Figure 1
Trackwork
Hand laid track can be a rewarding element
of a model railroad. It allows the modeller to make the track look very
much like the prototype.Ties can be placed unevenly and weathered to add
realism to the model.By breaking track laying into small segments, it
can be easily done by modellers at all levels. The techniques presented here can also be applied to commercial flex track installations.
Getting Started
Assuming that the benchwork is already finished, it is now time to lay out the centre lines for the track.Use a felt tip marker to draw in the final lines. You should have a good feel for what the layout is
going to look like now.It is now time to move onto installing the underlay
for the roadbed.
Cork Roadbed
Cork roadbed is simple to make yourself. Purchase
cork in sheet or bulk format from your local building centre. Remember
that the thickness should be slightly more than the distance that a spike
will protrude from the bottom of a tie. If the spikes penetrate through the cork into the roadbase, the layout will be noisey. Calculate the finished width of
ballast including the slopes at the ends of the ties.Divide this distance
in two and cut strips from the cork sheet this width. For On3, I cut strips
1 1/8" wide. Now, apply contact cement to a workable area along the centre
line of your track to a minimum width of two strips of cork.Contact cement
one side of the cork and allow to dry until tacky to the touch.Carefully
set the strip of cork in place against the centre line and press into place.
The other strip of cork can now be put in place.You should now have a
base as in Figure 1.
Figure 1
It is now time to cut the edge of the cork to simulate the shape of the ballasted roadbed.Use a sharp knife to cut the sloped edges as in Figure 2.Do not try to be perfect here as it is not necessary. A slightly uneven edge will look good once the ballast is applied.
Figure 2
Ties
To make things easy, I made up a jig for spacing the ties. I used a piece of 1" x 3" x 18" and fastened a guide on one edge. Pieces of wood a little thinner than the thickness of the ties are glued with spacing sufficient to insert ties loosely between then.
Tie Jig