Weekly Update !
Second try; the first disappeared when I hit refresh instead of spell check.
A lot happened last week.
I built three new wagons (one Jordan and two Musket minatures);
I have been operating with two 0-6-0 switchers (P2k w/sound). With two major towns to service, separated by over 100' of main line, I had no safety factor in case one quit. I "gambled" and ordered another from the cheapest on-line site (Train World). The "gamble" paid off. It will be re-badged as BAH RR # 14.
I have had three "problem" areas, building wise, on the layout for some time. I think that I may have solved the problems (thanks to just having the building sitting on the ground, not "planted").
I moved the company houses from between the Hardspot engine house and hotel to become company houses at the Between mine. I will add a couple more and build a freight house / dock for the large area behind the houses. This should finish off the buildings for Between
I have had three buildings in old town Hardspot that just looked out-of-place. I moved these to the space vacated by the company houses. the three story will become (top down) living quarters, Grubstake Mines headquarters (they own the silver mines on the layout), and headquarters for the Between, Arock and Hardspot RR. The General store will remain the General Store with living quarters above. The brick building will become a Tack and Saddle shop with living quarters above.
This leaves a big open space in old town Hardspot. Next to the Sheriff office/jail; I will add the Ken Burns Coal and Fire Wood complex. To the left of that will be a team track/dock.
This should finish off the buildings in the three major communities. What do you think ? Did I -get-it-right this time ?
TerryinTexas
See my Web Site Here
http://conewriversubdivision.yolasite.com/
user="C&O Fan"]I dunno seems like thier should be a livery stable and blacksmiths shop some where in town for all those horses
Not forgotten - just slighted a little bit. Since there are no living quarters in this part of town, people take their animals home for transportation and care/boarding. There is a need for temporary stable facilities and it does exist, right next to the small blacksmith shed.
Thanks for noticing !
Weekly update !
I got a lot done this past week.
For a long time, I have been casting tunnel liners for the 17 tunnel openings on the layout. I started installing them and even started molding the liners to the mountains in several places. This picture shows two of the tunnel portals (with liners) of the four completed this week (still need paint, but otherwise complete).
I "solved" the problem with moved buildings and open spaces. I am going to put the Ken Burns Coal and Fire Wood company next to the Sheriff's office/jail. I have a thread going on the evolution of Ken Burns Coal and Fire Wood. This is the cardboard mock up in place.
I got the new water tank by Hardspot station "planted".
The newly arrived 0-6-0 switcher allowed me to retire # 8 and # 9 (one at a time) and finally get them re-badged for the BAH RR. Here they are with some preliminary weathering (cleaned up and lubricated as well).
The major time consuming event was to install one new piece of fascia with lights for indicating position of trains inside the mountains. There are 12 lights (however, I only ordered 10 IR detectors). The bottom row is for the continuous run loop (also used for staging) with three indicators. The other lights are rows of alternating (by row) amber and green to show progress in the three loops of main line between Hardspot and Arock. After using this for a couple of days; I am glad that I did it. Now I "know" where my trains are in the hidden mountain trackage. I will order three more IR detectors to finish the job (the two that I need plus a spare).
Next week I think that I will get # 10 (Roundhouse 4-4-0) and # 14 (new 0-6-0) re-badged for the BAH RR and continue on the Ken Burns Coal and Fire Wood complex.
Thanks for looking. Comments ?
Callan89 wrote:Would you be willing to do a photo-roster of your locomotives, both current and retired? I'd be a good resource, so I can keep track (pun intended) of which engines you speak of. More specifically what engines are No. 1-10?
I don't have a current listing of #1 to 6. On the layout are # 7 - # 14. Pictures and basic information at:
http://home.comcast.net/~cabierbaum/Trains/engines.html
My numbers are just the order in which I got the loco's and 1-7 are all over 15 years old. The only engine worth saving, that is not on the layout, is # 6 ( brass 2-6-2) which resides on my workbench waiting a major overhaul. A photo of the tender for # 6 is in my signature block.
Ah, yes. I see! You have those 15+ year old botchmann 4-4-0's (or are they AHM/IHC's?) Who makes the interesting brass 2-6-2? I can't say that I've seen such a diminutive tender attached to a 2-6-2 before, it looks interesting! :) I'd imagine that those 0-6-0's are working well for you, espically due to you procuring three of them?! Are they DCC/Sound equipped, of just standard DC? Your layout is impressive, to say the least, and the scenery looks death-defying around every bend! I eagerly look forward to more updates on this layout. :)
Callan89 wrote: Ah, yes. I see! You have those 15+ year old botchmann 4-4-0's (or are they AHM/IHC's?) Who makes the interesting brass 2-6-2? I can't say that I've seen such a diminutive tender attached to a 2-6-2 before, it looks interesting! :) I'd imagine that those 0-6-0's are working well for you, espically due to you procuring three of them?! Are they DCC/Sound equipped, of just standard DC? Your layout is impressive, to say the least, and the scenery looks death-defying around every bend! I eagerly look forward to more updates on this layout. :)
I found this photo back on page 1 of this thread. A poor photo of # 6 running as a 2-6-0 (it has a non-sound Lenz decoder added). It models a version of the 2-6-2 used on the Cripple Creek RR and I think was done by Hallmark (I painted it).
http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n123/Alan_B/091006-006_r.jpg
The 4-4-0's are the new Roundhouse with sound. They are acceptable running and sounding(barely) loco's.
The 4-6-0's are new with added Tsunami sound. They look good, run great with the Tsunami decoders and sound OK.
The 0-6-0's are all new P2k with sound. These loco's are terrific in all ways; run great at low speeds, sound great and well detailed. They are the best running and sounding loco's that I have.
All of the new engines purchased within the last few months.
The old Roundhouse shay was built from a kit over 15 years ago but sports a non-sound Lenz decoder and works OK for MOW service ( mostly just sits at Arock and looks good).
I spend a fair amount of time on the Ken Burns Coal and FireWood building. It is finished except for planting and final details.
I built and installed an Atlas water tank kit in Arock; the old "Branch line" tank will be moved to Between.
I am starting to "finish" the layout of Between. I threw together a cardboard mock up of the dock/warehouse/company store and am trying it out during operations.
I have also started working on the Arock mine area. I will "detail" this area of town first, and then move to the front edge. I built and installed a bent under the mine car track and built a trash bin under the end of the track.
I expect to continue the above projects this coming week.
Comments ?
It looks great! Your Helix complexity gives me faith that my complex helix might actually work too!
Have you considered adding some earth coloured paint to your plaster while it was still wet to help with the scenery process? It can affect the setting time a little, but I found when I did it on my last project the time spent later colouring the mountains was easier... plus any nicks in the plaster didn't show through white.
Kepp posting... it looks really cool!
user="C&O Fan"How do the miners get up to the tracks that lead into the mine on the side of the mountain ?
How do the miners get up to the tracks that lead into the mine on the side of the mountain ?
A ladder (not yet installed) on the far end of the tipple box. detailing of this area is now in process. Pictures in next weekly update.
user="Dustin" It looks great! Your Helix complexity gives me faith that my complex helix might actually work too! Have you considered adding some earth coloured paint to your plaster while it was still wet to help with the scenery process? It can affect the setting time a little, but I found when I did it on my last project the time spent later colouring the mountains was easier... plus any nicks in the plaster didn't show through white.Kepp posting... it looks really cool!
Thanks !
I have tried adding color to the plaster but find that the color ends up too uniform and still needs to be painted. I really did not find that it saved any time and quit doing it. I only get nicks in the plater when I am making changes; those get painted anyhow.
My mountain climbing loop is 100' feet of track to rise 24"; this is a 2 % grade.
Another weekly update !
I jumped around on the layout (figuratively) doing a bunch of things this past week. I am going to list them more or less in the order that I photographed the results.
I received the last three IR block detectors and installed them; now all of the hidden track is monitored for occupancy.
I added about 3 feet of plaster mountain on the lower level. This connects the tunnel on the continuous run loop to the ground level on the outside of the track (this was just a 2" plywood strip). No picture though. I also got most of the tunnel portals done so that the tunnel liner blends into the mountain. Even got these colored with a basic color.
Oops - found a poor photo. You can barely see the portals. the lowest area on the outside of the track is the added plaster section.
I got started on some preliminary detailing in the barren areas of Arock. The area by the mine got talus, a few trees and a rip-rap bin. Mike the miner showed up with some of his friends and one of the two new baggage carts. Throughout this update you will see some white paper printed signs that represent the to-be-applied decals.
People (and a new baggage cart) started showing up at the Arock depot:
Ken Burns Coal and Firewood took delivery of a new coal wagon. The wagon and the driver's shirt were color matched to the building.
I did another series in "The evolution of"; this time for a company house (Thread in this forum). It is the blue building in this photo.
Plus I did a lot of operating.
Thanks for looking.
Toucan wrote:I have just finished reading all the posts in this thread. I am facinated with your abilities and skill. I am in the planning stages of a new HO layout to be built in a small spare bedroom. Hopefully it will turn out 1/10 as good as yours. This will be my first layout in almost 30 years. Much has changed. I just retired and hope to have more time to devote to this endevour. Thanks for the photo history. It has shown me a few options to try in my designs.
Thanks for the compliments. My abilities and skills are probably just average. My dedication is high though and I have all of the time that I need/want to work on the layout as I am "retired" from the full time job market. I do have over 50 years of modeling "experience" and about 20 years of model railroad "experience". I tore down a large layout about 15 years ago; so I made most of my "mistakes" on that one, not this one.
One of the reasons for this post, and the others that I do, is to help people that are struggling with a new layout, or who are updating a layout. What I do is one more bit of data for them to use. There are many on this forum who post to help others and many who are better modelers than I am.
Plan what you want to do very carefully. Make sure that it will provide for the type of operation that you want and that everything will really fit (especially structures). Ask for help (read prior threads on the forums first) when you need it. Good luck.
Not a lot of visible stuff to show this week. I have working a few nits and had to take a couple of days off for personal business.
I got some more of the Arock back edge started with talus, weeds and a few trees.
I finally got around to re-badging the Roundhouse 4-4-0 and the new P2k 0-6-0; and added some light weathering.
For some time now, I have not liked the low sound level of the whistle in the low boiler 4-6-0. I finally ripped out the 1" round speaker and installed a 3/4 x 1.5" oval on top of the tender deck. Needless to say, the replacement coal load would not fit. I made another to fit the new speaker. It is way too large for the tender; however, it just barely covers the speaker and is just barely tall enough to actually get a layer of coal in. That tender is the smallest one on my layout. The tsunami fills the tender shell.
It now sounds good and that is more important, to me, than having a smaller coal load. I also added some "light" weathering.
Next week: a scale for the Arock mine and more basic detailing work. I will probably start the freight dock/company store for Between as the cardboard mock up seems to be working out well.
In addition to a lot of operating, and a couple of days off for urgent family business; I got a fair amount of work done.
I got most of the Between basic work done. A few trees and scrub brush on the mountain and all buildings placed and basic scenery installed. I built and installed the freight depot/company store/loading dock. Some minor detailing was also done.
The community of Between:
The company houses:
The depot/company store:
A couple of miners added to the mine building:
And a new scale for the mine at Arock:
Next week; detail work will continue.
Alan_B wrote: The depot/company store:
This might seem odd, but my favorite place on the layout is the patch of dirt and rocks between the housing and the shead where it slopes down a little.
Chip
Building the Rock Ridge Railroad with the slowest construction crew west of the Pecos.
SpaceMouse wrote: Alan_B wrote: The depot/company store: This might seem odd, but my favorite place on the layout is the patch of dirt and rocks between the housing and the shead where it slopes down a little.
Gee - I hope that I have not ruined your favorite space . Actually, the ground is dead flat; the colorization created the look of a slope.
Thanks for looking and caring.
Excellent work Alan Keep posting please Thank you Kevin
Canondale61 wrote: Excellent work Alan Keep posting please Thank you Kevin
Thanks ! - Weekly update.
I am still working on the Between area. I need to fill the space between the blue company house and the outcropping at the lead-in to Between. As usual, I use cardboard for a temporary scenery item to see how it works.
It turns out that the cardboard does indeed hide the track area (what I intended); however, it is too high to work when actually switching the area. I cut it down in stages until it worked correctly.
This is what it hides:
I am going to have a small grove of trees in this area. I had the trees made, and ready to plant when I decided that the hidden turnouts should be replaced with FastTracks built and Tortoise controlled turnouts.
I have ordered the FastTracks #4.5 code 100 fixture and enought supplies for 10 turnouts (approximately 4 week wait for the stuff), and will replace the five turnouts in this area before I complete the landscaping. This wait means that I have to work on other areas on the layout.
This is the way things will be for a few weeks:
Most of the other things that I am doing do not photograph well (or at all). I am adding guard rails to the turntable tracks:
I am about 90% through replacing all the plastic wheels on rolling stock with metal wheel sets. The Tichy ore cars that I use are way too light to be bumping over turnouts and any roughness in the track and they do not push well through any type of curve. There is almost no way to add invisible weight to these cars. I also find that the metal wheels roll so well that coupling/uncoupling (any type of car) becomes a problem. A sting of cars works great. An individual car wants to roll during the coupling/uncoupling operation instead of sitting still and letting the coupler work. I am experimenting with several ways to introduce a little "drag" to improve coupling/uncoupling and to also add weight to the ore cars.
I will keep at the "improvements" while waiting on the turn-out fixture.
Thanks for looking. Comments?
Alen
I am new to this forum ans was wondering if I could ask a few guestions? First, I was wondering (iknow you menchened of prevuse updates) If you could post the layout diagram? Second,Could you tell me the diamenter of your helex mountain? third, you stated that the distance between the 2 towns was 24 inches ,correct?Like what I have seen of your progress . thank you for your time
Ed
slow train Ed wrote: Alen I am new to this forum ans was wondering if I could ask a few guestions? First, I was wondering (iknow you menchened of prevuse updates) If you could post the layout diagram? Second,Could you tell me the diamenter of your helex mountain? third, you stated that the distance between the 2 towns was 24 inches ,correct?Like what I have seen of your progress . thank you for your time Ed
I did my initial layout with a CAD program (not a track layout program) and only showed centerlines and only worked it enough to know that things would fit.
Here is the lower level (Hardspot) and a schematic of the climbing loops (mountains).
This is the upper level (Arock).
The community of Between is not shown on these plans. The plans did change a little during construction. construction is fairly well documented in this thread and the thread referenced in the first post here (page 1, first posting).
Exposed mountain curves are all 18" radius. Hidden curves are 20" radius except for part of the front mountain where I had to use a few 18" radius hidden curves. the front mountain is the one without the community of between (it is on the back mountain).
There is a 24" elevation difference between the towns of Hardspot and Arock. With 100' of track, this works out to a average of 2% grade. I used slightly higher on straight runs (mostly hidden) and slightly lower on the tight 18" radius curves.
Thanks for the comments.
Another weekly update.
Not a lot of visible layout changes this past week. I spent a lot of time making and planting trees. It seems like 40 trees just disappear when spread over 6 -10 feet of layout.
Here is Hardspot before the new trees:
And after a bunch of trees, and scrub, along the ridge line:
I spent a lot of time working on weighting the small (empty), ultra lightweight, ore cars. I think that I have found the solution; however, I want to run them for a while before making a real commitment.
Operations continue.
Comments?
ARTHILL wrote:Looking Good. Like the updates. About 200 trees ago, I though 40 would be a lot, But I can't figure where the 200 went. Some of the guys talk about thousands and I am beginning to understand why. Fortunatly, I enjoy making them. I hope you do as well.
I know about that feeling ("But I can't figure where the 200 went"). It is a good thing that I am modeling the Rocky Mountains not the Carolinas where I grew up.
Trees, need more! I just got into tress in the last 3 months. I lost count at 289 not counting around 50 watting to be planted. I am guessing I will only need around 5000 more!
Thanks to MR Hill I am making around 5 a day so in 2.7 years I will be done!
Cuda Ken
Alan B looks good.
I hate Rust