Before laying the first piece of rail on the curved turnout in the center section of the layout, I installed the Tortoise that will control the turnout. Since the subroadbed is 1/4" plywood I needed to first attach a piece of 3/4" plywood to the Tortoise so that its screws have something to go into. This was done on the workbench. Since Tortoises are removed from each layout I have built in the past, you can see that this is a well-used one.



The next step was to install the Tortoise assembly under the layout. I did that using yellow Carpenter's glue and a couple of C-clamps. I made sure that the Tortoise's actuator rod was centered on the Tortoise and then centered in the hole I drilled. Also, I made sure the Tortoise was parallel with the throwbar ties.