Bob,
I live 1/2 time in Lowell. Fairly new to the hobby. Just curious …looking at your raised trackwork. What is underneath supporting the track? Are you using the “ladder type” of support that I have seen on some of the posts? If you are…what material is supporting the tack?
thanks,
John
Hey John
I’m using 1x2 TufBoard for the splines, with pressure treated 2x2 in between for spacers. I also use the 2x2s as posts into the ground a foot or so. Not below frost level, but enough to keep it in place side to side and keep the spline level. For the benchwork, and the taller sections of spline, Im using 4x4 posts set on concrete deck blocks.
Just wondering if I took pressure treated 2 x 4 and ripped it into strips for the stringers? Has anyone tried that?
john papadonis said:That's probably not a good idea. Once you start cutting the PT wood, you loose the water resistant integrity.
Just wondering if I took pressure treated 2 x 4 and ripped it into strips for the stringers? Has anyone tried that?
A better way to go, that a lot of us have done is to use either cedar, or redwood, depending on what you can get the best deal on.
Personally, I use redwood, because the cedar around here is, or was at the time I made the decision, lousy.
You still have to seal it with something, so it doesn’t swell and get out of alignment during the monsoon season.
you can get 1x4 PT wood also
Knowing what I know about most readily available PT lumber, I’d advise against it. It tends to twist and warp as it dries out. Not something you want to happen with your roadbed. I followed the lead of Bruce, Bob and others and used the PVC products in nominal 1x2. I now have a source for scrap 19mm PVC, so I may rip a few lengths for my next expansion.
John, what they said, not a good idea. First as soon as you cut into the PT you expose the non PT core. And secondly PT 2X’s are intended for construction purposes intact. That is where they will be used in a fashion that their warping tendacies are at a mininum. I.E. Stup walls,etc. And thirdly as soon as you start ripping PT lumber it will bend, crook, twist, cup, go south, go north etc. 
Thank to all for your advise…I will look at Home Depot for the TufBoard material.
Either Tufboard or TrimPlank. Trimplank is all PVC and comes in 1x2, 4 or 6" widths and is real easy to bend. The Lowes near me has TrimPlank and Tufboard, but until recently had the TrimPlank in 2" widths. I’ve been getting the 6" stuff and ripping in down.
(http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh58/rgseng/Mancos/realign014.jpg)
This is all the 6" wide stuff that was ripped down.
This morning’s work. First, I built the end pier for the big trestle. The trestle will be 15 feet long, supported by the uprights I got this year at York. Since this is a big part of what you see when you go into the back yard, we decided it needed to be a focal point.
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/Trackwork/LowerLoop/2012-04-14_1.jpg)
Then I built about 12 feet of retaining wall. This will be backfilled, and piers cast for the footings of the trestle.
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/Trackwork/LowerLoop/2012-04-14_2.jpg)
I’ve temporarily clamped the upright to the track spline to judge about how high the wall needs to be. The rock looks a LOT whiter than it actually is. Its granite, mostly classic gray speckled, with the occasional red, blue or yellow chunk. Once all the crusher dust gets washed off it, it should clean up nicely.
Nice progress, Bob…
Looks like you’re rocking to the beat. Nice work. 
Looking great Bob - and looking like HARD work. Should look good by September.
Good grief! Looks like a rock quarry was unearthed…
Looks good. There’s an art to dry stacking rocks, and I believe you New Englanders are born with the talent…
Thanks all. Another hour of work got me to this point. Here you can sort of see the upright in relation to the wall. You can also see some of the color variations in the rock. There are some yellows, reds and blues here. Im going to be making concrete footings for the uprights.
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/Trackwork/LowerLoop/2012-04-14_3.jpg)
Looking ‘around the corner’. I have about 20 feet of wall done so far. About at the point where the wall ends (and the tape measure is), the trestle will end at another pier, and I’ll have a sort of tall planter of rock, up to track level ( about 30 inches ). This will run about 10 feet, then I’ll have a shorter trestle, and a stepover, before getting to the viaduct, and new town.
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/Trackwork/LowerLoop/2012-04-14_4.jpg)
And a view from back by Pearce, looking back into the yard.
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/Trackwork/LowerLoop/2012-04-14_5.jpg)
Dang, Bob… some great progress for an hours work…
Bob the wall looks great. Nice job getting the rocks to fit in.
