Wheeling Freight Terminal – Page 6 – Notes on Designing, Building, and Operating Model Railroads

Track installation basics, part 1

the staging yard

As I began installing track on the Baltimore & Ohio Wheeling Freight Terminal model railroad project, I developed a set of processes to prepare track sections for installation. While working through this project, I felt these processes and tips should be posted so readers can benefit from my experiences. I will be running steam locomotives so extra care and attention needs to be taken when installing track for smooth operation.

Rail Prep

Rail joints are common places where derailment problems can occur. I carefully prepare each rail joint. I have seen too many modelers rush through this important step and make a sloppy rail joint. Diesels are forgiving of some sloppy track, but not many steam locos.

Any rails that will be connected more track will need to have the rail ends prepared using a jewelers file and a mill file. If the rail needs to be cut with a motor tool or rail nippers, then the freshly cut rail ends need to be squared up. The image below illustrates what the rail looks like after being cut with rail nippers. A few passes with a mill file will smooth out a rail end. Click on either of the following images for a much larger size.

File the rail bottom lightly to remove any rough edges, then use a jewelers file to add slight tapers to the base of the rail at the end. These tapers ease the installation of a rail joiner. The tapers are the shiny parts at the base of the rail in the image below. This is a completed track section prepped and ready to install.

I also run the file lightly over the top end of the rail and along each side to remove any burrs left from cutting or filing. Once the end is prepped, it can be connected to another rail. I do this with whatever rails have been cut as well as rail on new track right from the box. A little extra care at this stage will ensure better operation later. Keep a brass wire brush handy to clean excess metal out the files when you are done.

If you solder your rail joints, use a wire brush in a motor tool to clean off any oxidation or dirt. A clean surface will solder easier and you’ll be surprised when you don’t melt any ties!

I welcome your comments here. All comments are reviewed and approved before they appear here.

Four Months of Progress

team track yard — A view of the four tracks of the Wheeling, WV team yard. A B&O E-24 class 2-8-0 is spotting cars on track four. This location is in the upper right corner of the plan posted below.

I just wrapped up the installation of some feeder wires on a layout section and I wondered exactly when I began this project. A quick review of the time stamps on the photos I’ve taken reveals an August 31st start date for the first two benchwork sections. My wife and I moved to El Paso on July 3rd, and I posted about surveying the new hobby space on August 3rd. A few weeks of design contemplation and the sawdust began to fly August 31st.

And here we are with about 85% of the track installed, buss wires installed on all layout sections, and feeder wires installed on four of the eight sections. In the plan below, all that remains to install are a few tracks at the freight house on the left leg of the layout. Click on the image to review a larger version.

I had a goal to operate by January 1st. A digital command control system is still a few weeks away from installation, so a real session will have to wait. Until then, a nine volt battery provides the power to move a locomotive and a string of cars. I’ve already worked out a few methods to switch seven or eight freight cars in the team track yard and it’s been lots of fun watching the trains glide smoothly along the trackwork. Am I cheating? I’ll leave that up to you, but remember I am pulling and spotting freight cars with a locomotive. The fun I have with a simple nine volt battery encourages more layout progress.

Your comments are encouraged. All comments are reviewed and approved before they appear here.

Happy New Year to all!

November Update

It has been a busy month of work and family visits. One of my step-sons visited at Thanksgiving and enjoyed his El Paso experience. I also began a new job in early November, so a combination of elements has slowed the hobby progress. It is time to offer an update here on the blog, if only to document the forward movement. The lead image offers a view of the first installed trackage on the B&O Wheeling Terminal layout. Click on any image here for a larger view.

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Benchwork section progress

Most recently built.

As mentioned, I’ve been building benchwork sections for the new layout. I’ve employed a uniform design for five sections and all are nearly complete. The image above shows the last two sections. These sections follow some of my layout project rules.

Keep it Simple
Reuse what is on hand
Build to be flexible for future projects

Continue reading “Benchwork section progress”

Moving forward

As has been confirmed on the recent Model Railcast Show, I’ve chosen the Baltimore & Ohio Wheeling Freight Terminal layout design for my next project. Overall the smaller scope of the project just seemed to fit the room better than the sinewy Wheeling & Lake Erie line that winds through industrial Newburgh, Ohio. I do hope to model that line at some point, but this space is just shy a couple of feet in both directions make it work well. The narrow 15 inch benchwork of the Newburgh design meets the railroad operating needs but limits the scenic scope of the urban fabric that is a mutual component of that rail corridor. I will put those ideas aside for now and hope they can be reconsidered in another house a year or two down the line.

Continue reading “Moving forward”