May 24, 2004
Ok then, all about track!!

To run this 2-foot track outdoors, a few basic requirements must be met.
plastic ties, and brass, nickel-silver, aluminum, or stainless steel rail.
(anything that wont rust)
If I do end up putting this 29n2 scale concept into real outdoor use,
I will most likely use battery power, (no electricity in the rails)
so the exact rail composition isnt all that important to me, just as long as it wont rust..
Plastic ties would be preferred to wood, (UV protection might be an issue)
(if I was going to do this indoors, I would just hand-lay my own nice scale rail on wood ties!)
but outdoor use demands some compromises..

A week has gone by, and there has been much plotting and scheming and internet research..
I went to a local train store (despatch junction) looking for Gargraves S-scale track.
they were out of the stainless, but had some tinplate..
i was going to get a small section of track, just to experiment with,
when I discovered a package of track labeled "Precision scale, O-scale"..
well..the track was obviously NOT O-scale track! it was narrower than O track,
but wider than HO...
it was S-gauge!
the package must have been mislabeled I thought..
(the label was old and faded and might have been re-stapled to the package)
it was much finer (smaller rail) than the gargraves "high rail" track, so I bought it!
got it home and measured the gauge..this is odd..its not 22mm!
its..19.5mm? huh?
(remember, up to this point my entire experience in model railroading is only with
HO scale and Large Scale..nothing else) its not S-scale! but what is it then?
so I start looking up stuff on-line..OO scale? close..
ah ha!!  its On3 track! interesting..19mm..
well..I guess I will just return it and get some gargraves..
but..it IS very nice looking rail!!
what if I just used On3 track as my maine 2-foot track??
Rather that using S-gauge (a millimeter too wide)
I could use this much nicer-looking On3 track (1.5mm too narrow)
and I could also use already existing On3 wheelsets and steam engine mechanisms!!
could be a big advantage over S-scale..
well..after much thought and research on-line, I decieded to go back to S-scale afterall..
mainly because the nice On3 track is actually TOO small! (rail height).
it appears to be about code 100..
I figured out that *scale* 2-foot track needs to be about code 140..
(more on that later)

So, what is available in the world of S-scale track?
it seems there are 2 major camps in S-scale, "high-rail tinplate" and "scale" modeling.
the high-railers run the old (and new) tinplate "toy" trains like Americian Flyer trains..
the rail is big..
the scale modelers are.. well..scale! they have some very nice scale track to use.
(there is also an active Sn3 community..but their rail is too narrow for my use)
In searching for track that might be suitable for outside use,
I have come across 2 main differing camps. the tinplate and the "scale" track.

American Models makes some lovely scale track..but its all Standard gauge profile!
it has the wrong "look" for 2-foot.. so, good rail size (perfect actually..code 148!)
but all-wrong tie spacing. its made to represent "mainline standard gauge"

Gargraves makes stainless rail with plastic ties..the ties are big and bulky..
might pass for 2-foot as-is!
but the railsize is huge..its "high rail" track..code 250-ish..
so..decent tie "look" ..but big rail..
but..maybe if I use the standard "G gauge" LGB or Aristo rail,
which is already oversized, the gargaves might look
ok by comparision..both are oversized.
(although I would prefer Sunset Valley code 250 rail for the 45mm,
and a nice scale-ish rail for the 2-foot! but..sometimes compromises
must be made in the name of practicallity..)
of course..you could always hand-lay ALL your rail!! and get
exactly what you want..
but for me personally, that isnt an option for outdoors..
if I was building a nice indoor layout, I would consider that..
 

Lets look at prototype rail sizes..
I found a very usefull webpage on rail sizes.
So for this excercise, im choosing 50lb rail for the Maine 2-footers.
(about the heaviest used..used on the SR&RL mainline)
35lb might have been more common.
and im using 140lb rail as Standard Gauge "mainline" rail,
which I believe is an average large mainline size.
So the prototype rail height for the 2-footers is 4 inches. - code 130 in 1/29 scale.
and the mainline Standard Gauge track is 7.3 inches tall - code 250 in 1/29 scale.
 
 

So thats what the prototype rail looks like,
and thats what our model rail would look like in an ideal, perfectly scale world.
but..we dont live in a perfectly scale model world..(at least I don't! ;)

So..what existing track comes the closest to ideal?
I already mentioned that nice On3 track I got..it looks nice!
but the rail is actually too small..its about code 100, and..I might
want to use some "G gauge" wheelsets and trucks (regauged) and the
track is too short..flanges would hit bottom..
So! I discovered that Gargraves is right down the road! out in the country
by Sodus bay..so I took a drive out there!
The friendly proprietor of the "Gardner, the train doctor" shop
(which is the "hobby shop side" of the Gargraves company) *gave* me a piece of track!
very kind..

here is a view of the track..

The track in the back, under the hopper car, is LGB "G gauge" 45mm track..
in the middle is the Gargraves S-scale track. (22mm)
and in the front is the Presicision Scale Co. On3 track (19.5mm) which is no longer in the running..

well..the gargraves track looks very nice! its on dark wood ties, which happen to be a perfect size!
the tie width and spacing works out exactly to Maine 2-foot track dimensions!
they are only short in length..but they *look* very good..
the rail is a bit large..code 250, bigger than necessary..but its a contender!
major issue though..they no longer make S-gauge stainless steel track with plastic ties!
their wood-tie track is a good seller, and there wasnt as big a market for the plastic ties..
which means their S-gauge track is available with wood ties only..
I didnt think to ask what kind of wood it is, but im sure its not redwood or cedar!
(again..since this is meant to be indoor track)
 
 

I printed out some Maine plans to exact 1/29 scale! here is cutout of SR&RL caboose #552
at the same scale as the 1/29 scale Aristo hopper car..
The prototype caboose 552 was 33' 2" long, which scales out to 13.72"
 

well..the Gargraves track is out of the running for outdoor use..
so..where do we go now?
 
 

I think.....
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

its time...
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

to consider..............
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

HAND LAYING TRACK!!!! 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The 7/8n2 guys already do a lot of hand-laying track for outdoor use..
take a look at Steve King's 2-foot track!
(this is 7/8n2 scale..2-foot modeling on 45mm gauge track)
http://www.seven8n2.com/

The key to handlaying track for outdoors is to use cedar or redwood ties, which are rot-resistant.
If you have the ties in good draining ballast, they can last for decades!
hmmm...
here is a good page on handlaying track in Large Scale.
 

So.. cedar or redwood..ok then.
I dont have any proper saws yet to rip my own ties from cheap "home depot" stock..
(first I need a house to keep all my powertools in!)
fortunately are there sources for ties!
after searching through back threads on the mylargescale.com forums,
I found Kappler Mill & Lumber Co.

The prototype Maine ties at 5feet X 5inch X 5inch scales out to 2.1" X .17"  X .17"
after checking out the Kappler site, I found these:
KP00NS6-#1/RC 6' Cross Ties .156" x .219" x 2.250"
pretty good!!
how about rail?
Im thinking of going with code 215 for the Maine rail, and code 250 for the mainline rail..
probably Sunset Valley code 250 track for the SG track.
So here is the diagram of the track idea as it stands right now..
handlaid code215 on cedar ties for the 2-foot..
and Llagas creek for the mainline..
For indoor track, storage yards and such, I could still use the Gargraves S-scale track!
 
 

The code 215 is a tad oversized for scale rail..but..durability is also a concern,
and so is flange clearance..
im envisioning building the 1/29 Maine cars and locomotives out of 1/24, 1/20, O-scale and S-scale
wheelsets and trucks! whatever fits..
S-scale locomotives obviously be the best source for locomotive drivetrains,
but I could maybe even use HO scale locomotives if the drivers match..
take the HO scale drivetrains and just stretch out the axels! re-gauge them..
all kinds of possibilities here..

and! as far as the code-215 being "oversized" is concerned, check out this photo!
Thats a recent photo on the current Maine Narrow Gauge museum.
those rails are HUGE!! much much larger than the rail used on the "Real"
Maine 2-footers back when they were operating..
(all the Maine 2-footers stopped operating during the depression..)
it seems the Maine museum couldnt find enough proper sized small rail,
so they used big standard-gauge rail that was readily available!
just set the heavy standard gauge rails 2-feet apart..
it is essentially standard gauge trackage re-gauged to 2-foot..
Big fat rails! much bigger than the real 2-footers ever used back in the day..
So my code 215 rail wont look so bad in comparision to this "modern" Maine 2-foot rail!
(here are a ton of  Modern Maine 2-footer photos!)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Background image of KCRR #2  is © Gary Kohler collection, used by permission. Maine 2-foot Quarterly

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