Hi all,

I've been searching the forum but I couldn't find anything related with my problems with the curved turnouts.
When my locos cross trough a curved turnout, if they go at reduce speed sometimes they stop, as if they loose power. Whem they run at full speed or more than 50% it doesn't happen. I don't know it is a kind of shortcircuit, and it happens in both directions of the turnout.
My layout is digital and consists on two ovals joined by the curved turnouts, and powered by a MS2 with its power pack of 230 volt. /36 VA.

Any ideas how to solve it?

Thanks

Thanks for the reply, Ralf
My track is C track, and it happens with ALL my locos (I only have 3 ).
When the loco stops.... hum, I'm not sure, but I think the rest (just one) is still running... I'll try tonight.

Hi Jose,

I had the same problem on (solid center rail) turnouts, no contact and sometimes derailing.
In my case the problems were caused by the pickup shoe that was not exactly mounted right, but was somewhat askew.

So..have you already checked the pickup shoe(s) ?

Marco

The shoes should be mounted paralled to the wheels when looking from the bottom.
Looking from the side, the shoe should be flat or slightly convex, (Center slightly higher than the ends)
C-track curved turn-outs are not as bad as M-track turnouts. When I have issues as you have mentioned, get real close to the lok as it runs real slow.
Determine what causes the problem, slider hitting rail from top? Long slider falling off pukos? etc.
If I am correct, there are 3 lengths of pick-up shoes. You may have to try a different length.
Gauge of truck wheels may be narrow causing side slop... rare but I found a couple.

Always clean brand new track, there is residual manufacturing oil or fluid that may have an effect.

There are other posts and threads on this issue in this forum.

Thanks for your answers, they are very helpful!!
Your are making me doubt, but I think that when a loco stops on the turnout, the rest continue, so it should be a loss of contact instead of a short. Nevertheless I'll check tonight...
First I'll clean the turnouts with a clean cloth and some alcohol, then I'll start the locos at very slow speed and look what happen exactly at the turnouts, if the whhels loos contact or the pickup shoe... and what happen with the other loco, still running or stopping.
Thanks and I'll keep you updated of my progress.
Also, if I can I'll make a picture of my actual layout and trains!!

HI FROM THESSALONIKI, HELLAS.

I hope that the difficult turnout is the 2267 with the small straight of 64.6 mm. the curves are same as 2221..

The metal and the compact turnouts must be nice. (5140 and 24671).

greetings, christos563.

The pukos adjacent to the switch are designed to lift the slider so that it can clear the rail. At the same time, they are slightly offset, which can sometimes cause poor contact if the slider is not correctly positioned. I also noticed on one of my RH switches that there is one puko on the outer track which is not powered. From the split of the inner/outer rail, it is the second puko as you head away from the switch on the long side. The metal plate underneath has a cut-out that might have been necessitated for the electrification of the switch track. The opposite track has a different metal plate and that puko is powered. The mounting points for the circuit board also seem to be different on the pair.

Regards

Mike C

Here's another thought. The pivoting track section is connected to the rails on either side by a small lead where the pivot point is installed. This is also connected to the crossover part of the rails so that ground contact is maintained. If there is dirt between the pivot and the crossover section, this could cause contact issues. As the loco travels across the switch, the weight can be shifted to the outside of the loco, meaning that the ground connection between the outside wheels and the rail becomes more important than on a straight track. Because of the nature of the switch, this makes this track more sensitive than a regular curve.

I would also check the loco to make sure that the ground is working on both sides. Some loks may have axles that are fully insulated and depend on contacts to connect the wheels to the ground. Different manufacturers have varying solutions to making their models compatible with 3 rail AC. Hopefully they use special wheel sets that are non-insulated but this is not always the case.

It is easy to test the switch track using a car/coach with tail light/interior lights as they can be slowly moved along the track and can pinpoint a problem.

If you have an extra set of switches, you can swap them out. If the problem goes away, then you can be assured that the problem is in the track sections. If it does not, it is either due to the design of the switch track or due to a problem with the locomotive. Further testing will help you narrow it down.

Regards

Mike C