What did you do on your layout today?

Started playing with the box of rocks. 

Wow.  I think that roundhouse is as big as my entire layout.  What's the story behind the second, and I assume older, picture?

Elliot- With all the great work you're doing on that layout, I'm curious, are you going to finish off the basement with drywall on the last foot of wall and ceiling?

Mike, the missing strip of sheetrock near the ceiling will get filled in, but in the end it won't be visible. Backdrop will cover it.

The plan has always been to install a suspended ceiling. I suppose it would have been easier to do it before the benchwork was in, but by standing on the layout, it shouldn't be too hard. I always worried about damaging the ceiling during construction. Unfortunately, back before the benchwork was installed, the duct work hadn't been boxed in yet. Now the portion above the layout is done, but there is still some left to finish in one corner. I've had the materials for years, but when I got sick, all progress stopped.

The truth is the room has never been empty. Even during the construction of the house, there was always stuff in the space. It isn't as if there was ever a good time to deal with this. But now that things are moving along again, it will have to be dealt with soon.

I'm also thinking of re-doing the lighting.

my Little girl and I ran the trains.  all of them and she put a bunch of action figures into the coal cars so they could take a ride!  so that was pretty fun..........  for the guys! I should charge admission! 

Success with the uncooperative switches. Additionally, I got another six of them operational today. Seven more to go and then it is on to wiring the remaining sidings.

Put down the outer loop and ran some trains over it. Boy, what a difference from the FasTrack I used last time. The O27 tubular is so much quieter. And I'm sure that once I add Flexxbed under the track, it will be a little quieter, still. So nice not to hear anything but the motor of the locomotive and the clickety-clack of the rails.

I'm new to the Forum.  This is a GREAT idea ... sharing with everyone our progress on our respective railroads.  My railroad's name is The Freestate Junction Railroad " a conduit line for all of Maryland's class 1 and short line railroads" during the transition era.

This week I wired all the track on the new Mountain Division ( The actual mountain is yet to be completed... and will be in the next few months hopefully ) which hosts a Bollman Truss Bridge.  I tested trains running on the  Mountain division.  All track work is fine.... no problems with derailments.  Two freinds helped wire my lower division mainline and also helped with the progress of my elevated trolly line.

Today I did a foam moch up of the mountain... just to get an idea of how it might look.

I put the last two pieces of track in place to complete the elevated trolly line. Still lacking the final screws for piers.... but it all looks good!  I went to Home Depot to buy more pink two inch foam.  Also bought some single roof shingles for making roads ... at $2.02 per shingle I can get lots of mileage out of a single shingle ... and they come in various colors too!

I'm looking forward to working on my layout tomorrow.  Actually "working" is not exactly what it is .... it's really creative play. :-)

Patrick W

Still ballasting track and covering blue board. Changed a crossover today from right turnouts to left, gives me better access to siding. I don't know what happened just didn't  get much done

14 days to open house

clem

Nothing again on the layout, but ran trains the past two days with my grandson.

Jumijo:

Tubular track with Johnson roadbed is as quiet as it gets. I have used it since 1996, it has the best sound deadening qualities for tubular track, and it really enhances the look.

Ran some trains this morning

Started to design my staging yard that will go though the 2nd wall into a spare bedroom we have.  Since the bedroom sits empty most of the time it shouldnt be an issue but when the inlaws come to stay with us I will design the track to fold up into the wall.  As of right now it will be able to hold 2 trains. 

I plan to hit the hobby shop today also to get some more cork roadbed to fix a small section of track that isn't level and causes all kinds of derailments.   

It looks as though I goofed up on my story line and captions. The roundhouse in the B&W picture, is the same roundhouse and turntable. It was built before 1940, for a 2-rail Club in Milwaukee Wisconsin, known as the Model Railroad Club of Milwaukee. The started at their present location in 1937, and still is active to this day!! I have not done a lot to the structure as I wish to keep it more as an artifact! We spiked down HO rail to act as my center rail. I ran a piece of stiff wire onto the table to do the same thing. When this roundhouse was first used, the layout was running on outside third rail.I originally bought the roundhouse and table back on March 2, 1970 from the Club, and is now finally installed on my new layout I am building, and is now totally operational. The table services a total of 26 tracks.

Hope this is found interesting.

Jeff

Don: I think I goofed up on my comments/captions, so here it goes. The roundhouse and table in the B&W photo, is an old picture of the same. I have done very little to it, as I wish to keep it more as an artifact from a very old 2-rail O scale Club. The Club is located in Milwaukee Wisconsin, known as the Model Railroad Club of Milwaukee, and they officially opened up in 1937, and they are still an active Club and layout to this day. When the Club first operated, you are right, they ran as outside third rail. My roundhouse still has the "pegs" inside to carry the old third rail. At some point the Club was able to convert to 2-rail operation. Thus, the roundhouse and table were built before 1940, and I know this because of an early (1940) Kalmbach publication showing my structure on the Club layout, within it's pages. I purchased the house and table on March 2, 1970. I have now left Milwaukee, and after many more years, the house and table are finally installed, and operational on the layout I am building. I might also mention that it was this Club, that started to formulate "Standards" model railroading, and after a while, it became what we know as the NMRA. Thus, in 1935, the first NMRA Convention was held on Labor Day in Milwaukee Wiscosnin. All thanks to Club members such as A.C. Kalmbach, Wm. K. Walthers to name a couple. I hope this helps, but ask me more if you need anything at all, I'll try and answer as best as I can.  I would really like to know more myself about the house and table, but that history seems to be lost within the current Club as I still visit about once a year!! Would like more photos of it as well.   Jeff

Yes, you were lucky. I can't count the number of times I've had materials bump into the rafters over the years. And carpet would have been destroyed by now, and there's still all the scenery left to do. I just spilled glue the other day. Actually, we just finished the last section of raised floor a couple months ago.

Funny story about the carpet that is in the trainroom. Back when the house was under construction, there was a dumpster in the driveway. One morning I found that some unscrupulous person had dumped a huge load of crappy used carpet on my lot. Instead of filling my dumpster, I adopted it for the trainroom. It was much better than bare concrete.

When life gives you lemons...

I didn't work on the new layout today but it's coming along. I did work on one of my little box cab electrics and almost finished. This is for my mining electric short line. The cab is brass and the running gear and frame are from a K-line S-2 switcher. The cab was a mess when I bought it. I replaced most of the hand rails, added snow plow and many more details. I still have to install windows, windshield wipers, paint the end of the air hoses red, interior cab and a few other details. The pantographs are the Milwaukee type made by Lionel. I will have two more small electrics for this line. Don't think I am going to need all three though. The others are the Westinghouse steeple cab type. The track in this photo is just sitting with no ballast and the overhead wire will be done in this section by next week.

The line in the background is the Milwaukee mainline. This little line will keep dropping down into a canyon to two or three mines. These electrics will pull stings of ore cars up to the mainline. Don

more ballast and scenery, sure hope I have enough ballast?

13 more days till Blissfield Railroad Days

Clem

Don:  It kinda looks like one of the BA&P 24M electrics that ran next to, but not on the Milwaukee road.  Is that what it is?

Paul Fischer

Paul, good call. I have no idea what it is. To me it looks like one the many electrics that ran on the open pit copper mines. I think we are saying the same thing. Yes, that's how I got the idea for a mining short line. The BA&P was as your know the deciding factor to electrify the Milwaukee.

The body was a old brass shell made in Japan I think in the 50's or 60's. This short line is not part of the Milwaukee Road either. It will just feed ore to the line. There's a story here that will be in OGR later. The road is called the V&M line. Another part of the story. Don

Today I built a siding.  That's about it.  Layout continues to chug along.

All track is down and trains are running. Now assessing track layout, and will tweak as needed. 

Don, that's a really nice electric locomotive. It looks really sharp!

I can't wait to see the steeple cab. I have always liked to see pics of those on a traction line pulling a short string of freight cars. Thanks for sharing.

Cobrabob.

Recently I have been working on the scenery at the right hand end of my layout. I built a tunnel first and plan on building the mountain over it next. I am putting down the ground cover, streets and some trees. I am actually starting to really enjoy this new aspect of model railroading. My first two Lionel layouts were bare plywood.

Cobrabob.

This photo of the tunnel was taken earlier, before the roof was in place. The block of wood was to make sure that I kept the walls a uniform distance apart. The ballast is all in place now and the roof is glued down. And the ground cover is also all set.

Today I ran through a train show...and picked up four Lionel flatcars to use at my

creosote plant, specifically to run into the retorts (which is on hold).  Cars had poles on them, 3, and one was a crane car to unload the others. Also found a power chassis for a planned steam coach or inspection engine (whichever I do first), and other items. 

Yesterday I made progress on the ghost town's crumbling general store...about ready to put trim on, paint it, and then roof it (partially, as there are holes).  I'd be afraid

to walk in that building...the roof looksl like a swaybacked horse...

Finally finished wiring and testing all of the switches. This took the better part of the weekend. Now I am on to wiring all of the new sidings and fitting the track into the available designated yard area. Overall, pretty good day of progress on the renovation work.

Today and yesterday I got started on wiring my new yard tracks and switches.

.....

Dennis

Started dismantling it 

I have been testing a new product for JT's Megasteam...looks like a winner.

Scott Smith

Working on finishing all of my mainlines for the D3R club meet next Saturday at my house. All 3 loops up and running.  Installed and wired 12 switches with 4 more to wire up.  Hope to have most of the logging switch back working.  And I thought I would have free time when I retired last January.

Dan

worked on resolving a wiring issue.  Issue resolved. Tested some engines on my new mountain division.  Did some organizational work in the train room. 

My Layout is finished!  Ran my Lionel LEGACY "BIGBOY. What a fantastic Engine. Love it!!

Fredstrains

Lots of maintenance work this weekend.  Pulled out the postwar engines 773, 736 and 2026 and lubed them up, replaced burnt out light bulbs, rewired several light pickups on the 2500 series passenger car trucks, replaced a spring in the 164 log loader and installed two new Yard lights.  As of this moment every engine, bulb, accessory and switch is working properly on the layout.  Three of the grandchildren stopped by and didn't break a thing....  LOL...

I'm looking forward to that!

Hi Mr. Wood (real name?): Very much like the looks of your layout. I see you've repainted some stuff in less toylike colors, such as the #352 Icing Station, etc. Like your use of the light towers also. Nice to see your layout.

Today, during lunch at work,  I went to the trains shop to get a "how to" dvd.  I also ran my trains for a few minutes.

Bought another sheet of plywood, between rain and wind.  Figured out how to make the switch back "fit".  10 lbs in a 5 lbs bag almost.  Now to get it done operating by Saturday's D3R meet.

Dan