Why we test

I completed the middle tier track laying & wiring in the area next to staging then, as usual, tested it out. While this part of the project went smoothly there was one problem I found during the test that will probably save me a lot of time later on.

Here is a picture of the layout as of this morning:


What the test uncovered is that some of the #6 code 80 Atlas switches have a tendency to catch the wheel of a car taking the diverging route. The catch is at the end of the diverging closure rail (the inside rail) right where it meets the hinged part of the point rail. This became obvious with the Kato SD90/43MAC, which is fast becoming one of my favorite engines for finding latent track problems. I suspect that the long 3-axle trucks make this engine more susceptible to this type of issue.

There was one switch where it was very noticable, but once I watched for it the others all demonstrated the same problem at least a little bit. At no point did any derailments occur, but this is the sort of bumpy ride that leads to intermittent derailments.

The solutions was simply to file that edge of the rail. I did this on all the switches that are in place, and will include that as part of my switch-preparation routine, adding maybe a minute per switch. I also found, on one switch only, that the plastic frog and the plastic rail that adjoined the closure rail were just a bit too tight in the diverging route, causing a bump. Again, a quick bit of filing down solved this, and I inspected all other switches for this problem.

Otherwise, the track laying and wiring process was uneventful. On a minor note I found that a staple used to hold a pair of wires in place went in too hard and cut the insulation on both wires, causing a short. Easy repair with electric tape and a new staple. But that staple was located in an awkward spot and I must have had the gun lean too hard into the wood. I will take care to avoid this from now on.

Next task: The 3rd tier bridge. I'm in the measuring and planning process now and have decided to make it removable, which adds complexity up front but is probably essential for long term maintenance of the track underneath.