I could be wrong, but the text suggests that the view of Jim Hanna's benchwork in that article is for a different layout, not the UP layout plan designed by Don Mitchell. Since the plan in MRP is similar to a multideck plan published in Don's Walkaround Model Railroad Track Plans book (Kalmbach, 1991, now out of print), it may well be that it is a theoretical plan and not one that has ever been built. So the benchwork challenges may yet to have been solved.
ByronModel RR Blog
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Looking for any info on 'Modern UP on three levels" shown in the 2006 MR planning book (page 32). The article only has a small picture of one part of the framing. I'm trying to finding how he supported/mounted the upper two levels. I've tried looking in the MR layout database, but they only show the magazine layouts.
I'm hoping to swipe the layout framing for one I'm trying to build in a spare bedroom. Instead of spiraling up then backdown thru the helix, I planing doubling back at the top to make a dual mainline. Even though the track will run different, the more I look at it, the more the framing keeps yelling "I'm the same".
Thanks.