What is The Correct Way to Join Ross Track Pins??

The nub is there for a reason. It's a built in stop to keep the pin in place. Rather than sliding further in the rail when you join track sections together. If there's a need to have the rails completely flush. I'm not sure why you think this is necessary. I would add just a drop of solder to smooth the joint.  Or use Gargraves joiners. They are flat strips that slide up in the rails and will rest on the roadbed. The next section is tapped down over these. More useful when changing up the layout or when you have to do a repair to already ballasted track. Those track pins. Probably pass current as good as any other method.

 The pics you showed look fine. If there is a bigger gap on one side. File the opposite side down to get a tighter fit.

Kenny,

I am left with a space in between my tracks,which could cause chaos with The DCS and Legacy engines.  

I wouldn't be at all concerned about encountering any issues whatsoever as regards DCS or Legacy signals.

To me that tiny space is normal. Doesn’t hurt a thing. Some tap the opposite rail end for total closure but I think that’s an overkill leaving the nub the only thing making contact inside the rail.

I tap the pins in with a small hammer until they are flush with the holding tab. You end up with such a tiny space between the rails that it shouldn't make a bit of different. Once the rails are on that tab connectivity has been made and as Rob has said the space is normal and won't affect operation.

Working as designed......GG pins have the same  'nub' may be the same pins......GG and Ross have a working relationship. How does this gap harm command systems??? you still have electrical contact. 

The system is working well on my new layout.

Thanks Guys! That is an ABSOLUTE piece of knowledge to keep inside this deranged head of mine!!Last time I fought those tabs like crazy,no wonder I had so much fun doing it last time!!!!! 

This will be a SHELF layout going around the room,at sit down level,I'm just getting too old to climb on layouts,and definetly too old for carpet central.

I looked at EVERY TRACK SYSTEM,even  got some pieces of MTH ScaleTrax from Clyde at Stockyard Express,was considering that as well as ATLAS. Atlas Looks Spectacular,but is still plastic when it comes down to it.And ATLAS was by FAR the most expensive system.

Dollar for Dollar,Holler for Hollar,even though ROSS prices went up a little over the last two years,it's a tried and true track system that is made in America, and BACKED UP by the owner Steve Brennisen(Hope that was close Steve)

Now I just need to get that Double Crossover again.To me,that thing is more than a Switch.It is a work of Art.

I"ll pray that I might be able to get 2 of them this time,

But one #175 Double Crossover is great enough for me.

What a focal point of any layout.

A Masterpiece.That #175 just blows my mind.It's like looking at a woman or a sports car.  Thanks again Everyone.Let's go lay some track!!!!!

"nubs '' are intentionally  made on the pins..... so the pin doesn't slide into the track rail...I used this for years before I went to atlas....

I tap the 3 pins in with a small hammer, just far enough that the nubs are within the end of each rail section.  I use this to my advantage on big GarGraves oval of track that set up and tear down once or twice a year, approx. 5' wide x 17' long.  The pins don't fall out when disassembled, and they all stay in the same ends making reassembly go a lot faster.  Plus, there is little to no gap in the rails when assembled.  With but one electrical connection to the oval for a conventional throttle, I haven't had any electrical issues yet. 

Paul

Love those nubs!  They create the gaps that give THE ONE sound of railroading that lives within my memory until the day I die......the clickety-clack of the train's wheels as they cross the rail gaps.

Back when I rode the trains (roughly 1945 to 1965), and before continuous welded rail became more commonplace, it was that '39-foot' syncopated travelling rhythm that made this kid happy, melancholy, ...and eventually sleepy! 

Actually, for me welded rail kind of ruined the whole childhood train travel experience.  However, it made riding on the Shinkansen in Japan (later business travel years) a unique experience.  And, were they to have used 39' rails while travelling at 130 mph it probably would've sounded like we were being strafed with a machine gun!!

There've been a lot of discussions on this forum about how to quiet the trains on the track.  All well and good.  But, for me...IMHO...having some gap between the rails creates the LAST sound I'd being trying to get rid of.

Ross, Gargraves......thanks for those nubbins!!  Just right.....for more than one reason!

Again......just MHO..........FWIW.

KD

Test running my GG/Ross layout I did notice the 'clickity-clack' those tiny gaps give. Now on locos with loud sound systems....kinda lost. But I ran a Williams 2-8-2 brass loco w/o any sounds and you really hear the track!!!

I seem to remember reading that some folk fill these gaps with epoxy putty.  Does anyone have any views on this please?  As others have said the clickety clack noise is nice in many cases but with some multi axle steam locos the sound can be quite overpowering.

Grind the nubs off on a bench grinder. Thats what I do.

I used all Ross track, probably 400 feet of track and 20 + switches, have those same gaps.  Wired for DCS, and get all 9s and 10s.  Those little gaps did not seem to effect my DCS signal strength.

Also, only connected the common to one outside rail and did not take off the black color on the center rail.  Did not solder any of the track connections, used male spade connectors pushed into the bottom of the rails.

Tony 

The gap makes no difference. Solid contact between the pin and the inside of the rail is all you need to carry electricity and signal. The rails touching one another would actually be a terrible connection in comparison. You can take a block of wood and a mallet and bang all the connections together, but its not worth it. 

Highlander posted:

I seem to remember reading that some folk fill these gaps with epoxy putty.  Does anyone have any views on this please? 

I don't think there is a reason to fill normal track joints with epoxy. Where I do use epoxy is when I have deliberately left a gap in order to electrically isolate one rail section from the next. Those gaps I fill with epoxy, to prevent metal filings from getting into the gap and electrically re-connecting the two rails.

I have been using Gar Graves and Ross for many years now and on my attic layout and the basement layout I am working on now I have the small spaces between the track sections and switches. In all these years I have had no problem with DCS or Legacy/TMCC signals. Depending on where you live and where your layout is located that small space allows for expansion and contraction of the track with temperature variations. Also that little knob keeps pins from going all the way in when putting track together possibly causing a break in power or ground................Paul

Wouldn't the nubs go on the bottom and force into the seam of the rail, slightly spreading it on that rail and holding it there if the track were disassembled? Slight tap with a tool...

nickaix posted:

Highlander posted:

I seem to remember reading that some folk fill these gaps with epoxy putty.  Does anyone have any views on this please? 

I don't think there is a reason to fill normal track joints with epoxy. Where I do use epoxy is when I have deliberately left a gap in order to electrically isolate one rail section from the next. Those gaps I fill with epoxy, to prevent metal filings from getting into the gap and electrically re-connecting the two rails.

Thank you very much for your reply.  Rather than a "complete" gap intended to isolate sections I was thinking of filling any over long  discrepancies between the top of the pins and the upper surface of the rails.  I hope this makes sense - maybe I am being too fussy but in a minority of cases there just seems to be too much clatter.

"which could cause chaos with The DCS and Legacy engines."  

No. The track has continuity...because of the pins. You ought to see some of the unintentional gaps on my GG/Ross/Curtis layout! I run TMCC, Legacy, and very occasionally DCS locos.