- 1. get some circuit nboard sleepers. I buy it in strips for the ModelRailway Craftsman. Cut them up into sleeper lengths.
- 2. Get your rail. I buy at shows cheap gt "N" scale track. Take it home, rip off the sleepers and I have code 80 rail.
- 3. I then mke a jig to hole the tracl in a straight alignment, ie a flat long length of wood See the right hand most jig at the following link:
Jig link
The other two jig I havve abandaned as I use the fastrack jigs for points
www.handlaidtrack.com
I thus make "half track" - soldering one rail onto the sleepers. If I wanted straigh rail I could then solder the other rail on, using the nrma gauage and several track gauges to hold it. I do not use a circuit board sleeper entirely, I skimp by every 5th spacing. You add "dummy" sleepers later.
- 4. check the roadbed for level. When you lay your track it will take on and deformity, so check first.
- 5. Take the half track to the layout. Test fit it by putting on layout, joiin to another bit of track, then easing it into the shape you want, be it by eye, following a pencil mark ont he baseboard, by using curve templates etc.
- 6, Satisfied, I glue it down with normal white glue. to hold the track in place, tape it, clamp it, put weights on the sleepers.
- 7. To then lay the next rail I then solder it into place. Again using roller gauges and weights to hole the rail roughtly in gauge, I do the soldering using my NRMA gauge form one end, moving slowly sleeper by sleeper.
- 8. I recheck the gauge. Then again. Next I cut with a triangle file ( you could use a dremel) a insulating gap in the sleepers. I try to stagger this cut, never down the middle all the time,often try to go for the outside side to hide it , so to speak.
- 9. I use a multimeter to check I have indeed cut the track and insulated it.
- 10. Next I use a small level and sleeper by sleeper check the level. IT is it out, I use a knife to pry the sleeper off, not all off, adjust level thsu, reglue a bit. I might sticke a bit of cardboard under one end of the sleeeper. This might also be a method to superelevate the track if desired.
- 11. Put in wire droppers.
- 12. get your supply of dummy sleepers, I'm going to cut balsa ones, or you could use plastic strips and glue then in place.
- 13. Paint the whole lot in your fav base colour, I suggest some shade of brown. I'll be using a lighter brown to show fade, as to me wooden sleepers ar emore grey than brown, and not black !
Of course wipe the rails to clean them after painting. Some might say give the rails a light oil to stop paint, but just as easy to wipe immediatly after painting.
- 14. Done.
Great for wood sleepers, not sure how you can use it to simulate concrete.
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