Comments on: Derailments at Switches https://blog.model-train-help.com/2025/02/derailments-at-switches.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=derailments-at-switches Model railroads and model trains Thu, 03 Apr 2025 09:15:03 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 By: The N-scale Nerd https://blog.model-train-help.com/2025/02/derailments-at-switches.html#comment-80370 Thu, 03 Apr 2025 09:15:03 +0000 http://blog.model-train-help.com/?p=6942#comment-80370 I used my phone to take a video of what was going on when I had issues at a set of points on my layout and used that to identify my problem. Slowed the vid down at the problem spot and was able to come up with a simple fix.
Yours maybe a different issue, but you might get a closer look at what’s going on.

]]> By: Robert https://blog.model-train-help.com/2025/02/derailments-at-switches.html#comment-80353 Thu, 03 Apr 2025 02:01:32 +0000 http://blog.model-train-help.com/?p=6942#comment-80353 In reply to Larry White.

It sounds to me that one set of wheels is out of gauge. I have had that problem with Athearn diesels. Adjusting the wheel back to back measurement solved the problem.

]]> By: Larry White https://blog.model-train-help.com/2025/02/derailments-at-switches.html#comment-79820 Sun, 23 Mar 2025 18:25:26 +0000 http://blog.model-train-help.com/?p=6942#comment-79820 Thanks for the help Dale I appreciate it! Sorry I took so long to respond. I took my track apart to add a stream and a couple of bridges and it took a lot longer than I expected. I purchased some Fox Valley wheels and installed them on 6 of my cars and they are working really well. They didn’t fit all my cars due to the length of the axles so need to do some more research to replace those wheels. I also found this article which is a good history on the topic:
https://www.trains.com/mrr/beginners/guide-to-n-scale-metal-wheelsets/
I am still having intermittent derailments on the switches with my locomotive (a Bachmann – 4061 – Locomotive, Diesel, EMD GP40 – Penn Central – 6100 from about 1975) still with its original wheels. These always result in the front wheels of the locomotive going down one switch path and the rear wheels attempting to go down the other switch path. Thanks again!

]]> By: Dale https://blog.model-train-help.com/2025/02/derailments-at-switches.html#comment-78037 Thu, 13 Feb 2025 16:22:47 +0000 http://blog.model-train-help.com/?p=6942#comment-78037 Old equipment was famous for problems at turnouts. Most manufacturers today use RP25 profiles for the wheel sets since it reasonably closely follows prototype flanges design. One area where RP25 differs is the width of the tread. The slightly wider tread makes for a more reliable tracking. While I don’t endorse any particular manufacturer, I found the wheel sets from Fox Valley worked well on my N scale layout. One caution, don’t mix wheels from different manufacturers on a single bogie. Also, be sure to verify that the cars are the correct weight (check the NMRA website) since light cars can be more likely to derail while cars too heavy may not roll well.

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