Ties

Hi Joe. Could not find Micro Engineering but I did find Mt Albert wood ties unfinished on http://www.handlaidtrack.com. Kevin

Kevin

Thanks Kevin.  Mt. Albert is my Plan B, but they seemed to be quite a bit more expensive than ME at first glance.  Then again, I'm comparing to my recollection of ME prices from the last time I was laying track, which was 14 years ago.  Unfortunately, not finding any ME ties for sale, I have no idea how the prices compare now.

Kappler

I have used Kappler ties for my layout and have been very satisfied.  They come in 8' and 8'6" lengths plus switch ties.

I know Steve D. (Surf Line) was looking for ME ties a while ago and was having trouble finding them, I believe he also went to Kappler.

Kappler Scale Lumber (kapplerusa.com)

Matchsticks

750 for $6

I've used ME, Mt Albert, and Kappler wood ties

Hi.  I've used HO scale standard gauge Micro Engineering, Mt Albert, and Kappler in the past, and have several thousand ties still in my stash waiting to be used.  Unless you can pick up a bag or so at a train show vendor's table, which is kind of a hit or miss proposition in the best of times, you're better off ordering from Mt Albert (handlaidtrack.com) or Kappler (kapplerusa.com).  Not sure if Northeast Scale Lumber still makes ties, and there are other vendors out there.  Micro Engineering's web page says they've discontinued their wood ties.

Both Kappler and Mt Albert ties are excellent, with only a few clunkers (twisted or broken) in each bag of 1000, so I'm planning on ordering from them when I get down to my last bag of ties.  Prices from either (currently about $21-$22 list) seem quite reasonable, especially given the hobby hours per dollar calculation.  And yeah, the first bag I bought back in 1990 was quite a bit cheaper, like about 9 bucks, but time moves on and we can only buy at today's prices.

Janet N.

 

tie strips

If you're using them for turnouts, to save a little money, you can buy the  16-inch long tie strips and cut them to the length you need per tie. 

If you have a way to measure the precise length you need for each tie (like a jig to load or a printed template) then you can still do the same amount of cutting as if you laid all long ties and then cut them off afterwards, but with less waste. It's more fiddly though, you can't lay the ties with the ends right for the diverging route then cut them all off with a straight edge and one pass with a dremel like you can if each of your ties is too long.

And the tie strips come out cheaper per foot of wood even if you don't reduce waste any.

If this is not general knowledge

http://www.microengineering.com/products_ties.htm

Thank you

Thanks everyone for the tips and info.  I hadn't heard about ME getting out of the tie business, so that's good to know.  A friend offered to sell me his leftover ME and Mt. Albert ties, so I'm planning to go that route and then order either Kappler or Mt. Albert for the balance.  Based on my measurements last night, I think I'll need about 6 more bags of standard ties and maybe 1-2 more bags of turnout ties for the whole layout.

Kappler

I ended up buying 800 Kappler switch ties and 8000 regular ties, some from Ebay to get me started and the rest direct.  Part of what I bought included some 8' ties, so Dave Husman, if you can use those, I'd be happy to pass them along.

By the way, I was super impressed with Kappler.  When I placed my order they were one bag short of what I needed in their regular stock, and rather than make me wait for the rest of the shipment, they quickly put together another bag for me and will ship everything this week.