This is exactly it!

Thanks for this article!  It's exactly what I needed to inspire me to move forward with tracklaying.  Right now, the portion of my layout I've been working on is essentially urban and flat.

I've realized that even with the track in place and no scenery, the weight of even 2 foot by 4 foot panels of /4" plywood and 1/2 Homasote were now getting a bit unwieldy for me to lift up and install the Tortoises I've acquired.  My preferred method of subroadbed was just using the 2x4 panels; cutting back to the outline of the track plan would be a lot of work with a sabre saw - probably days, and frankly I wasn't looking forward to that.  It's an issue that had stalled me for a while and while some areas may lend themselves to a plank-style subroadbed sandwich with foam attached for scenery rather than the entire panel top, those areas are at least a year away and I don't want to commit to those until the earlier sections are at least up and running.  Especially since I'm handlaying most if not all of the track.

Combining this with the behind the fascia wiring approach looks like it will solve my problem.  It's easy enough to drill the actuator hole from the top, insert the bolt and lockwasher, and then go under the benchwork, push the template up, secure it, and use a cordless drill to zip the holes in, loosen the nut, remove the template, and insert and secure the pre-wired Tortoise with a cordless screwdriver.  Even if only a couple Tortoises get installed before my back gives out for the day, 

Thanks again for a great idea!

Janet N.

2 screw method with hard board blanks is extremely fast.

I use pre drilled hard board blanks,  I drill two 1/2" holes on each side of the blank then hot glue the switch machine to the pre drilled blank.  I use wide pan head type screws to attach the entire assembly to the layout.  The large hole in the blank gives my a little over 3/8" of adjustability.  This is well more than needed for adjustments.   Once I get everything lined up the way I like it,  I just take a hand screwdriver and tighten the pan head screws,  if something is off or not perfect just just make it snug so you can push the assembly around and into position.  The retighten the screws. (I do use a small hand held screw driver to set the two screws, once that is done I use a regular handheld screwdriver if I need to adjsut.

My stack of blanks before drilling the two 1/2" holes.  Only takes a few minutes to do a stack at a time and I do not have a drill press,  I do it with a hand drill.  My method still lets you have some adjustability, you only need to mess with two large screws, no need to worry about dropping them etc.   If you are not exact it is only two holes and do to the large 1/2" holes you do not need to be perfect.  close is good, snug them down align them and tighten.

Sorry, I just installed a bunch of machines and have not drilled a new stack with a the two 1/2" holes.

Third solution

I use a template on the track to drill all the holes, not underside the layout

In fact I temporarely place the turnout in place.

My jig has two groove  so it slide  a bit on the file of track; he also have a rigid tube where I put the future wire arm which go trough the throwbar of the turnout; I use it to mark the roadbed surface

When this wire is put in the throw bar and the jig is well centered with the turnout I mark the four holes with a small drill just to mark the holes

I take of the jig and the wire and after the turnout , I drill the four holes by upside through the roadbed and the wire throwbar hole; after I put back the turnout in place definitively.

I just have to fix the Tortoise under the roadbed and fix it in the drilled holes and the wire in the throwbar.

I use mostly Hankcraft display motors and I use a similar system to fix the motor under the table; holes and position are determined over the track not under the roadbed.

All in all I think I have had on around 120 motors placed only around  two mistakes have occured

I think the idea comes from the MHR forum somewhere years ago

Add Photos, it helps

I have a good idea what you are doing,  but still would like to see photos

AzBaja's method

I am pleased that at least some readers enjoyed this article, if nothing else it stimulated more discussion.

Although I am the author of the plastic installation guide plate method, I will try out AzBaja's method on my next project, thanks for the help.

Mike

After some thinking - Charlie Comstock Jig

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The jig system I use for drilling hole above the track to fix the Tortoises, comes from the Charlie Comstock blog about his layout, which was often published in articles in MRH

Don't have time to search after but it's somewhere in his blog where he explain the use of a above the track drilling jig for Tortoises placement.

This is the system I use for the Tortoises and the Hankcraft display motorsI use for my turnouts.

Neat ideas

I like the bolt idea in the article.

AzBaja has a neat method too.  It also looks like instead of the large hold directly over the tortoise so the wire swings back and forth moving the points directly, you're going through a small hole in the roadbed to move a lever arm on top that moves the throwbar?  That's an interesting idea too, I hadn't seen that linkage done before.

Back when I still used tortises (I'm all ground throws now) I used a method very similar to Marc's.  I had a small piece of 1x2 with a vertical hold drilled through it into which I had press fit a piece of the same spring wire I used for the tortise actuator.  I pre-drilled the hole through the roadbed before laying track.  Once the track was in place, I used little balsa wedges to fix the points in the centered position, then dropped the wire down through the throwbar hole so it stuck out the bottom side of the benchwork.  Then I had a tortise drilling template I'd made out of a piece of scrap metal that I'd slide over the wire and mark the positions of the 4 holes.  Worked reasonably well.

But if I was going to do that sort of thing again I put some serious effort into making sections removable so I could flip them up on the back edge to do that sort of things at the workbench.  My neck's tolerance for working under the layout is not what it used to be.

Ow! My aching back.

It wasn't my neck as much as the lumbar region and my calf muscles from squatting.  The solution was simple.  Hot glue.  Twelve years and counting with no problems and that is with low temp craft store gun and glue.

AZbaja's method

I can see AzBaja's method being an option on the mountings I use, but I might be able to modify the brackets without needing the additional hardboard base.  Have to play with it next switch install.

spell

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Done, so long time I didn't visit his blog I made a mistakes in spelling his name.

Switch machine template

Excellent and simple idea. May I offer one of my favorite things for  holding an alignment while finishing an installation.  A lock washer and a Wing Nut.  Fast, strong enough, easy to adjust for alinement and I don't have to look for my fingers under the bench.

Garey