The scale track is done, except for the ballasting. It may be a few weeks before I get to that. The scale is only 40 feet long, but that is OK since I am weighing twin bay hoppers at my anthracite mine. I have to say this was a fun project. I also have a couple turnouts installed. But, I need to build a diorama for the crossover since I really don't have a place for it, yet.





Chuck

Looks nice. Use a fine Sharpie to make black lines at the 'joint' in the movable rails? I did that for expansion joints on the Rt. 1A bridge and it looks decent to me.

Nicely done, Chuck! Keep going!

Pete

in Michigan

I am trying to decide what items to scratch build for the "civil" certificate and have a question -- In one of my yards I have street rail and am using the ORR HO Street Railway Track and Turnout Point-Mates. These pieces can be seen in Section 6 just above "Note 15" at http://www.trolleyville.com/tv/school/lesson2_4/. They do not have any frog, so I am wondering if using these pieces to create turnouts into industry sidings would qualify for the "civil" AP certificate. Any guidance would be appreciated.

thanks

Joe Brann

Orlando, FL

Wow- time flies when you are having fun- I've been away for awhile. But so has this thread!

First off, sorry to Joe as no one apparently gave you any help on your question regarding your street railway turnouts. Pete or James should be able to point you in the right direction. Without knowing anything about street railways, my guess is that if you can substantiate that they adhere to a prototype and you don't use commercial points or frogs you should be OK, but I am not an authority. Your region AP chairman will be able to find out.

I was busy building structures, but now am back at this. Thanks to much help from this thread I did score well with my three track features (all over 115) and now the final hurdle for this certificate is to get about 25 more feet of track operable. So now a question is this: since I want to get this going and get back to structures and scenery, I am going to use some Micro-Engineering weathered HO flex track. After attempting the first section, I find I am in need of a primer on laying flextrack as there are a number of things going on that are relatively foreign. Bending and cutting the track, gauging, what rail joiners and how to use, wiring leads, how and when to ballast, etc.

It appears the steps and sequence may be a lot different than hand-laying. Also, how to best apply it either directly to homasote or the bendable homa-bed strips?

There are no nail holes in the ME track. Use little nails or track spikes on the outside of the ties? Glue?

You can Google the topic and get dozens of links to Youtube how-to videos- some are good but others frankly are suspect advice and have awful production quality. Can anybody suggest Youtube or other sources? Thanks to all of you- this is the home stretch!

Mike,

I can't really recommend any videos because laying flex track is sort of like breathing: I just do it. But I have learned a couple of things in using the Micro Engneering track on my home layout.

You've probably discovered by now that you have bend it a little carefully because those little simulated plastic track spikes are easily broken. What I really like about that brand is that once bent it stays that way until you bend it again. That means it stays put. I can lay whole sections of track without a nail, even run trains to see how I like it. If I do need a nail I use a bit in a Dremel to drill a hole in the center of a tie.

Everybody has their preferred way of soldering the leads. I solder them alongside the outside of each rail, snuggled into the web of the rail. By the way, the weathering seems to prevent good solder joints so I clean the side of the rail thoroughly where I'm going to solder the lead.

Because I generally do not use ME weathered track I paint the sides of the rail with Floquil Rail Brown. (Need to find a replacement paint soon. )

Then I ballast. The leads and ballast hold everything in place.

I lay my track on Homasote directly because most of my layout represents urban switching districts pre-1900. In places the track floats a little above the Homasote, which varies in thickness, in which case my ballast truly supports the track.

I use a rail nipper to cut the track, rounding off edges a little with a file to ease slipping of rail joiners (Micro Engineering). I remove as few ties as possible.

Best practice is to solder a lead to every track section rather than depend on rail joiners for continuity.

Mike

Joe: check with your Division's AP Chair about the Orr turnouts. Looking at the picture, it appears the turnout's rail and cross-ties are all cast in one piece, and all you have to do is assemble and install the point. If I was evaluating for Civil, my first thought would be 'that's not scratchbuilt' but I'd be willing to bounce the question up to Region.

Mike Engler: I've worked with M-E flextrack just barely enough to agree with Mike Hohn. I'll add that 'Code 83' rail shape varies between manufacturers, and it goes smoothest if you use your rail vendor's rail joiners. I solder joiners once I've got gauge & alignment right, but I'm not installing a feeder drop for each piece of rail.

Mike,

Just got back to reading this forum again as I begin work on this certificate. wrt your inquiry about bending ME track one of the neat tricks I found useful in easily and gently bending this fine track is to take a bladed screwdriver, hold the screwdriver so that the blade is vertical and just gently run/draw/strip the blade across the ends of the ME ties. You should see the rail begin to bend as you do this.

Joe

Orlando, FL

With the newer Civil certificate requirements of functionality versus functionality and scenery I was wondering if it is necessary to use ties under the rails of the track pieces I am considering building. Just before Christmas I completed a large section of street track using girder rail. Originally I had the girder rail soldered to PC ties but found numerous problems, particularly with consistency, with this method. So I removed the PC ties and used 0.060" sheet styrene as the base for the rail and CA-ed the girder rail to the styrene. This method proved to be highly consistent for me and I'd kinda like to duplicate that for the three track pieces I will e building.

thanks

Joe in Orlando

Hi Joe, I'm being slightly facetious but what era are you modelling? I ask because when I was building track for a real light rail system in 2012 one of the options we looked into for building the track was precast concrete panels for the track slab that had to cut-outs in the top surface into which the rails were placed and 'glued' with a rubber compound to keep the rails electrically insulated from the track slab.

It doesn't sound too different from what you are using. It sounds like an excellent way of constructing street track but unfortunately I can't offer any advice on how the NMRA would view it.

Neil.

My era is 1952, spring. I kinda like your idea of the pre-cast concrete panels; but how did you cut the grooves for the track into the panels?

Joe in Orlando

I don't seem to find a scale track mentioned among the options for one of the three items to be built for this certificate. Has anybody used a scale track to satisfy part of the Civil certificate requirements? If so I'd appreciate any drawings etc. that you created.

thanks

Joe Brann

Orlando, FL

Joe,

A scale track would qualify. Chuck Diljak (wvrr) made one in this thread: http://www.railroad-line.com/forum/t...73&whichpage=8

Just scroll down a few posts and you will see it.

Chuck is away for the Easter Weekend, I believe, but I will PM him to respond to this thread when he gets back.

Joe,

A scale track is a form of a gantlet track, so it qualifies. If you have any questions, I will be happy to answer them. As Bruce mentioned, I am away for the weekend so I do not have as much access.

Chuck

Joe, I remembered an article I can scan for you that contains drawings, last night. I will scan it when I get home. In the meantime, PM your email address to me.

Chuck