The helix is done! I clipped the brads that came through and rebuilt one truss that warped from a knot. The "Connie" chugs right on through without a hitch. The gold mine loop had a washout from a heavy rain so took care of that one with my trusty shop vac. I also finished the town reversing loop so it's now ready for the buildings, roads, and all that sort of stuff. Here are some pictures:
We had a lot of sight seers this weekend. I put the Connie on auto and just let her go loop after loop. At one time we had several cars parked along the street watching the train go around. We're at a little over 350' of track now or about half way on the main lines. Next major project is to get going on the rock terrace that goes along the street and the mine loop. After that we'll get the town built. The weather is great right now but I think we're going to wait until spring to get the garden projects started.
Rex
Made it up to Pinetop this weekend. I was able to clip the brads that went clear through in order to provide the clearance needed for the 1:20 Connie. I designed the helix for 1:22 so the Connie is a tight fit as in about 1/16" between the stack and the beams. Here are some pictures. The first is entering the helix at the bottom. The second is the Connie coming out of the second level.
We're going up again next weekend. I should be able to get the truss bridge between the helix and the upper mine/logging line installed. More pictures to follow next week.
Get the Garden Railways newsletter delivered to your inbox twice a month