Hi all, this past weekend was a bit slow on the JPT sub but there was a little bit done. Did some more work on the bridge. Now paved and working on some retaining walls for the approach. Wired up a few more lights. Just enough so you can tell they are lit but not too much for now. While I was at it, I came across some benches that fit just perfect in front of the ice cream shop.
Next up, I started on some additional chemical/fuel oil storage tanks. These are actually really simple to make. I collect empty tape spools from Christmas wrapping and from around my office. When I collect enough, it is time to put them together. Then cut a top out of sheet styrene and it's ready to paint and add any desired details.
All you need is a DeLorean and some banana peels and you can find all you want. Yep, I'd say Hemi is right, that bottle is old, maybe more than 2 decades. I like it better than the newer taller round bottles that the stuff comes in now so when it gets low, I just refill it.
Back again. Finished up wiring the interior lights for the stretch of buildings on main street. Was more of a job than I expected it to be. While at it, I reattached and of the roof top details that had come loose and fixed some of the signs on the fronts of the buildings. Next up for these, I need to make some kind of translucent inserts so the buildings don't look so empty. I also got the blinking strobe on the top of the old water tower wired up and working. That group of lights is one chore I am glad to have done. Down at the other end of town, I did some more work on the bridge. Made a pair of retaining walls to go on each side of the main approach. Not sure I'm happy with how they look so far but maybe once complete, they will be okay. I had intended to get a little more done in this area but the lights took more time than I had thought they would. I'll probably work on finishing up the earthwork around the approaches in this little area next and move on to something new. Then I can come back later and add some people and trees to this section and pretty much have it looking how I pictured it to be. I think trees, appropriate shrubs, brush, junk, and trash details will end up being the hardest part of getting a good look in place.
I love your Santa Fe Chicago general office at the left! The prototype's enormous letters now reside at the Illinois Transportation Museum. I worked there in the summer of '79. The view of Lake Michigan from the upper floors was outstanding.
Thanks Hardcoaler! I know my use of the sign is unprototypical but I couldn't pass up having it on my layout and atop that particular building seemed like a great spot. It's a laser cut wood kit but it would be extra cool if it was one like the Miller Engineering signs that are lit. Maybe someday.
Time for some more updates on the JPT Sub. Thought I was going to have a little time both Saturday and Sunday to do some work on the layout but Saturday didn't go as I thought it would. However, Sunday afternoon was productive. Did some more work around the bridge approach. Added a little more ground cover and some gravel leading into the construction lot along with a big pile of dirt from where the lot was graded. Once dry and cleaned up. It should look decent enough. Have a survey crew to add to this scene but not quite ready to deploy them yet. After working on that, I removed the divider so I could do some work behind the buildings on Main Street. Looks funny without the divider. From the back side you can see the dummy track representing another line, from the front, it's really only visible in small areas but it will add depth to the scenes. Once I had good access, I broke out some more ballast and ground foam. If you have been following along, you know I love making a mess with the ground foam. To the right left in the picture where the track ends, I plan to add some bushes and trees so it hides that the track ends.
Next up I finally got back to doing a little work on the creek. So now the whole area is covered with stone so once it's dry and anything loose is removed, it will be just about ready for some water. Then some details around the creek banks and it will be pretty much done. From there, I was looking at where I had placed the cement plant and decided it would be better over by the other odd manufacturing building. So we are going from here.... to here...…
Well now, moving the cement plant and prepping for other business means I need a non ground foam surface so here we go with a big pour. Once done there, it was time to sit back and run a train. This was the first time my FP45 had been on live rails. It is from back when Athearn first released these in N scale. Like many of my locos, it never ran it on the old layout. It wan well and is fairly quiet. Looks good too. Here a slightly closer look.
After reading about the water issues on George's THERR this morning, I am kind of posting this with mixed emotions. Today marks the first anniversary of this thread and the start of the JPT Sub! It's been a fun ride so far and things have changed along the way. Lots of ups and downs this past year. Hang in there though as there is more fun to come. Thank you all for following along, the support, advice, and all the kind words!
Another decent weekend of work on the layout. - Part 1 Started by cleaning up some of the mess I made last week. Here we see the track on the back side if town now that ballast and ground cover was applied and the excess cleaned up. Parking lots and some trees to go here before reinstalling the scenic divider. Speaking of the divider. I pulled out one of my backdrops and measured the height that the divider should be. Here we see it before cutting. And then this is after. I have a city scape that will go on the town side and not sure yet on the rest but I have a few options. May have to risk stopping at a store one afternoon this week to get some spray adhesive to attach the backdrops to the divider.
Part 2 - Next up, I cleaned up the work at the foot of the bridge Once I had that cleaned up, I installer a couple of sidewalk sections and continued to build up the dirt pile. Way past when I had planned to do the clear ends for the creek, I finally cut them and attached them to the sides of the layout. Once the sealer dries for several days, I will probably be all set to pour water!
Part 3 - Cleaned up where I had made the new pad for the cement plants new location and set it in place along with another building to get a feel for the area. And of course, we have to follow that up with some additional ground foam applications. Now that I had my ground foam fix, I moved on to the workbench.
Part 4 - The workbench...… Had a bunch of curves that I went ahead and cut out so that they would be easier to store flat. Then finished attaching the tops to two more storage tanks. Then painted the tires for the lowboy kit and then attached the goose neck for the trailer. Still waiting for a warm day to paint the trailer.
