Bending Gargraves Flex Track to about O54 and O42

We made jig that will allow us to bend the track to 2" radius smaller than the target radius

https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/topic/bending-gargraves-flex-track-3?reply=62387745964073760#62387745964073760

I don’t know if this is the best way to do it, but I made jigs of various diameters out of double thick corrugated cardboard.  Then I carefully bent the track to the desired diameter and evened out the ends with a Dremel.  New track is fairly easy to bend.  If it’s been sitting around for years, it may be a bit more difficult.

John – the link in your post came up with this: Invalid field value for field "content".

I cut and pasted from a prev post.

Thanks for the tips.

It will be a few days before I can get any more work done on the layout, but I think I will create a jig out of cardboard and bend it around that.   

I have successfully bent it down to O36 without using a jig. Start at one end and screw it down as I go. You have to be careful bending it. To avoid kinks, use one hand to pull the track (the part closest to the last screw you put in) toward the outside of the circle, while using the other to push the free end of the track toward the inside of the circle. The idea is to keep the track from bending right at the point where the screw is.

When you get to the end, you will look back and see that the center and one outer rail of the end you started with are no longer connected to the section behind them. Use a hammer and a wood block to gently drive those rails back through the ties, so they meet. On a tight curve, you will have to adjust the ties several times during that process - they get cocked, and that prevents the rail from sliding through them. It takes a while, but the results are good.

Here is Gargraves joined to a section of Ross O36. The Ross section was fastened down first, and the Gargraves plugged into it and bent.  No form was used. (I  did have to pre-bend it just a little because of space constraints.)

Dewey Trogdon wrote about laying track without pre-bending in this post:

https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/t...198#5512461199712198

Sometimes I spray WD-40 on the back the the track before bending, making it easier for the rail to slide through the ties.  This also works well on used Gargraves that you get at train shows or auctions.   Just be sure to clean the rails before running the trains.  To bend a near perfect curve, my basement water heater is perfect for forming an 042 diameter.

When I did the modules for our club I made plywood forms. For my home layout i bent most freehand but Since i also make wine I found a 32 gallon wine barrel can be made to do o42 about 4" from the end and o72 towards the middle.

Drummer3 posted:

Sometimes I spray WD-40 on the back the the track before bending, making it easier for the rail to slide through the ties.  This also works well on used Gargraves that you get at train shows or auctions.   Just be sure to clean the rails before running the trains.  To bend a near perfect curve, my basement water heater is perfect for forming an 042 diameter.

Thanks I will try my hot water heater!  

Jdevleerjr posted:

Drummer3 posted:

Sometimes I spray WD-40 on the back the the track before bending, making it easier for the rail to slide through the ties.  This also works well on used Gargraves that you get at train shows or auctions.   Just be sure to clean the rails before running the trains.  To bend a near perfect curve, my basement water heater is perfect for forming an 042 diameter.

Thanks I will try my hot water heater!  

Comedian George Carlin : Why would we heat hot water?