Keith,
I use over forty Aristo wide radius points, plus several #6's. Fortunately, they were not the first version as this suffered from the wiring being too light a gauge and inevitable meltdown. The geometry though was pathetic. I advised the manufacturer that this scale was an engineering exercise and not a toy market and was bitterly disappointed with the product. I chose the brand as I wanted stainless rail and Aristo was readily available.
Every point required extensive reprofiling to enable smooth passage without jostling or derailing. The end result was worth the input. Many complained of the product and suprisingly some even said that they were happy with the standard performance. The latest version is far supperior to the version I purchased many years ago and incorporates some of my suggested modifications, although the manufacturer did not incorporate all my suggestions. At manufacturer request I shipped one of my modified points to the company for evaluation. Later a revised frog moulding was released as a replacement item and incorporated on future production.
The mods I incorporated have given me years of troublefree operation from what was once an inferior product. I could have simply put up with the poor performance, but chose to make the product better since, of my forty plus points, at least eight are on the mainline circuit using the divergent path. I am more than happy with the result. My railroad is elevated 24 inches, so any derailment would be catastrophic.
Manufacturers are extremely slow to respond to customer issues/problems. In Aristo's case there was at least five years of issues raised before implementation of basic changes to make the product better. In the meantime, I would rather correct the issue raised with additional drop feeders to bypass the offending wiring. I always install additional drop feeders to minimise power drop. Of cause the manufacturer should have engineered the product to a higher standard, but until then, customer modification is the only alternative. Look to the LGB R3 point design. It has been out for many years and yet the guardrail design is still defective. Marklin are definately not going to retool the tie base to change the guardrail design, so aftermarket mods are the only alternative.
I recently purchased two LGB R1 nickel plated points (2005/2006 production) to match my stainless steel rail. I have not used an R1 point for nearly 25 years and was extremely impressed with the quality of the item. It seemed far superior to my few R1's from the 1980's. The substantial electrical busbar design plus the long guard checkrails are excellent. Eventually manufacturers respond to consumer issues, but I am not prepared to await that possibility. I would rather modify and enjoy the item now than await a better product.
Regardless of manufacturer liabilities and legal responsibilities, the product is on my railroad and any mods that I make to make the product perform better are to my advantage. I personally am not a fan of the Piko product line but I do expect that the manufacturer will make improvements over time. I believe that all Piko products have a two year warranty, although it would be hard to prove that the offending wiring occurred in a 'normal' set of circumstances. I feel the manufacturer would state the warranty was voided through misuse, irrespective of the actual circumstances.
I use over forty Aristo wide radius points, plus several #6's. Fortunately, they were not the first version as this suffered from the wiring being too light a gauge and inevitable meltdown. The geometry though was pathetic. I advised the manufacturer that this scale was an engineering exercise and not a toy market and was bitterly disappointed with the product. I chose the brand as I wanted stainless rail and Aristo was readily available.
Every point required extensive reprofiling to enable smooth passage without jostling or derailing. The end result was worth the input. Many complained of the product and suprisingly some even said that they were happy with the standard performance. The latest version is far supperior to the version I purchased many years ago and incorporates some of my suggested modifications, although the manufacturer did not incorporate all my suggestions. At manufacturer request I shipped one of my modified points to the company for evaluation. Later a revised frog moulding was released as a replacement item and incorporated on future production.
The mods I incorporated have given me years of troublefree operation from what was once an inferior product. I could have simply put up with the poor performance, but chose to make the product better since, of my forty plus points, at least eight are on the mainline circuit using the divergent path. I am more than happy with the result. My railroad is elevated 24 inches, so any derailment would be catastrophic.
Manufacturers are extremely slow to respond to customer issues/problems. In Aristo's case there was at least five years of issues raised before implementation of basic changes to make the product better. In the meantime, I would rather correct the issue raised with additional drop feeders to bypass the offending wiring. I always install additional drop feeders to minimise power drop. Of cause the manufacturer should have engineered the product to a higher standard, but until then, customer modification is the only alternative. Look to the LGB R3 point design. It has been out for many years and yet the guardrail design is still defective. Marklin are definately not going to retool the tie base to change the guardrail design, so aftermarket mods are the only alternative.
I recently purchased two LGB R1 nickel plated points (2005/2006 production) to match my stainless steel rail. I have not used an R1 point for nearly 25 years and was extremely impressed with the quality of the item. It seemed far superior to my few R1's from the 1980's. The substantial electrical busbar design plus the long guard checkrails are excellent. Eventually manufacturers respond to consumer issues, but I am not prepared to await that possibility. I would rather modify and enjoy the item now than await a better product.
Regardless of manufacturer liabilities and legal responsibilities, the product is on my railroad and any mods that I make to make the product perform better are to my advantage. I personally am not a fan of the Piko product line but I do expect that the manufacturer will make improvements over time. I believe that all Piko products have a two year warranty, although it would be hard to prove that the offending wiring occurred in a 'normal' set of circumstances. I feel the manufacturer would state the warranty was voided through misuse, irrespective of the actual circumstances.
