October 9
This week, survey parties for the Blackhawk and Central City completed a proposed route between Forks Staging and the siding for the Cashier Stamp Mill and the work crews successfully graded that portion of the routes. Ties are scheduled to be laid and spiked next week, weather permitting….
For those interested, I’m taking a somewhat different approach to hand laying track than what I’ve read in the literature. Rather than penciling the route on the bench work, laying the road bed, then laying ties and track, I hand built all of the track first to find its route (this is what I call surveying). I then use that to guide placing paper shims (my yards and turnouts are on 5mm cork but I’m using 3mm N scale cork for route roadbed) and the cork itself. The paper shims are 6 sheets of report cover paper ganged together with 3M Type 77 Spray Adhesive and held in place with double sided tape. Cork is attached to the bench work by pre-drilling holes for ½” wire nails (no glue) that are inserted with a push hammer. Finally, I’ve been painting three sides of the wood ties and test fitting them in place – if sanding is needed, I sand the unpainted side that goes on the bottom. It may be a little slower than other methods, but it works for me. I’ll attach the track and wood ties with caulk adhesive and then spike the wood ties in place (that’s what I’m hoping to complete next week).
By the way, I’m still working on engine plans. I’ve been designing parts in a CAD program and getting quotes from an online machine shop to serve as a baseline for when I talk to my local manufactures.
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