sliding rails along flexitrack

[Steve Jones Crewe]

Hello I've started to fit Peco Flexitrack. When you're fitting a full length of flexitrack (say on a bit of a curve) and you could do with moving just one rail along so it butts up against the next rail is there any easy way of doing it without damaging the rail etc

Ta!

Steve

[Chris98]

I have not found a way to do it. Just had to make sure when I cut the flextrack it is very nearly in place.

[Hobby11]

Simple answer is "No"! It's due to the design of the track, to make the rail look smaller they've used code 80 rail with an extra "foot" and embedded the bottom of the rail in the sleeper mesh. It makes it easy to bend and then stay put, unlike ordinary flexi track, but the downside is that you can't slide the rail easily and it's a bit of a faff to cut out the odd sleepers.

As an alternative Tillig do flexi track which is conventional code 83 and will match Hornby's track.

[Rallymatt]

It comes with practice snipping a small piece off with track cutters.

[Chris98]

After six months of tracklaying I have become quite good at it 🤣

[Rallymatt]

Chris, that’s a long apprenticeship 🤣

[ntpntpntp]

It's best just to cut the rail to length.

Sometimes it's possible to tap the rail along with a toffee hammer, but that only works well with shorter pieces, and with rail which isn't partially embedded in the sleepers as the code 55 stuff is.

[Steve Jones Crewe]

Thanks guys. Yeah because the rails are bedded in you've got to be more precise with the cutters grinning that's the conclusion I'm coming to!

So Chris you get the prize. Are you going to spill the beans? grin

[Chris98]

Beleive it or not it does come with laying loads of the stuff.

I was rubbish when I first started (probably still am 🤣).

I bend the fexi track into the curve I want, roughly cut it to length but leave it just a bit long. Fix one end into existing track with 2 fishplates/joiners then cut the other end. I did use a permanent marker to mark where I needed to cut but done so much don't need one now. It's hard to explain 🤪

Obviously cut at 90% or else thats a whole load of 💩

I did screw the track down aswell before cutting, this helped.

I have moved on from track laying now (got bored) and have turned my hand to a bit of ballasting and tunnel portal making 😉

[Steve Jones Crewe]

thanks Chris did you manage to do any rail sliding though?

Cheers!

[Chris98]

No

[Les-345151]

Do I gather from all this that the Peco flexitrack is only suited to fairly gentle curves? After all, something has to give at some point of curvature- basic geometry.

[Brew Man]

Speaking from a OO perspective, I use a lot of Peco Flexi and find approximately 2nd radius quite achievable. I'm sure even tighter curves are possible too.

[Les-345151]

Yes, but both OO and O Peco Flexi rails slide within the sleepers- the question is about TT120.

[ntpntpntp]

You can take Peco TT:120 flexi down to quite tight radii - easily the equivalent of Hornby R1. You do need to ensure the gaps/breaks in the underside of the sleeper moulding are on the outside of the curve.

Whether you should is another matter: I maintain that fixed shape sectional track is easier to work with for tight radii. Save the flexi for wider sweeping curves and transitions etc.

[Les-345151]

"You do need to ensure the gaps/breaks in the underside of the sleeper moulding are on the outside of the curve."

Thanks, that's all clear now- I've quite a bit of the stuff earmarked for a trial outdoor test (next Summer).