# Is this Code 80 and a couple of other questions



## jargonlet (Dec 21, 2011)

I have a couple of track questions. When my layout was made, the track joined between track pieces well enough to run trains with 2 or 3 wheels per truck. I recently bought one of the ConCor Aerotrain sets. Each of these cars has one wheel on each end of the car compared to regular cars that have 2 or 3 wheels per truck. Because the cars have 1 wheel on each end of the car, they tend to derail fairly easily by getting stuck in the small gaps between track pieces. I was told that I would need to cut a small section out of the track and put a new piece in that fits correctly. I went to my local hobby shop and they said that they thought the track was Atlas Code 55. I bought a couple of small packages since they didn't have any flex track. Well the track isn't 55. The old track has fewer ties and is a little taller. Would this be code 80 track? I have noticed that a lot of the track has small gaps in it although not as bad as the one pictured. Will I need to fix these or would it be easier to replace all of the track?


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

N is usually Code 55 or Code 80 ... the numbers indicate the height of the rail in thousandths of an inch ... 0.055", 0.080". So if the Code 55 you bought is too low, then you likely have Code 80 on the layout.

Do you have a scrap piece that you can measure, by chance?

TJ


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## jargonlet (Dec 21, 2011)

I have an old piece of track from a layout that we had back in the 80's that I use for test purposes. I clipped the end of it off and it matches the track in question. It measured to 0.08". I assume that it would be code 80 track then. There are gaps in between all of the joints where the track connectors are. Should I fix all of these or just the bigger ones?


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## Brakeman Jake (Mar 8, 2009)

It is indeed C80 track.It is a good thing to have small gaps in your trackwork to allow for expansion during climate changes.However the one in the picture is a rather wide gap that indeed can cause a problem,specially with single axle arrangements that have a chance to dig in and then bounce out of it.

You could try to fill it with solder then file it smooth,filling it with epoxy probably would work too....less work than replacing track sections.


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