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Atlas O Turnout Question

P PJBOGR Forum Member

Hi,

 

Put down my first turnout, an Atlas O RH No. 5.  I ran my Premier N&W J through it backwards and forwards, coming from the one leg side through the split and onto each of the exiting legs without issue.  I then flipped the engine around and did the same, coming from each of the two legs through the frog.  Once through the frog and onto regular track, I backed up into the frog that leads to the curved leg.  The engine de-railed and almost looked like it was going to fall over sideways.  I think the wheel(s) dropped between the frog rails?  Was running the engine at about 10 SMPH.  I did it again at 5 SMPH without issue.  Is this normal??  

 

At first I was thinking “that sucks, but no biggie” as I can’t imagine I would be doing that maneuver very often when operating.  But then my second thought was – “yes I am, in the yard!”  Right now, I have the yard (for spacing purposes) configured with almost all No. 5 Atlas O turnouts.  Has anyone experienced this issue?  What do I do to solve? 

 

Thanks,

 

Peter  

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Don M.Don M.OGR Forum Member
Check the pick-up rollers. If they are crooked sometimes the roller will drop off the center rail and get caught causing the situation you described.  In my  experience it can be corrected by aligning the pick-up roller
 
 
Originally Posted by PJB:

Hi,

 

Put down my first turnout, an Atlas O RH No. 5.  I ran my Premier N&W J through it backwards and forwards, coming from the one leg side through the split and onto each of the exiting legs without issue.  I then flipped the engine around and did the same, coming from each of the two legs through the frog.  Once through the frog and onto regular track, I backed up into the frog that leads to the curved leg.  The engine de-railed and almost looked like it was going to fall over sideways.  I think the wheel(s) dropped between the frog rails?  Was running the engine at about 10 SMPH.  I did it again at 5 SMPH without issue.  Is this normal??  

 

At first I was thinking “that sucks, but no biggie” as I can’t imagine I would be doing that maneuver very often when operating.  But then my second thought was – “yes I am, in the yard!”  Right now, I have the yard (for spacing purposes) configured with almost all No. 5 Atlas O turnouts.  Has anyone experienced this issue?  What do I do to solve? 

 

Thanks,

 

Peter  

SS Scrapiron ScherOGR Forum Member

One of the issues with the Atlas O switches is the points (not the switch points) of the metal edges of the frog and some guard rails. Running large locos backwards over these can sometimes cause the rollers to hang up or the wheels to "pick" the points. The key to repair or, in some cases, improved running involves checking your rollers, watching where the wheels de-rail and possibly filing the points, not running backwards.

 

i try never to run my big steamers backwards over these.

 

eliot

P PJBOGR Forum Member
Thanks for all the helpful advice. Will check the rollers although this engine has about 50 scale miles on it. And yes, the unit did come with a brown plastic inserts!! Will try that too. Thanks for the tips! Regarding the comment about "not backing up" - I don't see how that's possible in yard operation? Regarding the "how is it powered" comment - i could have ground throws. With all due respect, what difference does it make?
R RailRideOGR Forum Member SUPPORTING MEMBER
Originally Posted by PJB:
Regarding the "how is it powered" comment - i could have ground throws. With all due respect, what difference does it make?

Probably mixed up your issue with the well-known problem of engines stalling on some Atlas switches--the original jumper wires bridging the gaps in the various rails   weren't entirely up to snuff, leaving the switches prone to developing dead spots unless power was fed from all tracks connected to it.

 

I can see a misaligned pickup roller causing havoc--I had one on a brand-new RailKing SD70ACE come loose and derail the engine during a public exhibition--the pin on the hinge actually managed to slide out and things went wacky from there. (I was able to put it back together and had no further trouble from it)

 

---PCJ

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