This layout was built as an experiment, basically to see if fabricating
great quantities of overhead would make me crazy.
The layout and I survived the process, and in fact it was quite enjoyable.
Actually the girder rail in the street
turned out to be more trouble than the overhead.
Building the double curved crossover in the street seemed like
quite the challenge,
only to be deemed downright easy when it was time to build the overhead
junction and make it reliable!
Then I wised up and purchased commercial wire fittings. Reliability
went WAY up!
The rail is Rail Craft code 100 "girder" rail spiked directly
to the plywood roadbed.
The sidewalks are mounted on .060" styrene which also forms the gutter.
The streets are then "paved" with sheet rock mud and painted.
The layout is wired in true trolley fashion with both rails being common.
The overhead wire is suspended on poles made from brass welding rod.
In true trolley fashion, if the trolley pole leaves the wire, the passengers
get grumpy!
An aerial view of the original layout. The layout seperates int
two pieces, one 30" by 48" and the other 24" by 72".
The 24" by 72" or Court House module has proven to large to navigate
the stairs and exit the house without damage
so it has been permanently incorporated into the home layout..
