I've gotten to the point where I'm starting to put together test rigs for mounting Fast Track turnouts and Atlas flex track. But, while I'd rather not glue the track or turnouts down so I can make adjustments later, I'm having difficult getting Marklin spikes (or small brass nails) to go into plywood. It takes forever (20 min at least) to get them to go in without bending and I'm looking at 1 successful spike for every 4-5 attempts. Is spiking into plywood even an option? How well do the spikes stay into extruded foam? I'm also currently planning on using Tam Valley micro servo based turnout machines and mounting them to a plywood base under the foam. How close does the machine have to be to the turnout before the throw from the machine becomes too long? The longest I can see it being is 1-1/2 to 2 inches (1/2 inch plywood base and 1 to 1-1/2 inches of foam, plus cork (~1/8). I could use a small, plywood inset to mount directly under the turnout, but I'd rather not (see above troubles spiking into plywood).
Funny! You are crabbin' about spiking into plywood. I just commented on that today under my OP, "Revised L Shape......." post !! I learned too late in life that ply is THEE worst material to push spikes into. Why? Because soon as you go thru first layer you hit very hard glue before next layer, et al.; the tiny spikes too weak to pierce through it..If not too late, keep the ply, but cover it with Homasote..Then spike ..It is known that Homasote takes and holds spikes excellently...Good luck, M...
Thanks, I'll have to check out your thread. But, don't worry about me, it's not too late. I've purchased nothing in the way of lumber as of yet, as I'm just working on scrap pieces for now. Hopefully, I can find small pieces of Homasote. My next step is to do a crossover mockup fully set up with DCC. I don't want any surprises when I'm setting up the layout.
If you are not running, just concepting and visualizing curves, transitions, grade changes, etc, I just use push-pins. The heads capture the rail. If you truly want to spike, get a $20-$30 'nail drill' (used by nail salons for polishing nails) and a adapter 3 jaw chuck to hold the small drills (.02" or so). Don't leave more than 1/4" of the drill to hang out as the jaw centering isn't the best so the farther out the drill is, it will spin a larger 'loop' until it gets started into a hole. Or, you can do your best planning and quality inspection with a couple of drops of white glue under and the push-pins to hold in place a few hours or more. Then roll a 2 axle marklin flat car over all your work (to feel just how good you though you laid the track) and run a loco to check. if it's not what you want, 10-15 minutes and the white glue is loose. Push/pull/press/lift all you want and tack down again with the push-pin. Note you don't need to bury the push-pin in. The rail head just needs tension. I make a tool out of a 5/16 hex driver with a plastic handle (metal shaft). I was fortunate to find some 'deep' ones so I could run a drill up into it. This lets the outer end push on the skirt of the push-pin, giving me plenty of steering control.
I use Peco trackpins with Peco, MTL and marklin track on MDF Baseboard tops but Always drill a pilot hole first. usually .7 or .8mm in a mini drill with a collett not a drill chuck. never bent a pin yet cos they follow the pilot hole but still go in firm enough to hold the track. Once ballasted the ballast and glue do most of the work anyway. I always try to lay the track in as warm a temperature as possible. Lay it in the cold and wait for the first hot day and watch it get wobbly with expansion Kev
@SJ-man. Push pins work well when just laying out track to see how it looks, but I'm trying to build functional mockups mostly designed to get the turnouts built and mounted correctly. So, I need to see how I'm going to stick the track down for the finished product. I do like the nail drill idea, it looks like a cheaper, less powerful dental drill. I have a pin vise drill, but that does look easier. I may not spike directly into plywood, but I'll test out the pilot holes to see how that works. @kevsmith Good point about the ballasting. I guess all tracks are glued down eventually.
Have you considered using double-sided tape? I've been using it for years for semi-permanent layouts. Easy to adjust and remove with a putty knife. What do you want to use for roadbed? If you use a cork product, a significant portion of the Märklin spikes won't even make it to the plywood substrate. Mark
@markm I was using 1/8" cork for N/Z scale. The cork did a great job of holding up the spike, it was the plywood that caused the problem. I'll have to try the pilot hole idea or switch road bed material to something more nailable. There are a bunch of construction sites around here. I'll try some dumpster diving to get some free extruded foam.
@SJ Z-man Drilling pilot holes works great, at least when I'm drilling through flex ties, no idea how those tiny, wooden ties on my turnouts will take that. But, where do I find a 3 jaw chuck adapter for a nail drill? Also, how do you find the pilot holes in cork once you've drilled it? Because the hole closes right up and it's very, very difficult to find where to put the spike. The one time I did, I was very happy with the results, but do I need a different roadbed?
I drill the holes as I'm laying the track. The nail will go right in as long as you haven't moved the track. I put the drill in a cheap version of a Dremel. It came with 4 different sized collets. I drill the hole, install the nail, make sure the next section of track is correct and where I want it and move on to drilling the next hole.
Senior moment I'd quite forgot I did a youtube video about pilot holes and trackpins (and super-elevating track) during the early construction phase of Shasta back in 2011. Link here to a not so grey Kev! Incidentally Shasta is out at the big Derby exhibition next weekend in its long form, this weekend I'm at Bradford with Republic Steel. Shasta has not been out for a while so it will be nice to run some really long trains for a couple of days Kev
hex or round shank to 3 jaw example (MicroMark site): https://www.micromark.com/Universal-Chuck-1-8-Shank_2 https://www.micromark.com/Precision-Micro-Drill-Chuck-for-Cordless-Screwdriver Many of nail drills come with collets that will close on the smaller drill bits. Some only have one collet size:~1/8"/3mm Note: most of the collets from non-Dremel sources do not fit into each other. They are just slightly larger/smaller to not work. So, either buy a Dremel or if you buy a nail drill, make sure it has a collet set.
Thanks for the vid, it's always great to see a how-to for Z. A lot of stuff for HO doesn't really translate. I do have a Dremel, so I appreciate the help finding a collet. The top one would let me use my 18V drill, but I think that would be a little overkill for a #80 bit.
