Roadbed and Sub-Roadbed
Start with a sub-roadbed of 1/2″ plywood or Homasote, supported by your benchwork risers. On top of that, add cork or foam roadbed to elevate the track and dampen sound. Split the roadbed along the centerline and angle the halves to create a realistic ballast shoulder profile.
Laying Track
Whether you use flex track or sectional track, the principles are the same:
- Pin or nail the track to the roadbed, starting from turnouts and working outward.
- Stagger rail joints — never line them up across both rails at the same point.
- Solder every rail joiner for reliable electrical continuity, or use rail joiners only as mechanical connectors and run separate feeder wires.
- Check gauge frequently with an NMRA standards gauge.
DCC Wiring Basics
DCC (Digital Command Control) puts a digital signal on the rails, letting you control multiple locomotives independently. Here is what you need to know:
- Bus wires — Run a heavy (14 AWG) bus under your layout, connected to your DCC command station.
- Feeders — Solder a feeder wire (22 AWG) from each rail to the bus every 3 to 6 feet.
- Keep polarity consistent — The left rail should always connect to the same bus wire.
- Power districts — Use circuit breakers to divide your layout into districts, protecting decoders from shorts.
Test every section of track with a locomotive before adding scenery. It is much easier to fix a problem now than after the mountains go in.
