jeff train: Track

Sýnir færslur með efnisorðinu Track. Sýna allar færslur

þriðjudagur, 28. júlí 2015

Post op sessions To-Do lists�.

After the last few posts with "big dreams/big plans" time to get back to reality.
Several pieces of a couple of puzzles have to drop into place before I do the 'big WRJ re-do' I blogged about.
But the last two op sessions did reveal some issues/glitches that need to fixed. AND, I want to continue working on the rest of the layout (you know, the parts I don't intend to tear apart anytime soon).
First, and most critical of these is a Walthers Code 83 curved turnout at the north end of Waterbury. It has worked okay - early on problems with some Rapido passenger cars were traced to out-of-gauge wheel sets. These were replaced with Reboxx wheels and it seemed to alleviate the problem. But in the last two sessions the issue came back with a vengeance and now just about every passenger car, most steam engines, and even some freight cars, are derailing in this turnout.
After the session a careful check with the standards gauge revealed the issue - there are several points along the length of the point rail where the gauge is tight.

Shouldn't be too much of a surprise - the point rails are "straight" and the closure and corresponding stock rails are curved. How COULD the gauge possibly be constant?
So this one has to replaced.

At the same time this end of Waterbury yard has code 70, Walthers code 83 and Peco code 83 all coexisting - less than reliably. The entire ladder is going to come out and hand laid curved code 70 turnouts are going in their place.

Of course this is the only place on the layout where the track is still laid on styrofoam - so the question is "Do I suck it up and replace the sub roadbed with plywood and relay all the track?" (That means redoing the track/ballast and wiring, and maybe some of the scenery so it's not a simple answer)
I suppose I could relay the turnout on the foam and see if it works. (As a practical matter securing turnout controls to the foam - especially through the 2" foam - can be somewhat problematic.) What I DON'T want to do is stick with the foam then find I still have reliability issues and get to relay the track a third time�..

The other "to-do" items are much less intrusive. Actually, most of them are "administrative" and paper work in nature.

föstudagur, 2. janúar 2015

Rockin' Out?????

I spent New Year's day rocking out...

Lots of little rocks that is!

I spent a fair amount of time ballasting track - Made great progress, but there's still a bit more to go.

To capture the look of a transition era mainline requires a three stage process -

1. Cinder fill on the sides. After that dries (by the time I worked my way around the layout adding cinders it was time for lunch, and by the time I got back at it the cinders had dried enough to proceed!)

2. Add the gray "rock" ballast to the main and passing sidings (spurs and house tracks get cinders...)

3. Still need to go back and tweak a couple of holidays and other spots.

Got everything ballasted from the north end of Randolph to the south switch in Richmond - I have no idea how many linear feet of track that is, but it's a lot. All that remains is Richmond itself, the south end of Randolph, and the passenger station at White River Junction.

Only thing that stopped me was I ran out of ballast!

Sorry for the somewhat poor DoF on these photos - I took them with my phone before I left for the office this morning, and apparently my hands were a little shakey from all the "rockin'" I'd been doing...

fimmtudagur, 16. október 2014

Thursday Update

Here it is mid-October and I realized I haven't posted any new posts for most of the month!
Stic has come by for two work sessions - we removed the track and after thinking about salvaging the foam board sub roadbed I decided to duplicate the methodology we used in rebuilding Randolph - basically replacing the foam board with new plywood. None of that was very fun but the result is a much better foundation for the track. I'll write it off to "what I should have done in the first place." Currently the only foam board sub roadbed still on the railroad is in Waterbury - that section is also ballasted so I'm more than a little hesitant to take it out. I think I'll leave it be for now.
The photo above shows the current state of the new Richmond scene. I'm still in the process of figuring out the track arrangement "full size."

This is likely old news to everybody but me, but I used to cut roadbed (cork, homasote, or whatever) by the old "lay in the tangent piece and then place the curved section and slice to fit" method outlined in the old Atlas track plan books. Remember those?
I never had a great deal of luck getting the cork cut just right. Then it occurred to me to take the wider sheet of cork (which is sold to be used under yard tracks) and then trace the turnout on that and cut it to fit. I've already made enough "tie blocks" for all the turnouts I'll need for this scene, and then some.

The other task I've just about accomplished is in the workshop. I installed a couple of more shop lights and added an L-shaped extension to my workbench. I still need to add some pegboard to the back (mostly to cover over the shiny silver insulation!).

Don't let the clear surface fool you - also on the agenda for this weekend is "clean up the other half of the workbench."
Off to watch the Pats game.

laugardagur, 1. febrúar 2014

Laying out Randolph

Laying out the Randolph track arrangement. In this photo, the under construction Waterbury station is serving as a stand in for Randolph.

Been working on converting the prototype track arrangement at Randolph onto the layout. I'm doing this "full size" using actual track components, or xerox copies, and cut outs of buildings. I pinned a large piece of plain white poster paper to the layout surface so I could sketch out ideas, and make changes. Eventually that piece of paper will serve as the template for cutting out the sub roadbed.
A key signature scene for Randolph is in this aerial view. I think I can take liberties with the prototype (such as bending the track the "wrong way," curving tangent track etc�..) as long as I get this "downtown" scene fairly accurate.

Aerial view of the depot area in Randolph. The station is in the upper right hand corner, which means this photo is oriented with my backdrop side on the bottom and fascia side on top. Randolph Coal and Ice (lower left) and the firehouse (with the peaked-roof tower) are also signature structures for this scene.

fimmtudagur, 25. apríl 2013

Changes in Everett

Preparations for the Sea Trial Session of May 19 continue at a furious pace. Big event for this week is to complete the South staging yards in the utility room. These are critical to the operating scheme and we need to get them done before the 19th! Stic Harris is coming over Saturday to help with that task.
A couple of turnouts that were not up to snuff have been cut out and will be replaced (once I get the turnouts delivered!). I also did some modifications to the north end of Everett in an effort to lengthen the mill lead.

In this shot, the SP boxcar shows the clearance point on the mill lead. I noticed a Peco code 83 curved turnout should be able to fit in place of the turnout where the reefer is sitting. I went back and forth on this for several days, since tearing a gap in the mainline less than a month before the test session didn't seem like a great idea. But I knew if I could tell the mill lead should be lengthened, my operating crew would likely offer the same feedback. So, out came the track removal tools.
When I started actually fitting the Peco turnouts in place I found if I excavated some of the hill I could extend the mill lead and the passing siding through the use of two Peco turnouts.
Here's how it looked with the turnouts laid in place temporarily and the hillside cut back. The clearance point for the mill lead is around the frog on the further turnout. The change makes the siding a full four-five car lengths longer:

In addition to the changes in Everett, I've also replaced one of the turnouts in Essex Junction with the Peco code 83 track. I really, really like this track system. In fact, if I had it to do over again I'd seriously consider using Peco code 83 throughout the layout.

fimmtudagur, 20. september 2012

White River Junction from the air, 1953

A few months ago I found a neat UVM web site that featured vintage images of Vermont - including some aerial views of Essex Junction and even a close up a industry at Waterbury. While these images were extremely helpful, the White River Junction selection was pretty slim pickings. In fact all that came up in a search of "White River Junction" was a bunch of photos showing the interstate highway being built through the Green Mountains in the late 1950s. While somewhat interesting, it hardly was useful for my layout research.
That was a few months ago, and the internet is always changing. I've had some time during my lunch to wander around the internet over the last couple of days. Just for fun I went to the UVM site and entered "White River Junction" in the search window, fully expecting to find those same photos of interstate highway construction. Wow, those folks at UVM have been busy. There are dozens of photos of White River Junction - including this one dating from 1953 that at long last shows exactly how the turnouts between the station and the CV yard were arranged. If you go to the link you'll be able to use the "Zoomify" function to get some real close up views.

þriðjudagur, 17. júlí 2012

Essex Junction Trackwork - Update

Rather than overcomplicating things, I decided to go with a very simple homemade spring to hold the points on my hand laid turnouts. As you can see from the photos, the spring is a piece of .028" brass wire bent to a 90-degree angle with two "legs" bent downward. These legs are inserted in holes drilled in the throw bar and an adjoining tie.
Once the turnout is finished, painted, weathered, and ballasted, I think it will be virtually invisible. If I want to take a realistic photo of the scene at some point it's a simple matter to remove the spring and replace it once the pictures have been taken.

Thanks to all who commented with suggestions - the "spring" you see here is actually the result of some experimentation over the last couple of nights. I'm pleased with how well it works. Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best.

miðvikudagur, 11. júlí 2012

Essex Junction trackwork in progress

Been spending time over the last couple of weeks laying track in Essex Junction. It took several evenings with Sanborn Maps and prototype track maps - along with photos - to come up with a trackage arrangement that resembles the prototype and is functional enough to support the planned operation on the layout (sometimes those two things don't align as well as we might like!)
Anywhere I can use a straight "stock" turnout I use Micro-Engineering Code 70 no. 6 turnouts (all the track, with the exception of a couple of code 55 sidings, is M-E code 70. For curved turnouts, custom fit to a specific place, I handlay them.
I need to handlay a total of six turnouts for the train shed approach tracks - most of these turnouts are somewhat curved. I'm using Detail Associates frogs whenever possible (on at least two turnouts the "stock" frogs won't work, so I have to scratch build the frogs as well) -
One of the main things I need to figure out is how to throw the hand built turnouts - the ME turnouts have a built-in spring - and I've really come to like those - crews don't have to translate between a turnout and a control panel of some sort, and I don't have to build a control panel - or, even better - install under-table switch motors. I've been using Caboose Industries ground throws in some other areas of the layout (Hartford and Waterbury) - they work great but look awful - especially in photos. I'd rather avoid them in the Essex Junction scene. Stopped by Radio Shack on the way home and picked up a couple of slide switches to see if they would work.

Here's a couple of progress shots - more pics to follow!

fimmtudagur, 22. mars 2012

White River Junction Progress Report - 1

After my friends Paul Dolkos and Mat Thompson came by late last month Paul mentioned that I should postpone scenery work and focus on getting the track and wiring done to the point where we can operate the railroad. "Then," Paul added, "you can get things tweaked and have the freedom to pick and choose whatever project you'd like." Certainly seems to make sense, and I remember the sense of accomplishment when I was able to declare the major benchwork construction done and get all the scraps of wood out of the basement. Could the same feeling of accomplishment accompany getting all the track in - at the time Paul visited there were stacks of flex track and turnouts all over the place.

I've decided to take his advice - perhaps the most "track intense" part of the railroad is White River Junction. I introduced the scene - at least how I'm using mockups to plan it - in the latest issue of Model Railroad Hobbyist ezine - there's even a video. Since that article was written I've made some decent progress getting the track in place in the freight yard and the WRJ locomotive terminal. I also ordered a couple of turnout kits from Proto:87 stores to see if the details on their plastic ties will blend better with the Micro-Engineering flex track.

Here's an overview of the freight yard, with the engine terminal in the background.

I needed to remove some of the Homasote and plywood for the Bridge Street overpass. Of course, before I could get out the saw I needed to know exactly where the yard ladder and mainline would be!

One of the signature spotting features of the White River Junction yard is the Tip Top bakery billboard. Tip Top was rail served in my era - even if it wasn't the billboard, shown here in about the same size that it will appear on the model, is an attention getter!

fimmtudagur, 7. apríl 2011

Trains Running � Service restored to Waterbury!

A significant milestone in the development (or re-development) of the HO scale Central Vermont Winooski Subdivision took place last night when Central Vermont S-4 8015 ran under its own power through the newly-laid track in Waterbury, Vt. Power was a provided by an old MRC Tech II power pack connected to the buss wires with alligator clips. I learned a long time ago it�s better to perform the initial �smoke test� with a DC power pack than the 18 or so volts the DCC system cranks onto the rails.

A lot of work remains � but at least Waterbury has been declared �operational." The track gang will enjoy a well-deserved rest for the weekend before starting work on extending the mainline.