Submitted by Slambo on Mon, 07/31/2006 - 06:37
When you're laying track, try to keep the mainline through the straight sections of your turnouts. Trains are less likely to derail on the straight sections, so the more frequent direction of travel through a turnout should be through the straight section. On this set of NTrak modules, the passing siding is between the two outer mainline tracks, while another siding veers off the blue mainline toward the backdrop.
Submitted by Slambo on Mon, 05/08/2006 - 06:17
When ties have reached the end of their usefulness, they are often marked with brightly colored paint. Using a bright orange or yellow marking, the maintenance of way crew can easily spot which ties to replace. This section of track, with three ties to be replaced, is along the Mississippi River in Wisconsin.
Submitted by Slambo on Sat, 04/29/2006 - 06:50
Jointed rail was normally made in 39 foot lengths so it would fit in a 40 foot gondola, but shorter lengths can be found in use. Prototype railroads used whatever lengths they had. If you're modeling jointed rail, include a few shorter pieces near the foreground for extra detail.
Submitted by Slambo on Fri, 04/28/2006 - 07:42
Don't throw away the ties that you cut off your flex track when you're adding rail joiners. Bury a short row of ties in your scenery to show where track "used to be". These ties are at the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, Wisconsin.
Submitted by Slambo on Thu, 04/13/2006 - 07:51
Okay, I need to make more updates here. Well, starting today, I'll be posting (nearly) daily updates called "Modeler's Moments". It's like the various "... Of The Day" features that you're already familiar with, but here the Modeler's Moment will combine a little bit of everything. Some days it will be a website link, others it will be a model photo or a model building tip, still other days it will be something about the prototype railroads or their history. Whatever it is, it'll be a way to get more model railroad information out to both of this website's readers, but in small enough chunks that it won't be too overwhelming.
So, let's start off with a model building tip that has to do with tracklaying....
When you're soldering rail joints, put the tip of your soldering iron against the inside of the rail and apply the solder on the outside of the rail where the two rail pieces and the rail joiner meet. If you're soldering flex track joints, solder the joint before you bend the track into a curve to prevent a permanent kink in the rail.
Pages
