It has been a long time coming, but we are very close to releasing our complete line of curved turnout assembly fixtures and QuickSticks laser cut ties for virtually every scale and size turnout that we currently offer. The only thing that stands between now and our release is figuring out what radiuses we should produce. The techniques that we have developed to produce curved turnouts allows us to make virtually any radius imaginable while still maintaining the correct size and geometry of the turnout. Since it is really not practical to offer all possible radiuses, our plan is to offer at least three different radiuses for each scale and size of turnout. As you might imagine, trying to determine what radiuses we should offer is a daunting task as there are literally thousands of possible sizes. That is where you come in! We have prepared an online survey that you are invited to participate in. The survey only has 2 questions - the scale that you model in, and what three radiuses of curved turnouts that you would find most useful. We will then use the results of this survey to select three different curved turnout radiuses for each scale. The survey is available now (April 3) and will remain available until November 1, 2006. We will use whatever information that we gather in the next few weeks to launch our line of curved turnouts and will continue to modify our size offerings as more people complete the survey. So now is your chance to directly influence what radiuses of curved turnouts that we will offer! You can start the survey now by going to: http://www.handlaidtrack.com/surveys.php Thank you for helping out! Ron Warris, Fast Tracks www.handlaidtrack.com
Ron, what gap do you leave for flange width between a track rail and its guard rail, and in the frog runs? Real frogs have a filler where the outer face of a wheel just leaves the parent rail and before it actually rolls onto the diverging rail head, that the wheel actually rides the tip of the flange to prevent "bouncing" into and up out of the point gap. On most commercial ready-to-run turnouts, the flange gap is so great, a freight car wheel will drop down into this gap then have to climb up onto the frog point before continuing to roll on the frog. With some mixture of RP-25 flanges and the European "toy" long flanges, the filler block idea wont work well. Have you any suggestion to solve this problem?
Ron, Thanks! I wish I had some long radius curved turnouts when I was modifying certain sidings on my layout. I had enough "slop" in a large layout to use Atlas No. 7s conveniently in all places but one. If I had known of your products in 2002, I might have built many of my turnouts.
I would like to see them. There have been a few instances where I had to modify my track plans because I could not find a curved turnout, and I am not well versed enough to lay my own track. I do change my track plans a lot. It would be good to see a comercially available unit.
