Franksville Wisconsin N-scale modutrak module buildout

[lashedup]

Ok, started wiring up track. First I laid the track in place to rough it in and determine where to run feeders. I need to watch out for the locations of turnout controls/Tortoises and a couple of structural members at the ends and middle of the module. Here is the overhead view:



Next is the process I use to attach feeder wires (see illustration below):

1. On the Atlas Code 55 flex track I flip the track piece over and cut one (or two depending on the section) of the plastic tie joiners.

2. Then I gently pull the ties apart

3. I take a flat file to the backside of the rails to rough them up so the solder sticks better.

4. Then I add a small pool of soldier to the rail. I try and minimize the amount of solder and also line them as evenly between the rails as I can. Before doing this step, make sure the rails are even at the ends as one rail is designed to slip through the ties so the track flexes.

5. I cut the wire to length, strip the ends and then bend a 90 degree angle into the end and tin them up with solder.

6. Lastly I solder the feeders to the back side of the rail and push the ties back together (I need to push these together a little more). Once the track is painted and ballasted, the feeder wires largely disappear. The only thing to watch out for is melting ties since you're working in very tight quarters with the soldering iron.



I've got about half of the feeders done and hope to finish the rest tonight.

[Ian MacMillan]

Very nice Jamie. The N Mod-U-Trak standard is something that I would like to start using in a group here in New England. I think that it would work pretty well. Thanks for this thread as I can now get a few modules started.

[pfs]

This thread has a lot of good info/examples. Thank you and keep it coming.

[lashedup]

Thanks for the kind words guys.

I got the mainline track down this weekend. I'll do sidings later as I sometimes wait to do those when I want scenery underneath them (or weeds and grass growing through the ties).

First, I use rail joiners and connect all the pieces of track for the northbound and southbound mainlines. Then I carefully mark the locations of the feeder holes and then drill them. I drilled the holes with a 12" long drill bit that I picked up at Home Depot. To make it easier to pass the wires through the various layers of Masonite and birch, I turn the module over and use a larger drill bit to make larger holes on the bottom. That way the wires pass through a lot easier and don't get hung up as much. Here is the track waiting to be glued down with the feeder wires already dropped through:



To glue the track down I used Liquid Nails Clear Seal All-Purpose Sealant. This is a completely clear material that comes in a tube. I've used Liquid Nails for Projects as well, but figured I'd try the clear stuff this time around. To attach the track I run a bead of the clear sealant down the centerline of the cork. Then I use my finger to spread it out nice and thin. This stuff remains tacky for a while and gives you at least 15-20 minutes of working time which is good if you need to realign stuff. I keep some moist papertowels around to wipe off extra sealant from my fingers as I spread it on the cork. You want the material to go on pretty thin so it doesn't ooze up between the ties. Here is a photo of the clear sealant down (shiny stuff on the cork). You can see that I left a gap just to the right of the feeder wires where the turnout controls run across as you don't want to glue those down (!):



And here is an overall photo of all the track down. There are a few gaps where the rail joiners are that I need to fill with extra ties. I also filled in the space between the cork where the crossover is with lightweight spackle (white stuff under crossover).



I'll give it 24 hours to setup and then airbrush all the track next.

[MichaelT]

Thanks for the step by step work...I realize it takes more to photograph while you're working, but I for one appreciate the effort...helps a beginner like me understand some things that I read here and there.

michael

[lashedup]

Hey, its fun actually. Plus I'm fortunate that we've got some photo studio lighting to play with here at work.

I was just looking at the photo of the track and blue and white wires routed into the holes above and had to laugh as I see that I took that photo before I realized that I fished the wrong wires into the wrong holes (!). Of course I didn't discover this until I put the adhesive down on the whole five feet of southbound mainline and tried to then lay the track down and discovered the wires were all crossed up (crap!). So I pulled the wires back out and re-fished them through the holes again. Now you know how I discovered there is a good 15+ minutes of working time with the clear Liquid Nails.

The next Lesson Learned #69185 (hats off to Pete Nolan) is that I also forgot to drill the holes for the Tortoise turnout control wires under the switch levers on the turnouts. So I had to drill it in from the backside which was a major pain in the arse...



I also dragged out some of the mockups of buildings that I made from cardstock:

[Chris333]

I'll be watching for the track painting installment 

[asciibaron]

looks good and light weight.

i thought you forgot the switch machine holes....

-Steve

[cgw]

what are you going to use for legs under those modules, they look very sweet (the modules)

[NorsemanJack]

I also cut in 2" thick pink foam to fill the rest of the space in the module:

Nice thread Lashed up.  I think I remember reviewing the HO module standards you referred to while I was developing my home module concept.  I skip the spline effort and just lay roadbed and track directly on the pink foam.  You may wish to try building a single module this way to test that approach.  I've found the extruded foam to be very stable and sturdy.

Jack

[lashedup]

Nice stuff Jack!

We were worried more about the track taking a hit while transporting it and then ending up with a section of foam that is pushed in - particularly at the edges where we need the alignment just about perfect since we don't use any rail joiners/joint sections. But if it works for you and you've had no issues then all the better.

I've been swamped lately with auto show stuff, but that's over for now and I built the molex wiring harness and got the first set of wires all connected up on the block. I've got to get the industry siding in place so I can drop the remaining feeder wires and get them hooked up as well.



Nice to get something done for change. I've been itching to work on stuff!

Our Mod-U-Trak group have been planning a group "yard" project. We are starting to think more about operating sessions, not to mention space to set up trains at shows. We're leaning towards building a model of the Western Avenue Milwaukee Road yard in Chicago. It is an interesting yard that has a passenger coach yard on one side and freight on the other. Here is a teaser of the track plan:



7 five foot modules. 35 feet  - or a little over a mile in n-scale. Better get my butt moving on these Franksville modules.

[lashedup]

Ok, feeders are wired in and Tortoise machines are the last thing to wire up. As it stands now, it can be plugged in and trains can be run on it:



I also airbrushed the track tonight. I use PollyScale Roof Brown and spray everything. You need to make sure you keep the airbrush perpendicular to the rails so that you hit the spikes head on and get equal paint cover around each spike. Otherwise if you hit it at an angle, you'll end up with shiny rail showing. Before the paint really hardens, I take my finger nail and scrape off the bulk of the paint on the tops of the rails and then polish them with 1200 grit wet sanding paper. I also use the 1200 grit on the sides of the rail heads at a 45 degree angle so that the paint is removed evenly on the edges, otherwise you get little jagged paint edges where the paint rail head meet that looks like crap in photos.

So from this:



to this:



Next I'll go and hit individual ties with lighter and darker shades of Roof Brown and a small brush to bring out some variation in the ties. I'm also going to need to get going on structures.


- jamie

[tom mann]

So, why not just cover the whole module with 2" foam?  Instead of the center 2" masonite 'spline'?  Is it for noise?

Yeah, I am curious too.  I imagine that the hollow nature of the masonite wouldn't be any quieter than 2" foam.

[lashedup]

So, why not just cover the whole module with 2" foam?  Instead of the center 2" masonite 'spline'?  Is it for noise?

Yeah, I am curious too.  I imagine that the hollow nature of the masonite wouldn't be any quieter than 2" foam.

The primary reason is that these modules get transported around to shows and if the ends took a hit, particularly where the track is, it would dent the foam and therefore dent/dimple/push in the track as well. We also don't use any small connecting pieces of track between modules. We literally butt each module joint up against the other so the track has to have a firm foundation to ensure that it stays perfectly aligned and flush with the edge.

If you were going to build a modular layout primarily for home use, then foam would be fine as it isn't likely to get damaged since you aren't carting it around to different shows. In our case we wanted to try and make sure we didn't have any issues with the track getting damaged (it happens anyway, we just removed another variable) so we went with the Masonite base underneath.

As far as sound goes, this setup isn't particularly noisy. Once you put the foam on either side of the Masonite, followed by the cork, ballast and scenery, it is all fairly quiet in the end.

[Sokramiketes]

So, why not just cover the whole module with 2" foam?  Instead of the center 2" masonite 'spline'?  Is it for noise?

Yeah, I am curious too.  I imagine that the hollow nature of the masonite wouldn't be any quieter than 2" foam.

Like Jamie said, it's not for noise.  Besides the points he mentioned about foam getting deformed once and then screwing up track alignment, that spline is also acting as the spine of the module.  By incorporating the spine, we were able to use lighter materials elsewhere, keep the underside of the modules clear of other support members, and generally build a very rigid platform for all our scenery work.  We want these modules to last, even with the rigors of transportation.

For home layouts it's a personal choice.  We still used spline at home on the CGW layout, even though it's not moving, because it is such a clean and permanent way to build a solid foundation for the track.  Other's use just foam, some use foam layered with ceiling tiles, etc.  Whatever you're comfortable with at that point, and what your expected lifespan of the layout is, should all be considered.