How to curve Flextrack

[bkrenderman]

https://youtu.be/7DNJvpp-iUY

[Mr Bones]

What a simple idea. Thanks for sharing.

[mijj]

I have mine ready to do as soon as I can get to them and will use this simple idea . Thanks for sharing .
Jim.

[RAF96]

That video is showing how to turn flex track into set track. Easier to buy set track in the first place. To lay in transient curves requires a different tool with a sliding pivot point.

[Walkingthedog]

I don’t reckon that is a good idea. Banging a nail into the board with a huge hammer then forcing the track into shape. Why didn’t he bend the track roughly in to shape first instead of having it curved in the opposite direction to that required. Very odd.

[RogerB]

It seemed to me that the “over working” of the curve might have been done for dramatic effect. No need to have the offered piece of track so out of line with the intended degree of curve. Perhaps the finished curve was something other than a set track radius, but it does seem odd when set track will do the same thing without building a tool. FlexI track, as we know, comes into its own when non standard track radii are required. R-

[Paul-H]

I use something similar, but it's a lot longer allowing up to 24 inch radi and is market of every inch for different radius

Difference is I use a screw for the pivot and roughly bend the track into shape first then just use the wooden jig for the final forming.

It works quite well.

[Walkingthedog]

Much better idea.

[bulleidboy]

When I got to the curves on my layout, I just used a piece of wood about 2" sq. stepped at each end so that it sat on the boards at the sides of the room, I placed a screw dead centre, to which a piece of string was attached (tied), with a pencil on the other end. I wound the string around the pencil, so that, at the sides, the pencil sat dead centre at the end of the straight track, then keeping the string taught, drew a line around the end of the room (on the end boards), until I reached a point where the straight track would continue on the other side of the room. I then placed the flexi-track (Peco Code 75) over the pencil line and pinned it down. If the radius needed to be greater or smaller I just wound or unwound the string on the pencil. I have a full set of Tracksetta gauges which also helped. All very straightforward and simple.

[RAF96]

Before SCARM I used a simple stick with a pivot hole for the centre screw and pencil diameter holes at each of the set track radii to draw my curves in on the boards.

Now I use the grid on SCARM to plot datum starting points on the boards to align specific track parts to, then flexi-track can then be used to fill the gaps using the plan as a guide and the Mk1 eyeball as the main curve setting tool.

Other track planning software is available as well as simple and very complex jointed track setting tools.