After our toy train layout project went through a "Strategic Pause for Funding", we finally ordered our track, switches and roadbed from Catoctin Mountain Trains of Thurmont, MD in mid-January 2007.  (Why did we order from them, you ask?  Simple--Catoctin Mountain Trains offered us a very good, no-nonsense discount on the order.)   A couple of months later, the UPS man tooted his horn five times (no kidding) as he drove off after leaving a drop-shipment of two large boxes from Ross Custom Switches.  A day or so later, another box showed up from Catoctin MountainTrains with the Gargraves Trackage Uncoupling Tracks and some other odds and ends.  In short, we're ready to start laying track!

As you may remember, we created our trackplan using RR Track software, a CAD system.  RR-Track normally prints out only on 8 1/2 x 11 paper, but we did something a bit different which helped a great deal--saved the layout drawing as a BMP file, then took it to Staples for enlargement and mounting on a 20" x 30" foam board.   This gave us something to later on record how we wired the layout.

Considering we received 89 pieces or so of straight and curved sectional track, 8 two-way switches, 7 uncoupling tracks, a 3-way switch and matching roadbed pieces, we decided to unpack, inventory and "dryfit" the track to the trackplan.  Hopefully, everything we planned would work out and fall in the right places.  The next few photos give you some ideas of how things went for us.

We felt like little kids just on Christmas Day as we unwrapped all the items.  You can see quite a few in this picture including Ross curves and straights, switches, MTH fuse blocks and Lionel bumpers.  We also received some Gargraves "fit-up" and plastic pins for connecting custom-cut track pieces and creating electrical blocks in the track layout. 

While holding our breaths a little bit, we laid out the track according to the trackplan and even placed a few of the structures in their general locations to see how well things fit together. 

Looking up the front mainline, you can see the inner - outer loop connection including a 3-way switch which also forms one leg of the missile base's railroad yard. 

In your mind's eye, if you look at the light green "jacks" at the far end, you'll where a future "cliff mountain" will cross the mainline and missile yard, snake behind the water tower and then go across the two mainlines on the other side of the layout.  At the very far upper right corner of the layout you'll see where we will eventually install a Polk-Aristo Craft O-gauge lighthouse from the 1960s.

Looking across the layout, you can see the passenger station's passing siding and two industrial sidings.  Last winter, Sylvia built and super-detailed the supermarket positioned to the left of the industrial siding.  The Rico Station was built over 20 years ago, but was super-detailed a few months ago when we added windows to it.  (I sort of laughed when I saw one just like it in one of the recent toy train magazines.  The story showed a very expensive and detailed layout, but the Rico Station in one of the pictures lacked windows in the tower!  Ours has them....it took us a while, but we got them installed.) 

The outer loop uses O-64 Ross Sectional Track; the innter loop uses O-54.  We inserted a 3-inch spacer between the inner and outloop switches to help space out the loops proper.

This photo was taken towards the end of the dryfitting exercise.  We found a couple of places where we needed to rearrange a couple of straight pieces.  Overall, the dryfitting exercise proved we need to custom-cut only two pieces of track, just one more than expected according to the CAD drawing. 

And for everyone who keeps asking about the missile base part of the layout plan, here's a bird's eye view of the front gate which is indicated by the brightly colored jacks. 

When we get the track and wiring installed and start locating the structures, a scale cyclone fence will run along the diagonal line indicated by the tape measure.  The pink/orange jacks will be rearranged to form a vehicle entry point "maze" quite similar to what you find on military bases today.  BTW--the traffic gates at Wright-Patterson AFB use orange-colored jacks which look very much the same and stand almost roof-high on a sedan.  Our jacks are prototypically sized and shaped for the missile base's gate area.

We'll post more photos as we paint the roadbed pieces, install the track, and hook up the wiring.  Are we having fun?  You bet!