Laying flextrack for model railroads

Описание: This video was made after a viewer requested that I show track being laid in real time so that he could see exactly how to do it. I hope you find it useful.

I get a lot of people telling me I should stagger the rail joints. This is NOT a good idea. Yes I know real railroads went through a period of staggering the joints - by half a rail length - not just a few feet! This is what causes the rocking motion often noticeable in videos shot from straight ahead with a telephoto lens. Another thing to note, is that the staggering of the joints was only done in the days of short jointed rails (usually 39' long so as to fit in a standard 40' gondola). Flex track on model railroads is more akin to continuously welded rail, which is a huge improvement.

You will notice that when laying curves, I solder the rails on the straight before bending them to the desired radius. This completely and perfectly eliminates the problems that staggered rail joints fail to solve. Note that I don't solder the joints on the straights because the rails need some room to expand and contract.

Just as on the prototype, staggered joints are "old-school". Just as on the prototype, there is now a far better way of doing it.

Most people I have spoken to who still advocate staggering the joints, only stagger them by an inch or so. This is THE WORST POSSIBLE THING TO DO. This does NOTHING to eliminate the kink that we so often see on poorly laid curved track. All it does is create a far longer gap without structural ties. Instead of two missing ties for in-line joints, you end up with about 6 missing ties for an inch of stagger. This greatly exacerbates the problems we are trying to solve.

In conclusion: DON'T STAGGER THE RAIL JOINTS.