5 ways you can damage your model railway track

There are many ways you can damage your model railway track, but five of them are more common than you would think.

The first mistake isn't so much a track-killer but it does cause devastating track misalignment, and that mistake is a failure to predict temperature. Work on many layouts takes place during the long winter months when there's little hope of enjoying the great outdoors. There's nothing wrong with that of course, but if your layout is in a loft, garage or shed, be aware that these are often places of temperature extremes, and if you don't allow for the summer heat, you may well encounter buckled rails, very prototypical but also very undesirable! The solution is to leave small gaps where tracks join, doing this will give metal rails a place into which they can expand should the weather get too hot.

The second mistake too often made, is taking notice of YouTube's pound saver warriors. Be aware of channels that constantly advise there's no need to use traditional techniques or products. A Black and Decker or homemade cleaning solution may well save you 47p and a few minutes when cleaning your track, but the time and money you'll spend replacing it a year down the line will make you wish you'd taken the time to do the job properly in the first place. That's not to say YouTube isn't a great place to obtain tuition, 99.9% of railway modellers on there are legit, incredibly talented and offer great advice!

The third common mistake is the overenthusiastic reclamation of track. No matter how well you plan or prepare, the chances are at some point during your layout's creation you will need to lift some track to make alterations or adjustments. If you have used pins or nails to secure the track, make sure you remove these fully before lifting the track and try to avoid the temptation to lever secured track from the baseboard in the hope all sleepers and pins will lift together, they won't! Likewise, if you have glued your track (even ballasted track) it can be undone using warm soapy water, but be sure that the glue has fully softened before any lifting takes place.

The fourth unfortunate track mishap is damage caused to rails whilst installing the track. Hammering track pins or nails into sleepers is fun for all of about three minutes. After that time, backache, leg ache and dozens of bent track pins can start to distract from the pleasure of building a railway. Don't give up though, many have been in your shoes and triumphed, but don't rush the job either, even if it is getting frustrating, you'll only end up making a mistake with your hammer and your track will come off worse! Only lay as much track as your natural attention span allows, it will take longer and more sessions to complete the job, but it will be a better job and more rewarding too.

The last of the common mistakes is melting sleepers while soldering. If you have chosen to solder power feeds and other wires to your rails, then you have made a very wise choice, but soldering to rails is not easy and takes practice. Always test your track soldering skills on a spare or scrap section of track before you tackle the main layout.