Modelrailroader.ca

I decided that I wanted to build a ‘dirt’ crossing for the NES, as I wanted to keep things looking rural and rough. While I’m sure my finished product isn’t 100% prototypical, it did allow me to create a crossing with great ease, and looks appropriate for the rest of the layout.

I first started by cutting some leftover rails to appropriate lengths, and after gently curving them with my fingers, I glued them to the ties between the mainlines using CA. I used the cast rail spikes of the flex track as spacers ‘ butting the guard rails against them. Once the glue had dried, I filled between the rails using the coloured drywall compound and a palette knife. Using a larger palette knife, I built up the approaches to the crossing ‘ making sure none of the mud got down between the rails.

Once the mud had dried, I applied some masking tape over the guard rails, as well as down the sides of the road to establish the basic shape of the crossing. Again, using a large palette knife, I smoothed in the drywall mud, allowing the excess to spill over onto the tape. Satisfied with the result, I then carefully peeled away the tape.

Once dry, I chipped off the excess mud, and then built the banks around the crossing again using a small pallette knife.

After considering the different bridge types that I could use for the overpass, I decided that a generic concrete structure would best suit the era and region I was attempting to model. I was certain that I could probably build the overpass out of extruded Styrofoam; the challenge was that the upper track crossed the lower at about a 30 degree angle which meant the tunnel would have to be cut through the overpass at the same angle.

Here’s my solution:

Using a scrap piece of Styrofoam, I eyeballed an appropriate height for the tunnel. As the clearance between the upper and lower track was minimal, I wanted to keep the tunnel portal as small as possible in order to make the overpass look beefier.

Satisfied with the dimensions of the opening, I rounded the top of the opening to create a simple arch. Happy with the shape, I sanded the edges smooth with an emery file, to create a master template.

I copied the template, gluing each successive later atop one another with some PL300 adhesive, until the overpass was 4″ thick.

Once the glue had completely dried, I measured the angle that the upper track intersected with the lower track, and created a cutting guide based on this intersection. Using a fine-tooth cross-cut saw, I sawed off the excess foam around the guide, ensuring that each cut was perpendicular to each other and as vertical as possible.

I adjusted the length of the overpass until it fit snugly between the risers.

I added guardrails by gluing and pinning small strips of foam to the top of the overpass.

Once dry, I applied a thin coat of drywall mud to fill all of the gaps, sanding the entire structure smooth once the mud had completely dried.

I applied a coat of concrete coloured paint, lightly ballasted the track, installed the overpass, and completed the remaining track work.

Having endured the agony of building my own turnouts for the now defunct UUR (Unfinished & Undecided Railway), I was looking forward to actually laying down some prefab rail and turnouts. In order to accommodate the small size of the EAS, track work was designed around PECO #4 turnouts ‘ their small radius and curved points allow for tighter track arrangements. The other reason I chose PECO turnouts was that I already had a small number on hand, the result of a false start several years ago. The track is all ATLAS Code 80 flextrack; the only track my local (and sparsely stocked) hobby shop carried.

I tried a new technique for laying the track that I had read about, which involved spreading a thin layer of caulking on the roadbed as an adhesive. I would highly recommend this method to anyone, as it was the easiest and slickest technique I’ve ever used.

Working in two foot section, I applied a small bead of caulking down the centerline of the roadbed, and then spread the bead into a paint-thin coating with my finger. Next, I simply pressed the track into the caulking and where necessary, added a pushpin to secure the rails until the caulking had dried. The slick part about this technique was that as I laid the rails around curves, the caulking actually held the track in place without the push pins. As such, it was possible the bend the track in a nice even curve, and then push it into the caulking to hold it in place. I still elected to add the push pins.

Along the way, I discovered a few important things:

• Don’t apply too thick a layer of caulking as it will squeeze up between the ties and cause problems when you ballast.
• Wiggling the track back and forth excessively while attempting to position it in the caulking will again force it up between the ties.
• Don’t apply any caulking beneath the point on turnouts.

I also took the opportunity to install a couple of uncoupling magnets, for when I actually getting around to installing magnetic couplers on my fleet of cars. I purchased some ceramic magnets at Radio Shack, which appeared to be the same thickness as the roadbed, as well as the same width. The magnets were a little thick, so I shaved down the plywood about 1/16 of and inch under each magnet, so that once installed they were level with the top of the roadbed.

I opted to leave the track hanging over the overpass as I haven’t decided what type of bridge/tunnel configuration I’m going to use!

I decided to use traditional cork roadbed for my N scale layout as I was anxious to start laying track. However, if the given the choice I would have likely selected some other product as I found that cork roadbed has a number of issues.I installed the cork roadbed traditionally; applying a thin layer of glue on either side of the previously marked centre lines, and then pressing the roadbed into the glue and temporarily securing it in place with push pins. What I found as I was installing the roadbed was that the cork had a tendency to ripple on the tight radius curves, thus it became necessary to add a great number of pins to keep the roadbed flat. Likewise, when you split the cork into its respective halves, the ‘break’ edge doesn’t always come clean, leaving a coarse burr of cork that needs to be filed or sanded down. Also, as cork is quite dense, and as such it tends to transfer noise easily. This is likely no issue if you are constructing a railroad that used a sub roadbed of homasote or foam, but in my case I was applying the cork directly onto the plywood. I’ll have to wait and see how loud it gets!

Finally, when installing the cork on a curve, I found it easiest to install the roadbed on the inside of the curve first, as once installed, all I needed to do was form the outer piece along the first piece’s edge.

I managed to install the roadbed in two evenings ‘ I would have been one evening, but I ran out of push pins. I left a great deal of overlap at the bridge area as I have yet to decided what I’m using for a bridge!

With my trusty laptop nearby, I began laying out the basic curves and centrelines on my plywood base. I chose to use 1/4″ plywood underlay for several reasons. Firstly, it’s very clear, with few visible or rough knots. As well, the wood is very flexible, which is a bonus as I needed to construct 5% grades to connect the upper and lower loops. Finally, the plywood comes in four foot square sheets, which meant I could easily transport the plywood in my car.

After I had roughed in the basic curves, I checked the placement of the turnouts and the diamond to ensure that they would all fit. Surprisingly, my drafting of the track plan was fairly accurate, and I only needed to make small minor adjustments in order to fit all the components together.

Satisfied with the arrangement of the switches, I broadened the centerlines so that each of the sub-roadbed pieces would have a minimum width of about 3″. Next, I took a jigsaw and cut along each of the paths – being careful not to complexly remove the upper loop, so that the transition from the lower level to the upper level would be smooth. The flexibility of the plywood added a natural vertical easement which ensured that trains would gradually move onto the grade as opposed to running up a ramp.

With the basic shapes cut out, I constructed a simple wooden frame using 1″x2″ pine. I layed out the 2″x4″ frame and added stringers on 1″ centers. Ensuring that each joint had a good coat of glue, I nailed the frame together with some 1 1/2″ finishing nails. I didn’t bother to check the frame for square, as it was fairly flexible and could be shifted to fit the baseboard.

I applied another generous coat of glue to the perimeter of the frame as well as the top of the stringers, and set the baseboard atop it. I shifted the frame until its corners were square with the plywood, and then nailed the entire assembly together with finishing nails.

Once the glue had dried, I used assorted scraps of lumber as risers to elevate the upper loop. After checking and re-checking the grades and slopes, I hot-glued the risers in place. The upper loop needed to sit atop of the bottom loop and hidden staging, so I cut some girders from the leftover plywood, allowing the sub roadbed to be supported about the lower loops with very minimal obstruction.

Once I was satisfied with the overall construction, drizzled additional glue into any joint that I thought could use additional strength, and tacked in a few finishing to keep things tight. I left the entire assembly to dry overnight on a flat surface (in this case the kitchen table) to ensure I didn’t wind up with a potato-chip baseboard thanks to an uneven surface.