Hi all, I,m finally in the process of constructing my new "small" 4 x 6 layout. The remaining 2x4 of the 4x8 will be staging. I've been racking my brains trying to decide what brand of track to use for this 1930-1940 themed road. I have lots of old track (Atlas) but it's around 10 - 20 years old and probably used on around 3 or four different layouts. I only have 3 switches in the viewing area and plan on using the used track and switches for my staging area. I purchased a used Shinohara code 100 double crossover. This is my start. The crossover was a necessary part of this road. I like the looks of the Shinohara track, though a little pricy, but heard several horror stories about their turnouts. I'll be using DCC and heard that Peco was probably the most dependable turnout to use. Are these two brands compatable with each other? Are Shinohara turnouts that unreliable? Would tie size and joiners need to be addressed if I went to Peco switches and Shinohara flex? As I mentioned, this will be a fairly small layout but I really want some dependability and appearance for the tracks. Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated! Joe the new Wanna Bea RR
I don't think Shinohara/Walthers is unreliable compared to Peco. The difference is that Shinohara requires a switch stand or something else to "lock" the switch in position. Peco has this built in. So you install the PEco switch and your done. If it's going to be hand thrown, you don't have to do anything more. If you install a Shinohara, you have to install a switch machine, or hand throw or spring to hold it in position. As for the actual track. I've never used anything but Atlas.
It's your railroad, of course, so use what you wish . However, for simplicity's sake I've stuck with Atlas track. First code 100, then with the code 83. On rare occasions I've gone with Micro Engineering code 70 flex and some of their code 83 turnouts (all of which look nice and work well). For the turnouts, I'd recommend some sort of ground throw (Caboose Industries) or switch machine (Tortoise) with the Shinohara and Atlas switches to keep the points firm against the rails and prevent derailments. AFAIK, you shouldn't have any problems with the Shinohara turnout, although I have heard stories about the track spacing being a bit narrow. Others have suggested Kato Unitrack, and I'm sure it's good stuff, but I prefer Atlas. My opinion, FWIW
The big question is, what are you looking for? What is your experience. I've used Central Valley track (tie strips) and I liked it. You get a very prototypical look. I've used the tie strips with code 70 and code 55 rail. Wolfgang
I personally use peco code 100 turnouts with atlas code 100 flex track, but I am going after functionality as opposed to looks. It really depends on what you want.
