Strange that you should mention splines Rick. This is the first time I have done so. I just glued 1/2 inch foam onto the masonite splines and find it works great. The cork roadbed is glued to the foam then the foam can be trimmed to give the correct slope. Now as far as getting track to climb 20inches without a helix. On my previous layout I did just that by using the spiral tunnels that the CP uses as well as the old loop brook track that the CP used to use before the Connaught tunnel. It does take space but it works. You may have to add one or two more spiral tunnels. Gives the opportunity to create great mountain scenery [ 26 April 2002, 03:01: Message edited by: Robin Matthysen ]
Robin, That is exactly what I want to do with the spline road bed. It looks like you used double 1/8" hardboard (masonite) for each side and the middle. Am I right? Is the foam the stuff from Home Depot or Revy, or is it your general puffy white beaded foam (I hope you know what I am trying to say)? I am thinking of something slightly different for the nolix area. I am in love with the Fraser and Thompson canyon area. The nolix is an L shaped area, with two b**bs, one on each end, joining in the center. It is approximately 25 feet around, so 5 feet short if I go around three times (2 percent grade=80 ft approx). I plan to have the first go around hidden. The second go around will be on one side of the Fraser river, and the third go around will be on the other side of the Fraser, with high mountains on that side (the third go around). It is quite prototypical now to see CN and CP on both sides of the river. This area will give me my mountain fix and my bridges fix....lol. Both levels are pretty much flat until the nolix area. I am hoping this will give the layout three distinct visual areas. The lower level around the Chilliwack Valley area, the nolix representing the Fraser and Thompson river area, and the upper level more of a farming central BC flavour. I appreciate your pictures of your spline road bed. Would you mind telling me how you built them. Did you lap together the hardboard? Did you glue the blocks into the hollow area? What did you do to get them to hold your curve while you were building them? Thanks in advance! [ 26 April 2002, 03:53: Message edited by: rsn48 ]
Rick, your idea to use the Fraser Canyon to have the grade to give you the needed 20inch rise is brilliant. Nice to have the space to do it. Now to splines. First I cut the 1/8 th. masonite (or whatever it's called now) into 1 1/2 inch wide strips. These strips are 8 ft. long. I take a single strip and lay it on the cross beams that join the two L girder frames. I then glue pine that is 3/4 by 7/8 by 1 1/2 inch to the masonite strip so there is one where the strip crosses the cross beam. The masonite strips are 7/8 inch apart. I drill down through the pine and screw it to the cross beam. I also glue pine stubs about every 6 inches. I use white glue and C clamps to hold them in place. It is easy to create easements to curves as you go from a straight section of strip just bend it to the radius you want and the easement is naturally created. Once this single strip is in place, I add the second one to the other side of the wood stubs. Then I cut out the 1/2 inch styrofoam insulation to the width that is about 1 inch wider on each side than the cork roadbed. I then cut an angle along the foam that is about 1/4 inch from the cork roadbed out at 45 or more degrees. This creates a more prototypical roadbed. Now where the track is double as in my picture, I add another unit of strips to provide the necessary support. The two strip units are glued together with white glue and clamped for the 30 minutes it takes the glue to set. Now when it comes to turnouts I glued in pieces of pine but that isn't necessary unless you need it for switch machines. The styrofoam insulation comes from Home Depot or The Building Box ( No Revvys here that I am aware of ) and is sold in 2ft.by 8ft. sections for under $3.00 Hope this helps. [ 26 April 2002, 14:38: Message edited by: Robin Matthysen ]
I'm back "on track"! I know its early for my weekly update, but I wanted to report my progress. The mainline is finished. (just being laid, no ballast or detail yet) I have laid the engine facility tracks, and will finish the yard tracks tonight. This will leave only the stagin track to be finished. I'm also working on detailing engine and rolling stock. I will post pictures if Trainboard ever gets that issue figured out.
Congrats UP, If you wanted to post early, I suspect that means you are excited about your progress. Since I have installed about 19 feet of backdrop (about a week ago), I have been known to go sit in the layout room and just look at it and enjoy. But don't tell any one here or they might think I'm a.................. model railroader.... lol!! Robin, Thanks. I have printed out your post and will use it to enter the next phase of my commitment. [ 27 April 2002, 20:29: Message edited by: rsn48 ]
Rick, You are correct in what you say about sitting in the layout room and admiring your work and thinking or imagining of ow it will look in the future. As my layout extension is almost fully sceniced my eyse are starting to wonder to the other side of the room. (Lynn my wife) came in and said what are you going to do once you have finished, i said jokingly that i could extend to other side of the room, she replied well as long as you still keep the bar fridge and make some storage space then I may as well keep building . So now my mind is starting to think about what I should build lol. The wall is another 18 feet which is slightly longer than the section I have just built. Once the current area is sceniced I will go back into design mode for that area. Will it ever end? I don't think so but thats what model railroading is all about.
Time for my update! *huge grins* I have the mainline COMPLETE!!!! I ran trains on it last nite, and ecept for the TigerMAC not liking the tiniest kink in the rail, all went well, indeed! The 80MAC is the best tool to use to find all the kinks in the trackwork. It derailed almost every kink it found, and I marked it, to re-align the tracks later. The other locos, even the Dash 9's, ran without a hitch on any of the kinks that the 80MAC found and derailed on. In fact, I tested trains in excess of 60smph, and only exceeding that limit made trains derail. 55 smph is the top limit for the hottest Z trains and express passenger timetables. I successfully ran a 28-autorack consist with 2 Dash 9's or a Dash 9 and the 80MAC without trouble, or stringlining. It measured about 16' long. I also ran my pass trains, and just about drooled seeing the 3-unit lashup of Burlington E9s tow the heavy train of 11 NCL cars, and 11 more Kato Burlington corrugated cars around the winding curves.... The turnouts are all working nicely, altho some joints need filing, and relaying to eliminate kinks. All in all, the mainline works well. *beams*
Congratulations on getting the mainline complete HemiAdda2d . Quite an acheivement and it must give you a thrill to see trains running.
Gerry, I can read the enthusiasm in your post. It is exciting when you run your train for the first time around newly layed track. Look forward to seeing some pics of the track work.
The track laying has begun! With soldering iron and rail cutters in hand, I've laid about 75% of the track. My soldering skills proved good (thanks to all the input here). I want to lay a few more sections of flex track before I hook up some temporary power and test tun a loco. So far, I've only tested the track by pushing around a few cars - no derailments caused by bumps or kinks so far. Wow, did I go through railjoiners faster than anything! Have to pick up more this week to finish. The most frustrating aspect was the nailing down of the track. While some sections nailed down very easy, others sections were like hammering into concrete. I have cork roadbed on top of 1/2" plywood, and it seemed that one section of the same sheet of plywood had more "hardness" than the other. Go figure. But it didn't matter much because I just glued down the sections that ran over the harder areas anyway. It just took a few bent nails and broken ties for me to get to that point. Up this week: Finish tracklaying, clean the track, and run test power to run a loco. If things go well, I will start the permanent wiring. It feels good finally to see track on the layout!
Folks, I updated my webshots acct. There's pics of the completed mainline, and a shot of a 26-car autorack train!!!! Many more pics to come soon, after mainline realignment commences. *a few kinks need to be fixed* I also soldered a number of joints, and the iron just up and quit on me! Grr! I used a 100W iron, and it goes fast.
folks been working on my logging spur line the last couple of days (beside installing DCC in 4 Budd Cars). Also I added lots of pictures on my homepage. There are two new sections now : - layout history - train action (on my layout) Wanna see a pic of that logging railroad extension ? Remember, this is N scale !!
Sandro, You're the Paul Templar of N scale (that's a compliment).... very very nice. Paul, I was thinking, if we didn't sit in our train rooms by ourselves admiring our work, there would either be something wrong with us, or the quality of the work. It is immensely enjoyable to have a project turn out well, that was basically as visuallized at the beginning, then carried through to completion. I sat in the train room again yesterday, and tried to further visually how I was going to design the track around what theme. It keeps changing, but I think I am going to sneek in some Vancouver ports scenes into a "not port" area. LOL!!! I may go sit in the train room again tonight.
That is a great picture Sandro. The clear cut looks very realistic with the stumps left over. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Here are photos taken of the finished yard area and tha ballasting of the mainline over the girder bridge.
Great job, Paul! Keep it up! Sandro, your stuff is awesome! I really need to check out your other stuff!
This has to be almost a record thread for the number of posts we have gathered..... Anyways, I have more turnouts,a nd have cut a sectionof the mainline out, and am re-aligning it, and cutting in a few more turnouts, in a new trackplan modification. That's my progress so far. I LOVE using latex liq. nails to glue the track! It is so forgiving!!!
Kind of a boring time this past week. I spent most of it doing little chores here and there that had to be done, but were boring to do. I glued some of my levels together, added bus wiring (house guage #14) to the bottom level and designed new legs for the nolix. I am waiting on more background for the bottom level, and more for the top level to install, then I am finished my backdrop, just about. So all the chores had to be done, but most of them definitely weren't inspirational!
