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Steve,
Just use a small hammer and tap the other end gently. The rails will move through the ties. If your have used flex track and curves are involved the rails will be different length causing the need to cut them even. Yes you need to drill the screws through the ties. Be sure to drill a pilot hole or you will split the ties. Hope this helps.
Paul Edgar
You may have to push the tracks together very gently with the help of a hammer and tap on the ends of the piece you are adding.
You can put screws through the ties, I use about one/sixty fourth of inch smaller drill bit then what Gargraves says to use so I don't split the wood ties. And like Paul mentioned always drill a hole first for the screw or you may damage the ties.
Also you should always use a track pin at every connection even if it is an insulated pin, as that will keep proper track alignment through curves.
Some engines don't like Gargraves switches, so you would be better off using Ross Custom switches, the track pins are the same as Gargraves.
Have you used Gargraves track before? If not you find out that all 3 rails are electrically separated from each other, no common outside rail power.
Lee Fritz
Based on my experience, I would recommend that you use Atlas track screws to secure the track down. Tha screws are black and almost disappear into the track.
Gargarves has track screw that are black #6 with phillips head on them and they come 100 to a bag. If Gargraves don't sell them directly then try Ross Custom switch website as Ross sells a lot of stuff that DZ Industries won't sell by the piece.
Lee Fritz
IME, Don't butt the rail ends tight. I use a .017" feeler for all rail ends for seasonal expansion allowance. Especially on long tangents. Otherwise you may wind up with a squiggley right of way.
For moving rail through the ties on installed GG flex track consider using a small head End Nipper.
This will allow you to grasp the web of the hollow head rail with out damaging the running surface
When shopping for a nipper, take a piece of track with you to assure the cutters will clear the center rail.
Steve, if you contact Gargraves, they will sell you track pins without the tang/bulge that creates the gap you initially referenced.
I call those rail joiner ears. They help in preventing the rail joiner from disappearing completely in one side of the track joint. I do NOT tap these into the adjacent rail. It creates a bulge in the rail head that not only looks odd but will close the rail spacing up.
I use what Carl has suggested above if the gap bothers you.
Track ends should have a small gap. One year at Christmas I had a gap of a inch that the trains traveled across all season and I didn't find out until I took the layout down and found the gap....so a 1/16 gap with rail joiners in place will be fine.
As for screws...I drill a pilot hole while laying the track. I buy my screws from BOLT DEPOT, great folks, SS 18-8 #4 x 1" for about $3 per 100. Heads are SS but in minutes I paint them all with same paint I do the ties.
If you're going to paint the rails, and ballast the track, you won't notice the bulge as much. We tapped the rails together using the standard pins, rails were painted, ballast added, and then weathered the whole area. We used 18 ga brads to secure the track after predrilling through the ties to prevent splitting. Between the brads, and the scenery glue, this track isn't going anywhere, and we don't have any screw heads showing.
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