Laying track, but it is taking much longer than I hoped. I am using track nails and have to drill a hole in every fourth tie of the flex track. This is about one every inch. The staging tracks total a bit over 55 feet or 660 nail holes to drill in the flex track. I am using a #61 drill bit and bought a tube of ten of them in case they break, being very thin. I got all the track for the Southern Pacific main line in place and am drilling holes an inserting nails as fast as I can.
I then need to connect the feeder wires to the main buss line and install the switch tenders. A power line will need to be run to the triple pole - double throw switches that will cause the points to move and provide power to the turnout points.
The attached track plan shows the track that has been laid, except for the staging, in orange. This will be divided into two power blocks with the lift-outs and staging tracks being one and the junction and yard the other. The track leading to the end of the line town and the third lift out at the other end of the town will be part of a third power block. The midpoint town and upper loop will be a fourth power block. I am using disconnects for the buss lines between lift outs and the other parts of the layout.
After I test the SP main and staging, I will then add the rest of the tracks at the junction. Followed by the grade up to the second town, the lift out leading to it, and then the tracks for the midpoint town. This is on two eight-foot-long sections that I will secure in place after the track is laid.
The final phase of track laying will include the lift out from the midpoint town to the upper loop, the upper loop, the lift out from the upper loop to the end point town, and the tracks for that town.
