Here's some information about hand-laying the track.
Originally I thought the outside 3rd rail should go on the outside of the curves because that would keep the loco on the track, but that's not how the old tracks were made. Firstly, these are scale models and run much slower than our toy trains. Secondly, the locos stick out and would snag the 3rd rail if it was on the outside. Only long passenger cars risk hitting an inside rail, and the under-frame details can be shaved to clear the rail.
The old fiber tie strip is too fragile to drill through. I soaked it in water for a week to get it pliable enough to form curves, but it shatters when drilled.
The spikes won't go into the plywood, so every hole has to be drilled first. I started with tiny bits that broke every 5-8 holes, but a friend recommended I use pins or sewing needles. Sewing needles worked well and I bought 80 of them for $4. I can get 15-20 holes per pin.
I have a lot of different spikes I've collected over the years. Different diameters and different heads. This allows me to put different spikes into the same hole and move the rail.
Lincoln pennies are a great help. I found a penny with a brass strip in the box of track stuff that came with the old track. The penny diameter is the gauge, and the thickness is the wheel tread.
Here's some pictures.
Marking location of inner rail. Inner rail is radius of the track. This section is 26" radius. I made the wood strip when I did the plywood.
Here's the tie strip after soaking in the tub and being blotted dry on the cardboard.
Start with the rail off the curve in a straight section. The black box is a rail gauge for straight track and allows me to clamp the rail. Here's the set up:
Then you work around with the rail over the black line.
Once the inside rail is laid, the straight section is used to start the curve and you just follow along with the track gauge and the pennies. The outside rail goes much quicker than the inner because it only has one place to go.
This section has a slight S curve and then matches to the existing track. By leaving a few inches of the rail sticking out and then clamping the aligned rails down I can make a transition that works. This is actually much easier than it looks.
After it's clamped I cut all four rails and trim the roadbed. I can adjust the curve by sliding the two roadbed sections back and forth under the rails. Because the other ends of the track sections influence this joint it will be spiked last.
So far I think I'm managing to do a foot every six hours!
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