I was a big fan of your last layout. It helped inspire me, and I used your ditch light article as refrence when I did my light tubes, but this layout....WOW!
Thanks, DB! It's the result of finally having enough space to do something with a very low track to scenery ratio. This one is going to be (I hope) a railfan's railroad.
Here are some shots of the ongoing scenery on The Oakville Sub. The main area has now been rough sculptured and give the base coat of paint. Taken over the mountain: Looking north: And looking south: Every week it's a little more fun to run!
Now those are some loooooooong trains--looks great! I do have a question regarding your trackwork. I believe we are both using the same materials: ME code 55 track and Atlas code 55 turnouts. What did you do to account for the shorter tie heights on the Atlas track? I am just about to lay my first turnout and figured I would come tap into your knowlegebase. Jamie
Looking at that last pic just gave me the heebiejeebies ! All those cars...all that $$...running that close to the edge. One opppppssssssss...the domino effect... and....:tb-ooh: *shudder*. Other then that...i'm jealous...LOL. :tb-biggrin::thumbs_up: .
I did nothing, Jamie, and it worked just fine. The switches are secure, the track is secure...I noted the difference, but it didn't seem to be enough to bother with. The caulk apparently evens it out. (I went with the clear version of what you are using - just because One of the worst sounds you can hear is the sound of cars hitting the floor from 50 feet away. And there's something about laminate floors that make that sound worse. I'll tell you this - you'll fix any track issues VERY quickly ! I now have guards on the bridge across the doorway and have glued cardboard strips on certain areas that are prone to problems. I haven't had a car hit the floor in a couple months now. And I am very alert for the minor derailment - just had one yesterday on a twin stack car and have put that car on the bench to examine VERY closely and find the problem.
I had a busy couple weeks working on scenery - just wasn't far enough along to share last week. But now - ta da! North side of the main room: East side of the main room: West side of the main room (shot over the mountain): And The very first completed portion of The New Oakville Sub: More next post -
Finally, a close up shot of the finished section: This was my first experience with Arizona Rock and Mineral ballast - I absolutely love it! So easy to use! So good looking! Makes Ballasting a pleasure!
Jim, she's really lookin' good man! ahhhh, to have enough room for really long trains.... sigh.... -Mike
I've been a busy boy the last two weeks putting up fascia and filling it in. I've come up with a modification of the hard shell technique which cuts the mess substantially. Instead of using plaster soaked paper towels, I hot glue painter's rags to the cardboard lattice. Here's what it looks like: Then I add some water to joint compound and brush it on the rags. Still takes several coats but there's virtually no mess and it FEELS faster. The remaining photos are the rest of the room with fascia and plaster.
Excellent as always. I'm gonna give the Joe Fugate method a try when I start--cardboard web covered with masking tape painted earth color. I'll probably do the plaster rags/towels/gauze over that. Jamie
Fantastic Jim! What a great place to escape to! What is the plan with the double fascia in this picture? A retaining wall? It reminds me a bit of this section between Tunnels 7 and 8. Best, Gary
