[jimtyp]

The Accucraft site says 332. 352 doesn't make sense?


track

BTW, Caboose Hobbies has a pretty good price on this stuff.

 

[jimtyp]

Even if it is 352 that would only be a 6% difference. I put some in just last week for a new siding and I didn't notice any problems connecting it up to existing Aristo 332 track. I use rail clamps. I hand bent the track into about 9' diameter curves, it bent way easier than I thought it would. I've only made some test runs as I'm not done yet, but the locos and rolling stock haven't had any problems. I ran them through pretty fast just to make sure there wouldn't be any issues when running at normal/prototype speeds. I'll double check the connections tonight to see if I can notice any differences of where the track types meet.

 

[jimtyp]

Took a close look at the AMS track this weekend. I have mostly Aristo 332 brass and one section of LGB 332 brass. The AMS track width seems to be right on, BUT it does sit slightly higher, so maybe the 352 is correct? I haven't had any derailment or other issues yet, but I'm not done yet with the new siding so I haven't run the train through it a lot yet.

 

[jimtyp]

I had some Hillman clamps left, so I used those up first. When I ran out I bought some Split Jaw. I had no issues with either, other than the AMS does sit a tad higher with both clamps. I didn't check the width at the base, I checked it at the rail top. I'll have to check the base since John pointed out that might be a little wider, but if the rails line up it may not make a difference even if there is one?

I bought my track at Caboose Hobbies and as I recall they did come with simple clamps (like Aristo) but I think I pitched them. They don't have holes/screws near the end of the rail to lock them in place like the Aristo.

 

[jimtyp]

I looked a bit closer at the base of the rail. I didn't measure it but the AMS looked to be the same width at the bottom as the Aristo and the LGB, couldn't see a difference with my eye anyway. Double checked the top rail and it looks the same width wise, that is it matches both the Aristo and LGB. The difference is definitely the height, and it seems to be at the bottom of the rail where the height comes in. The Hillman clamps work but are a snugger fit than on the Aristo and LGB rail.

 

[jimtyp]

Ah, great idea, I was thinking if a problem I'd file off the top, your idea is much better

 

[jimtyp]

Looks that way, or the tolerances are off, one way or the other there's been a lot of folks that have seen a tad bigger than 332, including myself.

I installed some. I bent it by hand, also called the belly bender It worked great for larger diameter curves, and for a weird spot where I needed a very slight S curve. However, for the 8' and 9' diameter curves I ended up with a not very smooth curve. The price of this track is really good (about 1/3 the Aristo pre-curved track price and overall I would recommend it. If I was putting in a new layout I would use it but I'd use a rail bender for curves, just to ensure a smooth and consistent curve.