Layout Extension (002)

Just a couple of photos today from the layout extension project that I've been working on. The intent is to have the 2 tracks down the middle inset into a pavement/concrete street. I haven't really done this before, so I'll be learning as I go.  The spurs on either side will be ballasted with gravel...I think...

In the foreground, to fill in between the rails I've used drywall patching spackling made by DAP. When it was dry the next day, I brush painted it with grey acrylic paint, and scored in the expansion gaps with the back of an Exacto knife. Following that, I brushed on a dark Vallejo wash to highlight the gaps.  Down the tracks beyond the crossover switches, you can see the spackling before it's been painted.

The space between the two tracks is filled in with .040 styrene salvaged from a previous failed project. I cut and filed the styrene to as exact a width as I could, so that it's just a pressed fit. The styrene sits on top of the molded spike heads, and just nicely comes up to the top of the code 83 rail.