I'm about to lay track on a new layout and was wondering how many people utilize easement, superelevation and runoff in their layout? It seems that the dimensions involved (particularly for the superelevation) are too small to be noticable. Mark
I experimented with superelevation on my second layout and liked the look of locomotives leaning into the curve. You are correct, it does not take much. I used thin strips of tape under the outside rail. I started the runoff several inches from the curve. I have designed easements whenever I can on my third layout, which I am just starting to lay some track.
Mark, I beleive Robert Ray did some super elevation on one of his earlier mods. Perhaps he can chime in?
I've read various heights for superelevation on railroads in the US, all the way up to 6" as the max. height allowed. Not sure of the credibility of that number though. I tend to like to go on the high side with superlevation, in the neighborhood of 5", or .023" in Z. As much as anything, I simply like the look. Below is what appears to be some pretty high actual superlevation. Like anything, too much of a good thing can run the risk of appearing too exaggerated in Z scale. Still, when I see photos like this, I'm comfortable in a small scene using the higher superelevation. John Cubbin Ztrains.com | Z scale (1:220) Model Railroading J.Cubbin.com | Scale Model Railroad Accessories US|ZSCALE.com | Featuring American Z Line
o.01 is MORE than enough to see it. Be careful tho: tall/top heavycars will easily over-lean and *any* snag in the back will closeline them all. NEVER do it in a Helix. The reverse is actually better.
Initially I found the .01" a little light for me, didn't really have the visual impact I wanted. I came across this old track level and once I saw this 5" elevation, I was sold. There are easements in the flex track so it's a nice smooth ride. http://cprr.org/Museum/Ephemera/track_level.html John Cubbin Ztrains.com | Z scale (1:220) Model Railroading J.Cubbin.com | Scale Model Railroad Accessories US|ZSCALE.com | Featuring American Z Line
I've not noticed much of the superelevation and easement on most of the layouts I've seen at NTS, GTE and such and been wondering wheither it was commonly done and worth the effort. I'm looking at modelling a broad curve on the WP near Livermore CA: http://www.yesteryeardepot.com/WP801.JPG and prototyping it on a circular curve and no superelevation doesn't look right. NMRA advises 6 inches (proto) max. and I've been thinking of using 15-20 mils for superelevation. As for the easement I've been thinking about easing into a 320mm minimum radius around about 200 degrees around. Thanks for the input. Mark ,
