Hi Mark!
Great progress!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Thanks Dave!
7 May 2019
I've got subroadbed down all the way to Shobon now (the wide block in the foreground - Shobon is just a turnout on the mainline to route CNW trains to Lander), and roadbed in place for most of it:
I need to build a few turnouts to proceed further with tracklaying, though. That's on the agenda for tomorrow, unless non-hobby requirements intervene. About 2/3 of the way down the roadbed you can see a switch block. This is where the switch for Power River is planned. Powder River is just a simple spur to some stock pens. Here's the real ones as of twenty four years ago:
I've also added a "new" covered hopper to the layout. Here it is next to one its straight-out-of-the-box brothers for comparison:
Can you guess which is which?
This and its companions will be used for hauling Bentonite or Natron. It's brothers will be appropriately weathered and receive sprung trucks before they join it on the layout. (Hopefully my weathering efforts will improve over time).
In theory, the car has been knocking around the mines and refining plants in and around Wyoming for several years. Some day an agent from the Pennsylvania RR is going to come knocking and demand their cars be routed back to their territory!
Mark P.
Website: http://www.thecbandqinwyoming.comVideos: https://www.youtube.com/user/mabrunton
PruittSome day an agent from the Pennsylvania RR is going to come knocking and demand their cars be routed back to their territory!
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
JaBear,
Thanks for the comments. I'll try the dishwasing liquid next time.
The car is one of a four-car set. They were a special run for the NJ Division of the NMRA a few years ago. Yes, they are Bowser.
I'm not generally a fan of RTR freight cars because of the price, but I have to say the detail on these cars is excellent - on a par with brass freight cars I've seen in the past.
12 May 2019
More progress on the Shobon Peninsula, mostly around the Powder River area.
The Powder River siding roadbed has been laid, and in this shot the siding ramp has been placed. It consists of 20 layers of 1/4" masking tape to bring it down from the mainline to the siding level:
And here's the siding on the ramp itself. The siding is code 70 and the mainline is code 83:
Here's a view looking from the switch down the siding. I sure like the way that siding drops down from the mainline. To the left of the siding will be the stock pens. They're sized for loading a maximum of six cars at once.
PruittI sure like the way that siding drops down from the mainline.
So do I!
Thanks Dave. Sometime in the next decade or two there might be some scenery to go with it!
18 May 2019
Subroadbed work has been continuing.
I've progressed past Shobon and into the Wind River Canyon. This view is looking from Powder River out to the Canyon. The subroadbed on the left goes into the canyon. The one branching to the right will disappear behind the foothills of the canyon, and is the CNW line to Lander:
This is looking from the canyon back towards Shobon and Powder River:
Pruitt Sometime in the next decade or two there might be some scenery to go with it!
I'd say that given the speed of your progress so far we won't have to wait 10 years to see some scenery. I base that partly on the situation with our club. Six months ago we were talking about it being 18 months or two years before we would be starting scenery. Guess what? It has already started! In fact, we have already torn out some of our initial scenery base because it just wasn't going to do what we wanted. In addition to that, we have pretty much decided how to do the large areas in the center of the peninsula. Six months ago we only had some very fuzzy ideas as to how to proceed.
Cheers!!
Thanks for the vote of confidence, Dave. I've made some pretty decent progress laying track this past month, and am ready to install a backdrop on the Powder River / Shobon peninsula. After that I'll be creating some scenery base in the area.
24 May 2019
Happy birthday to my CB&Q in Wyoming layout!
It's been one year since I started construction. To celebrate, I made this video chronicling the journey.
Congratulations, Mark, on a full year with amazing progress...vision...and skill!!
I don't say much, but if you ever wonder what I'm doing, I don't miss your updates. My wish, and hope, is that you continue to enjoy yourself, and the same amazing results, until the day you deem your effort done.
-Crandell
Hi Mark,
Great video, and I did watch it until the end.
You have done a considerable amount of work in one year! Congratulations!!
I am really looking forward to seeing you develop the scenery.
Thanks Crandell! This layout won't be finished before I am, so I'll never deem it complete!
Thanks Dave! Do you remember the part about scenicking the end of Casper yard? Maybe you shouldn't be looking forward to the scenery all that much...
PruittThanks Dave! Do you remember the part about scenicking the end of Casper yard? Maybe you shouldn't be looking forward to the scenery all that much...
"Practise makes perfect!"
31 May 2019
I started adding supports for the Powder River backdrop:
Then I clamped a section of the backdrop in place to see how it would look:
I also laid the first piece of track on the CNW Lander branch. This is code 70, as all visible track on this branch will be. I'm playing around with the idea of laying some code 55 track in Lander itself.
I also extended my convienience outlets (for my Dremel, soldering iron and so forth) along the Powder River, Shobon and Wind River Canyon parts of the layout. NOTE: If you don't know what you're doing with household AC power, don't do this! 120VAC can kill!!
Pruitt I also extended my convienience outlets (for my Dremel, soldering iron and so forth) along the Powder River, Shobon and Wind River Canyon parts of the layout. NOTE: If you don't know what you're doing with household AC power, don't do this! 120VAC can kill!!
Rich
Alton Junction
Rich,
You're right. It's a violation of the basic NEC (National Electric Code), meaning it's illegal everywhere in the US for permanent wiring installations. Since my layout power is plugged into a wall outlet in the basement, it isn't considered a permanent installation any more than an electric lamp is. So it isn't a code violation. It's also switched off most of the time.
3 June 2019
My latest construction video is now up:
More great progress Mark! Thank you for taking the time to produce the very interesting videos.
Moving along nicely Mark! The room is filling up! I like the white ceiling and the lighting, it seems to light up the room nicely.
Mike.
My You Tube
Thanks Dave and Mike!
15 June 2019
I've mostly been doing non-photogenic stuff the last few weeks - installing ceiling in the train room and building turnouts for the Orin / Frannie yard. But I've also been working on the Powder River / Shobon and Greybull (back side) backdrops. Here's where I was with them on June 1st:
Since then I cut several new sheets of styrene to width, installed them, and joined them to the first piece behind Powder River. They're now painted. This is the Powder River side:
And here's the Greybull side:
Early in the month I also put a new sound decoder kit in one of my Life-Like Heritage 0-8-0 switchers. This was a first run loco with no tender power pick-up. It struggled with stalls even on my #6 yard ladder switches. Ran much better after I added the new decoder with a keep-alive circuit - TCS kit # WSK-WAL-1, which is made especially to fit these 0-8-0 and 0-6-0 locos. Here's a video of the before and after:
A very nice video Mark! The change is very significant! Did you add tender pickups when you switched out decoders?
Nice to see the progress on the backdrop!
Regards, Isaac
I model my railroad and you model yours! I model my way and you model yours!
Hi Issac,
No, I didn't add any new pick-ups. With the keep-alive, there was no need.
I also have a newer 0-8-0 with the tender pick-ups, and a couple of 0-6-0 (they were ALL made with the tender pick-ups). None of them has any sort of problem with stalling. But I like the new sound so much, I may upgrade them over the next year or so!
21 June 2019
This past week I've been back working on the Orin end of the Orin / Frannie Interchange Yard, which I'd left in early May to work on other parts of the layout.
First I installed the ramp from the mainline into the yard ladder:
Then I installed the first ladder turnout. The elevation transitions right through the turnout. I have never had any issues doing this. Also, the rail transitions from code 83 at the end of the mainline turnout to code 70 in the ladder turnouts and all body tracks:
And I was off to the races! After a few days' work, yesterday I installed the first section of track on the last body track:
And this morning I finished installing feeders. A short while later I cleaned the rails and tested the track and turnouts with a loco and a few cars, including my John Allen track cleaning car to wipe dust off of unused rails on the run up to Orin:
Here's a trackside view of the Orin yard throat:
Obviously the tracks will get longer at some point. But all track is now finished in the Orin throat area and Powder River, so as soon as missing ties are replaced and tracks are painted, scenery can commence in this area! I hope it turns out better than my efforts at the end of Casper yard did!
Nice turnouts, Mark!
I know you've been using the Fast Tracks all along, but these are the first photos that made me take notice.
I've never been a big fan of those ground throws though. An HO scale brakeman operating one would look like he's flipping over a refrigerator.
I have the right to remain silent. By posting here I have given up that right and accept that anything I say can and will be used as evidence to critique me.
Thanks Carl!
I know what you mean about the ground throws - for appearance I much prefer the tall stands. But these (Caboose Industries 202S) are much more robust (not mention easier to install) than the tall ones, and since I don't use remote controlled turnouts except in the hidden staging yards, they're the compromise I've decided to make.
25 June 2019
The last few days I've been installing fascia at the "bottom" of the Casper / Powder River aisleway:
And doing my favoritest of all layout building tasks - installing replacement ties at track section ends (ugh!). It does make quite a difference in appearance, though - here the before and after shots of the Orin yard throat:
Fascia looks good Mark!
Pruitt Thanks Carl! I know what you mean about the ground throws - for appearance I much prefer the tall stands. But these (Caboose Industries 202S) are much more robust (not mention easier to install) than the tall ones, and since I don't use remote controlled turnouts except in the hidden staging yards, they're the compromise I've decided to make.
On my new layout, I have almost entirely eliminated the manual ground throws by moving to Peco spring loaded turnouts. A flick of the finger throws the point rails.
In my downtown passenger station, I rely on Tortoise-controlled Atlas turnouts operated by toggle switches on a control panel. However, when I first installed the turnouts, for testing purposes, I drilled two small holes next to each throwbar on the Atlas turnouts. I used a track nail to hold the point rails in the staright through or divergent route by moving the nail from one hole to another. Worked like a charm and no need for manual ground throws. I did that because I did not have room on the station ladder for installing ground throws.
Anyhow, I think that your manual ground throws look just fine.
Wow! I would have thought the addition of the backdrop elements would signify a major advancement, but it wasn't until I saw the fascia images that I got my own 'gee whiz' moment. They really do change the whole impression of where you are and what you are doing for me.
You're on a torrid pace, Mark!