Recyling

[Ray H]

I've spent a while this morning dismantling the third and final baseboard from my previous (aborted) layout. The ply framing and small softwood corner blocks from all the boards are bound for the tip but the baseboard tops go into store for use when I need to cut templates for anything and everything.

 

The wiring, which is mostly lengths less than 150mm will also go to the tip as I've found from previous experience that you've never got bits of the right length for the next job. The cork and ballast and the exceedingly limited amount of scenery are definitely beyond re-use, although I'm separating whatever I can for re-cycling where appropriate.

 

That basically leaves the point motors - Cobalts - and the track - Peco. My new layout will use servos instead of point motors and the current thinking is that all points on the new layout will be handbuilt using pcb sleepers to OO-SF track gauge. The Jury is still out on whether to use Peco (plain line) throughout, just in the fiddle yard or not all all.

 

The Cobalt motors will probably appear on a well known Internet auction site.

 

Most of the (Peco) points have already seen use twice and latterly have had their springs removed, the tiebars trimmed and the overlength sleepers designed to take Peco point motors trimmed/replaced. The first few plastic sleepers have also been replaced with PCB ones. All the points have had the recomended modifications made for DCC usage. I may dip my toe in the water and offer them for sale via the Internet as well

 

That leaves the track. Some took too greater liking to the underlay on the previous layout with the result that the (painted) rails sprang out of the chairs on the sleepers. Although it may be possible to refit sleeprs to track I'm more inclined to consider discarding the sleepers and re-cycling the rails in the fiddle yard of the new layout, soldering them to widely spaced pcb sleepers. The question is "Is it worth the effort, given that the rails were spray painted on the previous layout and will need thorough cleaning to facilitate soldering on the new layout?"