Q:Can you buy Atlas code 55 rail (just the rail, not the track)?

[mmagliaro]

If one wanted to make their own turnouts from Atlas code 55 rail, can you buy the rail?  Does Atlas actually sell packs of just the bare rail?  Or do you just buy flex track and strip the rail out of it?

[Chris333]

After buying their flex track and being terribly disappointed with it I slowly used up all the rail from it to build turnouts.

[ednadolski]

I don't recall ever hearing of Atlas rail sold by itself, but Micro Engineering comes in both weathered and nonweathered.

Ed

[glakedylan]

back some years ago (10 or more) i bought premade fast tracks turnouts from a guy who was doing it on a commission basis.
i requested Atlas 55, as that is one form that he offered, and he said the source was Atlas flextrack.
never have known of any rail only from Atlas.


sincerely
Gary

[C855B]

Same here. For that matter, in 50+ years (yikes!) of model railroading, I have never seen or otherwise heard of Atlas selling any rail of any size separately. So, yeah, strip it off of flex if you're wanting a precision match to their profile.

Comparing Atlas vs. ME profiles just last week under magnification, I didn't see much difference other than the Atlas rail head is slightly larger. The only recent experience I've had with profiles not matching that made any difference is with the Central Valley flex tie strips, which were designed around the C55 sold by Proto:87, and don't quite work with ME, which has a slightly wider base.

[mmagliaro]

Thanks, everybody.  I'll just strip some out of a piece of flex.  I've got a curved jig headed my way so I can jettison
my one Atlas curved turnout - the bane of my trackwork.

[mike_lawyer]

Max -

My understanding from the guys who make Fast Tracks turnouts with Atlas C55 rail is that they take it from the flex track.  I posted a thread about a year ago about using Fast Tracks turnouts with Atlas flex, and people said the Microengineering C55 is very close in profile and can be used with the Atlas Code 55 flex with success.

[ednadolski]

My understanding from the guys who make Fast Tracks turnouts with Atlas C55 rail is that they take it from the flex track.

I wonder, do they just take the sliding rail and throw the rest away, or do they go thru the extra effort of stripping the non-sliding rail too?  Seems you would have to be rather careful to avoid bending the rail.

From a quick look at single-piece prices, one 30" length of Atlas C55 flextrack shows as $6.50 which comes to $3.25 per rail if you throw the rest away.   A single 36" length of non-weathered ME C55 rail shows as $1.99.  So unless you have a specific need to match the Atlas profile, or if you already have a pile of the Atlas flextrack that is not really usable for anything else, it would not seem to be worthwhile to buy new flextrack in order to strip it for the rail.  (Of course it hardly matters much in small quantities anyways.)

Ed

[Chris333]

Can only talk for me. I stripped both rails until it was all gone. Then I used ME rail. The 2 rails are slightly different, but hey I was just getting rid of useless rail.

[Chris333]

Also Atlas flex track rail is very oily.

[John]

If you are like me -- I have a whole box full of old atlas flex that is damaged from removing it from the subroadbed . it's pretty easy to strip off the ties and just run a bit of sandpaper across the bottom of the rail profile to clean it up

[Lemosteam]

The atlas C55 spike heads are so small the ties will just pop offth the rails if you just peel it away.