I don't see what the problem is with the new Unifrog Peco C55 #6 as opposed to the old Electrofrog #6, and why in the world anybody would prefer the non-DCC friendly (and non-DC friendly) Electrofrog turnout over the decidedly DCC and DC friendly Unifrog #6.
First, in my years of experience both hand-building and using ME #6 C55 turnouts, I am going to give an educated guess that the Peco Unifrog #6 turnouts will work just fine with a dead frog. I installed and have used one dead-frog Micro Engineering C55 #6 turnout leading to my sandhouse spur at Echo over a decade ago, and both my shortest switchers and Big Boys run through it without any hesitation whatsoever.
Looking at the frog length of the Peco Unifrog #6 turnout, it appears that it's short enough that it also doesn't need to be powered for the turnout to function electrically just fine.
The advantage to the Unifrog design is that the stock rails adjacent to the switch points and closure rails are the same polarity, making the possibility of shorts nearly non-existent if the switch is aligned properly. Additionally the two rails leading off the back of the frog (point rails) are wired for the correct polarity so there's no need to cut any gaps or use insulated rail joiners making for much less bother installing the turnout and smoother mechanical stability.
I've hand-built my C70, C55 and C40 N-scale turnouts to be electrically identical (DCC friendly) to the "new" Peco Unifrog turnouts since the early 1980's, using Circuitron Tortoises for power routing/frog polarity when my layouts were DC so that the siding/spur would become live only when the switch was aligned for it, allowing me to park engines on the sidings and not have them take off when running trains in that block with my hand-built DC throttles.
It would appear from a very short Google search that Peco Electrofrog #6's are still readily available if you insist you want to use them instead of the Peco Unifrog #6 turnout.
If you wait until the Electrofrogs are all sold and you're powering your layout with DC, and you want power routing to your sidings and spurs without installing a toggle switch or power-routing switch motor, then Peco Insulfrog turnouts are going to work just fine, even with dead frogs.
If you're using DCC, then the Unitrack #6's are like the ME #6's from a few years ago when they got DCC friendly.
Here are close ups of the tops and bottoms of the Peco #6 Unifrogs for reference's sake:
Photo (1) - Peco C55 Unifrog #6 turnout, TOP:
Photo (2) - Peco C55 Unifrog #6 turnout, BOTTOM:
As far as "fixing" Peco Unifrogs, I don't think they need "fixin'", since they are essentially improved and "fixed" Peco Electrofrogs which have been brought up to the accepted standard of DCC friendliness which Atlas 55, and ME C55 #6's have had for years.
When Peco introduces its Unifrogs in the "small" turnout size, it won't need a live frog either most likely. However, when Peco introduces its "large" Unifrog turnouts, you'll most likely have to power the frogs for electrical reliability.
In no way is the Unifrog a step backwards as far as Peco turnouts are concerned, and I for one, will not mourn the extinction of the Peco Electrofrog design, which has been problematic for DCC users since the design came on the market...even if I never use one on any layout or module I build for myself.
Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore
