The pointwork for the layout - which accounts for most of the front area - was built off-board, and shown in a previous entry. Here it is lain down on generous bed of PVA (I didn't bother with any copydex/sound insulation, as the whole lot will be encased in DAS cobbles anyway).
Maximum possible weight was applied. I thought this was a good thing. It was not...
By putting so much on top of the track (particularly with a broad section of contiboard to ensure a level surface) I managed to create a lovely moist microclimate; which is not good for the steel rail! Much rusting ensued This was far worse than any rusting I got from the flux. I've cleaned off the rust best I can with fine abrasive paper and wire wool. Once wiring is complete, the whole lot will get a spray of primer which should seal things.
Next time round, I was a bit more 'precise' with the PVA to fix the sleepers for the rest of the trackwork. That seemed to go OK.
The straight track was all built in situ. After soldering, I flushed all the joints in warm water and scrubbed with a toothbrush before drying it all off with a hot air gun. No evidence of any corrosion on these (left) -- apart from on the section I forgot to clean (right)!!
The sector plates are angle aluminium. I don't have a block gauge to set these, so I modified a 16.5mm roller gauge by filing flats on the outer edges at two sectors. Should leave the gauge usuable for normal code-75 track, and be usable at a specific rotation for larger code track (or angle ally!)
A little bit more to do on the trackwork at the back and the daughter board sidings -- but I've run out of rail... On to wiring now (droppers installed along with the track), and them TOUs I keep putting off..
Final nice view along the dock front... The half-built coal wagon has been my testing truck, and happily runs through all the trackwork so far...
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