I am getting started on some new trackwork. This is the front section of the town of Bear Creek. A set of four turnouts and two industries will be placed on this part of the layout. For the time being I will be building this section on the workbench.

The photo on the right shows the turnout templates glued to the sub-roadbed. I decided not to install cork for the sub-roadbed. The ties will be directly glued to the plywood. I used #8 turnout templates downloaded from the Fast Tracks web site (a fantastic resource).

Next, I drew some pencil lines between the turnouts. These will be used to guide the tie-laying process.

I started laying the ties by first gluing some left-over turnout ties onto the templates.

Then I used a piece of styrene H-column to line up a nice curve and placed regular-sized ties against the styrene strip.

This curved section (which will be an industrial spur) is complete. Laying ties is definitely one of my favorite tasks. It is easy and relaxing activity, and goes a lot quicker than you might think.