I know this post was supposed to be about the test board & how it was build, but there's a good reason why this is being slightly delayed - a couple of trees just came in ! Actually a new order arrived a couple of days ago, not because I wanted so, but the guys at LokShop decided it was time to ship all the items already in stock (even though this accounted for only half of the total products ordered; maybe it's company policy - don't let the modeller down on Christmas no matter what). Anyway, along with the trees made their way, among others: a couple of Marklin bridge ramps, a Lenz DCC inverter, some PIKO replacement wheels, a couple of Noch tunnel portals, a few Woodland Scenics rock molds and a Brawa freight car. So I'm right now I'm thinking Brawa car + test board + one tree for the next photo shooting.
But getting back to the actual layout, there's one last piece of track that needs to be done in order to close the "loop" - the overpass bridge between the two tea cans. For this I got a couple of Marklin 74613 bridge ramps, and even though they are 360 mm in radius, I think I'll be able to keep the 380 mm radius from my plan. These come with hand rails and walkways on each 
side of the track; also the rivets are nicely done and the fixing system seems very sturdy. The one placed on the track is not equipped with these, while the other one placed on the foam is. The whole foam area is going to be elevated in the form of a hilly/mountaineous region, so the pre-tunnel track will look like it's carved its way through the landscape. For the overpass section a total of 3 ramps will be needed (it appears i won't be able to get away with just 2, as I originally thought). Of course such a long span cannot sustain itself, so an extra support it's going to be needed in the middle. And since the corresponding Marklin piers are out of the question (big bulky masonry piers), I think I will go with the new Noch girder structure. The problem with all the new laser-cut bridge kits from Noch is that they have been delayed ever since July. A nice lady from Noch assured me that they are going to be available starting this December, but so far none has made it in the "In stock" area in my LokShop account.
side of the track; also the rivets are nicely done and the fixing system seems very sturdy. The one placed on the track is not equipped with these, while the other one placed on the foam is. The whole foam area is going to be elevated in the form of a hilly/mountaineous region, so the pre-tunnel track will look like it's carved its way through the landscape. For the overpass section a total of 3 ramps will be needed (it appears i won't be able to get away with just 2, as I originally thought). Of course such a long span cannot sustain itself, so an extra support it's going to be needed in the middle. And since the corresponding Marklin piers are out of the question (big bulky masonry piers), I think I will go with the new Noch girder structure. The problem with all the new laser-cut bridge kits from Noch is that they have been delayed ever since July. A nice lady from Noch assured me that they are going to be available starting this December, but so far none has made it in the "In stock" area in my LokShop account. At the bottom the Noch portal is visible; it's facing the other way, since the tunnel masts will obviously be inside the tunnel.
