Richard,
Thanks for your comments. I believe we think along similar, but not identical lines.
This project is just entering its 20th year. It began, in part, as a rehab project after surgery (we won't go there, other than to say that didn't help me in the long term. I'm glad I got a lot pf physical stuff out of the way before things got worse. But that is a lesson. We'll all get old, so it's good to take into consideration we'll eventually be wider, stiffer, and weaker.
I tend to get onto certain projects depending on what I'm feeling like, have the materials for, find inspiration with, or otherwise decide, "It's time that got built." Starting in Durango is backwards from how track and scenery was laid, as the custome HO/HOn3 crossing there was the last major piece of track laid. I started at the top and worked my way down. The tour will eventually get to Red Mountain -- yep, we're going there! -- but it's the only part of the layout that came with me to the new basement with dwelling over it. I planned, built track that began with Red Mtn, and worked my way around the room and down. Oddly, after most of the rest of the scenery was roughed in, I only got back to Red Mtn in the last six months or so, which you'll see when we arrive at the end of the line.
Slow sometimes and not always steady, I did projects as they came at me. Many of the buildings were only built in the last year or so. Trees? A bunch of them lately and that's helped tremendously. Quickest, but not necessarily cheapest way for a layout to look better is add trees.
It's getting late, so will be back with more of the tour on Saturday.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
Narrow gauge railroading has been my long time favorite ever since I had the chance to take a ride on the Durango & Silverton RR back in 1974, when it was still operated by the D&RGW. I bought a Westside Model Co. brass D&RGW T-12 a little later, which I painted and lettered. Being a college student in those days, that was some expenditure. IIRC, the cost was $ 160, plus shipping to Germany and duty - more than my monthly allowance in those days.
It´s a far cry from those beautifully detailed Blackstone engines, which are out of reach for me in terms of price.
I am still in love with narrow gauge. My layout is based on a line in Japan, where the "standard" gauge is 3 1/2 ft..
Does not really look like narrow gauge, does it?
The C-18 or the C-19 are my favorite D&RGW locos. The above drawing I made using Atlas RTS.
I started my narrow gauge adventure with modules and got finally an empire in a room made of modules. This was the Silver Valley RR.
But with modules there're a few drawbacks, no grades and a lot of module borders. When I came across the "Pueblo and Salt Lake RR" plan from John Armstrong this hooked me and I developed this plan for my basement room.
Now I'm busy with benchwork and hope in the next future to have my Silver Spike. That means, not the RR from one end to the other, but an temporary layout with my modules Salina and Fiddletown.
This way I can run trains and do some scenery at Esperanza and the narrow gauge line.
Wolfgang
Pueblo & Salt Lake RR
Come to us http://www.westportterminal.de my videos my blog
I've always liked narrow gauge. Never modeled it by i do like it. Wheel high weeds. mouldering freight cars. beutiful.
"Mess with the best, die like the rest" -U.S. Marine Corp
MINRail (Minessota Rail Transportaion Corp.) - "If they got rid of the weeds what would hold the rails down?"
And yes I am 17.
Bob,
Nice K. Guessing it's from the latest run of Blackstone's? Reminds me I should try mounting the plow on one of mine.
Ulrich,
Nice pics. My wife lived in Japan for a number of years (US Navy brat) and speaks fluid Japanese. If you haven't seen them yet, John West has 5 nice pics of JNR steamers here:
http://lifewastedchasingtrains.com/main.php?g2_itemId=257
Wolfgang,
Great track plan. I'm sure that this layout will be eye-catching with the extra creative space permitted by the elevations you can work with compared to the limitations of modules. I've got a trackplan somewhere on paper, but just can't find it right now. I'll need it for the Golden Spike award paperwork, but just haven't gotten around to that. In fact, this slideshow cam about as a substitute for the trackplan, since people wanted to know more about the layout.
Here's the next episode in the tour of the line.
9] As we near Tefft riding on the rear platform, this shot looks back down the grade towards Rockwood. 10] Just before Tefft, we cross a bridge and see the Cascade logging branch above the Silverton branch. 11] Tefft station was built from the same plan as the better known Cumbres station. 12] The Tefft overview shows track arrangements and the junction with the Cascade branch. 13] Looking back again from the rear platform, we see how the Cascade branch rises in the distance. It will eventually pierce the wall and curve into a logging area to be built over the standard gauge staging area in the next room. 14] Nearing Silverton, we see the bridge over the Rio de las Animas ahead, along with the North Star Mill on the far side. 15] An overview of the river crossing shows the coved corner of the backdrop, along with the $50 river (that's how much casting plastic it took to make it.) 16] A wide angle shot of Silverton. I painted the backdrop based on a panorama of photos I took in Silverton following Greg Gray's excellent tutorial VHS tape on painting backdrops. Underneath Silverton is Dove Creek on the standard gauge.All for now.
That's a great looking layout plan, Wolfgang.... you can bet I'll follow every step of your progress with great interest!!!
Bob
Excellent looking layout, Mike... your track work looks great!
Thanks. It does need ballast
The standard gauge main is all code 83. Everything dual gauge and NG is code 70. Turnouts are all Shinohara. The flex track is almost all weather ME in 70 and 83. So nothing fancy. My only handlaid track is this HO/HOn3 crossing, the first piece of hand laid track I've ever done. The ties should have been skinnier and the rail could have been a little less crooked, but things operate through it just fine. It's never had a derailment.
Well, Mike those Blackstone's would have out of my range as well, but over the last 11+ years I accummulated 12 HO scale DCC locomotives, three were early BLI's, one Proto, and all the rest were B'mann Spectrum's. I installed Tsunami decoders & high bass speakers in all the rest... and they fetched enough $$$ to pay for three Blackstone locomotives. (I knew if I was ever going to get any Blackstone's it had to be now, while i still had the money from my HO trains).
I figured your track & turnouts were hand-laid, as they looked way better than "store-bought" ones. The real test has been passed (.....with flying colors) if you've never had a derailment. That is awesome... You Da Man!!!
There's nothing wrong with your Westside... it's one good looking little Lokey! I also like the shots (model & prototype) of the Japan Rail locomotives. I'm retired military, and was stationed both in Japan & Germany and fell in love with the trains of both countries.
Before I started my last HO pike about a dozen years ago, I almost made the switch to Marklin trains... but I still love to watch 'em do their stuff!
Stay well... Bob
Small world. My dad was stationed in Germany with the AF in the early 70s. I graduated from high school there. My wife's dad was in Navy submarines and stationed in Japan. She took it one step further and attended and graduated from Japanese high school.
Yep, some cool trains overseas. Right now I'm eying several HOe and HOm diesel locos for conversion to HOn3. I also have a very nice modern Rio Grande NG passenger train whose coaches were produced as a special run by D+R, based on Swiss prototype cars. I took a Swiss postal car and repainted it to Rio Grande colors to provide the baggage/express car.
I call it the Shavano Zephyr. It's a luxury cruise train that operates over the Narrow Gauge Circle that connects with my Four Corners Division of the D&RGW.
Here's the next installment of the Tour of the Line.
Mike
17] The overview of Silverton's trackage shows the Silverton Northern rising as it passes between the backdrop and my falsefront town of Silverton. I hope to eventually replace the "town" with more detailed low-relief buildings, but it works for now.18] The Silverton depot. 19] While it's unprototypical, the 4-track yard at Silverton is important for handling the traffic generated on my much busier than real life Silverton Union RR, an employee-owned amalgamation of the Three Little Lines. 20] The wye at Silverton. Like various other features, it's similar to real life, but in a little different place or otherwise changed to fit. The SN crosses it on the bridge, the line entering the tunnel represents the SG&N (but I've not yet needed the extra traffic), and the line to the right from the wye is the SRR.
Nice looking T-12 complete with sway-backed passenger car. Great!
Thanks Mike for the continuing tour of you NG layout. There is a lot of effort desplayed there.
I struggled with my first decaling in ~20 years this past weekend and considering my normal 66 year old ticks and weaking eyesight I think it came out OK for a first pass. I decaled my undecorated Blackstone C-19 with custom decals produced for me by Don Manlick.
The Pyle headlight number boards were the most frightening endeavor.....(man those little 8's gave me a fit!). They have been solvaseted and now the engine awaits the matte over coating. I post a couple of images below. A few might note that I haven't put the grab irons on the MicroTrains gon yet.
This thread is full of neat Narrow gauge activities. I appreciate that others, while not in narrow gauge, appreciate it and note that they have always wanted to do some narrow gauge work. I was like all of you non-narrow gaugers who pined for the activity, but held back. I collected odd little narrow gauge bits and pieces from about 1972 until 2000, but it took until 2010 for me to chuck the standard gauge and start my long supressed narrow gauge ambitions.
Richard
If I can't fix it, I can fix it so it can't be fixed
Nice looking layout, Mike... I really like the looks of your Silverton yard (4 sidings), and the Depot. I plan on doing a small yard like that on my "elfin empire" if I have the room. Thanks again, It was a fun tour!
Richard... I like your C-19. (Nice work there, my friend....)
Sir Madog... That's one good looking scooner, you can be proud of that BlueNose.
Good work, one and all.....
A loco always looks more like it belongs when it's lettered. You're ahead of me on this, but it's something I've been thinking of doing lately -- getting some custom decals made.
My group of lines, a consolidation of the Silverton RR, the SG&N and the SN RR, is called the Silverton Union RR. I'm planning on doing sets of decals that will letter passenger and freight equipment for the SURR, as well as at least some of the predecessor lines. That way I'll be able to do both SURR equipment and items "inherited" from the earlier lines.
Leaving Silverton for Animas Forks on the old Silverton Northern, our train backs to SN Junction...
21] Looking upgrade on the SNRR from its junction at Silverton. 22] A close-up of the bridge just before Eureka. The scenery in the background lifts out to provide access to the back side of the wye. 23] Eureka! After limping along for years, the Sunnyside Mill [under construction] has underwent quite a reviavl recently. It is rumored to be the source of minerals highly desired by the government for "national security" purposes. It still ships precious metal ores and concentrates, too. 24] Overview of Eureka track arrangement. 25] Looking back at the mock-up of the Sunnyside Mill. It will be served by a tramway, going up the mountain to the right to the mine. 26] Looking up the grade to Animas Forks. The entrance door to the layout room is in the background, so we've come almost full circle since we entered from staging, which is off to the right from what's visible. 27] This is the site of a planned snowshed. The engineer says it will be better built than the one that Mears built. 28] Arriving at Animas Forks, this is an overview of the track arrangement, with the snow shed covered turntable on the left. There will be a tramway landing and ore bins at the spur on the right (which will actually be the other end of the tramway from the Sunnyside on the other side of the mountain. 29] The Gold Prince Mill. I've finished the canopy over the coal dump at the powerhouse. I've also been arranging structures in anticipation of building the town, but haven't settled on a final plan yet.That's all for now...Next episode, we travel to Red Mountain on the old Silverton RR.
Thanks for the latest tour, Mike... you have a great looking layout. That mill operation will be a fine addition to your operations.
Here is today's installment of Tour of the Line.
30] Back at the Silverton wye, the SRR curves off to the right past the hoodoos. 31] Chattanooga is sleepy right now, but a large tramway landing is planned, to be called the Silver Ledge, once I figure out how to finance purchase of the upcoming Anvil Mountain Models Iowa-Tiger tram house. The bucket line of the tramway will rise to the ceiling over the aisle if all goes as planned. 32] An overview, which is what you'd see stepping through the layout room door. Chattanooga is to the left on the lower line, curving around to out-of-sight location of Sheridan on the right. 33] Sheridan nestled in below Animas Forks. A small mine is scheduled to be here. The tunnel that curves to the left curves to the right once inside, emerging from the tunnel portal on the right just before entering Red Mountain, out-of-sight to the right and tucked under the stairs. 34] Red Mountain overview. 35] Track arrangement at Red Mountain. The wye track that disappears under the stairs curves to the left and eventually emerges on the SG&N leg of the Silverton wye. This allows a continuous loop for break-in running. It could also permit staging of SG&N trains, if I somehow don't have enough going on and want to implement them, too. 36] View of downtown Red Mountain, with the Mother Jones Mill in the background. Never mind the various military vehicles. Rumor is the miner's militia is rather well-armed. The Wobblies run the town and, after their expulsion from Telluride, have vowed to never be driven out again - and seem to be making that stick. The IWW union hall is the two-story brick building next to the MJ Mill.
Here's the last bit of the Tour of the Line. It'll cover the dual gauge line that runs west from Durango. All aboard!
37] Having arrived at the end of the Little Lines, we return to Durango to proceed west again by dual gauge track. This overview shows the Silverton branch above, with RGS junction below. The RGS enters the tunnel and goes onto Dolores, etc, while curving around to the left through the staging area and back out under the overpass south of Carbon Junction. This also provides another NG continuous run loop for break-in and testing, in addition to staging for the RGS. 38] An overview of Hesperus. There are industries here that serve narrowgauge customers by transferring groceries and building materials, a stockyard, and a co-op elevator from the standard gauge. Then there's coal...very important if you want to run steam and power your industries. 39] Hesperus station, with the May Day Mine in the background. It has loads in-empties out that loops around to Dove Creek, where a hidden "power plant" is located. The "rocks" are Rubber Rocks and form a 8 foot long lift out to access staging tracks underneath Rockwood above. 40] The track arrangement at Hesperus, where the 3rd rail ends and the standard gauge proceeds west to Dove Creek. 41] The Rubber Rocks you see here also form lift outs. Wish I didn't have so much hidden track, but I planned well and built well, with plenty of access if needed. So far, it's been remarkably trouble-free. I do have 8 CCTV cameras to help operators keep track of what's going on out of sight.That's the end of the 3rd rail, just before the bridge in the last pic. The layout continues on Dove Creek in standard gauge in the area underneath Silverton and Eureka. I hope you've enjoyed the trip. See you at the Saloon!
WOW!!!
You guys really have amazing models & layouts!
Here are a couple of mine from my photo display...
Chad,
Good looking diorama. I need to make something like that to do some outside photography.
What's the background on your Shay? DCC or +sound? I've been thinking about geared locos lately, so kind of curious what people are running. I have a logging branch in the planning stages, even got the place marked on the wall that needs the sawzall applied to it...
Thanks Mike,
Well She is an almost box stock PSC 22T, DC, without any lighting.I added a couple temporary (rubber cemented) accessories, to preserve the model as stock.Although I have not thought about sound or DCC in it's tiny body, (motor is in the oil bunker) and it does have some backhead detail)! I have considered putting a an Ngineering 5V circuit in it, but that would not be directional in DC, for SMD LED's. So for now, I just enjoy it as she is. I gave up quite a bit to get her, so I do not want to chance any negative impact right now.
This thread has got me following the Rio Grande Southern's Right-of-Way on Google Earth. When I retire, I'm going to go to Colorado and visit many of these places. Ophir looks to be a very interesting place, along with Telluride and of course ride the Durango and Silverton!
Truly, if I was to start over again, I think I would be modeling 3 foot Narrow gage in either S or O and probably the RGS, love those Geese!
Mike your doing a great job!
NP 2626 "Northern Pacific, really terrific"
Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association: http://www.nprha.org/
Oh, she is that tiny! That will be a challenge, but with decoders getting smaller and smaller, you may get the itch to "complicate" things with DCC.
NP2626,
Caution! A visit to the old NG stomping grounds may just unleash the urge to, if not start over, at least squeezein a NG branch. Google Earth is a great resource for exploring and modeling, as it helps tie together what one sees in books and old videos.
One thing about Ophir now is that highway "improvements" have drastically reconfigured the location. It is recognizable if one has a good idea from pics about what it was like before. BTW, if you get the urge, you can still mail a postcard from Ophir by turning off the highway and driving into the town itself a little further up the road that takes one eventually up and over Ophir Pass and then down to US 550 on the east side of the ridge. At least for now...given that the post office is most likely one of those in line for closure.
Thanks for the kind comments!
Mike... Thanks again for the great layout tours. Your layout looks fantastic, and I'll bet it is a fun layout for operations, as well.
Chad... That's two good looking locomotives you have, and the scenery is excellent looking.
Thank you Bob, I appreciate the compliment, I did not do too much to dress them up, just a little detail painting, & some rubber cemented in accessories, thank you!
Mike, well, I hope to have that lil guy for a while, & as the technology change it may too. I hope, above all, to preserve the charm it has! I have a couple bigger ones, a 36T & larger, but they just don't draw the affecttion of the little two truck Shay! I really can't explain it, it just 'is' that way..
Thanks guys!
I know what you mean about the small Shays. They have a charm all their own. I've seen several really sweet ones running at the National, but always had other things ahead of it in priority. It's still kind of that way for the next year or so, but the thinking on the logging branch has started me thinking geared lokey again.
Guys,
Here's a symptom of my interest in logging. It's 6545, one of four 6500 series flats I built last winter from PSC kits. Two were done as conventional flats, but two I built as "fantasy" flats for some traffic I already have identified to make the logging branch more interesting. They're set up with racks to haul long pole stock. This traffic will travel to Alamosa for treatment at the creosote plant there (actually was in Salida, but it's my RR and it's all in staging anyway ).
The idlers are Blackstone 6000 series flats for now. Eventually, the need to use them for other traffic will force me to build some of the dedicated idler cars the Rio Grande used with the pipe trains. I have a mini-pipe train set up this way, too, built with Durango Press pipe gon kits. So I'll need to build probably a dozen idler cars
Thanks to all for sharing and Mikes continued tours of his excellent layout. The dioramas were first class and showed a great deal of attention to detatil. This has been a good thread on narrow gauge model railroading.
This past weekend I spent changing the undecorated, (now decorated), C-19, "the eight ball", from its generic DCC address of 3 to the engine number of 8. It was simplicity itself. The Tsunami sound decoder responded directly to the Zephyr "extra" in direct programming with the mode switch in blast mode. I selected 2 digit adressing and just entered "8" and hit exit and the job was done.
I have recently read of a lot of issues reported in the electronics forums of people having problems reprogramming engine id's or just altering CV's on Tsunami's. I have just never had any issues.
My real hassle this weekend was installing engineer "Big John" in the cab! It was a 1 hour + job! I attach a photo of the finished effort.
Due to the confines of the diminuitive cab and near zero clearance between the motor shroud and the cab side, I had to shear off John's left arm at the shoulder, shear his lower half off above the belly button and then file like a mad man to get him in. All in all, it was a creditable job in the end, once I ripped out the sun shade. (I'll replace it with a rolled up canvas equivalent soon).
For my old HO Denver and Salt Lake, brass 2-6-6-0, when I was in standard gauge HO, I bought one of those excellent old 1970's engineer castings that was beautifully painted. The engineer has the old red leather cap on with a snow white handlebar moustache and a light smile, leaning out of the loco. I can't rememeber who made this torso only figure, but it was to die for and I have never seen another like it.
I had to repaint parts of "John's" torso and head due to poor finish on the original. This was from the Preiser (sp?) package of 5 or 6 seated engineers.
I am not looking forward to the next engineer install on the undecorated K-27 I have waiting the treatment, though It seems to have more room. Maybe the hard work is over?
Richard... that's a great looking C-19 and scene! You also did a super job on re-doing "Big John" (what a good loooking Preisler figure...)
My error.....John is one of 6 KATO figures in a pack labeled "seated engine crew" figures. Sorry about the mis-information.
What is really terrible, all the other figures would best be firemen! There is a "sidedness" to seated figures.
Sadly, I prefer my engineers with a slight lean out the window with an arm on the padded leather arm rest.. I also wish they made one looking to the rear as if backing up to watch the brakeman's signals.
Looking at a lot of real "cab" videos currently on you tube of the Cumbres and Toltec and the Durango and Silverton, I see that in the yard and switching, the engineer may spend a lot of time on his feet, over the seat and leaning out of the window. On the working narrow gauge, an engineer spent a large amount of time on sidings and switchbacks going back and forth, cutting out and in cars and helpers. Many towns and sidings were only a few miles apart not much duff time compared to standard gauge long haul "mountains" and articulateds.
Check out the video here.......
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUJk475hzFk
Watch it all. This is a narrow gauge K-36 or K-37 in use teaching an aspiring fireman. Notice the astute hogger at the throttle. He is a busy man and at no time do we see him, knees together, relaxing in his seat with his hand on the throttle. No! He is legs-cocked in the seat or struggling on his feet over his seat to work the brake, throttle and reversing mechanism. He never takes his right arm off the leather arm rest as he spends most of his time in a bodily three point contact, (two feet and right arm), leaning out the window and making sure his valve gear is behaving as it should and watching his startup rail view forward and backward.
Sure, on long hauls on standard gauge at 50-60 mph the engineer spends almost all his time sitting on his duff. However, the narrow gauge with its close left-right clearances and ill maintained track that is invariably never totally straight or even level, rail to rail, is another matter. Speeds on some branches on the D&RGW, even in the 20's and 30's, are limited by railroad decree, on their own system maps, to no more than 10mph!! This speaks volumes. The narrow gauge engineer and his fireman needed to be hyper-aware and at slow speeds, leaning out a window to get a clearer picture of the rails ahead would not fill his face with 60 mph bugs or a hurricane like windy blast. Quite the contrary, a cool beeze and a bit of relief from a hot boiler head. Most narrow gauge engines, in summer, had the cat walk cab doors locked wide open.
Narrow gauge is railroading apart from what many think of "normal" railroading.