Re: White Oak turnouts I have about 50 of Kelvin's turnouts on my railroad. All of Ed's comments are true. They are great operating turnouts because they have a continuous rail from the point thru the frog AND they allow one to operate with power directed thru the points (you don't need contact routing switches) because the bottom of the point rails are designed to be in contact with 6 to 8 PC ties at all times. Thus the power is picked up thru a long length of the bottom on the point rails, not just thru the razor sharp points themselves. 4-8-4's, 2-10-2's, Cab forwards - all operate thru them flawlessly. I use #8's and #6's. Both are terrific products. Older S scale brass (ALCO RS-5/6) built to the old standards require the guard rails to be "bent out" slightly to allow more clearance for their thicker flanges and wheels.
A downside is that the PC ties do not have grain (per Ed). A bigger one is that their PC ties are are not the same thickness as the S plastic ties on any flex-track or the stock wood ties for hand-laid track. Each turnout must be shimmed to proper height to match. I use a dense card stock material (.030). Another downside is that they are VERY expensive with the current value of the UK Pound vs US dollar. I remember that Kelvin made a special run of his turnouts a year or so ago to meet the pent up needs of his US buyers. Still, next to building your own with FastTrax, these are the finest turnouts I've ever seen or used. I also have a number of Shinohara turnouts. Most have been replaced with White Oak, but I still use a few in the yards as their #6 is actually more like a #5 turnout. The only real downside I have found is the use of jointed point rails in place of the continuous rails of White Oak. The joints are sometimes a bit "sloppy" and they do not always carry the current well. They are fairly priced, however, and do operate pretty well, especially the #8's. Bob Hogan --- In [email protected], "Ed" <loize...@...> wrote: > > > How can we find the supplier of this British turnouts? > > Ed Sauers > > Whiteoak Models is the company name used by Kelvin White of Oxford, England. > He purchases them from an English company (forgot name) that primarily makes > HO turnouts. I think Kelvin paid for the upfront design and tooling costs. > These turnouts are very precise, rails soldered to circuit board ties, > accurately gauged, razor sharp points and frogs, and with continuously curved > closure rails which make it easier for long wheelbased steam locos to run > through them smoothly. Really nice. Downsides: ties have no woodgrain or > knots. Cannot adjust rails/gauge easily (no spikes). Tom Hawley used to be > the USA dealer for them. Good luck...Ed L. > ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
