Risers!
I'm really on the clock now since I told my 4-year old son that we would have some track in by the end of next weekend! Jamie
CLICK HERE FOR THE CSX DIXIE LINE BLOG
Just noticed this post and read it front to back. DUDE!!! You are rollin!!! Looks like all that planning paid off. I like the way youv'e protected your floor. I have a heckofa time keeping stuff off the floor. You got a little track down, better run some engines for the kid. BILL
Reklein, Thanks for the compliment and I am really glad I used the plastic sheeting under the benchwork especislly now with all the glue drips from starting the spline roadbed. And speaking of that...
Splines!
Jamie
All of the spline roadbed in the Emerson area of the layout is now complete. This is about 40% of the lower level. All in all, I am VERY pleased with how easy it was to build spline roadbed. I also like the fact that it is dirt cheap and the only waste is the sawdust generated when cutting the splines. Plus, you've gotta love all of the flowing curves with natural easements. Next on the agenda I will be topping the splines with homemade cork roadbed and laying the track. Completed spline roadbed, North Emerson:
Completed spline roadbed, South Emerson:
I had planned on doing a return loop on the helix base but did not want to mess with temporary track, so instead I just coiled the mainline around the helix base and terminated it. This will basically be a staging track at the south end of the layout until the helix gets built. I'll do the same to the outside track on the helix base which will be the temporary staging track for the north end of the layout:
Completed the coark roadbed atop the spline roadbed in the Emerson area of the layout:
In this picture, you can see the transition ramp that has been sanded in the cork roadbed down to the siding (near track) to account for the taller double-thick layer of cork on the mainline:
All I can say is I am taking notes. When I am ready for the new bench I would love to talk with you on the phone. Looks great, like you don't know that.
Cuda Ken
I hate Rust
Jamie: Great job on your spline roadbed. You're well on your way to a great layout. Well done!
Tested out superelevation on a curbed section of track on my 36" x 80" hollow core door test layout. I used the technique described in this document. Here is a quick video I did showing the results (click the link to play video):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LmWU8W3K1I
Was very pleased with the outcome--I will definitely be using this technique as I continue laying track on the big layout. Jamie
MILESTONE: First track officially laid on the CSX Dixie Line! After soldering feeders to the bottoms of the rails at the workbench, I permanently affixed the first two sections of Micro Engineering Code 55 concrete tie flex track to the roadbed. I am using grey Dap ALEX caulk to affix the track; the color is almost an exact match to the concrete ties and doesn't stand out like the bright white caulk would have. These first sections of track make up the mainline that runs from the south end of the Emerson siding into the helix: Jamie
I like where you've put your helix,very practical and relatively space saving. Only trouble is I'm in HO and would need a room twicw the size. All your planning paid off. Stick to it, BILL
Good golly, Jamie! You've been one busy young man. Very impressive work.
"I am lapidary but not eristic when I use big words." - William F. Buckley
I haven't been sleeping. I'm afraid I'll dream I'm in a coma and then wake up unconscious. -Stephen Wright
The mainline has now been laid all the way from the helix to the north end of the Emerson passing siding. Here is CSX automotive train Q210 stopped at the end of the line:
South End Emerson:
North End Emerson:
I also replaced the temporary wires with permanent bus wires so trains can be run over all the existing track. The bus wires all terminate where the future DCC panel will be located. For now everything is just spliced together and attached to the booster as you can see in the middle photo above.
I have halted construction for a few weeks while I try to complete the track plan. During this time, I decided to switch my prototype to a section of the CSX around the North Carolina/South Carolina border:
I just completed the lower level track plan for this "Carolina Rails" version of the layout: This is farther than I ever got with the original Dixie Line track plan and I already have a good bit of the upper level worked out. I will need to tear out the first section of trackwork and redo it because it is different on the new plan. Fortunately I decided to make the change before I got too far into the construction. Jamie
Your layout is looking very good! I wish I had been watching this forum when you first posted your shelf brackets and all the discussion about sagging that followed. What I am doing on my layout is very similar - 1x4's vertical against the wall, with arms that stick out about 11 inches. But what I did to strengthen them was to use little triangular gussets of 1/8" masonite. The gusset is basically sandwiched between the arm and the upright. This is actually something you could still do, if you discover a need for reinforcement; you just would have to leave a notch cut out of the right angle corner of the triangle, since your arm and upright are already firmly anchored. The masonite should have enough flex in it to warp and fit in there.
Looking at your new plan, and considering your enthusiasm for spline roadbed, my biggest comment would be that you need to maximize the aesthetic potential inherent to spline work, and avoid having tracks that are exactly parallel to the layout edge. One place I see good potential is in Harmony - the main should angle toward the layout front edge a bit, near the switch and creek, and then angle back to where it goes to enter the helix. This arrangement might make the spur into the industry there a little easier (gentler curves). Mineral s\Springs, on the opposite side of the backdrop, is another place where the main could be at a slight angle back to front. In Waxhaw, the parallelism actually works in your favor, as this is a small town whose street grid grew up around the railroad Right of Way, and the layout edge reinforces this grid. But the bridge at Van Wyck might give you more joy if it angled as well, like making the bottom end of it closer to the aisle, so that you can look at it not only side-on but also from a more "natural" lengthwise view (as if you were standing on the riverbank). All of these are minor variations on your plan, and can be worked out with the free-flowing splines as you work.
Keep it up! Your progress is inspiring, and I need a little inspiration every now and then to keep going. My own basement is gradually transforming...
Mike, Thanks for the feedback on my track plan! I think we are both seeing the same vision for the layout even though everything seems very "plain vanilla" on the published plan. One thing I did not want to do is get caught up in exact track placement, since I will be doing that when I actually lay out the splines. In fact, I think the Catawba LDE is the only one where I actually worked in some flowing curves since I wanted to make sure an industry switch would fit. I even considered using a different roadbed method in some of the flatter areas like Waxhaw, but I am going to stick with the splines even in flat areas. That way, if I decide I want to work in a gentle curve here or there, it is easy to do without having to re-cut a sheet of plywood. Jamie
Jamie, the new plan looks interesting.. I am enjoying reading about the LDEs on your blog. I know what you mean about the "writers block". I recently came to realize a basement obstruction had rendered my original plan for "the next one" untenable and I have been having a heck of a time trying to redo it. At some point, one has to step away and consider other options. Its not easy to move in a different direction after all the research and such that goes into a good prototype track plan..
I have also really enjoyed reading about how you were doing your splines, something I want to try when I move to a larger layout.
Chris
Wow...it has been a while since I last updated my progress! After toying with the idea of switching to the Seaboard Air Line in 1966--including drawing a complete track plan--I decided to stick to my original plan for the modern day CSX from Atlanta to Chattanooga to Nashville. I have come a long way since my last update; the current scene I am working on is the small town of Emerson, GA about 25 miles northwest of Atlanta:
The CSX W&A Subdivision mainline and passing siding crossing I-75:
Quick update showing progress I have made building the Old Allatoona Road grade crossing in Emerson, GA:
Here is a prototype photo that I took in 2008:
Now I am just waiting on an order of static grass to arrive from Scenic Express so I can add vegetation to the scene.
I like it how you have modeled the brown soil first, and will add grass on top of that. And static grass, at that... this is my own preferred technique, and I think it looks SO much better than plain old ground foam glued to tan-painted plaster. Of course, I mix in some ground foam along with my grass, to get a variety of colors and textures. I wet an area with dilute glue and sprinkle in my green ground foam, then saturate this and apply the static grass over top of it. My grass tends more towards the browns, so that the deepest greens are near the roots and the top edges are more dry looking. Then I might add some clumps or medium turf after the grass goes in, to represent larger weeds or bushes.
Keep up the good work!
A couple of photos of the sction of the layout where I have pretty much completed the scenery: