The saga of my ever shrinking railroad

[vsmith]

Announcing a SAD day for the citizens of Borracho...

I, Victor Smith, as CEO of the Borracho RR CO, its my sad duty to report that after 3 years of planning, building, rebuilding, and yet rebuilding again, that the indoor Borracho Springs RR will be dismantled probably right after Christmas.[:(]

This is due to the eventual demolition of the RR current location, the garage.

However...[;)]

The new replacement garage will allow for a larger layout in a far more comfortable housing that will include insualted walls and AC.[:D]

Also I will be using track pulled up from the indoor layout to expand the outdoor Fubar & Snafu branch, so that something very positive! [:p]

I will post progress prints of the demo and rebuild and of the expansion to the outdoor layout.

Not an END, just a new beginning! the futures so bright, I gotta wear...[8D]

[vsmith]

I recieved a request to post the pics I use in my siganture so that it can be copied, althought I think it can be done straight from the signiture pic, I'll post it here as well as a second related pic. Both are from the long gone Mt Lowe Scenic RR from here in lovely Pasadena Ca. I hope you like them...


The circular bridge with Echo Mt Station in the left background, that "roadcut" is the ROW


An early trolley crossing a trestle at Los Flores Canyon, elev 3500'


The Incline RR from Rubio Canyon in Altadena to Echo Mt.

Some historic photos
http://www.aaaim.com/echo/v4n1/v4n1oldpwrcasa.jpg
Echo Mt circa 1930

http://www.aaaim.com/echo/v4n4/V4N4EMHPC.jpg
Incline RR at Echo Mt circa 1900 with the the original hotel resort

[Anonymous]

Sounds like your just working for another client then! LOL!

Maybe post some before and after construction photos of workshop area and layout area.

[vsmith]

QUOTE: Originally posted by carpenter matt

Vic, sounds great! Are you the architect on this project?

Even though I'll end up doing most of the drawings and development, my wife would dissagree with that observation.[;)]

[Anonymous]

Vic, sounds great! Are you the architect on this project?

[Tom The Brat]

Sounds pretty nice!

[vsmith]

Bump*
Not much progress on the layout, reason being that we may tear down the existing garage and build a new larger garage! No fear, If this happens it will be a good thing. For one I can get a space that can be insulated and A/C'd. If this happens, no changes to the layout, it will come out in sections and be put back in as same, however I should be able to correct a few things about my current set up that I really dislike.

1. I can raise the (reduced) overhead storage loft area to 7' giving me headroom to walk under the layout (I have to stoop under now) and...
2. I will be able to add a bit of area for scenery at the rear instead of it being pushed right up to the backdrop.
3. I will be able to integrate workshop and layout together, in an area with A/C, TV, sofa, & a small fridge.
4. Best of all, maybe I wont have to do battle with big ugly spiders anymore

Even though I've been more productive in the workshop than on the layout, I havent forsaken it, I have begun to consider serious operations set ups for my layout. Now considering I have never done operations, I have a ways to go in my education, but, I have committed the current layout into a form that makes organizing said operations along realistic lines.

Here is the Borracho RR in a linear diagramic form, with each spot labeled and each siding and spur labeled with its capacity (Somewhere I read this was important).

http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/GarageStudy_OperationsStudy_LineDiagram.pdf

I will probably repost it in the operations forum at MLS and over in the MR forum after I do some more reading on the subject.
Later, Vic.

[Anonymous]

Kim, keep in mind Vic could ba***hem all out of one bachmann car![:0]

[Anonymous]

Vic, I'm impressed, that's one top diesel and ideal for the branch line RR. I'm slightly concerned how big the coaches are going to be, 3 or 4 passengers per coach?
Cheers,
Kim
[tup]

[nalts]

Vic-

I love your FA- ½! It reminds me of that car commercial where averyone is driving around town with ½ of a car. Very cool!

Chris

[vsmith]

Well on a recent trip back east, the boys in the Borracho Railway front office got a sight of the shiny new ALCO FA-1 that are becoming very common on them East Coast lines, They resolved that they HAD to have one! Unfortunately someone told them that A: it was the wrong gauge, or B: that it was way way to large for the small industrial tramline. Well, not willing to be told No by anyone,the head office managed to get ahold of a set of plans with orders to the shop foreman "make it work or else!" Here's the proud final product of those industrius lads, the FA- 1/2!!!! Next stop, the paint shed, although there is some debate as to what colors to paint the future proud hauler of the Borracho Varnish !![:p][;)][8D][:D]

[John Busby]

Hi Vic
thats coming along very nicely will have to have a good read when i get a chance to see what i have missed.
Hi Annie
If your Mum makes dolls houses ask her where you can get the less common 1/2" parts
you will find them most usefull.
Do a web search on garden railways and find the ones that have been well done. and blend in well with the garden you may be able to convince her to allow you to do a small trial set up and if you get her to help with plant selection you could be on a winner
just a thought
regards John

[vsmith]

Couple pics of my fuel tank, made from an HLW minicar tank, some LGB bridge piers left over from the Big Shrink, and some detail parts.
http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/fuel%20tank%20front.jpg

http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/fuel%20tank%20rear.jpg

http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/fuel%20tank%20right.jpg

PS Matt , not quite ready yet for the turntable crank, hopefully this summer.

[Anonymous]

Vic, psst! Turntable crank[:p][:D]

[Anonymous]

I found reading the saga of your railroad fascinating vsmith. I'm having to face the fact that my first 'G' layout is going to be in my bedroom which is 9ft x 11ft last time I checked. The garden is my Mum's domain and she is very protective of her garden, - so I figure having a bit of a practice for a start in my room so I can show her what I'm about would be a very good idea. Studying your plans as they have evolved has been useful for me too as trying to fit 'G' scale into a space I was using for '0' gauge previously requires some mental gear shifting along the way. I'm hoping to use multilevel techniques as I do want some grades for my logging locos to climb, but the biggest problem is whether or not I can get away with running a tunnel through my wardrobe. If not I'm going to have to run a removeable section across the front of the wardrobe door (sigh). I'm going to use Bachman indoor track and switches/points at least for a start because I've got them already and once the trackplan is properly firmed up I can make a change to something better if I want to.
My Mum builds dollshouses to 1" to the foot scale and I'm sure she's going to love it once I get to building structures. Again your building are wonderfully inspiring and give me a good guide as to what is possible. Most structures I'll be building will be based on the simple timber and corragated iron buildings common in New Zealand tramway practice. Unfortunately any representation of the mill buildings is going to have to be in the backscene fronted by a little low relief modelling (sigh), but I can live with that.

Thanks again for your inspiring saga.

Annie

[vsmith]

Latest news from the Borracho RR construction reports.

Had to rework some trackwork YET AGAIN, but this time its for the better. The track plan on the south yard was simply not working, it was too forced and I had NO room to move anything bigger than a small Porter and an HLW minicar. Not good when I have some 20 footers. So after a lot of reworking on the Cadd I finally got a plan I liked , finished reworking the track last weekend, pretty easy change as it's much simpler but far more functional.

http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/GarageStudyDOWNSIZEnew%20studyD_3-24-05%20Model.pdf

It now more resembles the yard on the north end and allows for a true passing siding to be built. After the wiring is completed I am locking the program layers containing the track plan ..NO MORE CHANGES!

I will say one thing, if your planning any kind of layout with operation in mind, use the track in that configuration for a while before you lock it in concrete. I learned a whole heckovalot about layout planning with this experience, and if you can have the patience, leave your benchtop bare for a while (or you garden)and determine if this layout truely works for you, if not - change it, get it right, then do the finish work. I made a kiester load of mistakes and dead ends on this over the last year, but each time it gets a little better. But now I'm pretty comfortable this will be the last change.


...at least for now! Later Vic

[Anonymous]

Vic, as I said on MLS I can't wait to see them in place. Amazing they are architecturally correct![:D]

[vsmith]

Some pics of some new buildings for the layout. Just had to fini***hese to clear off my workbench.

http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/Warehouse1.jpg

http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/3%20new%20facades.jpg

[aljay]

[(-D][(-D][(-D][(-D]

Thanks, got it now. This is what happens when you don't read the link ...

[Anonymous]

Vic, i guess I'm a computer idiot, somewhere in my browser setting it's set for image preview instead of theat open with window, not sure how to change it.
I tried posting it as a pic but it won't read it.

[vsmith]

Try it again,

My bad, the original link included these (1) parenthesis that the conversion program automatically adds, it confuse the computer.[:I][:o)][%-)][D)][:-^]

[Anonymous]

Probably do to the fact it is a PDF instead of jpg. My computer trys to open it with image preview which will not enable it. needs to open with Adobe Acrobat.

[Rastun]

Copy the link and paste it into your browser it will work, the atuo link coding is confused with it.

Jack

[aljay]

[#ditto]

I get the same thing to....

[Anonymous]

vsmith
I keep getting page not found ???????? BEN

[vsmith]

Just a little something, I found this file from way way back, before I went into the great indoors.

http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/vsmith/4x6%20firstlayout%20Model.pdf

Its a plan of the simple 4.5x6.5 foot indoor layout I was going to build as a test track and a bad weather alternate to the planned outdoor track. I got as far as track on boardwith the layout setting in the middle of the garage and a pulley system to lift the board out of the way. it rested on two sawhorse.

When the great expulsion from the garden occured, this layout became the basic building block of my current , um......empire?

Now that I've stopped laughing...I wanted to post this just to show that small is relative. and even in large scale you can get away with a lot in a little space. Later.

[vsmith]

Hehehe Sandy your funny...

Its actually a steer horn I picked up at the BTS and CA'd to the numberplate of my Porter I think I got it from Bridgeworks. I also have Ozark Miniatures Deer antlers on my Stainz/Falk kitbash and I'm currently looking for Moose Antlers for another engine.

[SandyR]

Tim, maybe he used the cowcatcher? (Sorry! I just HAD to say that!)
SandyR

[Anonymous]

Congrats Vic, I myself couldn't care less either, all it does is confirm for my wife how much time I spend here...BUSTED AGAIN![:D]

[TurboOne]

Congrats on hitting 3000 Vic. How do you get the cowhead on the engine? Didn't think a cow would stand still long enough. [:)]

Tim