Thank you! These maps are fantastic and give me a depth of information I have been unable to find. To date, I have been reliant on residents’ memories of what was where, and you know if there are 3 of them, one of them will disagree.
November update:
Things are progressing depressingly slowly. Mostly because the contractors we chose are unavailable a lot of the time. Our mistake, but we picked them because they are the best around. That is why they are overbooked.
We will be pouring a concrete base where we lay track. What is the most tried and true method to attack the track to our base?
The coaling tower will be an accessory on one of the holes, but not used as an obstacle. Almost every hole highlights a feature from local history. I am particularly looking forward to the sawmill, and just today rearranged a good portion of the course layout so that I can run the train through the mill.
Saint Lawrence Boom and Manufacturing more or less created Ronceverte.
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I think most that use concrete roadbed don’t attach the track. I only have short sections of concrete and my track floats on it.
If you want to attach for security reasons, you could sink PVC blocks in the concrete before it sets, then screw through a tie into the PVC. Do that with as much space between attachments as you are comfortable with because the track will expand and contract with temperature swings.
The other way is to use a concrete anchor in a hole drilled in the base. Position it in the middle between the rails and ties. Put a large washer or other piece of metal on the bolt in the anchor, so it holds the track down but doesn’t stop it moving a little with the temperatures.
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Mark,
I totally understand ! So how many breakfasts did you have to stand in line for while jingling loose change in your pocket discussing the price of gasoline and bread during the Truman years to get that information from the elder residents then listen to the fight about who’s going to buy?
I can assure you that the maps really do not lie. Some things may seem off but they …ahh never mind …Does this mean I can play for free if I decide to visit ?
Glad it helped!
Mark, I didn’t invent this, but here goes.
After laying the (flex) track on the concrete roadbed, I hammer-drilled holes between the ties for plastic anchors.
These are placed maybe 3’ apart, just enough to keep the track where it needs to be.
The plastic anchor is tapped in, and a stainless screw is inserted with a clip of copper wire.
The clips were stripped from #12 Romex, sort of mass-produced by curling short lengths of them around a bolt held in a vice.
The clips go onto the tie, and the screws hold them against the concrete, but not too firmly.
The advantages of this approach (again, I didn’t come up with it; I think it was Marty Cozad and John from AZ who helped me with this) are:
- It lets the rails grow and shrink with temperature
- It lets you unclip sections when needed (e.g., taking a turnout out for repair) by simply turning them with your fingers (though you might need a screwdriver to twist them back on)
- It’s easy
My track went in 12 years ago, and is still happy with this method.
Cliff
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Wow! ( ͡ʘ ͜ʖ ͡ʘ) that solves the big expansion issue! What do you do about ballast?
Cliff, I like that way less intrusive than my Fender Washers.
I’m afraid I don’t worry much about ballast, not until bigger goals are met at least. 
Jim & Joann Kottkamp though have a great method, using a nice (special) sand around the ties and over the concrete, with a bonding agent of some kind. Looks great.
However, due to my less frequent running and relatively more frequent switch repairs & etc., I’ll probably leave my track floating on the concrete ribbon, at least for now. We’ll see.
Thank you all for your responses. Cliff’s clip method looks like it might be the most versatile, but I love the appearance of the gravel around the tracks. I’ll figure out a way to combine the 2. Rooster (and everyone else), of course you can play for free, whenever we finally open. Your input has been indispensable.
I have a new problem/project/accessory that I am adding to our layout and I am looking for suggestions. We would like to have a bridge representative of a famous aqueduct, the Pont du Gard in France. It is a double stone structure. I have been unable to find anything that looks similar for purchase and am expecting to have to create this piece myself. It doesn’t have to look exactly the same, and it doesn’t have to support the weight of a train, but it needs to be durable enough to be outside. Anybody have any experience with bridge building? So far, the design looks like it is going to be a pillar support system of some type with plywood cut out arches and a paint job. Total length around 6 feet. I am open to suggestions.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pont_du_Gard#/media/File:Pont_du_Gard_BLS.jpg
Do you have Hebel brick? It’s used in building construction. It’s aerated concrete.
It’s easy to carve. I’ve made an imitation abutment for practice for a future bridge. I cut the brick with a regular wood saw, then used angled tweezers to simulate the mortared section. I’ve even made my own jig stone patterns with the stuff.
There’s some decent sizes out there too
I got my block from the local Bunnings hardware store.
Mark, I’ve used high-density foam sign board for outdoor used. It’s not cheap, but it’s very durable.
Basically you’d make a side-on pattern for each level, and saw out however many layers you’d need, then glue+screw the layers together. To make higher levels index firmly you could plan for longer legs poking into sockets. Or, you could just make that entire layer to include more than one tier.
Once the structure is done, you can carve lines and paint to suit. Acrylic outdoor paint for my HD foam buildings has held up well, no signs of peeling.
There are HD foam 3 layers to my background buildings.
If you’re interested I’ll look up who I got the foam board from, I don’t remember off-hand. But they cut the sheets to my specs, and that helped in shpping.
Here’s the order page for the foam board I bought.
https://harborsales.net/tabid/130/Default.aspx?ProductTypeId=168
Need to log in to see prices though.
Jon Radder is VERY familiar with this type of product, being a retired sign maker. Maybe he could chime in and recommend something cheaper, if need be.
In cross section, the layers might be something like this:
For cutting though, the legs could poke up into the arch voids in some instances.
My 2 cents,
Cliff
I have a question as to why you want an aqueduct representing a french prototype and how does that fit into the local theme? Or do you want a viaduct ?
My end of the sign business did not buy the substrates, so I have no idea on pricing. The two products that I would consider would be…
Foamed PVC Board - Some brand names are Sintra, Komatx, Palight amound others. Rather rigid, especially in thicker sheets. More difficult to carve. Cuts with wood tools. Can be painted, but will last in weather untreated.
High Density Urethane Foam board (HDU) - Signfoam is one brand. This is a more open cell foam that is very easy to carve. Most brands requires sealing after being carved. Acrylic paints are fine but careful with solvent based paints.
Hebel brick is new to me. I will check it out. It looks like it might be the answer. Thanks!
Ronceverte (the town we are in) is a French word. It directly translates to “bramble green” but it is representative of the county, Greenbrier. The big boss wants 1 hole as a nod to our French name and some of the Huguenot settler history, so one hole will be my version of “Tour de France”. Players will have to go under the Arc de Triumph, across the Pont du Gard, and then under the Eiffel Tower. There are other recognizable French bridges, but Pont du Gard is ideal if I can approximate its appearance. The bridge/aqueduct will connect 2 greens areas and be a part of play, but not the footpath. It will be sloped so the ball won’t hang up on the raised portion. I have been able to find outdoor models of the other 2 landmarks that we can purchase.