Progress on the MAT was a bit slow this week. I had a dose of that stomach flu which lasted three days. I did get a bit of track layed in the throat of the terminal at Mayberly. I also managed to finish the Templar Tombstone building. See pictures in the freelance forum. This coming week I hope to complete track laying in the Mayberly terminal and a passenger car yard.
Groan... is it that time again... to report and commit.... lol. Well, I had to spend more time getting the hardboard in than I thought. It was in - and you don't know what an accomplishment that was (I had to do about 2 dozen other tasks before I could work on the hard board) - but it wasn't attached that well. I struggled with coving the corners, but I just didn't have the skills to do it. The task was a bear, so in the end I am using 90 degree angles, something I am feeling better about than at the beginning. My original commitment was to have the back drop in, but that is a task where I will need the help of my buddy, who can't give me hand until next week. Never the less, I probably put in about 14 hours of work on the layout this week, so I am happy with what I have been doing. Oh oh! I forgot, I also worked on a critical piece for my "nolix" (no helix) with another friend of mine. His comment was: "I have no idea what we just built but it looks good!" This week commitment is to get the backdrop up, and order another section as I will be about 4 feet short on one side. Basically this week I will be having a "decopage" party to put the backdrop in...lol.
Other than last weekend this week has not been as productive due to other commitments. I did however make a start on my double track girder bridge. I have just arrived home from the hobby shop after purhasing some more styrene and some steel wire for the handrails. I hope to have the bridge completed and ready for painting by next weekend. when I arrived home there was a package from rio grande hobbies waiting for me. I received road signs, street signs and shop front signs for the township so I hope to install some of these over the next week as well.
Rick, In an 8x8 shed it can be around the walls and in the middle ofthe room at the same time! Actually, the railroad has benchwork 2 feet wide on three sides, and a one foot wide lift out piece on the 4th side. Keep in mind this is HO scale. So the space gets eaten up rather quickly. Anyway, the modeled portion of the layout is a modest yard and engine facility modeled loosely after a UP facility here in town. There is also a 4 track staging yard to feed trains into the yard from both directions. Operations modeled include through trains, trains stoping to drop off/ pick up cars at the yard, and engine changes on trains. This allows me to have a simple layout that captures my 3 main interests. 1)watching trains roll into view and roll by. 2) switching operations - not overly complex 3) having a variety of engines.
I certainly hope not. The shed does stay pretty dry and dust free. The first thought was the garage, but when the humidity comes up condensation forms on the floor. And a lot of dust blows in. So that ruled that out. I'm a little concerned about the heat, but its my only option for a railroad. Thats one of the reasons for the switch to HO. I believe it will do better i nthat environment than N scale. Plus I'm enjoying the extra detail the larger scale gives.
I get sick and you guys throw a party.This is a great thread. Unfortunately I am in no condition to add much to it. The GVR has not been touched in over a month and probly won't be for at least another month.
Catt, Glad to see you are well enough to post. When I started a thread in the Atlas forum inviting people here to work on their layout, I got a bit of flack about how "serious" it would be. Also some felt they didn't want to be on a deadline to work on their layout as they had to deal with deadlines at their place of employment. I have found most here have benefited, and I don't think it has been to serious. I know I have done more work in the last two weeks, than in the last 6 months....lol. So, it is working for me.
Got a question... Any of you ever hear of an Italian company called Casadio? Apparantly this has been the bane of my soldering existance and not my ineptitude! I had been attempting to use snap track for my curves for various reasons (had pleanty of it, too cheap to replace it, didn't want to attempt my own curves...) Well I had lots of this 11" radius track from my last attempt at a layout 8+ years ago. I have no idea where I got it, but it refuses to accept solder. It wasn't me after all! So since I've already laid the roadbed, I no longer fear laying my own curves. And a quick trip to the LHS for another 10 sections of flex track and things are looking up! I may yet run trains on Monday!!!
I was basically tweaking my trackwork all week, getting a 20 car freight pulled by a new Kato SD90/43 MAC and two Atlas GP38s to run smoothly forwards and backwards through several handlaid Code 55 turnouts and an all-curved diamond crossing (which I will never try to build again). The crossing is a bit loud and clunky sounding but nothing ever derails on it amazingly! I had to widen the points gap in a couple of places and use a Dremel thin cutoff disc to widen a flangeway on one turnout. Frankly, I am astounded that my turnouts work so well. I have always thought of myself as being more "artistic" than "technical," ie make things that look good but don't expect them to function, so the feeling of satisfaction is all the greater. All track is now fully reliable on the 17" (N scale) radius outer loop. I added another curved turnout from the inner loop (15.5" rad.) from one side of the layout (the industrial module), connecting to the other side (the coal country module) through a Code 40 flex branch (13.5" radius), and this will run through mine and powerhouse outbuildings to avoid tunnels. The double main lines will pass under other industrial/mine structures like conveyor houses, again to avoid the predictable tunnels. You know what, I may be coming across like I think I know a lot more than I really do...I need some advice so I am going to post a new topic about hiding curves and avoiding tunnels. I'm getting tired of building trackwork, and look forward to laying out landforms and structures, as well as expecting my Radio Chief II to arrive in the next week (I've had several days off, but now back to fulltime work for quite a while, just as the DCC shows up, of course).
Wish I had the time to hand lay track, it certainly would save money on the turnouts. I would like to get as much of this layout up and running before my son finishes highschool which is only a little over two years away. I know that sounds far in the distance, but I know how much time a layout can eat, and still not be satisified.
Here are pictures of the girder bridge I am doing. This is really my first attempt of scratchbuilding. I hope to paint the bridge this week
Wow! Looks great Colonel. And this is your first scratchbuild?! You have given me new hope. Maybe I can build those structures missing from the N shelves after all. So who wants to see a cigar factory?
Paul Looking good. If it is going over the space I think it is, didn't it need a curve in it, or were you able to curve the track up to the point of the bridge, with a straight over.
Paul your scratcbuilt bridge looks great. Now that you have made the start you will find scratchbuilding a joy. Need a structure and no kit is available or too pricey, scratchbuild it instead. I got started and can't stop. Catt, any attention to the layout of anykind including just looking at it counts in my book. Rick, how is that challenging backboard coming along.
Robin, 98% of it is in, there is one little patch, that is an add on at one end that is about 17 inches high and about a foot and a half long, that has to go in, I have built almost a special frame for it. The primary task is now to install the backdrop I have, which is about 19 feet long this coming week, but I need the help of a buddy who won't be coming over till this Wednesday or Thursday evening. I am about 5 feet short on backdrop so I will be ordering more this week as well. I am having a "decopaging party" to put it in using Modge Podge - the people at Michael's would be proud of me. Some recommended this over a spray adhesive as it gives you some, "change your mind" room - and I have a feeling I will need that time to make adjustments.
Progress update. I installed the Woodland riser system - 2% grade to 3". What a wonderful product! Pretty much idiot proof. I now have a smooth incline that allowed me to make perfect curves. I hope to finish the remaining roadbed/foam installation this week and move on to track laying. I have all the track I need, but still have to get a track cutter. I know the Xuron track cutter is great, but there is a similar tool (looks almost identical) at Radio Shack for less than half the price. Anyone know about it and have any experience with it? Not much getting done today due to "Patriots Day". It's a New England (mostly MA) holiday celebrating the start of the revolutionary war. The rest of the country celebrates this on July 4th. I'll be heading down to Lexington with my sons for a parade. I never seem to get up early enough to see the reenactment of the first battle on the Lexington battle green.
Time for the Monday morning update on my railroad.....There were lots of distractions last week, including the Masters , the end of the hockey season, (at least for my Dallas Stars , some visitors, and a religious retreat! I was also distracted and inspired by Pauls scratchbuilt bridge, as I was planning to build a similar bridge for an interstate highway behind my engine terminal.....I tacked up some foam and plexiglass and want to take some time to see just how that would work.... I did spray paint my newly relaid track, mix some John's ballast (half buff, half gray) for ballasting. Will go to art store for matte medium today.... I also started on a kitbashed RJ Frost stucture and painted the powerhouse from the Faller factory set thinking I could use it as a boiler room behind my roundhouse (and also to hide a very out of scale swith machine. Lastly, I did install a few coupler ramps and caboose ground throws. Again, thanks for the idea of this "procastinators annonymous" thread. Just thinking about it makes me go upstairs to the train room and get something done, even if only a little! It also makes me think in terms of completing something, rather than just working on it, although, you couldn't exactly tell it from my results this weekend.
