Manufactured Variance

 I've mentioned this on the blog and site before, but there is variance in manufactured products.

Homasote seems to be a constant repeat offender.

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I present exhibit #1 for the prosecution:

A different view of this exhibit:

This shows about 15 or 20 minutes work with surform rasps and coarse sandpaper.

As homasote is a paper based product, dust is absolutely retched. 

The prosecution rests.

More Power!

Had to start getting ready to install the LED lights for the lower level so a +12V supply was called for.

Quick Real Time Update

 Benchwork is getting close to North Acca; placing homasote and will have it ready to paint fairly soon.

Got bored and reworked the DCC circuit breaker installation

 My original install of the PSX breakers wasn't neat, but speedy.

Now with some time in the evening and having the lower level DCC wiring starting soon, I thought it was time to neat up the wallfield area where the command station is.

Much neater, I'd say!

PCB Signal Mounting Update

I have designed PCB signals in various types, which I will be selling to others, but the genesis for this idea was the fact that I needed signals on the removable bridge sections of the layout.

I didn't want to risk expensive scale signals (at $25 to 48 each) on something that will get moved and placed at ground level, hence using signals that are just made out of circuit board.

Mounting them takes a 3/4" hole made with a forstner bit giving you a flat bottom hole.

The PCB is a bit smaller than 3/4, so you need a way to hold them in.

A piece of strip styrene and 2, #4 by 1/2" screws, and done!

Greendale Control Point Status

 Building crossovers with the Fast Tracks jigs requires a certain order of operations.

I build each component turnout of the crossover, using the outside (non-frog connected) stock rail and points first. Then I will install the frog, of which, one leg of is the stock rail for the other turnout in the pair.

Once you have that, you can square the turnouts up, notch the stock rail (if you didn't measure it correctly first OR if you haven't notched it already) for the points and then finish your soldering job.

During the build, I realized that I had to build the LH crossover with a RH turnout immediately following the crossover to get to the Amtrak station. My first set of partials didn't have a long enough stock rail.

Oops.

I had to recut points and frogs and restart the build.

Building complex trackwork like this will make you wish you could buy ME rail in lengths longer than 3'; I could use 6' or longer pieces without issue.