Comparison of Fastrack & Real Trax

The actual comparison...

 

Fastrack works well, Realtrax sucks.

 

 

I was looking for that, thanks!

I use Real Trax and have been for over two years now. I have not had any issues with it. 

gunrunnerjohn,

   There is some use for RealTrax,  I just put a 031 RealTrax loop inside my 036 FasTrack Christmas layout.  I agree FasTrack is serious stuff, but the Lionel engineers messed up their 031 FasTrack, it will not fit inside their own 036 FasTrack loops or ovals.

PCRR/Dave

 

 

 

I have Fastrack for my O gauge and Realtrax for my standard gauge.  

I like how the Fastrack holds together better.

Fastrack is designed to run parallel at 6" centers thats why theres 12" inch increments in turns 36,48,60,72. To have a track run within o-36 it would have to be o-24. I think o-31 was designed for those who want a post war style layout with sharp turns but using modern track.

Hellgate,

   I agree 100%, FasTrack has a lot of advantages over RealTrax, I always advise

the men using RealTrax to screw it down and leave it alone, unless they are going to enlarge their layouts.  It is not user friendly, especially the early stuff.  Taking it up and down only endangers the track.  FasTrack is much more user friendly and can be taken up and down quickly without breakage, great stuff for a carpet central around a childs Christmas tree.  It also is better running with the old Magna-Traction Lionel Trains, I use both because of the foolish 031 FasTrack engineering.

 

PCRR/Dave

 

 

I've been using Realtrax for at least 8 years now and I've never had an issue with it that I haven't had with any other track. The occasional derailment or switch not working correctly are about the same that I've seen with other types of track. I don't understand how people can be having problems with it, it's no more complicated to use than Fastrack or tubular, this isn't rocket science . Everyone has their favorite type of track and they all have their design faults and idiosycracys but I dont't fault or bash them for using them. The only reason I'm going with tubular track on my next build is I have a lot of locomotives with Magnetraction and it doesn't work very well on Realtrax, I get a lot of slipping that I've concluded is due to the difference in rail/wheel profiles and the general nonmagnetic property of the rail material, the worst offender I have is my Santa Fe 2343, it can barely move itself let alone a string of passenger cars on the Realtrax but on tubular it could drag a cinder block. 

 

Jerry

I have a lot of realtrax and have a lot of trouble with it, but don't like the looks of fastrack.  All future additions will be with Atlas.  Atlas says, and I agree, that the geometry of O-31 and O-42, don't jive with the other radii - wont fit the pattern.  I abandoned O-27 and O-31 long ago, but still have a lot of O-42.  I'll just have to work it in.

i don't see any thing bad with real trax have used 1year

I like the look of fastrack and have had no problems with it at all. A great product. Never liked realtrax, looks too chunky.

Not to worry, I have my suit.

 

Jerry,

   RealTrax is not complicated at all, if you happen to have any of the original track with the soft copper at the joins, it can be a real problem keeping it from breaking

as you put up or take down a layout.  Even the newer track can be damaged while building the layout.  Once up and screwed down it really does run great, no doubt about it, and the 031 fits inside 036 as it is suppose to.  However trestle slide is a major problem with some trains.  With modern trains the switches work fine, however they do not accommodate O Guage Tin Plate on a repetative running basis unfortunately.  To me all these things combined put RealTrax far behind FasTrack

for repetative running of all my different O Gauge trains.  The newer Atlas Industrial

Rail ( White Cloud) track is similar to FasTrack and is easier to put together than

RealTrax and it's a lot harder to damage for building layouts repetatively.  I believe the 036 is the smallest engineering this IR White Cloud track comes in. 

 

 

Alan,

  There is nothing really bad about RealTrax, it does have some draw backs that people should know about when deciding to purchase their 1st track however.  When you have taken your RealTrax up and down 5 time, let me know what you think of it.

PCRR/Dave

 

Part of the Pine Creek RailRoad FasTrack layout.

 

 

 

I would use fastrack for "set up take down" train running. Works great and simple to use,  assembles/disassembles very well. Stays together and I have never had connections issues. I use it for under the tree, it is a perfect match for on the hardwood floor or carpet.

 

I would use realtrax on a permanent type layout before fastracks. It just looks so much better. I have found that when people post pictures of their track on the forum, the darker roadbed just photographs better(see Rich Battista Black Diamond RR, I have ordered his ballast, it is almost black). I also do not like the fastrack rails. I think it is the most unrealistic looking rails made. Scaletrax looks like RR rails.

 

Oh, and they are both loud!!!!

I've built a number of temporary layouts over the years and dozens of carpet centrals with Realtrax (same track used repeatedly) and had really no issues to speak of and given what I know about it I'd choose it again. I have no issues with Fastrak, I just have a lot invested in tubular and Realtrax to go into another type of track. My original plan was to use Atlas 21st Century track but it's not cheap so I stuck with what I had. I guess everyones experience is different.

 

Jerry

Fastrack is my first choice but I went with Realtrax for my standard gauge just beacause I liked the look of it next to my Fastrack.  As others have said if you screw Realtrax down and leave it alone you should be OK. If you are going to break the track down for a carpet layout ect. Then go with Fastrack.

 

I have a boat load of Fastrack so switching track brands is not in the plans.  I am just glad I am not ballasting track.  With that third rail going down the center of all our tracks all tracks look goofy.

Other points to consider:

Fastrack          RealTrax
==================================================
Supports Magnatraction          Not magnetic for Magnatraction
Closer tie spacing          Tie space looks too far apart
Lighter roadbed color          Darker roadbed color
Louder track noise          Less loud track noise than Fastrack

Real Trax used for 4 years.  I haven't had a problem.

I use to abide by the old cliche, "Never say Never" but in this instance I can state without reservation that I will never and I mean never use MTH's Realtrax again.  I'll make my own before I would ever use that stuff.   Major League headaches when I used it for my Christmas Carpet Railway.

CTT did a thorough comparison of all track types some years ago; what struck me was that MTH's Realtrax had the lowest conductivity and highest resistance of all track systems. Not sure if that was due to the metal alloys in the tracks or the connections, or both.

Paul,

 

Any idea what issue had this article?  Would love to review.  Right now Fastrack is top on my list to use on my layout and so far it has been very easy to use and the DCS signal is a full 10 on the scale. 

ChessieMD,

   Got to agree with you, DCS works great with FasTrack especially with Tin Plate

Trains.

PCRR/Dave

 

Tin Plate on FasTrack with DCS - Ya got to love it!

I like both track systems, but use FasTrack for my layout.  I just prefer the tie spacing and color of FasTrack...just a personal preference.  The rail shape doesn't bother me since these are "toy train layouts" anyway.

There are several people on this forum that have RealTrax layouts and they look great.
One of the MTH RTR sets, that I have, came with a loop of RealTrax.  Since I had it I tried it out.  I liked it and found putting it together and taking it apart to be quite easy.  The only issue I had was the curves did not sit flat...the outside edges were elevated.  Of course that would not be an issue if placed on a permanent layout and screwed down.

No problem with Realtrax here. I chose it because of the t rail profile and nickel silver rails instead of tinplate. It also looks better with the detailed ties, I get 9's and 10's on the DCS signal. I bought about half of mine used and it still works great solid rail and hollow rail both work great together. Another thing I love is the lockons attaching to DCS with banana jacks. One more thing is the trestles and bridges they are very sturdy and easy to use. Just my 2 cents

Given the overwhelming opinion of the many folks who have posted on threads over the years comparing the tracks, you're in the minority.

 

A major problem with RealTrax seemed to be conductivity issues, an area where FasTrack excels. I also had significant personal experience with this problem in the past, and got rid of my RealTrax years ago and replaced it with FasTrack.

There's really no comparison.

 

Pete

I have had problems with realtrax from MTH. It looks great but it does not carry voltage well and has some longevity issues. I'm just glad MTH builds there locomotives to better standards than there track.

This is year  6 with Realtrax, year 3 with this layout. It is a Christmas layout. The oval on the left is raised. I just took it down. About 1/2 the track was bought used. I have not broken more than 3 pieces, in the 5 years. Aside from switches, I've never had a running issue. I run the layout 1 - 4 hr, 4 to 6 days a week, for 6 or 7 weeks. This was the first DCS year. I had 10s for signal, every time I checked. I will refrain from counterbashing Lionel RTR sets, but my first RTR set (after the old Lionel tubular set that got me started), was MTH. By the time I considered other track, I was too far in. By comparison the Lionel RTR sets I've bought are much noisier. Even the fastrak seemed a bit louder, on the carpet, I'm glad I made the realtrax commitment, even if it was by accident. When I get a permanent layout, I will look at other brands and most likely go with something unballasted.

I had a HUGE learning curve on the switches, but got them this year.

Well, there seems to be a lot of support on this thread and others for Realtrax so I wouldn't conclude that it is overwhelming. There does appear to be a consensus that Fastrak is better for repeated assembly and disassembly and for running magnetraction engines. It seems that appearance is a personal issue, some liking the darker appearance of the Realtrax Roadbed and rails and others the lighter roadbed and tin plate rails of Fastrak.

 

I have been using Realtrax for my Christmas layouts for a few years and am very happy with its performance, especially how it works with the elevated and graduated trestle sets and no issues with conductivity. I like the appearance better than Fastrak as I find the Fastrak roadbed too light and too wide, the rails too shiney and am seriously considering Realtrax for my permanent layout. From the postings it appears that Fastrak has good connectivity and conductivity. Both good systems and a personal choice.

 

Mike

I imagine that everyone has their own opinions and see the track differently. I have used Realtrax long before Fastrak came out and I did like it. The Realtrax was not mine, it was for a public display which used over 200 pieces.

 

The last time that I used it we were losing about a dozen sections a year because of the contacts would break apart. Fastrak came out shortly after I got back into buying trains again. But I did fall in love with the Fastrak after it came out. To me I like the tie spacing better then the Realtrax. I think the larger scale equipment looks much better with the smaller closer ties. I just feel that Realtrax looks more like tinplate track to me.

 

But I can understand with those who already have a investment in track for them to stick with what they have.

 

I'm glad my Nomex suit hasn't been required, it's been a very rational discussion.  

 

My two experiences with RealTrax were not that good, which is why I avoid it.  I found the connections to be far less reliable than Fastrack, which isn't perfect, but very good.  The switches were also not as reliable as Fastrack, not even close.  In truth, I rate the Fastrack switches as some of the most reliable of any brands, except perhaps Ross which does set the standard.  My experience with the Realtrax and Atlas switches has led me to use Fastrack.

 

gunrunnerjohn,

   Because I have built numerous layouts with both kinds of track I have to agree with you, RealTrax is really not user friendly for those wanting to repetatively build layouts.  Building the 031 MTH inside oval of my Christmas layout this year I damaged 2 curved track installing them, and I have worked with RealTrax for a long time, an inexperienced builder has even more of a damage problem.  Just building this inside oval with RealTrax reminded me of the vast difference

in the track and just why I like FasTrack so much.  I also agree with you when it comes to Atlas switches, way to many problems with them.  Maybe the new Atlas IR switches will be of a higher quality, and more user friendly.  To me however even the FasTrack switches need re-engineered to accommodate all the different O guage trains, the Ross switches have problems with Tin Plate also.  I do wish

the engineers in all these companies did a lot more R&D work before releasing the product for sale. 

PCRR/Dave      

 

Unfortunately, these discussions do little to help new folks like me decide what track to use. All I get out of it is that there are those who use RealTrax and have few problems with it and the same is true for Fastrack. I want to use ScaleTrax, mostly for their flextrack and turnout selection compared to RealTrax, but get concerned about switch problems. I see folks using GarGraves and Ross, but so far I'm not sure why those were chosen and what they were compared to. The only item I haven't read any problems about is Ross switches, so maybe I'll go with ScaleTrax and Ross Switches. The biggest problem is no place to actually see all these products. Due to weather, I didn't make it to Legacy Station on our trip through Atlanta, so I'm hoping to hit Ready to Roll in Miami early next month, but I'm not overly hopeful it'll help with my decision. I think it's going to boil down to buying something and just dealing with any problems.

When I first used realtrax, I had issues with it.  Once I figured out the correct technique for assembling/disassembling and how to check and adjust the contacts, it has been all good.  I have never used the fastrack, just don't care for the look.

 

While I think real trax could stand some improvements, it's not horrible and I like it much better than dealing with the old time tubular stuff.

 

Also on a personal note, the newer hollow rail realtrax doesn't bother me at all.  It works just as well and doesn't look any different for the most part.

 

Personally, I would use whatever looks best to you.

The problem I had with the older style RealTrax was it seemed to wear the flanges on locos to a razor edge over time. Not sure if it was the shape, alloy, or some combination of the two, but I laid my thumb open on the flange of an F40 after it had spent several months running on RealTrax.

 

Len2,

   I just had one of the guys at the Monroeville Train Show last weekend tell me the exact same thing, got to admit the wheels on my GP NP are getting a might sharp also.  Its another one of those small things that happens over time with RealTrax.

PCRR/Dave