Hello all! First time poster here. I will give a brief rundown on what I have. I built a 4X8 setup using a 2" hard foam base set into a wooden frame with stringers underneath to give the foam support. It was set up square and level.
I have a double circuit using two turnouts and a 30° crossing which allows travel around the outer loop or in and out using the turnouts and crossing.
The layout is built from Bachmann gray bed NS HO track. I intend to set the scenery up in late 1800's/early 1900's, so diesel power (of which I have 3) will not be utilized. I also have a second track, inside the larger one, a simple oval with two turnouts to produce a circle within that track.
I have a Bachmann 060 loco and tender for the larger route and a Life-Like 040 dockside switcher for the inner route. That loco pulls short freight cars with a bobber caboose. The Bachmann loco pulls period passenger cars.
Below is a copy and paste of my post on the Bachmann Forum. I got little support, so I came here.
I have a double circuit using two turnouts and a 30° crossing which allows travel around the outer loop or in and out using the turnouts and crossing.
The layout is built from Bachmann gray bed NS HO track. I intend to set the scenery up in late 1800's/early 1900's, so diesel power (of which I have 3) will not be utilized. I also have a second track, inside the larger one, a simple oval with two turnouts to produce a circle within that track.
I have a Bachmann 060 loco and tender for the larger route and a Life-Like 040 dockside switcher for the inner route. That loco pulls short freight cars with a bobber caboose. The Bachmann loco pulls period passenger cars.
Below is a copy and paste of my post on the Bachmann Forum. I got little support, so I came here.
| There is definitely a problem with the BAC44540 30° crossing. I am running an 060 locomotive that doesn't like that crossing. I was experiencing derailing and hesitation and poor performance of the loco going over that section of track. I discovered that the loco was rubbing its belly on the crossing. I had to file down the part of the bellypan that covers the driven gear. That problem was solved. However there is still a hesitation and loss of power on one leg of the crossing. The other leg isn't a problem. I have to run the train at a much higher speed than prudent or scale proportions in order to prevent the loco from stopping dead. Even at higher speeds, there is a noticeable jerk of the locomotive that often causes the rolling stock to uncouple which will lead to a train wreck if not caught in time. I have lightly fine sanded the troublesome area with a little improvement. It is unknown why one leg of the cross is trouble free and smooth, while the other leg will not maintain power to the locomotive. This is certainly a Bachmann problem and I have contacted them without a reply. If in fact it is just the nature of the beast that short locomotives will not perform well if using this crossover, then a disclaimer should be on the package. My entire layout depends on using this crossover and it is a very important item to me. I am open to suggestions. Now, here is a post I also made about turnout problems: I have been fighting problems with my 30° crossing and now I have something worse. My layout had EZ track manual turnouts and I never had an issue with them. I upgraded the two furthest turnouts to powered units. Since then, my 060 locomotive stumbles or jumps the track. Staying on the straight run is smooth, but switching to the curved turnout is when the problem occurs. There doesn't seem to be much tension on the switch points against the rails, certainly not as much as the manual units. I can run an F7 diesel loco through there all day long without a hiccup, but my little steamer doesn't fare well. I would like to leave the diesels on the display shelf because my entire layout is turn of the century themed. Now, I have researched this issue and many people have suggested filing the points thinner and sloped down at the tip. I have done that to some extent on one of the two powered turnouts. I have also beefed up the shifting wire inside the switchbox to give a little more tension of the points against the rails. My layout has two powered turnouts and four manual turnouts. The manual turnouts give no problem and didn't have an issue other than the crossing problem. As soon as I installed the powered turnouts the problems began. I can run a diesel at any speed and do lap after lap after lap of no problems. Pull the diesel and replace it with the 060 steamer and BANG! Derail. If I reverse the direction of the loco, the problem moves to the other switch as the loco heads into the points for a curve. If I leave both switches on straight, there isn't a problem. At this point, I am probably going to swap the switches out with the manuals I had before. Pain in the butt because they are both on the back of the layout. I am worn out from fighting this switch problem. I want to begin landscaping and structures but not until the track is operable. Thanks for reading. Looks like you have a great forum here with lots of active members and ideas. |
