Hi, I'm interested in running prewar Lionel on Gargraves track. If anybody has personal experiance with using Gargraves with prewar please share your experiances. My main concern is with the switches. Can most prewar pass through Gargraves switches without issues with shorting or the gears fouling the gaurd rails? I've been trying it with SuperO to very bad results. Plus the center rail on SuperO is too low & some loco rollers don't drop quite low enough for good contact. Is there any contact issues with Gargraves center rail? Does it spark more than with regular old tubular? Does Gargraves tend to wear the rollers more than old tubular would? Any info from operator experiance would be helpful.
Very best, Don Johnson

Running my Lionel 259e on a club layout that had Ross and Gargraves switches caused me problems. The clearance was OK, but the e-unit would cycle any time it went over the switch. Depending on how fast it had been going, it could end up in neutral, or it could end up reversing.

The switches were most likely O72 or possibly even O96 switches, so on a more traditional switch, the results could be different. Other prewar locos might be OK, or they might not be. Given the number of questions, though, I really think it's best to run prewar tinplate on tubular track. That has a long, long track record of working.

Hi Dave, Thanks for the reply. Looks like those switches are out. What's your thoughts about Gargraves mated to 022 switches? Would that work good?
Thanks.
Very best, Don

That should work just fine. O22s have been around as long as the hills, and prewar trains run fine on Gargraves track itself (which has been around since the 1940s too).

Thanks Dave. Maybe we'll give that a go.
Don

You might also look at the K-Line by Lionel Super Snap switches. They allow for the huge flanges of pre-war style wheel sets. With Ross switches it depends alot on the equipment you are running. Some locos go through ok, others short out.

Hi Jim, Thanks for the reply. I was wondering about that. SuperSnaps are very rare out here. SuperK track in general is not common at train shows. I know of no hobby shops that sell it either. The switches are listed in the K-line 2009 catalog, but the track isn't. What's up with that?
Here's a question. What about SuperK center rail? Is it a bit higher like on tubular O? Or are all # rails perfectly level?
Very best, Don Johnson

quote:

Here's a question. What about SuperK center rail? Is it a bit higher like on tubular O? Or are all # rails perfectly level?
Very best, Don Johnson

I can't really say about SuperK.

As far as the SuperSnap switches are concerned I am reasonably certain you can get them from Charles Ro. If you must put your tinplate through switches, there is no better switch than either an original Lionel 711 0-72 switch or the Kline Supersnap. Anything else is probably going to make you tear your hair out.

New Lionel O gauge switches should be avoided. Running 80 year old design trains on modern track has it's challenges. My best advice would be Lionel O gauge tinplate track with KLine SuperSnap switches.