Great video! The issue is easily fixed in Scarm as they use simple text files for the track library. Open the M-track file, locate the track pieces (use the product numbers) and correct the length and degree. Save, restart Scarm and you're done.
I just started with M-track as I've inherited it from my dad, and I was using SCARM to digitize his hand-drawn layouts... which are full of 5207 crossings! Thank you for this very clear video!
You are absolutely right! There is a bad geometry in those crossings. Also the Z scale have very similar problem, I draw the parts in Auto CAD following the measurements given by Marklin in their catalogs and comparing with the fisical measurements given by my caliper and it’s impossible to make it fit right, there is a tiny huge problem with the geometry. Also I got to the same conclusion, Marklin rounds their measurements. Not good when you keep adding those errors. At the en you could finish with a couple of centimeters off!
A few additional things about this video: 1) I have made the developpers of the commercial packages aware of the issue. 2) All the products are feature-rich and robust packages, I would recommend any of them, despite this small error. 3) if you think I am mistaken, feel free to let me know, dialog is good! Update: I have received a few responses, and a follow-up video is now live: ruclips.net/video/8VkF67PU6d8/видео.html Thanks for watching!
Small thing I think there are parts that fix such issue as they are single stem pieces that are about 0.75 CM pieces that I found in my toolkit of special pieces.. I dont know if they are actual marklin pieces or not but yea it did fix the situation you were in
Great video and I did not know this was an issue in Märklin M-track. I use Märklin C-track and I do not believe it has the same issue - the geometry is slightly different and equivalent small pieces do not exist. Although I must admit I usually go a different direction when making layouts. In any track system with fixed track pieces there is a limited number of pieces. For C-track the connections are a little flexible (not too much as this would also be an issue). I do not like to limit myself when designing a layout. This means that I often have tracks that in the planner do not connect - however, in real life it works as the track connections allow for this little flexibility. One has to be careful not to abuse this! At least for C-track the "connection flexibility" allows for more freedom when designing (without using flex track). I also remember M-track allowing for some "connection flexibility" - although it's been many years since I used them... Enjoy ;-)
The planner should be able to do the basic geometry right. I also get to the point where certain pieces don't join exactly in my layouts. The user should decide when to make little exceptions, and it is going to work better if the software is accurate. As a former C-track user, I must admit that the flexiblity you mention surprises me, the tolerances are much tighter, and you don't have as much play as you have with M-track. If you screw you track down, you quickly find out that any small deviation is trouble, kind of the exact opposite of M-track in this respect. Still simple and intelligently designed, more versatile than M though... Thanks for the visit.
Thank you very much for the geeky stuff around track curvatures and turnout radii! I am currently building a heavily modified version of the layout #13 out of the Märklin Gleisplanbuch 0700 that you've shown us in the video and instinctively I've used XtrackCAD for the rebuild with M-Track. It has the lowest error rate of all software.
Fascinating and very informative! Nicely explained, thankfully M track is forgiving or was when I was a boy trying to make a track without paper assistance 😀
Hi, thanks for showing us this very fascinating analysis. At the moment my trackplan is finished, but i have some M-Gleis and i will use it for as we call „carpet train spotting“ Greetings from near Göppingen
Hello there, yes and it's been reported few times already. As this hasn't been adressed, I decided to have a look around and see whether railmodeller was the only package with the error, the rest is history😉 Take care.
This is very interesting. We did have a look at software but decided to do it the old fashion way of taking measurements of the layout we had in mind. I must say that we use K-track with flexi-track and some M-track in areas as well. The problem with K-track is that it does not offer the wider express turnouts, so we had to make them ourselves by using Peco switches and adding pukos. It was quite the puzzle which has taken ages but we arrived at the end. Perhaps software would have helped but I’m not sure about flexi-track and DIY express turnouts... There should be much better software available perhaps?
Universal track planning packages like the ones I used in this video let you mix and match track systems, so you could have planned your layout using any of these software packages. They are excellent in my opinion, and if I had to chose now, I'd still go for RailModeller Pro which is the most intuitive to me, with much less clicks and right clicks than all other packages. It is quicker to use and easier to learn than anything else I tried. The problem described here is just a minor configuration issue which should easily be rectifed. Thanks for sharing and spending some time here today.
@@The3rdRail Well yes of course. No problemo there with an older Apple we still have with High Sierre which should be working fine according to their FAQ 🙂
Oh joy, now I can see what fun I will have when I finally get around to building a new layout. I've quite a bit of 3800/900 so working those curves in with standard 5200 is going to make for some interesting maths. Oh and this will be my first adventure with digital, but keeping point control analog!.
Hello! Maybe a bit off-topic but, i have a Marklin 3048 (Br 01) And it needs new rubber tires, i am pretty new to this, but is it normaal that the rubber tires are so small? I ordered the 7152 and they are very small. is that correct? I couldn't find any videos where they replaced them with the 7152 tires? Just asking if that is normal. Kind Regards: a Fellow märklin enthousiast.
Tires are always smaller than the wheels and they need to be stretched when fitting them. Later Märklin models of the BR01 might have smaller wheels that need other traction tires. For the 3048 it is 7152, which are the largest of the 4 types Märklin makes.
I just love the way you explained it, I grew up with the marklin system when there where only the old track plan books from the company it self,long before computer programs so all the planning takes place in the head, how ever it was something of a head eg when they change to C track and there by got rid of all the small bits , but your geometry lesson explained why they today has to straight on of 171.2 and one of 188.8 as I recall it - and when you think of it does that make it better?
Hi, I remember these days, and the orange stencil gliding on the sheet of A4 paper 😉 C-track defintiely removed quite a few small make-up bits, so it is probaly better in tis respect. Thanks for the time you spent here today.
We still have it good as M-track drivers. When all else fails, I cut splints to length myself. The C-track people have almost no more tolerances wit the Click System, hahaha.😁 😆 😅 😂 🤣Cheers, Martin
I have mostly used Anyrail because its the best out of a mediocre bunch they all have problems but that comes down to the manufactures themselves I wasn't impressed with C track initially but went over to it - however the big problem with C is there are no exact 3/4, 1/2,1/4 and 1/8 sections which makes it very hard to make proper stop sections now I was able to make a stop section for my 44 but it's now impossible for most of my other loco's because of the slider spacing - I now have to rely entirely on the CS3 to be able to get most of my loco's to stop were I need them to in my yard
Great video!
The issue is easily fixed in Scarm as they use simple text files for the track library. Open the M-track file, locate the track pieces (use the product numbers) and correct the length and degree. Save, restart Scarm and you're done.
Good to know!
Good to hear that I was not wrong using my Scarm software...I'm one of those slowly dying users of M tracks........thank you for your videos!
😉 we are all going to the same place in the end, whatever the path... Thanks for the visit and spending some of your valuable time on the channel.
I just started with M-track as I've inherited it from my dad, and I was using SCARM to digitize his hand-drawn layouts... which are full of 5207 crossings! Thank you for this very clear video!
Look at part 2... there are a few more tips and explanations there.
Thanks for the Super, that is very kind.
Fascinating as usual, your persistence and patience is to be admired.
Thank you! Cheers!
You are absolutely right!
There is a bad geometry in those crossings. Also the Z scale have very similar problem, I draw the parts in Auto CAD following the measurements given by Marklin in their catalogs and comparing with the fisical measurements given by my caliper and it’s impossible to make it fit right, there is a tiny huge problem with the geometry.
Also I got to the same conclusion, Marklin rounds their measurements.
Not good when you keep adding those errors. At the en you could finish with a couple of centimeters off!
I am partly right and partly putting my stupidity on display 😀... It all becomes clear in part 2... Märklin had a good reason to do things this way...
A few additional things about this video:
1) I have made the developpers of the commercial packages aware of the issue.
2) All the products are feature-rich and robust packages, I would recommend any of them, despite this small error.
3) if you think I am mistaken, feel free to let me know, dialog is good!
Update: I have received a few responses, and a follow-up video is now live: ruclips.net/video/8VkF67PU6d8/видео.html
Thanks for watching!
Small thing I think there are parts that fix such issue as they are single stem pieces that are about 0.75 CM pieces that I found in my toolkit of special pieces.. I dont know if they are actual marklin pieces or not but yea it did fix the situation you were in
@@turtlepowa it doesn't cause any problem.. watch part 2 😉
@@The3rdRail Dammit XD
Great video and I did not know this was an issue in Märklin M-track. I use Märklin C-track and I do not believe it has the same issue - the geometry is slightly different and equivalent small pieces do not exist. Although I must admit I usually go a different direction when making layouts. In any track system with fixed track pieces there is a limited number of pieces. For C-track the connections are a little flexible (not too much as this would also be an issue). I do not like to limit myself when designing a layout. This means that I often have tracks that in the planner do not connect - however, in real life it works as the track connections allow for this little flexibility. One has to be careful not to abuse this! At least for C-track the "connection flexibility" allows for more freedom when designing (without using flex track). I also remember M-track allowing for some "connection flexibility" - although it's been many years since I used them... Enjoy ;-)
The planner should be able to do the basic geometry right. I also get to the point where certain pieces don't join exactly in my layouts. The user should decide when to make little exceptions, and it is going to work better if the software is accurate. As a former C-track user, I must admit that the flexiblity you mention surprises me, the tolerances are much tighter, and you don't have as much play as you have with M-track. If you screw you track down, you quickly find out that any small deviation is trouble, kind of the exact opposite of M-track in this respect. Still simple and intelligently designed, more versatile than M though... Thanks for the visit.
Thank you for the explaination. I also use Railmodeller Pro and got also the missing links you told. Very good video for the die-hard M-tack users.
thanks a lot.
Thank you very much for the geeky stuff around track curvatures and turnout radii! I am currently building a heavily modified version of the layout #13 out of the Märklin Gleisplanbuch 0700 that you've shown us in the video and instinctively I've used XtrackCAD for the rebuild with M-Track. It has the lowest error rate of all software.
Have fun! It is a very nice layout.
As always splendid work!Ttruly appreciate your efforts and feedback! Simple and marvelous explanation … M-Gleis brings back childhood memories.
Wow, thank you!
Fascinating and very informative! Nicely explained, thankfully M track is forgiving or was when I was a boy trying to make a track without paper assistance 😀
😀
Hi, thanks for showing us this very fascinating analysis.
At the moment my trackplan is finished, but i have some M-Gleis and i will use it for as we call „carpet train spotting“
Greetings from near Göppingen
have fun!
I believe RailModellerPro's maker has a way to report bugs like this
Hello there, yes and it's been reported few times already. As this hasn't been adressed, I decided to have a look around and see whether railmodeller was the only package with the error, the rest is history😉 Take care.
Excellent explanation an intelligent workaround too. I admit having wasted hours on this issue. Thanks!!!
Great to hear! More clarification in part 2, I got some of my maths wrong here... The workaround is the same...
Interessting Video. 👍👍 Have a nice evening.
Thank you! You too!
Awesome … very informative. I am another user of the M track in the process of designing my next layout.
Glad it was helpful!
This is very interesting. We did have a look at software but decided to do it the old fashion way of taking measurements of the layout we had in mind. I must say that we use K-track with flexi-track and some M-track in areas as well. The problem with K-track is that it does not offer the wider express turnouts, so we had to make them ourselves by using Peco switches and adding pukos. It was quite the puzzle which has taken ages but we arrived at the end. Perhaps software would have helped but I’m not sure about flexi-track and DIY express turnouts... There should be much better software available perhaps?
Universal track planning packages like the ones I used in this video let you mix and match track systems, so you could have planned your layout using any of these software packages. They are excellent in my opinion, and if I had to chose now, I'd still go for RailModeller Pro which is the most intuitive to me, with much less clicks and right clicks than all other packages. It is quicker to use and easier to learn than anything else I tried. The problem described here is just a minor configuration issue which should easily be rectifed. Thanks for sharing and spending some time here today.
@@The3rdRail Oh thank you. That's very good to know. Excellent. We certainly shall be taking RailModeller Pro in mind.
@@lindaoffenbach but only if you also use a Mac 😉
@@The3rdRail Well yes of course. No problemo there with an older Apple we still have with High Sierre which should be working fine according to their FAQ 🙂
very nicely shown and well explained, greetings Kai👌👌👍👍😊😊
So nice of you
Oh joy, now I can see what fun I will have when I finally get around to building a new layout. I've quite a bit of 3800/900 so working those curves in with standard 5200 is going to make for some interesting maths. Oh and this will be my first adventure with digital, but keeping point control analog!.
Have fun!
Hello! Maybe a bit off-topic but, i have a Marklin 3048 (Br 01) And it needs new rubber tires, i am pretty new to this, but is it normaal that the rubber tires are so small? I ordered the 7152 and they are very small. is that correct? I couldn't find any videos where they replaced them with the 7152 tires?
Just asking if that is normal.
Kind Regards: a Fellow märklin enthousiast.
Tires are always smaller than the wheels and they need to be stretched when fitting them. Later Märklin models of the BR01 might have smaller wheels that need other traction tires. For the 3048 it is 7152, which are the largest of the 4 types Märklin makes.
@@The3rdRail Thank you so much! this helps alot!
@@mre6180 if you look at one of the “can I fix it” videos you should find one where I change tires if you are ensure about stretching the tires.
I just love the way you explained it, I grew up with the marklin system when there where only the old track plan books from the company it self,long before computer programs so all the planning takes place in the head, how ever it was something of a head eg when they change to C track and there by got rid of all the small bits , but your geometry lesson explained why they today has to straight on of 171.2 and one of 188.8 as I recall it - and when you think of it does that make it better?
Hi, I remember these days, and the orange stencil gliding on the sheet of A4 paper 😉 C-track defintiely removed quite a few small make-up bits, so it is probaly better in tis respect. Thanks for the time you spent here today.
We still have it good as M-track drivers. When all else fails, I cut splints to length myself.
The C-track people have almost no more tolerances wit the Click System, hahaha.😁 😆 😅 😂 🤣Cheers, Martin
:)
I have mostly used Anyrail because its the best out of a mediocre bunch they all have problems but that comes down to the manufactures themselves
I wasn't impressed with C track initially but went over to it - however the big problem with C is there are no exact 3/4, 1/2,1/4 and 1/8 sections which makes it very hard to make proper stop sections now I was able to make a stop section for my 44 but it's now impossible for most of my other loco's because of the slider spacing - I now have to rely entirely on the CS3 to be able to get most of my loco's to stop were I need them to in my yard
Everyone's pain threshold is different 😀
I have a question for you. Is it possible to have a point to point track section on an analog layout?
yes, with a märklin 6600 controller or a viessmann 5204, there is a little helper video about the 6600.
@@The3rdRail Thank you very much.
THOUROGH AND EXACT!
🙏
What country are you from?
🤔
I guess France
or an international man of mystery 😉
OCD ghehe
😉