Will fastrack wear out?

Since Fastrack is metal rails surrounded by plastic ties, roadbed, etc. I would say that acetone is not the best cleaner to use.  It softens and dissolves plastic.

Take a look at this Topic:

https://ogrforum.com/...lectrical-connection

Fastrack doesn't wear out so much as develop lousy electrical connection between track pieces. Easy to fix but requires lifting the track to do it.

How many power drops (connections to the track) do you have ?

 In addition to making sure your Fastrack electrical connections are as good as they can be, if you only have one connection, you might also want to consider adding a second connection and see if that helps - couldn't hurt.

Would check the track sections with the dead spots/voltage drops to see if the connectors are loose or deformed.  Clean rails and connectors with alcohol, not acetone.  Inexpensive alcohol wipes are available at drugstores, Costco, etc.  If you find corrosion on connectors, use a little nail file or fine sandpaper to gently remove it.  Not a bad idea to clean the loco wheels (not the traction tires) that contact the track and any pickups with alcohol pads.  I'd prefer this approach to a rag plus bottled alcohol as it's easy to get too much alcohol on the loco and track and this may not be good for aesthetics.

BReece posted:

I have a loop of Fastrack (43+/-Ft) no switches 060 curves.

The track is clean.  (Used Acetone)

Powerhouse 180 transformer. Should the track (empty) show 18 volts all the way around? It doesn't but then my gauges are pretty inexpensive (Harbor Freight and a K-line box car with a meter build in). The meters indicate a few dead spots but they are +/- an inch and they are located where the track is joined . My VL Hudson will run on this track but not as good as it should, there is a spot where after the engine travels 3-4 loops the engine will stop, not short out just stop. A little push and it will run some more.

Moving the Hudson to the VL BigBoy loop and it runs great. ( Bigboy is off track)

Will a redo on the cleaning, I mean take it off the loop disconnect every piece and while at it check the electrical  connections be worthwhile or just break the bank and order new track, This track is about 10 years, as long as I have had the Hudson and it was pre ordered.

Thanks 

Brent

 

If you have tight electrical connections and more than just one power connection on 43' of track, the voltage should read within a few hundredths of a volt everywhere.  If you are running two Legacy engines in command mode and one stops and the other doesn't it could be that the pickup roller spacings are such that one engine has all its rollers on a dead track, but the other one doesn't.

I wouldn't think the track would wear out, but in my experience the track pins on FasTrack are troublesome particularly if you keep taking the track apart.  I have tried the pin bending tricks (see Lionel video) and the rail crimping techniques that are recommended, but unless the track is secured I found that the connections can lose electrical continuity just by running trains around the loop.  Most of the continuity problems I have seen are with the 10" straight.  

What you are describing is typical of some poor connections somewhere.  You can find the spots by using a lighted piece of rolling stock or by checking continuity from one piece of track to the next using a meter set to measure resistance.  Of course you want the power off when you do that.  You don't have to take apart the whole loop, just make one break and then test continuity across each of the rail joints.  As I mentioned, however, even when you fix all the connections, you can lose continuity as trains are run.  For the grandkids, I duct tape the side of the roadbed to the floor after making sure all the connections are tight.  

I remember a post a long time ago where someone cleaned his track with a household cleaner and it got into his joint pins causing a build up. If memory serves me properly he had much the same problems that you describe.

Have you cleaned your track lately with any detergents?

That would be Lee Willis with Simple Green!  That was quite a discovery, it really wrecked the track!  He ended up replacing it with Atlas track.

Wonder what happened to him? He did some interesting things including the simple green thing. Wrote a book too.

He's written a number of books, some of them are on Amazon.

cjack posted:

Wonder what happened to him? He did some interesting things including the simple green thing. Wrote a book too.

I think he went to another forum. 

BReece posted:

Will a redo on the cleaning, I mean take it off the loop disconnect every piece and while at it check the electrical  connections be worthwhile or just break the bank and order new track, This track is about 10 years, as long as I have had the Hudson and it was pre ordered. 

If you used acetone, your rails are clean enough.  But don't use any more acetone to clean your track with.  It can damage the plastic roadbed.  90% isopropyl alcohol or mineral spirits would be a much better choices, amongst others.  A point to ponder: Alcohol and mineral spirits can be purchased in plastic containers.  Acetone can only be found in metal containers.  Does that tell you anything? 

It WOULD be worth it to disassemble the track and check out all electrical connections.  This is probably where most of your problem is at.  Get the electrical connections tuned up, and you should be good to go.  No need to break the bank and start ordering new track.

The only other thing to do is add some more electrical hookups to the track.  If you add a second hookup, place it approximately half way around the layout.  Even some more hookups would be better - just space them evenly around the layout.

Give this a try, and see if it doesn't help. 

There has been a problem brought up some time back with pins breaking. I believe these were cast or powdered metal. The break was hidden by the track.

Steve

A friend was cleaning his track (N gauge Kato) with alcohol and had to redo it every couple of weeks. Then he tried a rather dry cloth with WD40 and it lasted for months. Just a film seemed to protect the rail from oxidation or whatever was causing the intermittent contact. I tried it a little, but I never have had any issues with my Fastrack anyway. So I don't know, but it didn't cause any issues either.

You might think about soldering jumpers around the bad track joints. Obviously, you will have to be careful with a soldering gun around the plastic roadbed. That would save having to take all of the track apart.

Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:

There has been a problem brought up some time back with pins breaking. I believe these were cast or powdered metal. The break was hidden by the track.

Steve

Yes, I have had this happen a couple times with Fastrack. The outside rail pins seem more susceptible.

cjack posted:

A friend was cleaning his track (N gauge Kato) with alcohol and had to redo it every couple of weeks. Then he tried a rather dry cloth with WD40 and it lasted for months. Just a film seemed to protect the rail from oxidation or whatever was causing the intermittent contact. I tried it a little, but I never have had any issues with my Fastrack anyway. So I don't know, but it didn't cause any issues either.

A lot of HO and N guys use this trick, although a lot of them use Wahl Clipper oil.  That, and any lightweight sewing machine oil or similar should do the trick also, I would think.

I have tried it and it works good.  My N-scale trains ran much better, it virtually eliminated all stalling, jerking, and arcing.  The only thing, if the layout is in a dusty environment, it may attract dust to the rails.  But if so, simply wipe them down again.

IME yes it does wear out so to speak.   I've had loop in my home on the carpet for at least 10 years.  slowly but surely I've had to replace almost every section.  switches also for various reasons. 

Just curious - how does a 10" straight section of FT wear out ? What happens to it so that it no longer is able to either conduct electricity or support a train on its rails ?

Richie C. posted:

Just curious - how does a 10" straight section of FT wear out ? What happens to it so that it no longer is able to either conduct electricity or support a train on its rails ?

Just guessing, but rust, for one?  Since the rails are steel and not nickel silver, humid & damp environments, or vicinity to salt water coasts could eat away on the rails.  For another, repeated assembly/disassembly will undoubtedly wear out and/or break items at the ends of the track pieces.

Like I said, just guessing.  As I have no experience with Fastrack, hopefully someone with long time Fastrack experience can jump in with the real poo.............. er, "scoop", that is.  

Richie C. posted:

Just curious - how does a 10" straight section of FT wear out ? What happens to it so that it no longer is able to either conduct electricity or support a train on its rails ?

The 10" sections I have had trouble with don't really "wear out", but repeated assembly and disassembly loosen the connections.  On curved sections the straight track pins probably make a tighter connection in the curved rails.  All of my continuity problems have been with the straight sections.  I bet if FasTrack is screwed down in a permanent layout it wouldn't have the problems I have seen.

JFC454 posted:

I bet if FasTrack is screwed down in a permanent layout it wouldn't have the problems I have seen.

That's gotta' be true for virtually every track system in any scale out there! 

I`m new at this game, but what I did with my fastrack was to solder all the pins before putting the track together. I`ve had my 5x9 loop and an inner loop, 6 switches since last winter and so far no problems. Running DCS and ZWc for pwr. 

FasTrak will rust if some type of highly active liquid chemical is poured upon it.

Plastic roadbed sectional track will break down if there too much weight placed upon an unsupported joint.

Andrew