Wanted to share a few micro projects - Tunnel Lining, Marx Switch lens repair, and wire routing.
To line the dual-track tunnel through the 4-1/2" thick stub wall, I used heavy card stock black paper. I cut the paper 1" wider than the wall, cut slits in the portions of the paper that would need to bend, then folded the tabs over and stapled them to the wall. When the tunnel face is in place, I see one staple I need to paint but other than that it is nice and black.
I have a Marx Switch with a melted lens housing, but I really like the color-change feature, so I bought a packet of colored cellophane sheets from Hobby Lobby and taped a couple pieces in place. I am expecting that with the LED bulb replacement (LED-1447WW from Town and Country Hobbies) the taped lenses will stay for many years.
To clean up the rats nest under the layout, I really hate to spend money. Being neat shouldn't be costly - it's already somewhat time consuming! So what I did was shoot a staple where I wanted the wires to be gathered, then slipped a bread tie / twist tie under the staple and tied wires up that way. Looks fine and it's easy to add more wires. Incidentally, I am using 18Ga red and black for track feeds, 16Ga jumpers on terminal strips, and 14Ga "bus" from transformer to/between terminals. For accessories and switches, I am using 18Ga yellow bus and 20Ga to the accessory. (actually 22Ga on switches so far - I have leftover 3-wire roll. 22Ga has worked fine on multiple layouts and the distance from operator panel to each switch on this layout is no more than 3 feet.) Using 18Ga blue for 24VDC "track occupied" signal, and 18Ga orange for 12VDC Tortoise switches when I get there.
See pics! I'm almost done wiring the St Joe Industrial Park, getting ready for scenery, buildings, and lights. Just reading Lance Mindheim's "How to Operate a Switching Layout" - great insights that I will use!
