Referring to my lack of recent blog postings, a few readers have wondered if I’m floating face down in the Calumet River, the victim of a long overdue mob hit. Rest assured progress continues. As I mentioned, postings about the latest few inches of progress land laying code 40 turnouts doesn’t make for the most…

One of the signature structures on my old Monon layout was Bloomington’s iconic Graham Hotel. When I dismantled the layout I saved the model, thankfully. As luck would have it, the shape is a perfect fit for the Brooklyn Terminal skyline. When I originally built the hotel I left the side tight against the backdrop…

With the PC ties in place and the rail sections fabricated, it’s time to start building the turnouts. The first step is to tin the bottom of the rails. You can see me doing this with the section clamped in the parts holder. Once that’s done, I then solder the pieces onto the PC ties….

With the turnout rail pieces fashioned, the next step is to prepare the PC ties (they’re used to hold the rail in position). In all other locations traditional wood ties will be used. Printed circuit board is much thinner than flex track or wood ties and the height differential is a bit of a pain…