Work has me on the road most weeks, and we moved the younger son back from college in the last month, so spare time for model railroading has been especially scarce. Nonetheless, my Old Line Corridor project is making slow but steady progress.
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| The Old Line Corridor track plan plan fits on a 36" x 80" hollow core door (HCD). The plan draws inspiration from a variety of HCD projects that have appeared in Model Railroader and elsewhere. but especially Dave Vollmer's Juniata layout (which has a significant YouTube presence and several major magazine stories), and MR's Mohawk and Carolina Central project railroads. |
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| Straight outta Marty McGuirk's Carolina Central, folding table legs under an HCD |
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| Cutting extruded foam board to fit the HCD. I used a saber saw fitted with a special foam board blade--quick and neat. |
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| Two layers of foam board, 2" on top, 1" on bottom, glued to the HCD. Per the recent Red Oak series in MR, the 1" layer is cut 2" shorter in length and width to form a wiring chase all the way around the layout. Roadbed is going in. |
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| Roadbed is glued in, sanded level and smooth, and trackwork begins. This is Peco Code 55 Finescale, which balances appearance with good ol' fashioned sturdiness and reliability. Looks a little too British for some folks, but looks swell to me. |
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| Another view of a-building track and roadbed. This is my first go-around with foamboard benchwork, and impressed so far. The quirks haven't driven me away yet! |
