What do you folks use as a standard for clearances? I am thinking about such as plank road crossings of (tangent) tracks? Perhaps a piece of styrene? Of what thickness?
If memory serves me correctly I used 1mm thick styrene sheet with the width cut so that it fits inside the molded on spike heads in flex track. I'm between layouts atm. If you have a spare piece you can lay it on the outside rail resting on the spike heads the styrene sheet should just below the top of code 80 rail.
yeah, I would reference the NMRA gauge for flangeway thickness. You could also look at the table on the website for back-to-back wheel clearance and estimate a crossing insert width from that. In terms of styrene thickness, I would match the rail height, or go a bit less than that if you want to be conservative. If your trip pins are at the correct height, I see no issues with fouling or collisions.
Lessons learned: There is enough slop in N gauge standards for wheelsets to move side to side quite a bit. If you make the crossing insert as wide as back-to-back wheel distance as suggested above, the flanges will rub the insert, slow the train and even jerk the car around. NMRA standard flangeway width is .028" + .002 - .001. As for height, if you do the logical thing and make the insert as high as the rails, you scrape off the insert's paint or stain when you clean the track. Go a little lower. Same with the approach pavement.
If you can find styrene in brown or black...you don't have to worry about rubbing off the 'paint'. I have found that the rubbing off of the paint does give it a more 1:1 look of the crossing. Unfortunately white styrene underneath the paint does not lend to a realistic look when the paint rubs off at the edges nearest the rails ...JMO. https://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Gab4gl4BQOA/THrKdMOf5oI/AAAAAAAAD2k/xEZdEmpPr9E/s1600/crossing+danger.JPG https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/95712a33/dms3rep/multi/Railroad-Gallery-4-b-ig.jpg
I am going to be using laser cut wood, which will be stained. Hopefully that stain will penetrate deeply enough such that rubbing the surface will not deter from appearance.
The wood gets lighter over time, sort of like a weathered deck appearance. Much better than white styrene.