Layout Construction II: Roadbed & Track

I used spline roadbed on my last layout and will continue it on this one. Here is a picture of the results, and then we'll get to the details.

Using flat topped risers with spline roadbed is common, but I wanted something a little bit stronger and that would located the splines more accurately while under construction. What I came up with is a small block with a forked top so that the two center splines would fit in the slot. With this method, accurately locating the blocks insures that the roadbed will be accurately located as well. Here are a pile of the blocks.

These blocks are screwed and glued to the top of the benchwork, and the height of the block determines the elevation of the track. At first I tried blocks made from MDF (medium density firerboard), but these split when I drove in the wood screws even with pilot holes. I used poplar instead.
I cut the blocks to length and then drilled two pilot holes in the bottom on the drill press. I then needed to cut the fingers in the top without loosing any of my fingers! I came up with this attachment to the crosscut sled on my table saw to hold and cut the blocks with a dado blade.

First Center Cut

Second Center Cut

First Side Cut

Second Side Cut

Don't ever try to hold something this small by hand or you will loose fingers, at least. Model railroading is hard to do without hands.
To keep the slot centered, I used an old wood workers trick and set up the dado blade so it was a little wider than half of the slot, and then made two cuts, turning the block between them. The slot width can be adjusted by moving the fixture a bit. Once it was set up, there was no adjustment needed to the slot depth. I cut it about 1/16" less than the height of the 1" wide splines, which were cut from 1/8" hardboard.
For the side cuts, I changed the dado blade to a wider cut, adjusted the fixture to leave about 1/8" between the center cut and the side cut, and then cut them on each side, as before. Make a few extra just in case.
After cutting the blocks and laying out the track centerlines on the top of the benchwork, I marked the location of each riser and drilled holes, which lined up with the holes in the bottom of the riser. The risers were then screwed and glued to the top of the benchwork.

The splines are cut 1" wide from 1/8" hardboard (Masonite® or equivalent) on the table saw. For this, I cut the sheet into two 2' wide strips with a circular saw. This makes it much easier to handle on the table saw rather than wrestling with a whole 4x8 sheet. I then use yellow wood glue to glue the first two strips into the slots.

The blue brush is a silicone glue brush available from Rockler. I use the brush end to spread the glue on the splines, and the paddle on the other end to spread the glue in the slot. You don't need to clean this, the glue won't stick to the brush. It will just peel off in a solid chunk after it hardens. You need lots of clamps for spline roadbed, and I got most of these at the local Lowe's store, in a bag of assorted sizes. I've managed to break a few of them, but the price is right.
Where turnouts are located, I just bring the two center splines into the main track and glue the ends in place. This isn't very strong yet, but it will be fine after the other splines are added.

The hole in the benchwork is for access to the switch machine. I started with the 1-1/4" hole shown here, but enlarged them to 2" later. These were cut with a hole saw.
Next, add the splines between the fingers, and then add the outside splines, which will continue unbroken along the roadbed, in eight foot lengths. I then use a Sureform plane to smooth the top of the roadbed and light weight spackling compound to fill in the gaps at the switches. The top of the completed benchwork is painted with grey interior latex paint.
I am using Micro Engineering code 55 flextrack and building the turnouts from Fast Tracks jigs. I locate the turnout on the roadbed and mark the throw rod location. I drill a 1/4" hole there for the switch machine. The track is held in place with latex caulking. Here is a picture of the turnouts at the south end of the yard in Gastonia.

These are number 7 turnouts and the crossover in the back was built in one unit on the Fast Tracks #7 turnout fixture, not the crossover fixture. My plan is to do all of the wiring and testing of the sections in my shop before I take them out to the train house. Of course, to do that, I have to run some trains!

Distractions

 It's been a while since I posted last, and part of that is because I've been working on tools and shop improvements in the garage rather than building the layout, but I think it's worth it.
First of all, I've added a router table to replace one of the end tables on the table saw. For some jobs, it's much easier and safer to use a router table than to use a handheld router.

The router table is made from two pieces of 3/4" MDF glued together with contact adhesive, and a laminated top. A length of aluminum miter slot extrusion and cutout for the router insert finishes it up.
The next improvements are to help me get all my junk (er, valuable tools and supplies) organized. I've got a pegboard cabinet above the back workbench so I could get the piles of tools and things off it and organized.

You can see the first section of the layout there, and most of the stuff on the workbench is what I'm actually using to test the trackwork and install switch machines.
I've also built a lumber cart to store all of the odds and ends that were piled up against the wall. Since I can actually see what I have now and get to it without causing an avalanche, I hope to use up what I have rather than buying more stuff because I can't find what I'm looking for. There is room on the back of this cart for 4x8 sheets.

I got the plans for all of these from the Plans Now web site.
These improvements have already paid off and I hope to sped more time on the layout now.