Getting ready for ballast

The new track has taken a little leveling. I also managed to get the uncoupling magnet in the wrong place at my first attempt. Bits of thin cardboard have been slipped under the track to sort of both of these problems and wagons can now be shoved back and forth along the lines. The front one seems especially smooth, which is good news as it's going to be seeing a lot of use in the future.

Positioning magnets is a bit of an art. The allow the coupling to do their thing, the wagon must be pushed beyond the magnet so the hook can come up again. With a building at the ends of the track this requires the uncoupling position to be on the old board. The alternative is a wagon pushed to the wall with its coupling over the magent. Guess how I know that !

Once happy, we gap the track and cut the baseboard joins with a slitting disk. Droppers for electricity are soldered in place and rail joints bonded, something I've not done elsewhere and sometimes regretted.

A waft of primer and couple of coats of Railmatch underframe dirt and it's ready for ballast. A sliver of plastic packing between the boards will hopefully stop them sticking together whilst only leaving a very tiny gap in the stones.