The Truckee project, part 5: Track laying

[@davestrains6816]

Very enjoyable video watching a craftsman work. Thanks for sharing.Dave

[@elleryparsons5766]

That Track work is Sweet Looking.

[@markarrivi3818]

Looks Great Mr. Peter Wonderful Job You Do Terrific Job On Laying The Track And All The Work You Do 👍Looking Forward To Part 6

[@jenniferwhite6089]

he does, i did comment on preparing your job before you start I will do all my soldering for the drop wires first and on the turnouts too when i was building the layout i did not cheap out on preparing the room power supply I did not cheap out on

[@ralphviola6594]

This is a very impressive layout sizewize. Looking forward to how the scenery will look. No mountains or bridges and not too many areas for buildings. I am sure I will be surprised on the finished product. It’s amazing to think that this will be crated up and shipped. Thank you for sharing

[@mpeterll]

There is one moderately deep canyon to be crossed by two trestles. It's that area at the end of the peninsula where I stacked multiple layers of foam. The customer will be adding all his own scenery on this layout.

[@jolliemark6294]

Wow! Looks as you got a lot done this week, looks really great....thanks for sharing....Jack

[@Bccsticky]

Peter, your job is an amazing one, I wish I was in a location that needed professional layout artists. Please keep up with your videos they are very informative, interesting and always showing us something that is handy in some way to the rest of your viewers. Thank you Peter for your great videos!

[@mpeterll]

I recently relocated to be in a better area for that reason. Most dreams can be made to come true if you place a high enough priority on them and act accordingly.

[@AffordableModelRR]

Wayne, James at affordablemodelrailroads.com we are always looking for talented modelers for various projects all over the country. If you are able and willing to travel once in awhile to a job site (or do what Peter did and move to Tennessee so he could work for us full time) contact me at [e-mail]

[@disturbed1954]

A very beautiful layout in the making. Thanks for sharing!

[@tomb374]

Incredible skill and talent. Can’t wait to see the finished product

[@richardellis6837]

Impressive work - yet again!!

[@canyonpast]

Very Cool. Your work inspires. Thank You for making the hobby great.

[@jimtedesco]

Man, you are fast Peter, and it all looks great.

[@unfitforpurpose6422]

Smashed out another fantastic video well done

[@robertblack3452]

This layout is looking fantastic Peter, I’m looking forward to seeing the next video. Merry Christmas to you and your family.

[@modelrailroader5619]

Seeing all that track is getting me itchy to see a train run on it!👍

[@mainemodelsplus.]

That "tool change" ideology is the same as that of Henry Ford and his assembly line process. When one uses the same tool repeatedly they become an expert specialist. And the work being done with that tool become mere wrote as the learning curve and technique is mastered.

[@jamescarryl9690]

Peter, I had been for a while wondering how you worked so quickly and efficiently. Thanks for clearing that up. That layout looks huge for an HO layout. But beautiful. If Only I could afford your serviices, I would scrap my 4, 4x8's joined . Oh well.... When wil you begin rebuilding your layout? That's what Iam waiting to see Phoenix arise from the ruins.

[@mpeterll]

I'm still not sure when I will be able to get back to my own layout. I've been very busy with my paying clients recently (which is a good thing of course).

[@jamescarryl9690]

I owned my own business 30 some years ago so yes I know about paying customers. How many female customers desire a layout for themselves. Or want one for their significant other. Am just wondering how many females would find peace and love in this Worlds Greatest Hobby. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Take care.

[@mhbpodnk]

You do great work.it is gonna look great when all the scenery is done and hopefully they will let you do that too cause you do wonderful work on scenery as well

[@AffordableModelRR]

James at AffordableModelRailroads.com we tried to convince the client to have Peter to do the scenery, as we do with all of our clients, but as Peter said most clients want to do their own scenery and do not want to pay for it.

[@andybottrop]

Ich bin beeindruckt. Super 👍👍👍

[@normanrowe2831]

Hello Peter. Wow! Over a football field length of track laid. Amazing! As I watch your labors I wonder if your “job” takes away some of the enjoyment of your “hobby?” I understand it takes away time to work on your own layout. But I asking about the joy. Weird question, I know. But it came to mind. Merry Christmas to you and your family. See ya next time.

[@mpeterll]

I don't think it takes away the enjoyment, although it does spoil it in other ways. I can't do anything on my own layout without mentally costing it out; calculating how much I would have made if I has spent that same time on someone else's layout. Of course, right now I'm so busy that I don't even know when I will be able to even finish the design for my own layout.

[@RaymondOreFineArt]

Fascinating to watch. I would love to see how you solder the rails, I've never tried to solder anything so very clueless

[@mpeterll]

I have some more track laying to do this week, so I will record that for a future video. Thank-you for the suggestion.

[@ratman0100]

I would dearly love to see that and also the recomended heat settings as i am reasonably new to all of this. Thanks heaps for these videos, huge help.

[@AbelG8781]

I wouldnt solder rails. At least not ALL of them. Only solder feeder wires every Other piece of track or every 40" directly to rails, not joiners. I do 2 rail O scale so it's a bit more expensive than HO.

[@darrenjattan4277]

Hi sir, I'm from Trinidad. Well Mr Peter I admire your art from start to finish and every part that can accomplish. I'll like you to do other mechanical features. Thank u sir👍

[@FierroDuroRails]

First one to post!!!! Nice job hope to build a nice layout someday.

[@nedmerrill5705]

Great to watch you work. What is the roadbed material you use (between foam and track)? Thanks for the videos.

[@mattroberts9569]

How do you like the foam roadbed? And that you for taking the time to make these videos!!

[@gartsherriejunction4643]

Peter, you have an excellent channel which is one of my " go to" channels on KZbin. Thank you for giving us access to your activity which is much appreciated. I do mean it when offering words of encouragemeny "Keep up the good and quality work." Also, how did you injure your left hand thumb? Mike

[@mpeterll]

This was filmed a few months ago (as evidenced by having the fan on instead of the heater) and I don't remember injuring my thumb. I probably snagged it on something sharp.

[@mpeterll]

I do remember now. I was slicing vegetables for dinner the evening before and got distracted. The skin had already knitted together somewhat but the constant manipulation of the track components caused it to split open again. I put the tape on to avoid bleeding all over the track.

[@sparky107107]

and happy holidays sir.

[@mpeterll]

Thank-you and a very Merry Christmas to you too.

[@wethepeople7961]

Do you intend to show this build to completion ? I have noticed in your videos that many of them are just parts of a 'job'... Thanks fine work by the way

[@mpeterll]

This build will be shown all the way to installation, although there is no scenery on this project. As is often the case with professional builds, the customer is looking forward to doing his own scenery.

[@wethepeople7961]

Thank you

[@aussiefrenchman-hobbytable9960]

Hi Peter when I was a teenager, dad and I had a very large layout. The biggest problem we had was rail buckling due to heat ,as I watch you work ,how do you deal with this problem as im starting my first n scale layout in 30years ,the garage temperature can vary by 40c ,🤔🤔🤔 looking forward to the next few weeks 👍👍👍

[@mpeterll]

I leave expansion gaps about every 6'. Sometimes when moving the layout to the customer's location, I have to cut more with a dremel tool. Wherever the track buckles, just cut it out and leave an additional expansion gap when installing the new piece.

[@cprtrain]

I enjoy watching your videos. Do you have a website? I'd like to see what you've previously built.

[@mpeterll]

My website superiormodelrailroads.com has some photos of finished scenery that I have done. Most projects I get don't include the scenery however, so you are better off just looking through my past videos on this channel. There you will see most of what I've built recently. There are a couple of projects missing because occasionally customers don't want their railroads published (sometimes they want to be able to claim it's "all their own work" and they can't do that if I've already posted the videos of it being constructed in my shop).

[@bcsferromodelismo3822]

Hello Mr. Peter! Please, how do you create the joints between the modules so that the rails do not break during disassembly and removal?

[@mpeterll]

Where track crosses from one module to another, I remove one extra plastic tie so that the rail joiner has room to slide fully onto one side of the other. Before disassembly, I slide the rail joiners off the joint with a pair of rail nippers (they work better than pliers). For transportation, the exposed rail ends need to be protected by screwing scraps of plywood to the ends of the section.

[@bcsferromodelismo3822]

@mpeterll Thank you your feedback!! A Excellent New Year!!

[@elleryparsons5766]

I swear that is a $80,000 layout holy Cow!

[@mpeterll]

I've no idea what the customer paid the general contractor, but my invoice as a sub was a LOT less than that.

[@brucebussert4983]

Amazing stuff. I was fascinated by Brian's layout. Is there a track plan anywhere on line so I can better visualize what's going on with your operating videos of that layout??

[@mpeterll]

I don't believe there are any published trackplans of that layout. I don't even have one.

[@AffordableModelRR]

@@mpeterll James at AffordableModelRailroads.com Brian did not want the plan to be published....many clients do not want the plan published as they paid for the design and do not want them out on the internet for people to copy for free and since they paid for it I need to respect their wishes. When you purchase a design from us you own it.

[@gtown150]

What size turnouts and what manufacturer of flex track? Turnouts look like Walthers/Shinohara. Can’t tell what flex you are installing. Thank you. Nice work.

[@mpeterll]

The track is all Atlas code 83. Turnouts are mostly Walthers with a few Peco when we ran out. We used #8's wherever they would fit and "6 elsewhere.

[@dundasjunctionmodelr.r-jam8267]

I wish you would show how you trim the track and soldering, you do most of the work off camera only showing the results,I am just staring my first layout

[@mpeterll]

I have some more track laying to do this week, so I will record that for a future video. Thank-you for the suggestion.

[@mpetersen6]

I'm assuming this is DCC as you are soldering feeders in. Have you run into anyone specifying a layout for Dead Rail Operation. I'm intrigued by the idea and personally think it will be the future in locomotive control. No pesky reversing loops or conductivity issues in turnouts. But what is needed is standards and possibly better batteries. Li-poly are strong enough but the possible advent of solid state batteries might be better

[@Chris-BognorRegis]

Really enjoying this build Peter, especially this video, fascinating. I have one question, I see you solder all your track joins, dont you worry about expansion and contraction. I'm guessing the answer is your client is going to put this layout in a heated room with air conditioning and doesn't have to worry about things like expansion.

[@mpeterll]

Yes I do have to allow for expansion. I left gaps about every 6'. I still had some buckling issues when the layout was installed so a few more gaps had to be cut on site - an easy fix. Since the customer's train room is air-conditioned and the track was laid in a non-insulated workshop during the summer, those problems were most likely a result of the wood drying out and shrinking when moved from a humid climate to a dry one.

[@Chris-BognorRegis]

Thanks Peter, very interesting, more to this hobby than most people think. Shame its so expensive and its not until your dotage that you can afford it. I wonder if they cut the prices by half more people might be attracted to the hobby, I mean £40 for a single N gauge carriage, even for me that's a struggle. Bet its the the same over your side of the pond.

[@dundasjunctionmodelr.r-jam8267]

Also are glueing track down

[@mpeterll]

Yes. I'm using a product called"crafters' pick". It comes in a blue and white bottle. Hobby-Lobby sells it.

[@sparky107107]

question for you. I didn't notice you using any insulated rail joiners, do you come back later and cut the rails after all the switches? so they don't short every time you change position of the points. looks like it will be a fun layout to switch and run on. maybe I just needed to wait for next weeks video for the answer. lol see you then

[@mpeterll]

I've never found insulated joiners to work particularly well as they don't hold the rails in alignment properly. Where I need an electrical gap, I just cut one with a dremel tool, making sure I cut between two ties that are paired together so they hold the rails straight. I try to avoid gaps on curves if at all possible.

[@Jagthunder1]

@@mpeterll Can you cover this on video please. I am using Peco Insulfrogs and the instructions on the back say to use insulated joiners. I would like to see more info about how to make these work on a layout without those joiners. Great progress by the way! Merry Christmas too !

[@mpeterll]

@@Jagthunder1 The Peco "insulfrog" turnouts I have do not require insulated rail joiners. They have a plastic frog center with the nearby rails electrically separated from each other. Unless you need section joints for another reason (such as with conventional DC block wiring, a reversing section, or adjoining power districts), you can lay the track with regular metal rail joiners on all connections as though the turnout doesn't exist.

[@Jagthunder1]

@@mpeterll Ah ok, I didnt understand the instructions on the back of the package then. Was being over cautious haha. Thanks !

[@robertschmidt6383]

I see alot of glue that oozes out when gluing track down. How is that handled? Just paint it or cut it out?

[@mpeterll]

It gets covered by the ballast.

[@ohpoleez]

I'm seeing a LOT of screws in the rail. I'm thinking that maybe your putting them there to hold the track in place while the glue dries. If not, fail.

[@mpeterll]

Where curves cross section joints, the track needs to be kept in proper alignment until after final installation when the rails can be permanently soldered. After which, the nails are removed. Without the nails, there would be a kink in the track.

[@ohpoleez]

@@mpeterll OK. I do it with pins, lot less work. So ok, nice work Where are you located?

[@mpeterll]

@@ohpoleez I'm not sure quite what you mean about pins. The temporary nails to hold the alignment are simply pushed in with my fingers so I don't know how anything could be less work. If you mean pinning the track instead of gluing, I have done it that way before but pins have to be removed after ballasting (otherwise they look awful), and that leaves holes in the ties - holes which had to be laboriously drilled beforehand. Anyway, no biggie, there are about a million ways to lay track. My advise is to find a method that works for you and go with it. The way you do something is always better than the way others don't BTW; I'm located near Jackson TN. Where are you?

[@elleryparsons5766]

Are you using flextrack?

[@MarkInLA]

Do you have eyes and ears ?? What does it look like to you ?? !

[@CryptidWalks]

I just discovered this channel, did I understand correctly that he built this for another person?

[@mpeterll]

Yes, I am a professional model railroad designer and builder (although I didn't design this one, I was just subcontracting for another builder). You can see other layouts that I have designed and built elsewhere on my channel.

[@CryptidWalks]

@@mpeterll That’s awesome. How many have you built? Are you in California? In the 90’s I had a layout in my garage, 16’ x 8’. I had to take it down when I moved. in 2014 and 15 I sold all my rolling stock, tools, buildings and the DCC system. I still enjoy seeing them, they used to have an open house in Reno where you could go visit peoples layouts in their home, but they haven’t had that in years.

[@davidcurtis5398]

You need to use a "table top" tripod so you are not getting the movement so fast. With the tripod you can use both hands and still have the camera steady. I like your videos but the movement is just to fast for the video to keep things clear. I was a commercial photographer for 30 years and a videographer for our local CBS station. When I retired I sadly lost the access to the video cameras and editing processes.

[@MrBsHiawathalandRails]

You sure make short work of it.

[@jenniferwhite6089]

i do have to say, make your job much easier to do, prepare your jobs before you start it

[@MarkInLA]

"for the customer" ?? !! Are you at their home ?? I mean, you ain't gonna ship this somehow, are you ?!!

[@mpeterll]

I'm in my own workshop. Yes that entire layout was taken apart and packed into a trailer. I posted a video showing the process and another one of the reassembly.

[@richardcable9354]

I didn’t see one section of track joined or soldered. Not helpful, sorry.

[@mpeterll]

This video was not intended to be a "track-laying tutorial". It simply documents the progress on my latest project railroad. If you are interested in learning how to do it, I do have just such a tutorial planned for future release, probably some time in February.

[@richardcable9354]

mpeterll apologies. I’ve realised I’ve come into a series of videos and that this was not a tutorial. I’ll look out for the future tutorial. Apologies again. Richard

[@mpeterll]

@@richardcable9354 No harm done. I hope the "how-to" video will answer your questions when it's posted.

[@kevincarbis2820]

That has to be the most boring track plan and a waste of all that space. He could have done much better with not much more effort

[@mpeterll]

I only got to build the layout. Unfortunately, I was not allowed to have any influence whatsoever on the design.

[@tomb374]

Incredible skill and talent. Can’t wait to see the finished product