Slow going in the spring - too much yard work, etc. After installing the new straight-thru back lift-out, the series of switches to my yard (see photo) started giving my issues with trains shorting out while going through all the switches. I had never screwed the switches or yard track down into the layout. There was one particular switch that seemed to be the problem area, so I swapped it out with a spare and re-positioned all the switches and track and screwed them down and that seemed to solve the problem and everything is back to running like it should. Now back to the project.
The board for the new main line running through the closets is 12' long, so I'll have three track feeds, each about 4' apart. In order to hide the main power wire and have a flat bottom surface, I cut a groove on the underside of the board with my table saw. I don't have a dado blade, so I just lowered my blade to about 1/4" high and made a series of passes, moving the fence 1/16" each time until the groove was wide enough to fit the wire pair inside.
I also glued down the foam roadbed to the top side of the board (no pic). I'll drill three holes down into the board from the topside into the groove to run feeders from the main power wire to the underside of the Fastrack and solder all the connections.
I could use a T-tap or other connector to connect the feeders to the power wires, but I want these connections to be bullet-proof. The last thing I want to do is have to chase a connectivity issue inside a closet. To solder the feeder wire to the power wire, you simply cut off a small square of the wire insulation with an exacto knife and that becomes your connection point. Just tin both wires and then solder. I then cover the connection with some liquid electrical tape and let dry.
I'll also solder all the 30" Fastrack straights together to also insure no conductivity issues.
