I'm just going to post my layout stuff in this thread so keep things a bit more simple.
First off I have the flooring all finished up. That was actually all done a while ago and I guess I didn't post up a photo on this thread so here it is:
Next up is my continuing design saga..... I'm liking this arrangement more and more. However, it's still a long way from being anything. Don't like the whole southeast corner area. But at least I got my turntable on paper. The min isle width is 24", but only in the alcove and in the south wall. May not be wide enough with all the possible switching action in that location. Otherwise it's 30" or better for most every other place. The branch line peninsula in the middle of the room has 20" radius curves at the moment.
Thanks for looking, stay tuned..... same Bat channel, same Bat time... ZING! POW!! SMASH!!!
If you're going to be painting the walls or doing any cuting of materials, you'll want to put a drop cloth (or several down) or you'll ruin the finish.
I haven't put down a floor yet primarily because they aren't cheap and what I've got (tiles with asbestos in them) is easy to sweep up and/or vacuum. I'll cover it eventually, money is just too tight right now.
Irv
Loco,
You are one lucky guy !!!!! I was 44 when I got my dedicated room after the last of the kids left. Believe me, having a climate controlled and finished room makes the layout so much nicer and "funner". Looks like yours is on an upper floor, as is mine, and there is a downside - that being that most of the heavy carpentry work is done in the garage or basement. I cannot tell you how many trips I made up/down those stairs with pieces of plywood, etc.... The old adage, measure twice and cut once is a must here, but a number of the sections on my "cookie cutter" top took several steps to get them right. But hey, who cares!!! You got a train room !!!!!!
ENJOY,
Mobilman44
ENJOY !
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
Looking better all the time
Are you doing all the room construction yourself (can't remember if you mentioned this earlier in the thread)? Jamie
CLICK HERE FOR THE CSX DIXIE LINE BLOG
Irv, no worries on the floors. I've put a good half a dozen (every place I've lived and a few friends to boot) Although I'm not a huge neat freak, I can tell ya that cleaning up a spilled bottle of paint is WAY better than with carpet.
Mobilman44 - NO KIDDING! I got the room on the second level....up... down... up.... down.... I have all my tools and saws and such in the garage. Which is on the OTHER side of the house in the back. Then, when the actually cutting begins, I moved the portable table saw outside (I've done a lot of maint work so I've got everything very portable). This is mostly because the dust is very very fine and will get everywhere (ya, I figured that out on the first floor in my first condo which was on the second level). And hey, I'm not so young any more myself! 43! But often still think I'm 23 Motrin is your friend.....
Jamie - doing everything I can myself. Which has been everything so far
Today I started today put'en some paint down! I went with Glidden Azure Afternoon in a flat. Got it at HD for $8.00 per gallon. I also got a gal of flat white.
1. this is the before photo:
2. This is one coat on about 1/3 of the ceiling and a bit of the north wall. I tried to play around with fading the white/blue bottom to top. This lighting is, well, not good and it looks much darker than the photo would suggest. I'll be getting some new lighting here before painting the final coat. This is with incandescent lighting.
3. And the same photo with just the flash. So one can see a vast difference. I'm about 90% sure I'll be picking up some track lighing using small halogens.
4. And yes, I'm a slob!!! But not to worry! I wipes right up with no problems.
As always, thanks for taking the time to look.
p.s. Think I have come up with my layout name:
Union Pacific: Ozark Mountain Division Operates in Missouri with a branch to Iowa. Haven't come up with any back story....
Union Pacific: Ozark Mountain Division
Operates in Missouri with a branch to Iowa. Haven't come up with any back story....
Track Light Instal:
If you have not been keeping up with some of the suggestions, let me sort of go over the general conundrum: What comes first, color or light? Well, Wile E. Loco – Supra Genius has solved this perplexing visual dilemma!! I took some nice outside photos on a beautiful fall day in Missouri. Went to HD and got what appeared to be the closest match to the photo of the deep blue sky at around 1:00 p.m. under daylight bulbs in the store. So far so good. I tossed up the paint on a good portion of the ceiling and a bit of the wall as shown above and was using an incandescent light source – and yes, that light is/was woefully inadequate - as many of you have mentioned and correctly so. Ok, fine. I need light. So now the question is what kind and how? After many a good suggestion, I’ve decided to use a basic track lighting system for the overall lighting of the room. This will allow for the greatest flexibility for future and unknown applications. Cool, that's decided, but good Lord! Has anybody looked at the few hundred options out there?!?!
Long story short, I choose the "normal" fixture to mount to the track which can accommodate any standard screw in bulb - incandescent, halogen, CFL, and even an LED (which are now available). I did not want to be forced into purchasing special light bulbs which would have been the case if using many of the other smaller/high tech/art deco looking fixture options (and besides, they are more expensive anyways). Again, this left open the possibility to use any bulb in the future as needed. The decision was then made to use compact florescent daylight bulbs (mercury and all). So much for my 90% probability of going with halogens.....
The reasoning is thus:
1. Greatly reduced heat output.
2. Power consumption was also reduced and thereby eliminating the need to increase the breaker to 20 amps which would have been required if any other bulb was used (not including the LED style).
3. Increased number of lighting fixtures can be used – naturally balancing the need for lighting and power requirements.Cost is always a driving factor and here are the details. I found a kit from Hampton Bay that included a 44” section of track, power connector, mounting hardware, and three fixtures for $30 at HD. Additional parts such as T-connectors at $10 ea, Splice connectors at $3 ea, Right Angle connectors $8 ea.... used as needed. The bulbs are not included and a four pack of daylights ran $9. Naturally one might find sales to reduce these cost. However time is also a consideration and I needed to get some lighting up!Some photos:1. I removed the original ceiling fan – for a few minutes I was contemplating keeping it and running new wiring, but naw…. The mounting hardware was basic and straight forward. White, Black, and Green. I did however connect the main track power to the light switch at the bottom and top of the stairs - a three way switch.
2. Here is the first segment of track installed. Using two ladders is helpfull with reaching both mounting points on the track.
3. We have LIGHT! And nothing blew up! Woot!!!
4. Here is the brand info and part numbers of the kit I used.
5. Conntinuing on, the plan is to branch off the first track that is mounted east to west with a T-connector and run tracks north to south. The T-connector comes already wired and just snaps in - just like snap track! Only reason I took the cover off was just to check it out..... And this is a closer look at the style of the fixture with the CFL installed.
6. Here is the second track installed
7. Here is a little "Mood Lighting" with no flash. Just messing around and being quite satisfied with myself (easy to do). Still lots of work - as you all can see. But now at least I've got some light!
As always, thanks for stopping by to look, and feel free to chime in with any comments - I do like to hear 'em
Now, back to painting and putting up more track lighting..... anyone see my shades?!?!
When a new rail road comes to town it is a boon to all the locals. And so it is with the Ozark Mountain Division (O.M.D.) of the Union Pacific. There is plenty to be done and work abounds.
However, UP:O.M.D. is not one for lax safety or improper working practices. A surprise inspection from the CFO and Safety Inspector could only shake her head as she reminded Daddy Day Labor that minimum working conditions would not be compromised and keeping damage to equipment is in everyone’s best interest.
With this turn of events, a new, experienced labor manager was brought in to demonstrate and guide the locals on UP's standard operating procedures (SOP's) and modern techniques to improve production while reducing potential damage to existing equipment and facilities.
Moreover, we see how these SOP's allow the highly trained UP designer to work at will and with an artful touch. Even the CFO seems impressed.....
I love your dioramas. I can't wait to see what you do with a whole room.
Sue
Anything is possible if you do not know what you are talking about.
LocoNow I just have to figure out the track plan.... That's going to be a huge undertaking for me. I'm really going to need some input from ya all.
how about modeling north platte nebraska?? hump and all!! LOL.... looks good so far....
Thanks for the comments Sue and U.P. Fan. Was beginning to wonder..... So I dug up the old Dio and thought it would be interesting to see the difference with the new lighting vs just the flash and incandescent.
Old:
New:
As a side note, I again want to thank Marklin and everyone for there great customer service. These are three of the 10 box cars that where converted to two rail.
You will find that the color of paint will influence your lighting, too. Paints with cool colors will reflect light better for photos.
Looks like you have great help.
What a neat trainroom space!
It is good to see how your layout now bridges the stairs for a ton of new operating options. Perhaps two more room planning possibilities:
[1] A desk and/or workbench with part of the layout apx. 24" above the desk will all be in the same room as the layout.
[2] You could even snuggle 1-2 reading chairs beside bookshelves in one of the room corners. Again, the layout at that point can snake a little above the bookshelves. How about a small 12" TV and/or Home Entertainment Center on one of those bookshelves?
Conemaugh Road & Traction circa 1956
Hey all, Been a while since I've been able to post. But I've not been totally derailed!
I've finished up with the track lighting and also finished putting a few coats of paint on the room. Just went ahead and painted top to bottom (except the bay window alcove - still not sure what I'm going to do with that).
This first one is looking north. You can see how going around the room with the track lighting makes the center darker.
Looking south:
And looking south east with a 4x8 section of ply wood over the stair well. I just placed one there to get an idea of how much room it would take up, head room clearance when coming up the stairs, get a feel of my reach limitations for planning, and having a heck of a place to stack everything our of the way!!
There is plenty of head room which was a nice surprise. I'm 5'10" and do not have to duck in the least. And the thing is, that level is to low as it sits on top of the banisters. Not to mention the reach factor.... four foot is to wide. So that's one worry I don't have to deal with. :O)
There are 33 cans on the lighting track. I'm running 60 watt day light CFL's. I think I could have went with the 40 watt, but they where actually more expensive... and least for now. I've been seeing sales and the price of them has been coming down. I messed around with placement and even unscrewing every other bulb, but that just didn't cut it. Having multiple cans reduces the shadow effect, also angeling them up a bit to bounce the light off the walls/ceiling helps too. I figure I might put a dimmer in to give a greater degree of flexibility... but for now that lighting really makes working up there much better!!
Over all I am very very pleased with how things have been turning out. Even painting a few coats made a big difference, and it really needed it.
This last one is taken just outside my neighborhood and was what I used for reference.
Oh, and I ran a cable outlet up there with the help of the Dish guy - he was very cool and only charged me for the splitter! I just wanted to make sure I got the right unit as running the signal to far can really degrade the HD signal.
Well keep up the good work. Keep us posted on how things are going. Always good to have a good supervisor and assistant helping.
John
I like. Will you be fading the blue to a lighter blend as it comes down the wall? I used a lighter shade, and have found that the lighting provides much of the gradation I needed without a lot of fussy painting...
As you can see I have a similar situation with the sloped ceiling. The biggest drawback I have is the inability to use an upper deck to extend the run, but I love the way it works as back drop.
I've got track lighting also, but I have incandescents on a dimmer, which helps adjust things for taking pictures. I noticed you have those flourescent "twist cone" lights... That would be a great energy saver, and I must say, my room does warm up a bit (there's 12 cans up there!) but I'm hesitant to give up the ability to adjust the lighting.
Here's a good example...
This was shot on a long exposure with very low light. The sky in the background has that late summer/impending thunder storm look.
The other thing I like about the sloped ceiling is the way it creates a backdrop all around the layout.
In this shot, the "sky" is about 8' away from the back of the scene.
Looking forward to seeing more progress shots. Oh, and I can't tell you how many paint drips I've got on my floor!
Lee
Route of the Alpha Jets www.wmrywesternlines.net
Lee, some very impressive shots. As to fading the blue, I'm undecided. Once I get an idea of the height of the main (upper) level I'll have a better idea.
It was good to hear about the use of a dimmer. I believe there are digital dimmers that can be used for the CFL's. A bit more spendy, but I will most likely be getting one at some point - especially after seeing your work. I really like how you got that "storm approaching" shot in your second photo. (thanks for adding $80 to my list ) I just went and got a tripod as I'm in process of taking photos of all my rolling stock so as to put them on car cards using Dallas Model Works web site.
http://www.dallasmodelworks.com/myrailroad.asp?ID=7
(select the rolling stock link)
I printed a few out on card stock and it just looks outstanding. At least they did after getting the tripod! One can in no way hold a camera steady enough when getting tight close ups. And if you click on the photos to enlarge, you can read most all the fine print on the cars.
And as to the paint drops.... lets just say that floor is more than worth every penny.
Thanks for all ya comments and I'll be sure to post up when things progress. Which may take a while as funds are limited - as well we all know. Still need to work on my layout design... that's still a daughting task. As well as a million other little things that need doing.
Loco It was good to hear about the use of a dimmer. I believe there are digital dimmers that can be used for the CFL's. A bit more spendy, but I will most likely be getting one at some point - especially after seeing your work.
It was good to hear about the use of a dimmer. I believe there are digital dimmers that can be used for the CFL's. A bit more spendy, but I will most likely be getting one at some point - especially after seeing your work.
Loco, Just one quick note on the use of CFL dimmers. They can be very quirky, be sure to go to a lighting store where they have some on display so you can make sure they actually work as you expect. With just about all of the ones I have seen, they do not work very well at all. Our church had a very pricey CFL dimmer system installed and we had to stop using it. Many of the CFLs when dimmed would simply go off and then flicker on and off while dimmed. It was like having a lightning storm during Sunday morning services (which in retrospect I could have used for effect during preaching of the message ). Just wanted to let you know to get a good evaluation before you buy because you are correct in that CFL dimmers are high dollar items. Jamie
Thanks for that nugget Jamie. I guess I'll be doing some addional reasearch and such. Might be a good idea to get this item locally so if needs be I can return it.
Well, as much as I hate to admit it, this project is going to take a while.... which is cool. But during the times when I can't really do much on the overall scene, I wanted to start in on the other million items that need-a-doing (also funds are somewhat limited). To that end, I set up a temporary area as my work shop..... Complete with a little T.V. :O)
Naturally I dove right in with a little modification to my ore cars. I caught a few good deals on some Walthers four packs, but the thing was, they all had the same road numbers. So I grabbed some 70% iso, and using a tooth pick I lightly scraped away the last two numbers. The tooth pick worked really well - high control, let me use some pressure, and soaked with iso let the number I wanted to come off without messing up all the other markings. The cotton swab just mopped up the extra. I then used a "nip-bit" of dulcote to remove the slight shine.... I think it turnout ok. And after doing some weathering, should be just find - Yah, it's not centered.... but I'm not at that stage of rivet counting.... YET :P
Your train rooom is coming along fine. I'm in the 1st phase of turing my garage into a trainroom, we are getting rid of alot of junk that we do not use anymore,and so on, My layout is also going to be on the Union Pacific, running a subdivision from Eugene Oregon to Coos Bay, BNSF has a branchline running from Whisram Washington thru Bend Oregon to Coos Bay, and the 'NEW" Southern Pacific has a branchline from California to Coos Bay, That's our story and we are sticking to it!!!!!!! I like your pick of tracklighting, I was thinking of useing the same kind, I also want to have nightime scenes, so I thought about having blue lighting for that, By uesing a timed dimmer What do you think?? Anyway, Good luck on your trainroom it looks great, I will hopfully post pic's of my progress soon
Take Care, Trainsrme1
Probably should have ready the entire thread first. duh
Anyway looking very, very nice (jealous of the available dedicated space you have, I have to fit mine into a corner of a basement).
Best of luck with it.
Co-owner of the proposed CT River Valley RR (HO scale) http://home.comcast.net/~docinct/CTRiverValleyRR/
Trainsrme1, very cool area you choose to model. I've seen (and have) Joe's DVD's of his Coos Bay area and that's just a beautiful part of the country.
One reason I went with this type of track lighting is that it uses regular type screw in bulbs. That means you can swap out any color ya want. It's been mentioned in the thread that using a dimmer for CFL style bulbs will warrent some investigation. I've just not looked into to it yet. But it's on the list. If you use "normal" incandecents, then just about any dimmer will work fine. With the way I wired things up on one circuit, wattage was a concideration. As well as heat generation being the room is upstairs. I'm already very pleased by the whole track lighting system. I've moved the cans as needed for taking photos, my desk area, and even having half the room light off when I don't need the extra light. At first I was a bit apprehensive about using so many, but very glad I did.
No worries Doc, glad you took a moment and stopped by. And just to let you know, it's taken 25+ years to get a train room! LOL.
My latest thinking is to use the alcove for the permanate working area and not use it for track. With the window it makes for some good natural light. Plus, as you can see, I set up my spray booth this weekend and with this location I'll have some excelent ventalation. I might have to plan a small duck under but I think I can live with that.
The spray booth is a PAASCHE Model# HSSB-22-16 22". It set up easy and will let ya all know how it works when I get the ventilation all hooked up. Looking forward to that as I've not done this in the past and, well, I'm sure I've killed a few brain cells....lol
The air compressor is from Airbrush City - big thread on this if you want to check it out: http://cs.trains.com/trccs/forums/p/81464/967912.aspx#967912
Hey all, been a bit since I've posted.... Softball is over (was coaching my daughters second grader team) and I've been thinking I REALLY need to start hitting the train room again. So I went and bought some 1x4 to build a section of bench work to get a better feel for how this is all going to work. After seeing how much room a 24 inches bench really takes, I think I'm going to keep the width a bit more narrow for the upper level. This 14 foot section in the photo is 20 inches wide. This will make more room for walking which was snug in many places. So many changes and revisions have taken place in my head after actually seeing the physical realities that happen from a CAD drawing to the real world.
This was an in-work photo, the cross members will be every two feet ;o)
It's good to see you're back at it, so please keep the updates coming! These in progress things are very inspiring and helpful for firming up my own plans.
I'm surprised that your wife hasn't taken it over at this point. . Better get some of that bench work up before she makes it a meeting room for her women's club. .
Springfield PA
Just a couple of electrical comments/ With that many fixtures, CFL's may be the only way to put 30+ fixtures. Incandescents that run 60 watts, times 30, is 1800 watts, which is really more than you want to put on a single 15-amp house wiring circuit. With the CFL's using about 1/5 as much current, no problem.
For effects, 2-circuit track lights are an option - the fixtures can be switched to hit either of the hot conductors, so, for example, you could have effect lights on a dimmer for "night," side-by-side with the regular day lights.
The link is a random example from a google search, no endorsement of the vendor or product.
Another thing to be concerned about with lots of fixtures is heat output. That was the original reason I went with CFLs--my 18 x 9 room was going to get quite warm with 60 incandescent bulbs fired up. Sort of like a big Easy Bake Oven! Jamie