Hey guys! Well, I've got my new layout all planned out, and it's in the beginning phases of construction! 1x4 pine boards (cheap as crap, but I already had them) w/ two cross braces underneath for support and some cheapo strips of wood at either end to keep the homasote from sinking into the frame. I chose to do a frame for durability, maybe it'll protect the layout from moving around alot, and this way the rails can sit flush with the edge of the layout for ease of building cassettes. And scenery should fall in place easier what with the setting. The era is now, in an alternate dimension where Conrail still exists, and runs through my hometown of Mt Olive, hence the Cucumber and Vine (pickles biggrin. In this dimension Mt Olive is growing, with a small intermodal station, passenger station, Mt Olive Pickles, and a bustling business with inputs of scrap metal and outputs yet to be determined. The layout plan is attached. All turnouts #7 c55 Atlas, c55 Atlas flex, and min radius is 18" with all but one curve upwards of 27". My toolbox/collection/workbench consists of the following: It all fits in there!
Today, I'll be going to home depot to pick up some sort of flat wood to act as a fascia for the boarder of the layout, to make it purtier, and it will be painted black. The fascia will be a small bit taller than the base, because I am going to use drywall putty and putty the entire thing, to create a smooth surface. BUT will I have problems attaching scenery to a sanded drywall putty surface? If so, what should I use? Scultpamold?
Yes, Sculptamold is great! :thumbs_up::thumbs_up: I have used it for so many things on my layout. Walls, hills, around rock castings and to follow the flow of the facia. I always keep at least one bag in reserve. Nice track plan, and start. Keep up the good work. rich c
Another vote for Sculptamold. Much better than drywall compound. I've also used Celluclay in the past, which works well but has a coarser texture than Sculptamold.
Well, headed out to the local hobby shop, and got an already opened box of woodland scenics mold-a-scene plaster to use for leveling out the defects in the homasote (some admittedly caused by me), and filling in the gaps where the homasote is a mite smaller than the frame (definitely caused by me). Got some rail spikes to make a temporary little track, hooked up the ole zephyr, and here we go! That's a darn fine lookin' loco. Makes me VERY excited to see what I can do with n-scale! And, he was naked for a minute so I could see just what's inside a loco this small. After dinner, the plaster will be applied, and that'll be left to dry overnight.
Hah, and I thought I had a track plan! Thanks to whoever provided the recent link to the Highland Terminal. I've used it as a base for my REAL layout plan. Much more operational interest. It will probably be pretty puzzling most of the time, but that's OK, as long as it's not impossible! (Which it shouldn't be.) Operates pretty much the same as I've planned, same industries, I'll just need a smaller engine than that behemoth SD80MAC. Once the track comes in at the LHS, I'll have it down! The layout did receive its plaster, but woodland scenics scenery plaster stuff wasn't exactly what I was looking for, although it worked alright. I still need to put a generous blob of wood glue around the gaps where I cut the homasote poorly, so it'll stay put in the frame a little better. Also, I'm not so sure what I'm gonna do with all that open space on either side of the tracks! That's a lot of room for industry!
Progress! Yay progress! FINALLY got some track down, nothing permanent yet, I want to wait until my handlaying stuff gets here, as soon as Fast Tracks gets some stock, it'll ship! I'm gonna get everything spiked in, then solder joiners, then pull it all up as one big glob of track, spread white glue liberally, and then put it all back down at once. I think. Should I handlay before or after I glue the track down, and should I wait to solder until I glue the track down?
Is your layout going to include the real-life MOUNT OLIVE PICKLE CO. located at the corner of Cucumber and Vine in Mt. Olive, North Carolina? Since 1926. (I am taking this info off a jar of Mt. Olive no-sugar-added Bread and Butter Pickles. It is artificially sweetened so I, a diagetic and eat it, and you, a Cucumber and Vine railroader can ship tankcars of artificial sweetener to the plant.) Oops. I went back and saw that you definitely ARE aware of Mt. Olive pickles. Sorry. Mea culpa.
Hey, I've been to Mt. Olive (and it's pickle competing town Faison) recently.... It is located on the CSX W&W sub, known as the AC line.
Also, enjoy the SD80MAC... it was one of the first big Kato locos I purchased and it is a great puller!
That's awesome chessie! I'm grew up very near there. So yea, I'm pretty familiar with Mt Olive Pickles and Cates Pickles (or whatever it is nowadays; valley foods?). Anywho, I am enjoying the Kato, it's pretty awesome from what I can tell. And Sclass, it's 18"x4'. The outer 1" (or rather, 3/4", whatever 1 by 4s are cut into) is wood, so it's only really usable for transitioning to other modules or cassettes. So in answer to your second question, very much so! That is a major factor for this first layout. It's gonna be fed by a cassette on the right end, probably on the lowest track, possibly a two track cassette that can do both, not sure until I build it. But one day, when I find a real house to live in, with space, it'll be able to fit right in to a much larger layout!
Well, the Cucumber & Vine is not dead yet! I had to pack it up for a little while while college was taking all my time. But now its summertime, and I can leave my work at WORK, giving me time again for trains! I'll post up some pictures of what I've got so far later, I've just been slowly working on laying some track and hand-laid a couple turnouts. The first one I did turned out WAY better than the second though, I think I got a little cocky and a LOT tired of it. I've ordered the rest of the turnouts, cause hand-laying is a pain in the :we2-policeman:... I'm just not patient enough right now, don't have the time, and its hot in the summertime :mbiggrin: I also ordered a straight track gauge to keep my straights straight, and the rest of the ground throws. Aaaand, a stand-alone double-stack aaaand a couple containers... and I bought a nice Kato GP38-2 that someone lovingly painted in DT&I livery and weathered. I did have to leave its brother (exact same locomotive, different road #) cause I'm no money bags. But I'll probably feel bad enough about leaving it all alone after my next paycheck. Like I said, pictures to come! Once I get some permanent wiring in (hopefully tonight)
