Handlaying track?

I (mis?)spend some time on the net and found a very interesting site: 1-220.blogspot.com/ After reading about handlaid track I really want to go that way for the station I'm going to build. Certainly as I would like to have good looking switches and want to get rid of the Märklin geometry.

Did a bit more looking and found this: www.handlaidtrack.com/

So it looks as if everything is there. But I still have a few questions:
- I'd like to go with code 40 rail. Is this really an improvement? Or just a lot more work that isn't visible after all? Or is there better around?
- is there "ready made" code 40 available? Would be easier EDIT: just found about Haubrich Modellbau code 40...
- everything seems to be US style: track, ties, switches. Is it possible to find european counterparts? Or would just changing tie spacing be enough? (I think it would but I'm not an expert)
- track nails...this seems to be again US based, I haven't seen any spiked track here. It is bolted with a steel plate under the rail to wooden ties (or clips for concrete ties). Someone knows where such plates might be found? I don't fancy making a few thousand of those things
- switches: the gigs seem usable
- any experiences with the "handlaidtrack" shop?

The FastTracks jig works but Code 40 will be the hardest as the rail base is so small and the rail is much more flexible than code 55. The jigs support PC board ties suitable for Euro spacing. You can likely have someone cut you Euro tie strips to fit the fixed PC board tie locations.

As for bolt versus spikes, I actually do not like the look of code 40, even in ballast as I can clearly not see the expected spikes. I don't live under an Optovisor as some do so the Code 55 MTL flex with Peter Wright's turnouts suit me fine. I can clearly see Peco/Märklin Code 50 rail difference to to MTLs. The differernce from there is so little it's not worth all the handlay time.

How do you deal with the ballast when the rail is 0.02" lower, nearly 1/3 of the rail height less ? Really have to make sure the ballast is out of the track insides.

Jeff

I have done a few tries with ballast and it is not hard to keep the ballast at rail-base level. It were short lenghts so when it goes to meters of the stuff it might be something else.

Going to play a bit with their paper templates to get a feel of size.