Nothing, absolutely nothing to do with my troublesome Stainz locomotive

Because of the relatively large heat sink provided by the mass of the rail you'll need the biggest that you can comfortably handle.

tac
 
Sarah Winfield said:
Gentlemen, I did not mean my thread to cause any controversy. I asked because I might solder wires to fish-plates to aid electrical continuity. It was something It used to do with my O gauge track.

The clamps certainly seem to be the best option. Although for the moment I'll have to use fish-plates.

What wattage soldering iron would one imagine would be needed to solder to code 332 rail please?

Thanks,

Sarah Winfield
Click to expand...


Don't stress over it Sarah. You do know the male of the species is always looking for a fight.....:punch:.....
 
I recently tried to solder an LGB joiner to a piece of 332 rail using a 100-watt iron and plenty of liquid flux - zilch...
 
Sarah Winfield said:
Gentlemen, I did not mean my thread to cause any controversy. I asked because I might solder wires to fish-plates to aid electrical continuity. It was something It used to do with my O gauge track.

The clamps certainly seem to be the best option. Although for the moment I'll have to use fish-plates.

What wattage soldering iron would one imagine would be needed to solder to code 332 rail please?

Thanks,

Sarah Winfield
Click to expand...
Track bonding is certainly the way to go Sarah, much cheepervthan Track Clamps. However please use Black Wire! Or the other thing that I have done (in the past) is to use Copper Wire from multi strand Mains, just 1 thread is ample, then allow it to weather and dissapear.
 
Eaglecliff said:
I recently tried to solder an LGB joiner to a piece of 332 rail using a 100-watt iron and plenty of liquid flux - zilch...
Click to expand...

Don't know watt whatage the soldering iron I inherited from my dad is, but it is a damned big one, best held by the plastic handle, not the pointy end.
Key to soldering LGB: very clean rail and whatever you are soldering it to. Plenty of heat. Flux and Tin each surface first. Hold wire, or whatever, in place (with pliers, you idiot) until solder sets.
...and do it in a sheltered spot, a tad of a breeze, and you lose lots of heat.
 
Gavin Sowry said:
Don't know watt whatage the soldering iron I inherited from my dad is, but it is a damned big one, best held by the plastic handle, not the pointy end.
Key to soldering LGB: very clean rail and whatever you are soldering it to. Plenty of heat. Flux and Tin each surface first. Hold wire, or whatever, in place (with pliers, you idiot) until solder sets.
...and do it in a sheltered spot, a tad of a breeze, and you lose lots of heat.
Click to expand...
Another little tip try any soldering to the Webb rather than the Top or Middle of the Rail, a little less Metal to heat up. At least 75watt Iron or bigger is the best bet.
 
The big traditional irons need not only heat (wattage) but a large chunk of thermal mass (big) to solder rail since it can absorb heat so quickly. Like trying to put out a fire with a squirt gun as opposed to a big hose.

Another alternative are these "induction type" guns that can really concentrate heat and get hot quickly:
weller-8200n.jpg


If I had brass track, I would have soldered jumpers, absolutely the most reliable and conductive. The downside is minimal, you have to cut the wire and resolder.

I have stainless, and did entertain spot welding, but not easy to do, the spot welder is not exactly compact, so I have split jaw clamps, the best made in my opinion. Many people used hillman clamps too, but the design tends to crack over time (the square slot gives rise to stress risers, as opposed the SJ single groove).

I'd say get something and try it. If I was to get an "iron" I'd go 200 watts and big:
(this is an American Beauty, a long time brand)

american-beauty-3138.jpg
 
If a conventional iron (like in Greg's picture) then at least 100W and 120W is probably better..
This will need several minutes to get up to heat, you will need additional flux to that in the solder, and it is better if the solder-wire is of a larger gauge than the stuff 'we' use for electronics.

The trigger-operated soldering guns are probably better for this job??

DO clean up the track where you are going to solder.. It is an art on this size of material. The slightest breeze, and you will probably not get enough heat into the rail.
It will take A-G-E-S for things to cool down afterwards.. - Don't ask! :eek::oops:

It can be worth dropping any lump of metal you have handy across the rails one sleeper, or about an inch, back from where you are heating / soldering. - That way you should not melt the sleepers! - Still don't ask! :(

Have a small slab available to put the iron on.. It will be very hot, for a very long time..
Hot enough to scorch decking, or other timbers..
 
Just because the old Aristo, and USTrains rail joiners have those screw holes in them, doesn't mean that you have to use the screws.
Just yesterday I used a bunch of them just to join rails together. I didn't want or need an electrical joint; just a mechanical one, The one thing to watch for, is to align the side of the joiner with the holes in it, towards the outside of the track/rail, not the flange side.
One of the great benefits of sturdy, wood roadbed is the non dependence on the joiners to hold your track together. My only need for them is to keep the rails aligned. If you are dependant on track power, then you need to consider "Rail bonding" with soldered jumper wires of rail clamps, although those small screws do help,
I'm all self contained battery operation, and am not bothered with all that stuff... the track is fastened to the roadbed, allowing for expansion, and contraction, by small 1" flat head nails. The nails soon rust and are not noticeable after a short time.
Please, please, don't take this as a promotion, or another debate on the pros, and coms of track power....I'm just relating my rather simple and uncomplicated experiences, over 20 or more years of co-existing with Mother Nature, and the Storm Gods, out in the real World, of my back yard.
Fr.Fred
 
Though I'm using some Aristo track, including a wide sweep of their very large curves, I'm not going to rely on the little screws - for the sake of the extra few quid it will cost, I'll be ditching the Aristo screwed fishplates and using Massoth clamps on everything.....

Jon.
 
I've said in previous posts just how fragile and non-permanent is my existence. I would love to put down roots but fear it is too late now.

I'm using fish-plates because they are relatively inexpensive and I can pull them apart when next I move. At this rate it'll probably be to the "grey stone" field.

Once again I am grateful for everyone's comment.

This morning I've been renovating a LGB curved rail bumper. I bought it cheaply off that auction site but it wouldn't lay flat. Fortunately I have a tube bender and have bent one set of rails which now lay flat and the other has WD40 penetrating its fishplate! We could of course begin the subject of rail joiners all over again but hopefully that has been exhausted.

Sarah Winfield
 
Gavin Sowry said:
Don't know watt whatage the soldering iron I inherited from my dad is, but it is a damned big one, best held by the plastic handle, not the pointy end.
Key to soldering LGB: very clean rail and whatever you are soldering it to. Plenty of heat. Flux and Tin each surface first. Hold wire, or whatever, in place (with pliers, you idiot) until solder sets.
...and do it in a sheltered spot, a tad of a breeze, and you lose lots of heat.
Click to expand...

What watt...... can't get that Abbot and Costello Baseball sketch out of my head. You know the one, 'The players, let's see, Who is on First, Watts on Second, Idunno is on Third'
'Who is on First?' 'Yes' 'What's his name?' 'No, he's on Second'.....Google/Youtube it for a good laugh
 
Zerogee said:
Though I'm using some Aristo track, including a wide sweep of their very large curves, I'm not going to rely on the little screws - for the sake of the extra few quid it will cost, I'll be ditching the Aristo screwed fishplates and using Massoth clamps on everything.....

Jon.
Click to expand...
MMmmm, very interesting but.......

I've relied on those little screws for quite a few years now, without too many complaints :nerd::nerd:
 
Rhinochugger said:
MMmmm, very interesting but.......

I've relied on those little screws for quite a few years now, without too many complaints :nerd::nerd:
Click to expand...


Yes, Rhino, I know they probably work fine - but when most of the track is LGB and Piko, and is all being clamped, I just feel I might as well use a few more clamps on the few sections of Aristo that I'm using. YMMV, as always! ;)

Jon.
 
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