10-03-2022, 09:38 AM
Thanks for the encouragement. This is the first layout that I have used the splice connectors and they make wiring a bit easier and quicker, you just have to test the track as you go to make sure you got a decent connection.
I pulled up the branchline track that was ballasted and re-laid it. It wasn't as easy as I quite thought. When I had laid that track a year and a half ago, the rest of the layout was still open-grid, so I was able to get to the far-reaching areas a bit better. This time I was partially kneeling on the layout itself or standing on a stool. It's a good thing I have a good reach or this would have been more difficult. I soaked the brown ballasted track down with water, pulled up the spikes and used a putty knife to lift the track. I soaked the track in the bathtub for an hour to loosen any ballast that was still attached. I also re-soaked the roadbed and used a small nylon bristled brush to remove any ballast that was still attached to the layout. When that dried, I vacuumed it all up.
I relaid the rack, using almost all the original track (about 1' was ruined when I removed it) This also gave me the opportunity to close up the gaps between the bridge rails that I noticed when I installed them.
I also bought a second kitchen strainer and now I have three grades of ballast:
Well more like two. the largest are more like large rock and boulders in HO scale, the next two are more the sizes I'm after. The medium is a bit smaller that the Woodland scenics medium which is what I'm aiming for. The fine would be more for sprinkling in on the edges after the initial ballasting. The fine is almost too fine and fairly dusty. I'm wondering what it will do when soaked with glue. I'm going to experiment a bit before committing to using it on the layout.
After that was in and tested, I looked at the layout and I think it needs a good tidy and clean-up.
I'd like to actually see the layout that I'm working on.
I pulled up the branchline track that was ballasted and re-laid it. It wasn't as easy as I quite thought. When I had laid that track a year and a half ago, the rest of the layout was still open-grid, so I was able to get to the far-reaching areas a bit better. This time I was partially kneeling on the layout itself or standing on a stool. It's a good thing I have a good reach or this would have been more difficult. I soaked the brown ballasted track down with water, pulled up the spikes and used a putty knife to lift the track. I soaked the track in the bathtub for an hour to loosen any ballast that was still attached. I also re-soaked the roadbed and used a small nylon bristled brush to remove any ballast that was still attached to the layout. When that dried, I vacuumed it all up.
I relaid the rack, using almost all the original track (about 1' was ruined when I removed it) This also gave me the opportunity to close up the gaps between the bridge rails that I noticed when I installed them.
I also bought a second kitchen strainer and now I have three grades of ballast:
Well more like two. the largest are more like large rock and boulders in HO scale, the next two are more the sizes I'm after. The medium is a bit smaller that the Woodland scenics medium which is what I'm aiming for. The fine would be more for sprinkling in on the edges after the initial ballasting. The fine is almost too fine and fairly dusty. I'm wondering what it will do when soaked with glue. I'm going to experiment a bit before committing to using it on the layout.
After that was in and tested, I looked at the layout and I think it needs a good tidy and clean-up.
I'd like to actually see the layout that I'm working on.