Block sanding turnouts?
Question
I bought some Bachmann “Track Cleaning Fluid” on Amazon a couple of weeks ago, and, to my amazement, it did what it was supposed to do. I had checked the reviews (which were overwhelmingly positive) and saw where one buyer mentioned “block sanding” his turnouts. I has one turnout (out of seven) that doesn’t want to “play nice” with one of my locomotives.
I am new to this, and am wondering if this is a way to “fine tune” these [pieces of equipment. I guess I am asking if this is true, and if so, what are the details on doing it? I am working with N scale, if it makes a difference.
Answer ( 1 )
I would be reluctant to block sand turnouts even using something as fine as crocus cloth. If there are significant ridges in the track check the joints as these are usually caused by one rail not setting properly in the rail joiner. I would be concerned if the rail was rough as most rail has a smooth level surface when it’s first made. I have also seen turnouts that didn’t lay flat because of the plastic ties warping slightly during production.
I’ve usually found that when specific engines don’t play nice with the track there is usually a reason. These range from grades starting at the turnout, causing the engine to lift off the rails, to poor tracking of the engine due to trucks not properly supporting the wheels. Steam engines are usually tripped up by a leading or trailing truck not properly engaging the track. Diesels have more in common with cars that don’t track properly, usually related to trucks and how they support the wheels. I would watch the offending engine to see what happens as it goes across the turnout. A minicam may help if you can’t see both sides of the track. Good Luck, Ray