Bulletproof Code 30 (and smaller) Track Experiments

[peteski]

Double etch a flat sheet.

Well then the railhead and bottom of the base will have a raised peak at the center (artifact of double etching).  That will require some milling or filing.

[robert3985]

Someone in the Nn3 group is doing code 30 rail by etching in the web.

That "someone" is my friend Gregg Cudworth, who is also making etched and investment cast kits for Nn3 steam locomotives and several different narrow gauge cars.

However, I'm not sure if Gregg is offering his etched Code30 rail for sale, as opposed to his locomotive and car kits.

I have a sample of Gregg's etched Code30 rail, with an actual rail profile, to experiment with, as opposed to "normal" Code30 flattened wire, which is no longer available.

Although Gregg's etched rail looks very nice, the NS it's etched from is much softer than NS wire, and it is very easily bent, and I'm not sure if one PCB tie every seventh or fifth tie is enough to ensure durability, which is one of the reasons I got a bit of his rail to experiment with.

When I get a short section of standard gauge N-scale track laid, I'll post some pics with Gregg's permission.

Photo (1) - A photo of an almost finished section of Gregg Cudworth's basement-filling RGS with Code30 flattened wire as Nn3 trackage rails:



Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[peteski]

I have a sample of Gregg's etched Code30 rail, with an actual rail profile, to experiment with, as opposed to "normal" Code30 flattened wire, which is no longer available.

How do you deal with the V-shaped cusp on the railhead and on the bottom of the rail?

[Chris333]

I asked him (yes it was Gregg) about the center of the top of the rail having a peak from etching and he just sands it down. He said it comes out to about 60 cents per foot.

[chessie system fan]

I'd be curious to see more of Greg's work if anyone would like to extend him an invite here.   

One drawback to my Kato method is the width of the railhead. How wide it his?

[Chris333]

.015" nickel silver x 2' in length

He is on the Nn3group.io

[robert3985]

How do you deal with the V-shaped cusp on the railhead and on the bottom of the rail?

Okay, although I was going to wait before revealing Gregg's etched rail until I had some laid, since the cat's out of the bag, here are the dimensions:  Rail height (without any sanding or filing) is 0.026", railfoot width is 0.016" and railhead width is 0.0145", all according to my cheap Harbor Freight Tools digital calipers.

On the railfoot base, although I can perceive a "line" of some sort running down the middle of it, it sits nice and vertical on PCB ties without any filing, sanding or milling.

The railhead has a slight (very slight) slightly rough ridge running down it (did I say it is slight???), which would be very easy to simply file down with a few strokes of a sharp, flat file after the track is laid.  I do this with my turnouts anyway to even things up, and this minuscule "ridge" would file off extremely easily.

Photo (1) - Gregg Cudworth's Etched Code30 Rail:


Photo (2) - Gregg Cudworth's Etched Code30 Rail Closeup:


Photo (2) - Gregg Cudworth's Etched Code30 Rail Comparo to ME Code40 Rail with an IMR Wheelset:


I've only seen finished trackage using this rail on Gregg's Durango turntable he's working on.  It looks FABULOUS!  No other words to describe it.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[Sokramiketes]

Well played!  That really cuts down on the minimum order issues with flat wire.   And is a better execution.

[Assaboutengineer]

I'm not sure yet about the file, though if someone wants some prints I'd be happy to send some.  Though all of this is academic if turnouts don't work (I'm working on that next).

Doe anyone have any advice on how to file point rails consistently if the rail won't fit in a Fast Tracks jig?

.           
    Nice wrk Chessie system fan going beyond with ur track experiments.And everyone else for that matter👍I realise I’m a bit late to the party Ive also been experimenting and keeping an “eye out”  for track options lower than code 40 in a final push to do my branchline layout justice.code 40 would look awesome but the prototype I’m looking at is prob code twenty😆judging from photos.plus ive  always wondered “what if”regarding lower code track.ive followed along on many of the track threads and there’s some awesome wrk about👍  I’d like to share a trick i use  to hold rail and file points.. I now use it for all my “rail holding”. Heaven forbid if I’m unknowingly regurgitating somebody else’s idea.
        A while back I was looking for a way to hold railcraft  weathered code 40 rail to remove the weathering from the base..it came in the form of the humble rail joiner.Rail joiners hold rail technicaly I thought?
      After making a small clamp from pcb to bend brass wire for another project.i used the same principal to make a rail holder to file the rail base. Soldier rail joiners to pcb sheet. I  slid some joiners on the bare rail spaced 2-3 inches apart or point filing distance,and soldered them to a large piece of  pcb sheet (close to the edge)with a cutout/relief in the board between the joiners,Deep and long enough for clearance to work a file.insert rail,
turn it over press down and draw file the base.just slide the rail along working on a small section at a time..it creates a sliding rail fixture type thingy and gives u something to hold onto while working the rail.
           Then I thought I’d give points a go and it also worked ok.i filed the rail till it was almost clean thru then snip off the full bit of rail at the point and Slide the rail out the end of the joiner just enuf to finish the point.do a bit at a time as the rails quite flexible.configure the joiner positions and distances to suit ur needs.ME code 40 joiners were perfect for this. I have a code 55 one as well.they are a bit tighter I used atlas 55 joiners for that one.and u may need to open them up a touch.obv use the suitable joiners for ur choice of code rail👍
      Its  now on its fourth incarnation with joiners set for ME no6 frog geometry  and to a stage it’s like a 4 in 1 rail filing point/frog jig fixture. Thingy..a few pics would better explain all this unfortunately 😞 cheers Glenn
     

[Howard1975]

Your code 30 track work looks very nice, it's certainly an interesting experiment.  It's amazing what can be done with 3D printing nowadays.