Why do you want to make it any more difficult than it already is?

This year, is going to be like none other.  While "the economy", "healthcare reform", [insert your favorite sports team here], could all be phrases or concepts you might think I'm describing, for The Wife that statement is most definitely applied to Christmas decorations. When I got married, I'd say the largest change I noticed culturally is how much time, effort, planning, and anticipation went into the annual decorating for Christmas.  The Sunday after Thanksgiving is of grave importance, and involves getting a Christmas tree (real NOT fake), and busting out crates of decorations, turning down the thermostat (we're in South Florida after all), playing Christmas music, and drinking organic eggnog. This year I'm contributing a Christmas decoration in addition to the NC State themed ornaments I've contributed the past couple of years.  Knowing how The Wife misses snow and winter scenes, I'm going to attempt to build a 1x3 ft diorama Z Scale layout, which will be covered in snow and ice. A couple of weeks ago we picked up the engine, cars, and a test loop of track, and it was probably one of the more interesting sales experiences for the staff at Warrick's Custom Hobbies as he would suggest logical models (cars and engines from the same railroad) only to be stuffed with an incredulous "But it's NOT GREEN OR RED!"  He got the hang of it quickly and we managed to find contentment in a MicroTrains Line Canadian Pacific (red) GP35 locomotive, a Great Northern (green) box car, a Burlington Northern (green) box car, and a red tank car. We've got roughly 3 months to go.

In my latest Fast Tracks order, I also received my crossing fixture for a XX degree crossing, which will be one of the points of interest near the docks.  The crossing is conceptually fairly different from the switch, as it doesn't involve filing rail for points or bending any rail into a curvature, but there are quite a few frogs to construct, and the guard rails are considerably more difficult to install, particularly the "diamond" configuration of rails in the center. In software, we sometimes build one to throw away, and it seems like that's going to be the norm for me with any new type of Fast Tracks trackwork, as I often get the track very close on the first try, but make some mistakes along the way and learn from them, producing a much better second effort. One of my goals is to be able to photograph this layout (diorama to many) and get it published, and this is a pretty major challenge considering that while I've been armchair modeling for many years, I really have no experience other than the very basic items I did when I was in the eight and ninth grades.  This leads to an obsession with making sure the trackwork is bullet proof, one that the Fast Tracks tools supports really well with their adherence to standards and attention to detail. I started this entry quite a bit ago, and so have no completed both crossings (the throwaway and the permanent) and my only real challenge was cutting the isolation gaps and ensuring that the rails were perfectly aligned.  I had some issues with the fixture on making sure that things were perfectly aligned, but these were cleared up by using an NMRA gauge to double check everything. All in all, I'm very happy with the product and results.  I think that the crossing is going to add a lot of interest to the port setting, and seems to operate just fine with cars being pushed and pulled across the crossing by a variety of engines without issue. [caption id="attachment_111" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="N Scale: Hand built crossing using FastTracks fixtures with Code 55 Rail."] [/caption] I'll probably add another crossing in the maybe-never-coming third module which would involve an interchange.

Yesterday I received and assembled my Fast Tracks tie breaker.  It is a very well thought out, well made tool that does what it claims: cuts down the time it takes to trim ties for the turnout fixtures from Fast Tracks. Here are some pictures.  I would highly recommend getting one of these with your Fast Tracks fixtures if you're building more than 5 or so turnouts. It includes a magnet on the upper right, so it clicks right into position and doesn't need to be held in alignment.  Very well thought out, well designed tool.

I'm building the railroad in modules that are 1x4 feet, which is basically diorama size, and means I can fit them into a car, walk them up the stairs, move them, store them, etc., very easily.  I can also chain them together on the wall using commodity shelving that is lightweight and unobtrusive. Here's some before and after shots of installing the shelves down in my garage.  Things I learned on this project:

• Tap drills (hammer drills) are useful, no, required for cinderblock or concrete drilling.  Didn't even know what these were.  Once the guys in the hardware store realized I was a complete idiot, they began to dumb everything way down.  "So you take the drill bit, and put it in the drill right HERE and make sure the sharp end is pointing OUT."
• ACE Hardware is the ultimate store for tools and any kind of service.  I hate Lowes/Home Depot.
• I hate leveling things.

After installation:

Well, I got the three switches installed, good lengths of mainline track put down, and decided it was time to run some trains.  I quickly soldered some feeder wires, hooked up the throttle, grabbed my favorite test engine (Atlas GP35 in CB&Q colors), and let her rip.  Immediately, I pop a short.  Check everything, try it again.  Shorts again. Turns out, when I was building my turnouts, I misread a schematic on the instructions (no fault on their part), and cut the isolation gaps in the wrong spots.  Majorly frustrating, as I also didn't test the conductivity while I was building the turnouts.  Still, after I got over the initial frustration, I realized that this was a good chance to go back and revisit my choice for roadbed that I had made. I originally was going to stack up 4 layers of Homasote on my benchwork create the sea depression that I'll need for my dock.  This made things heavy, and meant that drilling holes would be a major pain.  I'm going to go back and redo that so that it's just one layer of Homasote, and cut through the benchwork for the water.  I've also decided to install Tortoise switch machines so that I can have power routed frogs and automatic controls, as I've already purchased 4 Digitrax stationary decoders, and might as well put them to use.  I also decided I didn't like the look of the Floquil tie brown, and prefer the grimy black method. Stay tuned as I rebuild the turnouts, and fix the mistakes I've made.

I spent a few hours (Sara insists more like 5) on installing some turnouts and a siding and part of the main line.  Here are some pictures of the progress, shot while I was working.  I continue to be extremely happy with the amount of effort required and the results produced from the FastTracks products.  I would highly recommend them to anyone for layouts of any size. This was the workbench in the living room, before getting kicked into the garage.  Turns out, it's not so bad.  Here's the workspace in the garage: I started by soldering together three of the turnouts that are grouped very tightly, and placing them down on the Homasote roadbed.  I had preweathered these turnouts by painting them "Grimy Black" using an airbrush, so they just needed to be glued down. Next, I needed to lay two straight sections, the lower being the mainline, and the upper being an industrial siding.  This was accomplished by using the tie rack jig to space the ties one-by-one, then putting tape on the back, lifting out the ties, and then gluing them into place. Lining up each edge with a straightedge.  I'm using Elmers glue, which works really well and dries fast. Next, I painted the ties using some paint thinner and Floquil's track painting marker set.  They work remarkably well, but you need ventilation as they're oil based. Here's what they look like painted. Next, I installed the turnouts and track for the siding, making sure things were in gauge as they were being glued down. Here's a shot with the main installed, and some of my newly weathered cars taking it out for a drive. Notes from my experience:

• Measure, measure measure.  I screwed up the placement of the ties once because I didn't double check, that was a pain.
• The tie rack jig works really well, but takes a surprisingly long time to put the ties in.  Not much to be done about that.
• If I were to do it all over again, I wouldn't stack the Homasote 2 inches high like shown.
• I forgot to drill throwbar holes for the switches prior to installation, thus locking me in to manual throwbars.  Not the end of the world as I was planning on that anyway, but something to note for future installs.
• You don't need as many PC board crossties as the template for straight track from Fasttracks calls for.  Also, my branch line tie rack didn't match up to the branchline metal jig, which was frustrating.
• Next time, I'm taking Tim Warris' advice, and painting all the ties grimy black, instead of tie-brown.  I think it helps them pop better and they look more prototypical after it's all done.
• I needed a super-small drill bit, which I don't have, so I had to order that in order to install the ground throws.

I've long lusted over picture after picture of model railroads.  I've been a subscriber off and on to Model Railroader for something like 8 years.  Three of those years was with the ridiculous international subscription rates, but at the time I was sufficiently impressed that the magazine made it to my door on time that I thought the price worth it (something like 100 bucks a year for a kid in the 8th grade).  It wasn't until I walked into a hobby shop in the US a year or so later and saw July's issue sitting on the rack on June 1 that I realized they mailed out the issues a month early, and were just as slow as Guitar World and other magazines I received. The point is, I've looked at so many model railroad pictures that I can instantly spot the tells.  Rail joiners, Code 100 track that's too big, oversized couplers, and unpainted and unweathered rails.  In fact, the track is one of the biggest things that can ruin a photo of a model.  A little weathering can cover up almost any model and make things look nice, but the track is really hard to cover up.  While I think Kato's Unitrack is an excellent starter project, I HATED how it looked when messing with the second layout, and it bugged me to the point where I was very unsatisfied with the decision.  My chronic fear of derailments (which I experienced a lot of on my first HO layout, mainly due to poor construction and even worse components) was overcome by my hatred for the visuals and the realization that I'd never make it into the pages of a magazine with my plastic molded track roadbed.  I also stumbled across the aforementioned FastTracks outfit that was really pushing hand laid track and their tool sets, and I was surprised that one of the biggest selling points from their point of view was completely trouble free operation. I spent over a year reading Tim's blogs (the Port Kelsey Railway and the Bronx Terminal), and spastically checking handlaidtrack.com for updates, watching videos, reading forum posts, and basically wondering if I could possibly build turnouts in N scale of sufficient quality, and have fun doing it. FastTracks isn't cheap.  I'd say that unless you're building over 20 turnouts, you don't have a chance to recoup your investment on a pure dollars-to-dollars basis.  That's unfortunate too, because if you're building over 20 turnouts, you might rethink your decision to hand lay them.  However, now that I have my tools, fixtures, and 6 turnouts under my belt, I think that there's no question that handlaying track the FastTracks way is the best way to approach model track. A couple of notes (in no particular order):

• Buy the switch kit, then buy more rail than you'll think you'll need, and buy all the tools he recommends in the turnout builder's manual.  Tools are hyper critical when doing really intricate stuff like this.  If you don't have exactly the right tools, you'll wast a lot of time and get frustrated.  Things I couldn't live without but was on the fence with before purchasing them: the jeweller's saw, the fine soldering tip, the flux, the point form tool, and the Quicksticks ties.
• It really sucks that they ship from Canada.  The shipping is ridiculously expensive, and slow.  Plus, you get to pay customs fees.  What the hell was NAFTA for anyway?
• Watch the movies.  They're important and really show you good techniques.  And read the manual before you build a switch, then follow along step by step as you build.
• My first turnout was 75% good, which meant it was a complete waste.  That's OK.  I used to it practice putting on the ties and practice weathering.
• I didn't order the stockaid tool until just now.  Will review that when it arrives - my guess is it will remove the need I currently have for a dremel tool.  If so, that's a big plus.
• The soldering is super easy once you watch the videos and once you have the right tools.  My tip got accidentally left out of my order, and I tried to build my first disaster turnout with the normal blunt tip.  Get the fine tip.  I bought 3 replacements after I saw the difference.
• Consider getting an auto-off switch for your soldering iron.  The wife doesn't really get inspired with confidence when you leave your iron on for 48+ hours by accident.  It doesn't help you soldering tip either.
• The turnouts operate ridiculously well.  It's hard to overstate this.  Seeing an N Scale model roll through without any bumping or movement up and down or jerking is just amazing.
• The turnouts look ridiculously good.  They are almost indistinguishable from the prototype.  Only the isolation gaps on the frog remain to give it away, and you can fill these in with plastic if you must.
• It's irritating how there's no mechanism to "switch" the turnouts until they're installed.  Nothing you can do about that, but I just thought I'd mention it.

If you're serious about modeling a railroad, you must consider FastTracks.  Now that I've built six turnouts, I can build one start to finish in about 35 minutes, which is about as fast a modeling project as you can have.  Even building 30+ turnouts, the time invested is roughly 20 hours, which is less time than you're going to spend messing with the commercial guys to get working properly, and then you start to really experience a major cost savings.  I'm not sure there's a more important item for a railroad than the track, and you can't easily change or replace it down the line. Also, I'm not sure I've ever received a higher quality product from an outfit that's no more than 2-3 guys.  The packaging is great, and the video resources and manuals are the best I've ever seen, on a topic that is super intricate.  I can honestly say that it's really hard to complain about cost when the product is so top notch on so many levels, from the printable templates down to the DVD that's included (just wish it would run on a Mac!). Excellent tools, lots of fun, great looking and great running results.

I've always loved trains, and growing up overseas in China where we frequently rode the train only fueled the obsession.  I've had two false starts at building model railroads before, and now I'm onto my third effort.  Hopefully I've solved the problems the first two suffered from. Model railroad #1 was started between the summer of my eighth and ninth grade year in school, and was never completed past the basic track stage with a little plaster scenery.  I was mainly hampered by lack of funds (spending my life savings of 300 bucks still didn't get very far) and I tried to stuff too much railroad (modeling in HO scale) into too small of a space. Model Railroad #2 was started in the spring of 2004, and I switched to N Scale to solve some of the space problems, but I decided to go with snaptrack (Kato's Unitrack) and hated the way it turned out in photos.  I also bit off more than I could chew with a massive 9'x5' footprint that meant  you couldn't reach any part of the layout and was impossible to move, and I was constantly hampered by my tendency (with modeling) to build things too quickly, not plan very well, all part of the mad rush to get it DONE. This effort, my third, will address the funds part, the space part, the biting-off-more-than-I-can-chew part, the poor planning and high speed construction parts, and the looks part, all in one.  Whew. I've been following Tim Warris' two excellent blogs, the Port Kelsey Railway and the Bronx Terminal and in the process he introduced me to his concept of hand laying track using metal machined jigs, which he's since turned into a business called Fast Tracks.  I've always loved the look of hand laid track (for those that aren't familiar, the main differences are the guard rails, frog section, and the points which give away tha the track is a model) but figured it would be well beyond my modeling skills for quite some time.  Tim convinced me through his tutorials and videos that I could maybe do it, so I ponied up, bought a kit, and decided it would be part of the fun in building a very small portable shelf layout (1 foot by 4 feet to start). I've got some pictures of some of the progress I've made over the last few weeks which I'll put up here soon.

Check out the different batches of N Scale Kato Unitrack I've got up for sale on ebay.  Click here for the full listing. This is used Kato Unitrack I had on my old model railroad, but it's in great condition, and represents quite a bit of money invested, so it should be a really good deal for anyone interested. And yes, I'm hijacking Sara's Orient Products ebay account in lieu of making a new one.  Still need a mother's day gift?  Maybe a high quality pearl ring?