Hey Bob,
Just letting you know how the trackwork was going.
Last night I laid about 20" of track on a scrap piece of styrofoam (the blue insulation stuff). I really like using foam for my scenery & track base, & that was one of the concerns I had about laying my own track.
Everything I've read says you need Pliobond to glue rail to ties, but I have been unable to locate any of this stuff, so I did a little innovating, & used some slow-curing CA.
First, I drew a center line by hand in a gradual curve. Then I cut some ties out of strip wood, & attached them with white glue, centering, & spacing them by eye (this is primarily a logging road - precise tie location is not really a concern).
I gave the glue a couple of hours to dry, then roughed out with pencil marks where the first rail would go. I then bent the rail to match the curve, put a drop of CA on top of each tie, & stuck the rail down. Then I used the track gauge & the pecil to rough in the position of the other rail, bent the rail, applied the glue, & stuck it down. Before the CA had set, (you have to work very fast here) I used the gauge to allign the second rail to the first down the entire length of track.
This procedure worked great, & I have what seems to be a rock solid piece of track. I rolled a couple of boxcars up & down - smooth as silk!
Now I'm really looking forward to building the turnout kits!
[This message has been edited by Charlie (edited 02-14-2001).]
Just letting you know how the trackwork was going.
Last night I laid about 20" of track on a scrap piece of styrofoam (the blue insulation stuff). I really like using foam for my scenery & track base, & that was one of the concerns I had about laying my own track.
Everything I've read says you need Pliobond to glue rail to ties, but I have been unable to locate any of this stuff, so I did a little innovating, & used some slow-curing CA.
First, I drew a center line by hand in a gradual curve. Then I cut some ties out of strip wood, & attached them with white glue, centering, & spacing them by eye (this is primarily a logging road - precise tie location is not really a concern).
I gave the glue a couple of hours to dry, then roughed out with pencil marks where the first rail would go. I then bent the rail to match the curve, put a drop of CA on top of each tie, & stuck the rail down. Then I used the track gauge & the pecil to rough in the position of the other rail, bent the rail, applied the glue, & stuck it down. Before the CA had set, (you have to work very fast here) I used the gauge to allign the second rail to the first down the entire length of track.
This procedure worked great, & I have what seems to be a rock solid piece of track. I rolled a couple of boxcars up & down - smooth as silk!
Now I'm really looking forward to building the turnout kits!
[This message has been edited by Charlie (edited 02-14-2001).]