Stop-and-Go Behavior Over Aluminum-Frog Turnout

[IronBeltKen]

I've recently noticed some weird behavior on one of my turnouts. Whenever a locomotive's leading truck goes over the frog, it stops for ~1 second, the headlight blinks [like a flash bulb on a camera], then it continues onward as if nothing happened. If I run an MU'd set, each loco in the consist will pause and flash when its front truck passes over the offending frog. They only do this when they are moving in the "merging" (trailing-point) direction: when they go the opposite way (diverging / facing-point), everything works fine.

The culprit is a 20-year-old Atlas #4 left-hand turnout with an aluminum frog, which I covered in brown latex paint to make it look less toy-like. Could that have caused the problem? [I've always thought latex paint was more of an insulator than a conductor.] In any event, I have ripped out that t/o and plan to replace it with a Peco #5 Insulfrog - hopefully that will cure the problem.

I'm just wondering if any of you have had a similar experience and found what caused it...

 

[Iron Horseman]

I've recently noticed some weird behavior on one of my turnouts. Whenever a locomotive's leading truck goes over the frog, it stops for ~1 second, the headlight blinks [like a flash bulb on a camera], then it continues onward as if nothing happened. If I run an MU'd set, each loco in the consist will pause and flash when its front truck passes over the offending frog. They only do this when they are moving in the "merging" (trailing-point) direction: when they go the opposite way (diverging / facing-point), everything works fine.

That is very odd behavior. I've not experienced anything like it, nor heard of another having that happen. When I say odd, I mean both the behavior and the directional quality of it. Almost sounds like the frog is polarized and that there is a gap in the paint that the wheels only hit in the one direction producing a very brief short. Normally an Atlas frog is just dead (BTW I seriously doubt it is aluminum). Any chance this turnout is used for entering or exiting a reverse loop?

Another possibility is that the turnout just has a hump in it. I have had that issue with Atlas turnouts. When the loco hits the frog with its huge dead spot it lifts the truck slightly causing electrical power loss until the fly wheels walk it through the trouble spot. I never noticed the issue was directional. I fixed this by putting an extra nail down as close to the frog as I could get it.

 

[IronBeltKen]

... Any chance this turnout is used for entering or exiting a reverse loop?

Negative on that; I've been doing my utmost to avoid having any reverse loops whatsoever on this layout, because of the extra level of complexity they entail.

Another possibility is that the turnout just has a hump in it. I have had that issue with Atlas turnouts. When the loco hits the frog with its huge dead spot it lifts the truck slightly causing electrical power loss until the fly wheels walk it through the trouble spot. I never noticed the issue was directional. I fixed this by putting an extra nail down as close to the frog as I could get it.

Whatever it was, it doesn't matter at this point - the new Peco t/o that I'm putting in should be free of any of those types of issues!<fingers crossed>