Track laying well under way

While work has commenced on track laying with the station throat, a double track continuous run was laid temporarily to allow some trains to be run immediately. This has proved to be great fun but does tend to slow down the construction work.

Who could resist watching their brand new superbly modelled (by Hornby) Q1 trundling around at a scale 30 mph hauling a reasonable length goods train? I certainly couldn't!!

The tracklaying methodology is to mark it out on the baseboard using templates made from Peco track and then lay the track bed using cork cut from cork tiles and carefully profiled, glued in place with an impact adhesive. The track, which is all Peco, is secured to the underlay with impact adhesive and/or very small screws in certain places.

One oversight in the plan became apparent early on as point motors mounted beneath the two curved points at the station throat would have clashed with baseboard bracing timbers. As a result the point motors for these have been mounted on the baseboard surface with a link to the point via wire and brass tube which will disappear under the ballast in due course. Obviously the point motors will also "be disappeared" in due course!