seems to have great things to say about Peco once they have used them. I dont have any personal expierence with them.

 

[blackz28]

peco , shinohara . seems to be the best followed by atlas

 

[jackn2mpu]

peco , shinohara . seems to be the best followed by atlas

Depends on the scale; for me, in N, Micro Engineering is my favorite (it's all I use on my N layout). In HO I'm using Atlas code 83 - not saying it's the best, it's just what I'm using. I'd handlay but my arthritis at my age (59) makes that a no-no.

 

[cncproadwarrior]

My vote goes to Fast Tracks hand made turnouts. They work flawlessly and are also the most realistic looking as there is no hinge on the point rail.

www.handlaidtrack.com

 

[jackn2mpu]

My vote goes to Fast Tracks hand made turnouts. They work flawlessly and are also the most realistic looking as there is no hinge on the point rail.

www.handlaidtrack.com

True, but unless you're building a whole bunch of turnouts it's not worth the cost of the fixtures. I think the people here were talking more about pre-made stuff and not hand-laying. It's a lot of fiddly work to handlay and not everyone has the skill & temperament to do so, especially in smaller scales like N.

 

[cncproadwarrior]

True, but unless you're building a whole bunch of turnouts it's not worth the cost of the fixtures. I think the people here were talking more about pre-made stuff and not hand-laying. It's a lot of fiddly work to handlay and not everyone has the skill & temperament to do so, especially in smaller scales like N.

"I was just wondering what the best brand of turnouts are? Because i will be building a layout soon so I would like to replace all my old turnouts with nice, new turnouts. I also want some with realistic ground throws or something. Any thoughts? "

There was no distinction made in the question between pre-made and hand-laying and there was no mention of size of the layout. He wanted to know what the best brand of turnouts were and I gave him my answer.

As for cost, if you make 12 turnouts, the cost of each turnout equals the cost of pre-made turnouts. Although N scale would be tricky, the HO stuff is actually quite easy once you get the hang of it. And the person asking the question is armed with more information than he had before to best make a decision.

 

[blackz28]

Depends on the scale; for me,handlay but my .

sorry i should have stated the scale