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Puckdropper comments:

??????? "There are some people who prefer to use as few feeders as possible. Maybe they can't get the feeder attached without melting the ties. Rather than get help (Nashville, TN, I'm hireable), they just avoid the problem."

There are quite a few in the hobby that for various reasons are unable to complete some of the tasks useful to the creation of a high performing layout.? There's no reason those of us in better shape and/or with more polished skills not to reach out to these folks and help them out.

I'm in the Seattle area; just as Puckdropper is willing to help folks in/near Nashville, I'm willing to help folks in this area that need DCC support for their layouts.

"One understandable application for as few feeders as possible is track plans that change often.? I did that as a kid, and feeders would just get in the way.? I'd pull up all the track and try something new.? Great fun. :)"

Now that's a set of circumstances I'd never thought of. ? I'll admit to being oriented to semi-permanent long term layout design as opposed to the "try something new" approach.?? If one is dealing with large quantities of sectional track frequent redesign could lead to wear and tear on those rail joiners.? Perhaps we need a whole new subset of "Best Practices" for short term layouts.?

"If you are melting ties, you're keeping heat on the rail for much too long.? Clean the rail with a fiberglass scratch brush, apply flux and use a quality iron with a tip sized for the rail.? You want everything clean so you can get in and out fast.? Clean your iron by wiping the tip with a bit of damp paper towel or a damp sponge just before you touch the tip to the rail."

Puckdropper offers good advice, To which I can add a lot of folks use too little heat on their irons - get the iron hot, then get in and get out fast.? Make sure your iron/gun is at full heat before applying it to the joint.

Best regards,

Steve

Steve Haas

Snoqualmie, WA