F3 or F7s with Fixed Pilots - anyone navigated tight curves?

With long shank Kadee couplers I have run Atlas 2 rail F units with fixed pilots on 27"r (O-54). O-48 is possible, but I'm doubtful about O-36.

Of course it also depends on what rolling stock you have and what kind of turnouts you use. Cars in the 40ft range are about all you will be able to use. If possible us numbered turnouts like #4, #5, etc... and not radius turnouts like O-48, O-54, etc... The 'S' curve that they cause on parallel tracks will be a problem with such tight radii.

The best thing to do is experiment. Find yourself a cheap 2R dummy, lay some track and push it around. You'll be surprised what you can do with some planning.

Good luck

In my experience with modifying F3 units where the coupler moves with the truck 042 is the minimum radious usable. If you remove the coupler and shut the front door like passenger diesels have any radious is doable. 

Rob

Thanks - for what it's worth I intend to run one A unit only - so would have a dummy front coupler and only use the rear. So my only real concern is the ability of the front trucks to navigate a curve without striking the fixed pilot.

"So my only real concern is the ability of the front trucks to navigate a curve without striking the fixed pilot."

The above issue is largely non-existent, as any decent model's parts and pieces will not create such a situation. Now, attempting to run a non-swinging coupler on small curves is just almost always a lesson in frustration. It's all just physics and geometry. You can't change either. 

As Jonathan said above: "Find yourself a cheap 2R dummy, lay some track and push it around."

Yep - get some stuff do some testing and design.

FYI - I just installed a fixed pilot on my Atlas NYC F2 - and it was a problem using the factory parts and instructions. So, be patient. (I had to shorten the actual coupler pocket a wee bit - the truck would not swing at all - see how the pocket jams up against the truck?; problem solved later with a bit of cutting.) 

Done. That's an 072 curve; I still use the large hi-rail couplers in general, but my sclae steamers have scale couplers on the front, and this F2 is not a switcher, and I dislike swinging pilots, so... The car is there just for the photo. 

D500 - what you are showing is very helpful and illustrates exactly what I intend to achieve.

My ideal would be to buy an Atlas F unit, fix the front pilot, but then never couple anything to the front of it. I would be fine with that since the look of a fixed pilot over a swinging one far outweighs any limitations from not using the front coupler