Home Page › Forums › Modeling the Missouri Pacific, Texas & Pacific, etc › Mopac or Texas & Pacific layouts › I’ve bit the bullet, Jan. 15, 2011 › Reply To: I’ve bit the bullet, Jan. 15, 2011
I’m finishing today the laying of roadbed on the three new modules that represent the WTA (Wichita Terminal Association). The double-track MoPac main line runs down the center, being crossed by the Rock Island single-track main and the Santa Fe double main track and one parallel industry track, which is part of the WTA and interchanges with the MoPac and the Rock Island. There’s 60 feet of main track and 55 or so feet of industry track to lay. I’ve tried not to think about the ten crossings I’ll have to build.
I ran out of some types of Homabed roadbed, and discovered the original manufacturer is officially out of business. However, there is now Cascade Rail Supply, cascaderailsupply.com or homabed.com, who has acquired the rights to the Homabed name. They claim that the product isn’t completely compatible with the old stuff, however I’ve laid some straight and curved roadbed and several turnout sections and it’s close enough for me to consider it completely interchangeable. Bear in mind that, after learning my lesson on the first module I built, I hit all of the roadbed with a sander to take down the high spots and add some cardstock, if necessary, to fill low spots. Wear a mask for this if you try it.
Next up is probably building two turnback loops. On the south end the turnback loop will definitely be a 180. On the north end there’s an issue of whether I design the turnback to mate with the existing fakey storage yard, which may require a mini-mo to actually connect. Doing this will allow me to be working on module construction outside while at the same time laying track upstairs. Only drawback to this schedule is that I really would prefer not to be fabricating modules in Houston in July and August.
Ron Merrick
