A Beginner's Journey Pt 2

[KB02]

Paint, generally speaking... very generally speaking... is not very good at covering detail. The thicker you go, the more detail does get hidden, so keep that in mind and go light with your coats. Painting with a brush is much less forgiving in this aspect than spraying paint as the spray has to be mixed thinner to begin with.

 

[Jacob Z]

Paint, generally speaking... very generally speaking... is not very good at covering detail. The thicker you go, the more detail does get hidden, so keep that in mind and go light with your coats. Painting with a brush is much less forgiving in this aspect than spraying paint as the spray has to be mixed thinner to begin with.

Can you tell I've never sprayed paint before? I guess it's time for me to invest in an airbrush.

 

[Jacob Z]

Took a break from building a model to lay some track - specifically a turnout and a length of flex for one of the four major curves. This involved a lot of things I have never done before, or done only rarely.

- I dug out the soldering iron I haven't used in many years, and was happy to see it still worked. I soldered feed wires to the rail joiners, which is not something I ever want to do again. Like everything else I'm doing here, I have done very little soldering in the past, and I'm learning all kinds of things like how to use flux, and whether it's easier to bring the wire to the joiner or the joiner to the wire.

- I also dug out my Dremel, found a cutoff disk, and used that to cut the track, then used a grinding attachment to remove the burrs. I think my Dremel is going to get more use on this project than in all its previous life put together.

- I used DAP Alex Plus to cement the track. TIL that the caulk gun has a built in spout cutter (it's the thing labeled "spout cutter"...), and also that it has an attached spike for breaking the seal. I didn't do a great job smearing it out, partly because I was worried about using too much. Allegedly it will dry clear. The next piece will be better. And ballasting covers a lot of sins.

- I used tracksettas to get the curves without kinking the flex. The curve starts at 15" and tightens to 12". That part I am reasonably happy with.

Attach files

 

[Jacob Z]

One thing I really struggled with was getting the ends of the flex track to meet up with the turnout. As I curved the track, the outside rail pulled away (because obviously the inner curve is shorter. I ended up having to trim the inner rail to match.

Is there an easier way to do that? Am I missing some clever technique? I don't remember it being this hard before.

 

[AirbrushNo5]

Start at the turnout and work the other way… though sooner or later you will have probably to cut rail…

 

[Jacob Z]

Start at the turnout and work the other way… though sooner or later you will have probably to cut rail…

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I did do the turnout first, then I connected the flex to one end of the turnout. But then as I started to curve the flex track, the outer rail pulled away. Somehow I need to get the end attached to the turnout to stay where it's put, and have the "shortening" happen at the loose end.

And yes, I will definitely have to cut rail at the other end of the curve. There is about 2 inches extra on the inside rail. My Dremel is at the ready

Also, getting those tiny N scale rail joiners on was a real pain. I don't remember it being this hard when I was 14. Mind you, I don't remember having bad eyes and a tremor when I was 14, either.

 

[AirbrushNo5]

Yes.. that happened to me when I was flex tracking a curve..

Go back and surprise… the joint where I started is open

 

[AuburnCentral]

From what I can see I’m not sure if it needs painting. Maybe you could disguise the glue as rust

 

[logandsawman]

That is a cool looking bridge. I have heard others say it was challenging.

Many people prime then paint, I do not because I think you loose a bit of that detail with the primer. Especially structures, which are typically not handled much.

Some do multiple coats as part of a weathering process, I use this technique some and like it. A little of the top coat is removed, facilitated by a light coat of contact cement between coats, leaving areas of the bottom coat of different color exposed.

I have buildings on the layout 12 or more years old that have never been primed, which have held up tremendously.

On the other hand, primed structures that I have seen look fine.

I think the details will show up either way.

They may be accented by adding a light color wash after the paint dries

 

[KB02]

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I did do the turnout first, then I connected the flex to one end of the turnout. But then as I started to curve the flex track, the outer rail pulled away. Somehow I need to get the end attached to the turnout to stay where it's put, and have the "shortening" happen at the loose end.

And yes, I will definitely have to cut rail at the other end of the curve. There is about 2 inches extra on the inside rail. My Dremel is at the ready

Also, getting those tiny N scale rail joiners on was a real pain. I don't remember it being this hard when I was 14. Mind you, I don't remember having bad eyes and a tremor when I was 14, either.

Turn your flex track around.
Flex track has one rail fixed in place and the other is able to slide. Sounds like you have your sliding rail on the outside of the curve. As you flex the track, the outer rail wants to pull away from the set point - in this case, your turnout. By setting the fixed rail on the outside, the sliding rail is forced to slide forward leaving you with a long pig tail at the end of the curve that you can then cut off.

 

[Len Turner]

Looking good there Jacob. Working with flex track can be challenging, but looks like you're on the right track. I would recommend getting started early with using an airbrush. Learning curve can be quite steep at times, but the results are very rewarding.

 

[Jacob Z]

Looking good there Jacob. Working with flex track can be challenging, but looks like you're on the right track. I would recommend getting started early with using an airbrush. Learning curve can be quite steep at times, but the results are very rewarding.

Thanks. I just placed my order with Blick for a Neo for Iwata. After reading a thousand recommendations, that seemed like a good choice for a complete beginner. Once it arrives I will use the primary paints included with it to practice before attempting to paint my bridge.

Any tips on painting the bridge (do I thin the paint?) are more than welcome!

 

[Jacob Z]

Turn your flex track around.
Flex track has one rail fixed in place and the other is able to slide. Sounds like you have your sliding rail on the outside of the curve. As you flex the track, the outer rail wants to pull away from the set point - in this case, your turnout. By setting the fixed rail on the outside, the sliding rail is forced to slide forward leaving you with a long pig tail at the end of the curve that you can then cut off.

Aha. On closer inspection I see that my track (Peco N code 55) only has breaks between ties on one side only, and that's the rail that slides. So that's the inside.

Thank you for that insight. I watched a thousand videos on laying flex track, and I don't recall any of them mentioning that. If this site let me award prizes I would do so

ETA: I made my first cuts with my Dremel and a cutoff disk. It worked pretty well. I also have a Xuron track cutter on order (that's what everybody seemed to recommend). I don't know which I will end up using - maybe the Xuron for cuts before laying track, and the Dremel for track that's in place. I also wasted $30 at Home Depot buying a pair of wire cutters only to discover that they don't cut track flush.

Also, I am looking forward to doing things for the second time. It feels like with this hobby, every task is a learning/discovery exercise e.g. what materials to use, what order to do things in. It will be nice to do something where I've already made all the obvious mistakes, and I can make some brand new mistakes.

 

[Len Turner]

That Xuron flush-cut track cutter is a great tool! In fact all the Xuron tools are excellent quality. They may be a bit pricey but well worth it. You might also dress the ends of the rail with a jewelers file. Makes it a little easier to get those pesky little rail joiners on.
Thinning paint for air brushing is an art in itself. Everyone has their own preferences. I still use some AK Interactive - mostly on plastic aircraft models - but for the most part I use craft paints from Blick, Hobby Lobby, or Michael's. I usually thin the AK stuff just a bit with AK brand 3rd gen thinner. For the craft paints, I use distilled water with a drop or two of dishwash liquid in a gallon. Those are usually pretty thick and need a lot of thinning and straining, but they're cheap and work for me.

 

[KB02]

That Xuron flush-cut track cutter is a great tool! In fact all the Xuron tools are excellent quality. They may be a bit pricey but well worth it. You might also dress the ends of the rail with a jewelers file. Makes it a little easier to get those pesky little rail joiners on.

I have always cut my rails with my rotary tool and cutting disk. Done this for years.
I just bought a set of rail snippers...
sooooo wish I had done that years ago!!! Ha, Ha!! So much easier. And I fully agree to the file, too. I inherited a couple sets of needle files from my Father that were put to immediate use in the train room. Great for filing off the little burs.

 

[Jacob Z]

I have always cut my rails with my rotary tool and cutting disk. Done this for years.
I just bought a set of rail snippers...
sooooo wish I had done that years ago!!! Ha, Ha!! So much easier. And I fully agree to the file, too. I inherited a couple sets of needle files from my Father that were put to immediate use in the train room. Great for filing off the little burs.

I'm sure I will get a lot of use out of the Xuron tool. I bought the side cut not the top cut version. One of my many challenges is measuring things so that I can cut the rail before laying it. Even if I dry fit and mark the rail, while I'm not looking, the workshop elves sneak in and move the mark so that when I cut it, it still doesn't fit :-(

 

[Jacob Z]

Another day, another yard of track. It's a good thing I like beans. The track went down a lot easier now that I know about only one rail sliding. And the joiners went on a lot easier this time too. I even remembered to trim a couple of sleepers before gluing the other end of the track piece down!

Also, I'm starting to see the merits of pinning rather than gluing track...

Note to self: on the next layout, don't lay track so close to a raised lip, as there isn't room to put the cans down.

I figured out a trick for making the hole for the feeder without tearing an N scale crater in the underlay (which I did the first time, and hopefully ballast will hide). This time I used a drill bit very slightly thicker than the wire with a loooong shank. I pushed it through the underlay and the foam until I hit wood, and only then did I start drilling. With only the shank rather than the thread in contact with the underlay there was no tearing. As a bonus, with such a small hole, when I pushed the wires in they found the hole in the baseboard very easily. Second time so much better than the first time, and once this dries I will be ready for the next one.

 

[Kentuckyjed]

Its looking good.

 

[Jacob Z]

I'm having a bit of an issue with a small kink at the join between two pieces of flex. In the picture above, it's right where you can see that bit of tracksetta peeking out between the coconut milk and the garbanzo beans*. I left the tracksetta in specifically because I was worried about that, having cut away two ties from each piece of track, in the hope it would set in the right curve. But as soon as I took away the tracksetta it sprang back just enough to worry the tiniest wheels on the trucks.

For next time I'm thinking maybe only cut one tie off of each? Or none at all? I'm not even sure why I cut ties at all, maybe I read somewhere it's to provide space for the rail joiners.

Is part of the problem that I'm using latex caulk to fix the track down, and it has too much 'give'? Should I use something more rigid, at least under the sections near the join? Or use a pin on the very last sleeper to keep it in place better? (Mind you, I'm not sure how effective pinning into foam would be, I'm concerned that the tension in the track would just tear it away.)

I'm seriously considering resorting to set track for the curves to avoid this problem. Or maybe set track between any two pieces of flex that join on a curve?


*Now there's a sentence that's probably never been written before.

 

[Jacob Z]

Also... any suggestions on how to fix the above?

ETA: I've read in a couple of places about soldering two pieces of flex track together to get a piece long enough to go all around the curve. Any thoughts on that? Is solder mechanically rigid enough to solve the problem?

And if so, is it possible to fix my current problem the same way, with the tracksetta in position to hold the correct curve?

I was hoping to avoid visible silver on the outside of the rails, but I'd opt for that over derailments.