I’m replacing all my code 332 rail with hand laid code 250 rail and ties on the most prominent visual areas of the layout, with exception with code 250 purchased turnouts and SVRR rail and tie 1:20.3 strips. I have a question if anyone has an answer. This is an Indoor layout and I’m cutting my own ties from salvaged chestnut to a scale dimension of 8" wide X 10" high x 7’ long, the ties I’ve cut match SVRR tie strips but Ive recently took advantage of a very good deal on some Accucraft !;20.3 narrow gauge #6 turnouts but the tie width is a almost a scale 12" and look enormous compared to my hand cuts and the SVRR tie strips. I’ve looked up prototype 3 ft narrow gauge tie dimensions and my hand cuts and the SVRR ties match the prototype info I’ve found. Is there anyone out there that has run into the same problem? Has anyone had any success in replacing all the ties on Accucraft turnouts? Any help would be appreciated.
Once you bury the ties in ballast, guests will not notice the difference. If it really bothers you, it can't be that difficult. Are the plastic ties held on with screws? The difficult part will be maintaining electrical continuity.
I didn’t considered the ballast and you are probably correct. Yes there are screws holding the ties to the bottom of the rails and the frog is powered by a micro switch controlled by the included switch stand. Looking at it again there is no way I want to replace the ties because the turnouts are so well made. I might just recut my ties to match and not use the SSVR tie strips. By any chance might you know the width of ties on Accucraft code 250 narrow gauge flex track?
as Steve said, unless it disturbes you yourself, let the turnouts be as they are. most people who will see your layout won’t notice things like sleeper lengths.
you could cut some sleepers, so that your handcut sleepers get gradually longer at the last foot or so before turnouts.
I don’t have a clue, Joe, sorry.
I like Korm’s idea of leaving them and then making gradually smaller ties until you match your hand cut ones. I spent the whole day yesterday playing on a guys layout and never once looked to see if his ties were to scale. That’s the reality of it, it will only be bothersome if it bothers you.
Thanks for all your replies, I just went down to the workshop and cut about 250 new ties at 7/16" x 3/8" x 4 1/8" for a first run to match the Accucraft ties and I’ll use Korm’s idea to install them leading up to and away from the turnouts. I have some Hartford ties that I checked and they measure the same as my first cuts and the SSVR ties, so I’m wondering where Accucraft obtained their dimensions? Any way thanks again.
Joe,
I don’t really understand your point about the Accucraft turnout ties being 12 feet long, all turnout ties are much longer than regular track ties just a necessity. As for Sunset Valley ties they are all undersized when measured in 1:20 scale, in my opinion.
Using a scale rule (1:20) and measuring Sunset Valley ties I come up with the following dimensions; 8 inches wide, 5 1/2 inches high, and 5 foot 11 inches long. using the same scale rule on AMS code .250 (ams39-101 flex track) I come up with the following dimensions; 10 inches wide, 8 inches high, and 7 foot zero inches long.
The AMS ties in real world numbers, using the most practical rounded off numbers, measure; 1/2 inch wide, 3/8ths inch high, and 4 and 1/8 inches long. These are dimensions I have used for years to hand lay track in 1:20 scale narrow gauge modeling and feel that they are very accurate and true to prototype. However, having said that, there is a prototype for anything and your mileage may vary.
Have fun building
Rick
Hey Joe, I use AMS code 250 Aluminum rail and their NG tie strips. The main reason I went with them is they definitely represent a standard gauge tie cross Section and the ties are a bit longer (stick out past the rails further) than most tie strips. They are pretty much spot on for the ties that the EBT used. They are also very robust, with thick walls and they really grab the rail well with the “Tie plate”.
Rick’s measurements are what I get also. 1/2" inch wide comes in at 10" scaled which is about an inch heavy. I’m fine with this though as the tie tends to flare out toward the bottom making the top (which is the part you see) right at 9". Joe, from what you say, it sounds like their switch ties might be bigger than on their tie strips? I can’t compare, as I hand lay all my switches on UHMWPE ties I cut to match their size.
I think you have to think about what type of narrow gauge line you are modeling. I think most lines more closely matched other offerings on the market with spindly ties, But I think that I am lucky that someone is making tie strips that so closely match the EBT heavy ties.
Check out the photo below when I was making some switches you can see AMS tie strips at the top left, The switch to the far right was built to match more spindly standards before I started modeling the EBT.
(Edit: Sorry Joe those are Micro Engineering tie strips in the photo. They are on both the left and right switches. Added two photos of Ken B’s to show the AMS strip net to the ME strip.)
In terms of real-world prototype examples, narrow gauge ties ran the gamut. There was an article in the Narrow Gauge Gazette a while back which cataloged tie dimensions for a number of narrow gauge railroads. The take-away from that was that the rule seemed to be “whatever they could get at the time.” Lengths ranged anywhere from 5.5’ to 7’, and widths from 5" to 10". Typically, the longer the tie, the wider the tie. There also didn’t seem to be any sense of consistency for any given railroad, either. Some appeared to be “what they could get,” while others varied by branch, date, etc.
When it comes to our models–as others have mentioned–once the ties are in the ballast, they tend to disappear. When I built my railroad, I used AMS ties, but the AMS switches were not yet available, so I used Sunset Valley switches. At that time, Sunset’s “narrow gauge” ties were the same physical size as their standard gauge ties, just spaced farther apart. These measured in 1:20.3 at 5.7’ long by 6" wide. Both tie measurements were within the “spectrum” of ties used on 3’ narrow gauge, but definitely at opposite ends of the spectrum. Side by side, the difference was startling. I figured I’d eventually just replace the ties with larger ones. I never had to. Once they were in the ground, they blended in. (Sunset Valley has since gone to a larger tie for their narrow gauge switches.)
Later,
K
Not only narrow gauge ties, but narrow gauge rails ran the gamut. From rails that were hardwood, to iron rails an inch high, all the way to the same rails that the mainlines were using at the time. And for some real variety, when some narrow gauge lines started using larger ties, they also went back and replaced the bad ties in existing track-age. So they ended up with 2 very different tie sizes on the same stretch of track.