Replacement Peco switch

Though the Peco Electrofrog switches don't look as nice as the M.E. ones, especially the point rails, they do seem to work better. In preparation for installation I first removed the over-center spring which holds the points one way or the other. It left an ugly gap in the tie, but once ballasted and weathered I hope it will disappear. Next, I made it "DCC compliant" or whatever they call it now by cutting one wire and soldering two more jumper wires, which essentially isolated the points from the frog and then tied each point to the adjacent stock rail. Lastly, even though their frogs already have a wire soldered to it, it was so super thin that I replaced it with my standard 20 gauge wire. The whole process wasn't very difficult thanks to the instructions on the package, and the electrical theory  described on Wiring For DCC.com

Then, I used my soldering iron to remove excess solder and the old rail joiners from where I had cut the switch out, and replaced the new switch in. Some trimming of the ties was necessary where they fouled adjacent track. I was surprised how much shorter the Peco #6 switch is compared to the M.E. #6, and some fitter pieces were necessary. Because of how I had to adjust it, a new 1/2" hole was required under the throw rod. Because the frog isn't insulated from the running rails, I had superglued thin pieces of styrene into the rail gaps at the ends. Once the glue cured, I removed any excess styrene in the flange area. They will all but disappear when the track is painted and ballasted.

Within an hour's worth of work the new switch was in place, and my layout was back in business!