Working the layout - time to party

rsn48 Jan 12, 2004

  1. Bama Red

    Bama Red TrainBoard Member

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    OK, Rick - I'm in. I started in June with the Woodlamd Scenics Scenic Ridge layout, got the track down and all the foam and plaster cloth done and ready to scenic when I decided that it wouldn't give me enought to do, so I added a 2.5'X11.5' extension. I would like to finish most of the track work for the extension this week and start ballasting the track.
     
  2. Graham Evans

    Graham Evans TrainBoard Member

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    Greetings MagicMan:)

    Thanks for the comments... and the picture in the following post.

    The Athabasca handrails were easy to add ( a deffinate bonus in my book) they even came with a drilling jig on the fret to drill the holes for the walkway handrails. The end rails just superglue onto the lifelike frames at the end and have everything on in one go. They are also stainless steel (I believe), which means its tricky to bend them accidentally.

    Thanks for the details about the cab windows.. I shall have to look for some frets for the all weather ones next time I am in the model shop, as I will for replacement horns and an antennae. The shade looks like a plasticard job [​IMG]

    I am still hunting for number boards the correct size to make it look right as well [​IMG]

    The CN logo is interesting, as I just dont have any that big :( but.. Yes it looks wrong, so they will go.. I have another sheet of transfers coming soon for switchers which may have the right size, but if needed, I will look at HO ones to get the right size.

    Thanks again... it may not be perfect, but I don't want to embaress myself with something that just looks wrong:)

    Regards

    Graham Evans
    http://www.colony.co.uk
     
  3. Dwight

    Dwight TrainBoard Member

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    Well, a dismal second report. [​IMG] I've basically got nothing done in the last week, needed some additional supplies from the LHS, some of which still isn't in. Bad weather here means my job gets busy, so I've had zero ambition by the time I get home. I did run the train a few times though. ;)
    I hope to get back on it today and mount the WS risers as well as some of the foam scenery 'base' and maybe start adding some plaster cloth to some areas. I need to get to the other LHS and get some structure kits so I know how much room is needed for them (closest one does not have an exceptional N structure inventory).
    Additional cheerful note: two more pieces of rolling stock arrived this week. [​IMG] [​IMG]
     
  4. up mike

    up mike E-Mail Bounces

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    Rick Why am I having a hard time with the Image button???? I can't post any pic's it locks up on me. [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG]
    Now I really don't get it!!!! I just edited my post and i can add my pic's???????????

    [ 25. January 2004, 17:56: Message edited by: up mike ]
     
  5. up mike

    up mike E-Mail Bounces

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    As you can see I got the yard area done and all wood down on the leg area of the "L" I also got all backdrops painted and now I am getting the front of the layout ready for the WS risers.
     
  6. Monon64

    Monon64 TrainBoard Supporter

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    I made some minor modifications to the layout base, cutting off some corners as Rick suggested earlier and adding a small section so that I won't have a real sharp corner to turn coming out of the Big Tunnel.


    Last week after I used the liquid nails as adhesive for the cork roadbed the odor stank up the house and didn't make wife to happy. So I didn't have the guts to try it again so soon [​IMG] . I tried laying some track on the section of cork that I did get laid, but I wasn't satisfied with it because it hadn't been painted. This brings me to this question.

    [​IMG] What color should I use to paint my track? and is there a certain type of paint I should use? I definitely don't want to leave it looking shiny and new. The next obstacle is that the paint will put off an odor too and my garage isn't currently warm enough to paint in. I've got the unction to do something but it seems like I'm at a stand still.

    I've been trying to find AMI roadbed, guess I'll have to order it though, can't seem to find it anywhere around here in O scale.

    Well I guess that's my report for this week, not much happening. I'm enjoying reading the progress of others though. Keep the updates coming!!
     
  7. Colonel

    Colonel Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Well sorry for being late but I am now ready to start my next project. It has been some time that I have wanted to finish this stage of the layout but I have been procrastinating over what I should do.

    I have finally decided to build and engine service facility, here is the thread that helped me decide on a final design.


    Engine Service Facility

    This design enable approx 12 locomotives to be serviced and stored. I will use this to service all trains that stable in the through yard. The facility is large enough to have it's own local cab and will keep an operator busy.

    I have just ordered the points (switches) but will take approx 2 weeks to arrive from USA. Hopefully this thread will still be running when I lay track.

    Here is a picture of the final design.

    [​IMG]
     
  8. Hoss

    Hoss TrainBoard Member

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    Time for my weekly report.

    Week 2

    Of the goals I set above, I did manage to accomplish most of them.

    I completed drawing the track centerlines on all of the plywood I have down at the moment. I also managed to get quite a bit of cork down on those centerlines, including in the yard. I raised what I could to the correct grade, and the rest is still at zero elevation at the moment.

    Below is the yard from the south end. Actually, it's only about half of the yard. It will eventually continue towards the camera and then curve around to the east. Looking at it in the picture below, if you start on the right and work left the tracks are as follows: Yard 1, Yard 2, Main Line, Yard 3, Yard 4 and to the far left is a track going to the engine house and the car shop. This track will also serve as a run around to the east.

    [​IMG]

    Here is the yard again looking from the north. You can also see the base for the engine house.

    [​IMG]

    This is a shot looking north towards the Powder River Basin. The far right track is a passing siding, the middle one is the main and the far left is the coal flood loading track. The flood loader will be located just to the south of the curve.

    [​IMG]

    Here are a couple of overall shots of the Powder River Basin.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Here is a shot looking south from the Powder River Basin.

    [​IMG]

    I started working on the Walther's Western Coal Flood Loader kit, but pretty much got nothing done on it.

    I'm going to keep my primary goal for the upcoming week simple. I want to get the remaining plywood on the layout and get the backdrop installed on the south and east sides of the layout. This will allow me to permanently put the layout against the wall, giving it much more stability. If I get that accomplished I'll be happy.

    As secondary goals, I'd like to install florescent lighting on the ceiling. Accomplishing this is a matter of money more than anything else. The installation part of it will only be about a 1-2 hour job at most.

    If I find any spare time, I'd like to finish that flood loader, but it's low priority.

    [ 26. January 2004, 02:52: Message edited by: Hoss ]
     
  9. Colonel

    Colonel Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Hoss,

    Excellent work the layout is shaping up nicely. Looking at the yard i was wondering if you had considered have one full piece of cork rather than individual.

    The reason I ask is most yards all the tracks are at the same level to enable switching by the railroad employees.

    Here is a picture of my yard area to show you what I mean.

    [​IMG]

    As you can see there is no cess between yard roads but there is between the mainline and yard area.

    Just give you another view, great work and look forward to seeing your progress.
     
  10. Hoss

    Hoss TrainBoard Member

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    Paul, I actually intend for the yard to be level. I'll either fill the gaps in with more cork or just make it all level when I put the ballast down. I used cork simply because I didn't want the track directly on the plywood.

    I have some 3" wide strips of cork that would have worked well for this, but I didn't think of using it until I had already drawn the centerlines on the plywood and I didn't want to have to do it again on the cork.

    As a note, the entire yard will be elevated approximately 8 inches when I get to that stage in the game.
     
  11. Colonel

    Colonel Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Hoss,

    I actually did the same thing when i built my layout, i ended up using fill sand rather than using the more expensive ballast I had purchased for the yard :D

    The powder river basin will make an excellent scenic area once finished. Your layout is at a stage where you will be running trains shortly and you will be able to stand back and envy your progress.
     
  12. 2slim

    2slim TrainBoard Member

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    Well, it's not a layout but it's for my friends layout.....is that OK? This is a HO Walthers Jordan Spreader kit and it was pretty challenging, but still fun..... [​IMG] It took about 25 hours to build, still need to put on the rear coupler but it's pretty much finished.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    I'm debating if I'm going to weather it or not... [​IMG] Maybe later.
    2slim

    Todd when posting pics from railimages you need to clcick on the thumbnail for the fullsize pic then right clcik on it and select properties then past the url :D

    [ 26. January 2004, 03:43: Message edited by: 2slim ]
     
  13. 2slim

    2slim TrainBoard Member

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    OK not sure what happened here.... [​IMG]
    HMMM.....Could've sworn that's what I did [​IMG] Thanks for the fix.
    2slim

    [ 26. January 2004, 03:46: Message edited by: 2slim ]
     
  14. Hoss

    Hoss TrainBoard Member

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    Using fill sand is a good idea. Actually, I may not use ballast in the yard at all. I recently saw where someone used tile grout mix in their yard and it looked pretty good. I was thinking of maybe something along those lines...maybe with a light ballast sprinkled on top to give the effect of old ballast.

    I hope I'm running trains soon. Honestly, I don't see how some of you guys get track down so fast. Either y'all have a lot more time than I do or y'all are just a lot faster than I am. I feel like it takes me forever to get anything done....but I have fun doing it. Maybe I'm too picky. If it's not perfect I'm not happy with it and I start over. :rolleyes:
     
  15. rsn48

    rsn48 TrainBoard Member

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    In my yard, copying a buddy of mine's idea, I will be using very fine river silt from the Fraser River in British Columbia, harvest in Surrey BC.

    He used train engine sand for his ballast, then the river silt everywhere else. It looks good. It is his base coat, akin to paint the plywood, and other goodies will eventually go on it in many parts.
     
  16. KiwiRail

    KiwiRail TrainBoard Member

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    Man this thread is jumping. Fill sand and grout mix eh? thanks for that

    I got the framing started. I've either discovered somethign new or I'm on the road to disaster, not sure which [​IMG]

    I'm using a very light weight galvanised steel channel You can see it here along with most of the required tools to work it: riveter, drill, scribe and square, tape, angle grinder with metal cutting disk
    [​IMG]
    and it looks like this
    [​IMG].

    Excuse the mess [​IMG] most of you guys are so tidy! You can see I'm not :rolleyes:

    I have ordered 50mm high-density (but not extruded) styrofoam which will go on top.

    The even lighter stuff you can see laid on top is used by plasterers to protect corners on walls. It will be used for diagonal bracing and as the vertical supports for the backdrop. The backdrop will be sky-coloured photographer's backdrop on a foam-core-board base

    Since starting the frame I've found an even smaller profile channel that I will use for diagonal bracing.

    Scenery (what little there is) will be space-filler foam - very little plaster

    i reckon that with the little pine legs detached this will be the lightest layout ever!

    now what should I put on top of the foam board for track base? Do I lay AMI direct on the foam or do i need another 10mm of foam cut to profile to raise the track bed?
     
  17. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

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    Second week's work log:

    Jan 19—Monday

    No time. In and out from 7 AM to well past 10 PM.

    Jan 20—Tuesday

    More work on J-Town. Scanned and printed some granite cut-stone walls for the raised track. Walthers paper stuff from 1967 is just too small, so assembled and blended bigger pieces. One hour delay in downloading and installing scanner drivers for new system and new Photoshop. Installed walls and ballast. Had a problem with curving the paper for the walls--should really be cut on a radius, but let's see what comes out. They are behind buildings, so bulges should be OK. Searched for an eyedropper, found one in a decades-old medicine bottle. Dumped medicine. Not big enough, but it worked. Will let everything dry for a few hours, then trim and maybe take pictures.

    Jan 21—Wednesday

    Started a fish pier building. After years with no Xacto cuts, managed to slice fingers twice. Typing is hard. After the success of the foam core extension on second deck, started one for the first deck, where the ships are.

    Jan 22&23—Thursday/Friday

    Need to spend time cleaning up--can't find anything! Didn't even do that--too much real work. Started on Pete's Fish Processing--the keystone to J-Town. Jeanne finished her flophouse--wonderful work! It's the other keystone to J-Town. Friday was a bust on the layout.

    Jan 24--Sat.

    Spent the morning on errands, ending up at LHS. Bought a few things. Worked stopped at 2:30 PM. Jeanne's bunch of women friends have decided that a work night on the railroad would be fun--oh my!

    Jan 25--Sun

    Jeanne worked on scenicking the edge around Downtown, while I finally ballasted the tracks on the west wall. Discovered all the stuff we needed but hadn't bought yesterday. I went to the LHS for them, while she worked on the vertical rock wall on the west second deck. She's developed a method for applying greenery. She got most of the 20-foot wall scenicked, while I finished up around J-Town, and laid 12 feet of harbor, using the same foam core extension method I've described elsewhere.

    Here J-Town shaping up, with the stern of a new ship on the new harbor extension. Smaller fishing boats will actually be berthed here--once I build them.

    [​IMG]

    Pete

    [ 27. January 2004, 05:02: Message edited by: Pete Nolan ]
     
  18. William Cowie

    William Cowie TrainBoard Member

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    My second layout party is marked by decidedly less beginner's luck than my first! [​IMG] All I've achieved is the plywood base and the foam is primed (at last). I discovered I was too aggressive on my track plan, so the weekend was spent drying the primer and redoing the track plan. With year-end I'm busier at work than usual, so weekends are pretty much the only time for partying.

    I did do some research on paving, since almost half my first module will be either roads or paved lots. I've seen styrene curl up when painted with water-based paint, so I'm inclined to go with something like plaster or hydrocal. Does anyone have any thoughts on the best way to do asphalt paving? Something like this...

    [​IMG]

    Thnaks in advance!
    William
     
  19. Hoss

    Hoss TrainBoard Member

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    I'm glad you mentioned styrene curling up. I didn't know that....and wouldn't have expected that. So....what DOES everyone use for paving then?
     
  20. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

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    The easiest solution to curling is to paint both sides. As a long-time (hobbyist) cabinet-maker, I can tell you that even furniture-grade 3/4-inch plywood will curl when finished on only one side. Most paints/finishes shrink when drying/curing.

    I use matte board for pavement--talk about curling, especially at the edges! But, if it is firmly glued down, and exposed to only a little wetting, it works OK.

    Pete
     

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