I haven't visited this thread in a while. Things are proceeding very nicely. This is shaping up to be an excellent layout. The holes for wiring are a nice feature. Just for general information, professional layout builder Peter Lloyd-Lee has developed a very fast method of producing them (sorry Blayne, a little late for this project) for anyone who owns a drill press.
I think you have set yourself up for success because that all looks super clean. The bridge corner module looks fun, and having all that elevation change should be easy with the foam. My module group used to have a trestle module built the same way. It must have been a foot-deep ravine and the front fascia was super tall to accommodate it. Obviously your cutout is shallower, but any vertical change on a layout is good and helps to alleviate the ultra-flat look that modules usually have.
After a couple of weeks of family events, I'm back to the layout. The next step was to install wall cabinets above the entire length of where the layout will be. The cabinets will be used to store/hide modeling supplies. The carcasses are on the wall. Doors will be painted and reinstalled later.
Cabinets are complete (in Pullman Green). Modeling supplies hidden inside. Wall holes from previous layout are patched & painted. Next step: Install LED strip lighting underneath the cabinets.
They look great! It will be nice to have all that useable space above the layout. Pullman green is a nice touch as well.
Today I built the first of the LED strips that will go under the cabinets. I used these products from Amazon: * SMD 2835 Non-Waterproof LED Strip DC12V 600LEDs 16.4Ft 6000K * SMD 2835 Non-Waterproof LED Strip DC12V 600LEDs 16.4Ft 3000K * Solderless Snap Down 2Pin Conductor Connector for 8mm LED Strips * Strip Light Mounting Bracket Fixing Clip-One Side Fixing,Screws Included On my previous layout, I used both the 6000K (white) and 3000K (warm white) strips in parallel to add brightness and give me a color I liked. So, I decided to do it again for the new layout. Below is a look at the end of the first light strip. I attached the LED strips to a 2.5" wide, 0.5" thick piece of plywood and countersunk some holes to screw it to the bottom of the cabinet. The snap-down connectors (at the end) will let me connect the light strips under each of the cabinets together, and then to a single power source. The mounting brackets attached across each strip) act as a back-up for the glue on the back of the LED strips; I don't trust the glue, since the LED strips will be facing downward. And here is the light strip with some power applied. Ready for mounting!
The LED stuff is cool and thanks for posting those links. What power supply are you using for the LED strips?
For testing the strip yesterday, I used a benchtop power supply; thus, the LEDs were not at full brightness. For actual deployment to the layout, I’ll use this power supply that I used successfully for lighting the previous layout: * eTopxizu 12v 30a Dc Universal Regulated Switching Power Supply 360w
This morning, I finished the light strips for the long leg of the layout (11 feet long) and attached them under the cabinets. Here they are hooked up to the full power supply. The wiring of the four strips are connected end-to-end between the cabinets and then connected to the power supply at the corner. I was afraid that LED-free zones where two cabinets meet might create lighting dead spots below, but it is not the case. The strips provide plenty of light of a pleasing color (to me, anyway) without blinding me. The wires that connect adjacent strips will be tucked & tacked under the cabinet and mostly out of sight. There are three more cabinets to go (the corner and the short leg of the layout). I think I will power the long leg and the corner + short leg separately (but from the same power supply); that way, I can put rocker switches on the fascia of the layout to turn on lights for each leg independently. Since the town is on the long leg, I probably will spend more time working that area.
That is turning out super nice Blayne! Thank you for sharing how you are doing this. Really cool to follow along.
This looks great! I look forward to following. Nice benchwork too, looks like a skill that's been developed over a long time...
I finished installing and wiring the LED strips, installed lighting rocker switches (one for the long leg and one for the short) on the front of the corner module, and brought the modules that comprise the long leg into the room (I still need to adjust the levelers on the legs). But, here is where I'm stopping for today.
This is switching layout #3 for me. The bench work has gotten easier and more refined with each layout.
The plan calls for a curved bridge. Any thoughts on this? This is the 1960s/70s, so probably a plate girder bridge or such?
Another thought on which I'd like some opinions: For simplicity, I'd like the track to be level throughout. I plan to put all track on cork roadbed. However, to simulate the older, more industrial area in town (long leg), I plan to raise the level of all non-track areas up to about the same height as the top of the cork using ground goop and bases for the structures. As the track leaves town (going counterclockwise), I plan to reduce the height of the ground goop until it reaches the foam level. That way, the countryside track will be elevated above the surrounding terrain by the cork roadbed, which will be ballasted.
I found this 24" curved plate girder bridge section that can be 3D printed. I think I'll print out a section to see how it looks.