Since I'm mostly a flex guy I'm not bothered by the short handlaid
sections without plates. I have used the Grandt plates in a few places
with good results.
It would seem the solution would be to have tie plates made both with
holes pre-drilled and with fake spike heads for cosmetic purposes. I'm
also not a urethane expert but I see no reason why a dark brown resin
couldn't be used in the first place.
Bob Werre
PhotoTraxx
On 2/1/13 9:49 AM, Michael Eldridge wrote:
My experience so far with tie plates:
1. Tomalco parts are a resin that I can't get paint to stick to. I've
even tried high adhesion primer from an auto paint supplier. The ties
plates get handled a lot during track laying, and the paint comes off
in sheets.
2. After they are installed (and repainted) the tie plates only make a
difference if you really look closely.
3. I tried thin styrene, and have decided that if you do not pre-drill
a hole for the spike it creates more of a slit than a hole when you
insert the spike - it's very unsightly.
4. Someone (Dick K?) suggested after the rail was spiked he ran a
paintbrush along the rail, painting the rail, spike, and a swath on
the ties that represented the tie plates. That looks surprisingly good.
5. Using the Tomalco plates, the ridge that meets the base of the rail
is impossible for me to see without a magnifying lens.
6. It is difficult to hold the tie plates while spiking. I usually
spike every fourth tie, test the track for a while, and come back and
fill in a spike in every tie. Inserting the plates under the partially
spiked rail is very difficult.
So, my current plan is to try pre-painted .005 x .125 styrene, tack
glue the plates to the ties, then lay the rail drilling each spike
hole before putting in the spike. Fortunately, I'm not in any hurry,
and I enjoy doing this part of this weird hobby.
-Michael Eldridge
--- In [email protected] <mailto:S-Scale%40yahoogroups.com>,
"ctxmf74" wrote:
>
>
>
> --- In [email protected] <mailto:S-Scale%40yahoogroups.com>,
"pickycat95" wrote:
> >
> > I've been thinking about using styrene strips for tie plates.
Possibly laminating a wider and two thin strips to create the recessed
> > platform the rail rests on. I haven't tried it yet to see if this
is an insane thing to attempt.
> >
>
> Lots of modeling falls under the insane category but we still persevere.
> When I get back to working on my S layout I plan to try adding ties
plates to the switches too. I'm going to experiment with those
cardboard paint color samples they have a the paint store, the rust
colored cardboard looks about right when cut up into small tie plates.
I'm not too worried about the raised edge as it is so small that it
probably won't be apparent, my main concern is how to get them aligned
properly without spending a lot of time and then if my Kadee spiker
can drive thru them without splitting the cardboard too much?
> As for track i'll definitely use tomalco or shinohara flextrack for
the bulk of the layout and just hand lay a few short stretches of
track around the handlaid switches. Track and switches are two
separate stories when it comes to the supply, the cost, and the ease
of building your own. ....DaveBranum
>
