Soldering Rail Joints . . .

Why do you feel the need to solder all the rail joints?  I have had a dozen latyouts, some large one and never soldered rail joints.

I agree with Larry.  Not necessary.

.....

Dennis

I think it might be a good idea based on the specifics of your layout.  About 30 years ago I started building a 20 feet square, three level Gargraves steel flex track layout.  I soldered most of the joints using solid wire across the gaps.  I also ran powered and ground wires to all the far reaches of the layout.  It performed great.  I haven't run any trains on that layout in two years.  It's above a workshop in an outbuilding without heat.  The track is dirty right now but I'm certain I could wipe the track and it would run just as well as when it was new.  

So, if you're looking for longevity and it's not in your house where the pins could corrode over time, you might want to solder the gaps.  And size matters.  How big is your layout and what's the track material?

Good luck....

Nobody has mentioned the brand of track being used.  Just curious what types Larry and Dennis use and what type Bob wants to solder.  

Well, my 2 big layouts approx. 10 4 X 8 sheets of plywood each were Originally K-Line Super Track (Later called Shadow track and then Snap Track) and the other one was MTH Realtrak. Never had a soldered track joint on either on. 

Absolutely no need to solder every rail joint.

On any permanent layout, I solder all three rails at every joint.  It makes for very good connectivity and strength.  A good idea.  I use a Weller 26/200 watt gun and electrical solder.  

Secure your track so it won't move and you won't need to solder ( or run wires?) between track sections.  Well placed screws for a start, will serve you just as well with none of the wasted effort.  Built some decent sized layouts.  Best medicine, keep your track clean and your rails polished by running trains on them on a regular basis.  Cheers.

If you have a semi-permanent or temporary layout, soldering the rails would not be recommended as it will be extremely difficult, if not impossible to separate the tracks.

 

On the other hand, soldering is recommended when you have to add feeder wires to compensate for dead spots and voltage drops. Even then most modellers solder individual wires to the web of the rail (the thin part between where the wheels roll and the base), or on the underside of the rail.

 

-John

I have Atlas-O 3 rail track, no soldered joints, no problems in 3 years or so. I didn't even solder the power drops, used Ingeniero No1's power connection method from his build thread and it works great with DCS and Legacy.

I'm old school and solder every joint on my GG tin plate track.  Goes back to my days working as a troubleshooter for Bendix Radio in the 60's. If you didn't have good soldering skills you didn't have a job there.

I have gargraves track which worked fine with conventional.  When I added DCS and did the DCS signal strength I had 6-8 strength.  The track is clean so I crimped each track at their connection joint.  That helpEded and I got 8-9 signal strength.

 

i decided to solder each joint.  It took sometime to complete but it was worth the effort.  I now get 10 in all but a few sections where I am get a  9.  I just wish I could solder good enough to be able to fill in gaps at track joints.

 

And just to reaffirm the importance of clean track, i ran trains for about six months without any real cleaning.  After checking the signal strength I was  getting 5-6. After a good cleaning it went back to mostly 10's.  I have  voltage and amp meters on each loop. There was a pretty decent reduction in the amperage readings with clean track.

 

Ed

 

 

I have had layouts since the 70's with several types of track and never found a reason to soldier the track joints. A complete waste of time IMO. 

My mainline tracks have been down for about 10 years.  I use Gargraves Flex Track and Ross Switches.  When assembling I tapped the tracks together with a block of wood and hammer so the joints are nice and tight.  All the track is screwed down so as not to move.  All that takes enough time without also soldering.  There is no need to solder the joints.

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Dennis

No solder here, 20yr old O tubular 27'x12' with 8 interconnected lines and 2 reverse loops.  I can run command or conventional with no issues.

 

Art

If you feel the burning need to solder the joints, use a small jumper and solder that to the bottom flange of the rail.  Soldering the joints directly will sometimes crack with use, the wire will be forever.

 

500 ft of atlas O 3 rail, run TMCC and DCS, no solder. 

 

Ran this layout for 15 yrs before taking it down.  The only thing done different was to bunish off the ends of blackened center rail, use a very small amount of conductive grease, and make certain each leg of switches were independently powered.

 

The other thing done was that the inside rail was insulated on the whole layout. (basically running two rails until train was on that section)..Makes block signals easy.

 

Bill D