PLANNING TRACKWORK

As mentioned previously, I have a full-size track diagram laid out on four sheets of packing paper.  My thought is to cut out sections and glue them to white pine boards (1 x 4, 1 x 6, etc. as needed), and then those boards will serve as the roadbed and will be mounted on the layout.  Ties and rail will be laid on top of this "template."  I plan to have a basic baseboard surface of particle board, with the white pine roadbed on top of that.  Because the layout will be small, there won't be much in the way of terrain elevation changes and no "deep" water features, so this arrangement, based on experience, should be fine.  The layout will essentially represent a town so, again, there won't be any dramatic hills, etc., but maybe a gradual rise toward the backdrop of 2 to 3 inches at most.  The only water I plan on having is a muddy stream in a ditch; any road or track that intersects it will have a culvert, so it will be "shallow."

I've just used my printer's scanning feature to run off switch templates to glue onto the track diagram.  These are from the great Paul Mallery book on trackwork, blown up to S Scale.

I used to spike every tie, a time-consuming process to say the least.  That was when I used Homasote.  When I switched to white pine for roadbed I found that, because the spikes held better, spiking every fourth or fifth tie (the NMRA recommendation) worked very well.  Thus, I think the tracklaying this time will go faster.  What I haven't decided is whether to lay the turnouts separately on individual roadbed pieces or simply lay them as part of a larger...say 3 foot...section.  I think I'm leaning toward the first option, because it's really helpful to be able to pick up a turnout and sight along the rails, etc., in striving for accuracy.  I'll think about it.