The Very Last White River and Northern Railroad

[bbussey]

Excellent, thanks. 

[DKS]

Yeah, it's been a while. I had to take a break from modeling to get my head straightened out (did caricatures as a distraction: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=50098.0). Now I'm back at it, and I started with something major: yet another plan revision.

I decided I wanted a runaround at the Bearcamp Springs end of the line, which will require two handlaid curved turnouts. Yes, it's a very short runaround, but it only needs to be long enough for a pair of Overton coaches. Since these turnouts are at the very back of the layout, they don't need to look pretty, so I figured I could muddle through and lay them myself.



The siding near the old spring house (1) will be modeled as disused; thus the turnout need not be functional, and would look something like the reference image below.



The first step was to remove the entire uppermost level, starting from where the first new turnout would go (below, far right).



Fortunately I just happened to have a leftover piece of Gatorfoam large enough to replace the entire uppermost level.



After I cut the Gatorfoam to shape and sketched out the track routes (above), I applied double-stick tape where the track was going (below).



Then I installed the new upper level piece on the layout. My plan is to build the turnouts in situ.

[davefoxx]

The addition of a runaround at Bearcamp Springs makes me very happy.  A great improvement to the plan.

DFF

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I love your ability to kill your darlings and be like "nope, I'm not happy with it, I'm doing it over". 

THAT is maturity in art right there.

[CRL]

Using a foam baseboard lessens the pain.

[DKS]

I love your ability to kill your darlings and be like "nope, I'm not happy with it, I'm doing it over". 

THAT is maturity in art right there.

Thank you, kind sir.

Using a foam baseboard lessens the pain.

QFT.

[Chris333]

That is some pretty heavy rail 

[DKS]

I've decided to make the two turnouts stub switches.



They're easier to build, and (in the model world) they're more reliable than traditional point switches. Only thing is that they're at the back of the layout, making it more difficult to appreciate them, but hey, so what. It'll be fun. I've only ever made one of them before.

I'm also going to make wacky guard rails that look like these:

[DKS]

After I installed the new upper level piece on the layout, I prepared to build the turnouts in situ by laying flex track, and removing ties from the ends to leave enough free rail for the turnouts (below). It's somewhat wasteful of flex, but I had loads to spare.



To save a substantial amount of time and effort, I made use of some Micro Engineering Code 55 turnout parts sets (#80-332) that I happened to have on hand, which include frogs, points and guardrails; I just used the frogs. This meant I'd have no rail filing, grinding or shaping to do.



All I had to do was solder wires to the frogs, then "install" them by heating them with a soldering iron so they'd sink into the styrene ties far enough to make up the 0.015" height difference between them and the Code 40 rail.

[DKS]

By the end of the day I had the first turnout done.

[Chris333]

Did you have to add stops to each side or did the slide switch do that perfectly?

[DKS]

Did you have to add stops to each side or did the slide switch do that perfectly?

I haven't connected the operating linkage yet, so I don't know if I'll need stops or not.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Whoa whoa whoa.

You said you were doing stubs. You didn't say they were CURVED stubs. Jeez. I need to dust off my tennis racket 

[DKS]

Whoa whoa whoa.

You said you were doing stubs. You didn't say they were CURVED stubs. Jeez. I need to dust off my tennis racket 

Didn't know that was a big deal... and it ain't pretty, but it works.

[Philip H]

Whoa whoa whoa.

You said you were doing stubs. You didn't say they were CURVED stubs. Jeez. I need to dust off my tennis racket 

  :facepalm:What did you expect?  The Wizard of the Woods (TM) doesn't do ordinary or pedantic.