# Water Stop's HO Layout Build Thread



## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

MODERATOR NOTE ...

THIS THREAD IS A CONSOLIDATION OF SEVERAL PRIOR THREADS THAT WERE TRACKING WATER STOP'S HO BUILD PROJECT. NOW MERGE HERE, TO KEEP THE WORLD HAPPY AND IN HARMONY! 

TJ

= = =


It's a Broadway Limited Imports Great Northern 2-8-0 Consolidation with Paragon 2 DC/DCC Sound.

My Dad used to fire Consols and Mikes for the PRR during the early 1940's War years, hauling long consists of coal and steel to Eastern foundries and factories for war production. 

On some weekends when he had yard duty, he'd take me to work with him, and I'd spend the day in the cab of an
0-6-0 B6 switcher while he & the hogger banged cars together for more long hauls, highballing on the Main.

What a thrill for a 6-to-9 year-old boy from Wheeling W. Va.!

Here's a picture:

_WATER STOP_


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## flyboy2610 (Jan 20, 2010)

Nice engine! I'm sure you'll be happy with it!


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## GN.2-6-8-0 (Jan 10, 2013)

LOL reminds of the day I bought my first brass locomotive I was so excited I couldn't sleep that night.kept getting up to look at it!!
It too is a Great Northern F8 Consolidation, No 1182 .....that was in 1979, still have it though it needs to be converted to DCC with sound. here's she's sitting on the turntable on our club layout.


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

Yeah, guys...this will be the one and only loco on my layout!

Since my large "folded dogbone" loops have a 43" radius, perhaps I could rearrange the valve-cover "mountains" to allow for a more intertesting route which will require smaller curves. We'll see.....

But one thing's for sure; since the ratio of linear scale between O and HO is 0.55 or 1.81, this means that my fiberglass mountains will appear 1.81 times as high as they seemed in O-scale!

Everything will seem 81% longer, wider, and higher!

_WATER STOP _


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## GN.2-6-8-0 (Jan 10, 2013)

Yeah guys and this will be the one.........And only loco on my layout! Hahahahahahaaaaaaa!!!


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

_HEY BRAKEMAN,_

I'll bet you a Quart of Valve Oil and 8 Track Spikes that I won't get another loco! 

_WATER STOP_


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## GN.2-6-8-0 (Jan 10, 2013)

Well then your not going to be any fun!! Lol


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

*Spiking down that track*

HOWDY,

On my old O-Scale 2-Rail layout, I spiked down the Atlas Flex Track directly onto the 1/2" OBS sub-roofing panels, then scattered gravel and sand onto and alongside the trackage. 

I was happy with that, although a purist would want a thick layer of ballast under the track.

So...should I spike my new HO track directly to the OBS panels, or use cork road bed or something else under the flex trak?

Thanks,
WATER STOP


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

You could go either way. Cork would build up a roadbed rise. You could leave cork bare, or cover with fine gravel. I think I'd opt for cork, especially for a simple loop. Split the cork into halves, an hot glue mated halves, but with staggered seams. Inside half on curves, first, then outer half.

TJ


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## Bwells (Mar 30, 2014)

First off, it is OSB, Oriented Strand Board. There are many ways to skin a cat and everyone has a different way, it is what you are comfortable with. I use cork over my subroadbed and spike the track. This can be tricky though as you need the bed to be fairly sturdy. I use a piece of 2x4 cut 1/4" longer than the underside and jam it in under the point where each nail goes. This is time consuming but it works when you are by yourself. Better way is to have a buddy crawl around under the layout with the biggest sledgehammer you have to back up each nail. Any give in the ply will cause you to bend a nail and there is no saving them. You will bend 5 for everyone you get in especially on the OSB as it is loaded with glue. That is what I do but others have ways they like. Good luck.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

WS ... Beautiful loco. Your post above says DCC sound. I thought you were opting away from DCC? Just curious.

TJ


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

*Spikes witout bending*

Water stop;

OSB is hard to spike into and leads to bent spikes and frustration. Cork roadbed will not hold spikes as it is too soft. You might try 1/4" Luan plywood as roadbed. It's easier to push spikes into but will also hold them well. Luan is available at Home Depot, Lowes, Etc. It's sold in 4'x8' sheets, but they may have smaller pieces too. It cuts easily with a saber saw or band saw for curves. Straight sections can be mass produced with a table saw. Sand the edges at a 30-45 degree angle and glue it down to your OSB base with carpenters glue. Paint it with some basic "dirt brown" house paint to seal out moisture. Now you can spike down your track and ballast after.
I've used this method successfully for years. Try it. you may like it. 

Good Luck:
Traction Fan


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

_HELLO,_

For all of you who have kindly given me advice on laying my 137 to 150 feet of HO track: 

I'm an old man, almost 80, who has the shakes. Reading about all your methods for laying track leaves me gasping!

I laid the track on my previous O-Scale 2-Rail layout by simply pounding the nails through the holes in my flex track ties into the seven 4x8 OSB panels, then sprinkling scale gravel by hand onto and around the tracks. The hundreds of nails went into the OSB with not one being bent!. (I used 5/8" x #18 nails.) 

It worked just fine, and it looked good enough for me, because I have no Model Railroad friends who would point out that it isn't prototypical.

I do not want to go around spraying the tracks with a water-alcohol solution, nor do I want to lay scale gravel with a spoon, then slop around with an eyedropper full of a diluted solution of Elmer' Glue, patting it down with a brush. 

_NO WAY!_

And so I thank all of you who wished to guide me!
_
WATER STOP _


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## danpuckett (Dec 31, 2014)

I drill a small pilot hole into the plywood before installing the hold down nail, Makes an easier install and a whole lot easier pulling nails up when I rearrange.


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

Water Stop

The alcohol/water and glue/water is for ballasting.

You'll find holding your track down with TINY dabs of
white glue (some prefer other types of glue) under the
cork or foam roadbed, then again when you place
the track. It's so much easier and less likely to
damage your track than spiking...I know, I've done
the spiking and it's so easy to wham a rail or break
a tie while doing it and I was driving into spike friendly
Homasote.

The nice thing about it, a wide blade knife (like a putty knife)
will easily dislodge the track and the roadbed when you
want to make a change. You will also be able to reuse
the roadbed and the track.

The key is to use very little glue. There is little mechanical
force to cause the track to move.

Attaching flex track on curves is made more certain by using
stick pins to hold it in place until the glue sets.

Another tip: When splicing flex track on a curve, Cut one
rail of each section a couple of inches shorter than the other.
Slip the cut rail out of the ties and slip the long rail of the
next section into
the ties. This method will better protect your curve from
kinking as happens with a butt joint.

Don


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

HEY DON,


What about just laying the track sections directly on the OSB panels using Elmer's Glue, and holding them in place with flat heavy weights until the glue dries?

The weights would also let the curves hold their shape while being nailed.

I used weights when nailing my O-scale 2-Rail flex track down. 

Water Stop


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

*Track arrived today!*

Gosh, it's beautiful, and it's so nicely packed in 5 bundles of 5 pieces each for 25 sections, but I got 50 sections for a total of 150 feet of track. Thank you, Atlas!

HOWEVAH...there are no spike holes in the ties, so I'll have to drill some in each section.

It says code 83, but my dial calipers show an .085" rail height.

Water Stop (Now a Gang Laborer instead of a Hobo...I'm gettin' paid now!)


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## johnfl68 (Feb 1, 2015)

I'm not sure about the Atlas track, but sometimes there are pilot holes visible on the bottom of the track, that don't go all the way through. If so, it will be easy to drill out the little bit that is left to hide the hole on the top of the track. 

So check on the bottom of the track to see if there are pilot holes.

Sounds like fun! I have to order a bunch of track in a few weeks, after I start building the hollow core shelf sections for my new layout.

John


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## D&J Railroad (Oct 4, 2013)

instead of nailing the track down, you might consider using an adhesive caulk. The nails tend to pull the track together which alters the gauge slightly. Using caulk, you can make fine adjustments after you have applied the caulk and laid the track.


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

_HEY BRAKEMAN JOHN,_

Sonofagun, you were right!

There are 12 holes on the underside of each 36" piece of track! All I have to do is drill them through to the top surface, buy some proper gauge nails, and I'm ready to spike!

_Thank YOU!
_
Water Stop


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## MtRR75 (Nov 27, 2013)

D&J Railroad said:


> The nails tend to pull the track together which alters the gauge slightly.


Only if you push the track nails in too far. If you stop as soon as the nailhead makes contact with the tie, the gauge will not be affected.

My track goes into cork. I push the nails in gently with the side of a medium-small flat-head screwdriver, so that I don't push them too far in.


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

Water Stop

Sounds good to me. I used various weights when gluing down
my flex track including the hammer, glue bottle and wrench set.

The only reason some guys use a cork or foam roadbed is to
cut down on the noise. Even the quietest loco raises cain
when running on rails hard to a wood 'sounding board'. It
also gives that 'elevated' look you see on a well maintained
proto mainline. The spur and yard tracks do want to be flat
to the ground tho.

Don


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

HEY DON,

I welcome the sound of a train resonating through a large, hard, flat board...the louder the better!

I don't want my layout to whisper...this is Railroading, man, not a Christian Science Reading Room!

WATER STOP


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

*This Is How I'll Do It:*

Hello,

I've decided to _nail down _my HO flex track, just like I did with the O-Scale 2-Rail flex track before it. I liked the nail-down installation and I thought it looked good too, so I'll do the same with HO!

For every nail location, which is on the track centerline, I straddle the area with two 6-pound steel weights from a retired Janke Spalling Separator, then drill through the tie and halfway into the 1/2" OSB roadbed, then drive the 1/2" x #19 nail with a tack hammer and nailset until the head just contacts the tie.

After driving hundreds of nails this way, I will paint the heads to match the brown Atlas Flex Track ties.

That's all.....
Water Stop


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

*Here Goes Another Section!*

NO TEXT...JUST IMAGE FILE 

Water Stop


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## JNXT 7707 (May 5, 2013)

All those tools to put that one nail in?


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

HEY JNXT,

Yes, all those tools are required for each nail! 

The Empire State Building was erected one rivet at a time, in 1930-31.

Water Stop (Born in Wheeling W. Va. in 1936)


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## Bwells (Mar 30, 2014)

Are those track nails or brads you got at the hardware store? The heads are huge.


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

HEY Bwells,

Yes, the heads are huge. I didn't want to use finishing nails.

But no matter, when I'm finished laying 137 feet of track, with over 400 of these nails, you won't see a single one. 

Water Stop


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## JNXT 7707 (May 5, 2013)

Water Stop said:


> HEY JNXT,
> 
> Yes, all those tools are required for each nail!
> 
> ...


Greetings to a fellow Mountaineeer. 

Looking forward to seeing more photos of successive nails


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

Mr. JNXT 7707,

_Montani Semper Liberi_

Mountaineers Are Always Freemen 

Water Stop


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showpost.php?p=379865&postcount=37

Sorry............WATER.

Your PM's are fixed now, you won't ever get another !^&@(! PM again. WATER.


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

I appreciate that, Large Edward!

Water Stop


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Water, I dont model ho but from your picture it looks like the track is super tight. Is it supposed to be like that? I just tack /snug down my o guage tubular as supper tight created problems with alignment, looked wavy, etc.


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## Water Stop (Apr 18, 2015)

Mr. sjm991,

Do you mean is it rigid and unyielding to the roadbed?

Yes it is! That's how I fastened my O-Scale 2-Rail track and nothing ever shifted or became misaligned. My entire 137 feet of HO track is on a level plane, with no changes in elevation, and every 3-foot section gets 8 nails.

I always strive for a rigid installation!

Water Stop


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