Work On The Mainline Resumes

Although the staging that I've just about finished installing will greatly expand the capacity and operational potential of my layout, it has taken an inordinate amount of time to complete. My open house is just a few weeks away and I would like to finish some more of the mainline so that the usual crew of visitors will have more room to run on.

I've come up with a harebrained scheme to temporarily connect the end of the Cheat River grade with staging and allow trains to run in and out of staging, into the center of the basement, and around the walls to a point above staging; that should be over a scale mile of running.

To do this I have to finish the track on the Cheat River grade to the point where it would ordinarily enter the central helix (section in yellow on the track plan below). This section of the track plan is the most difficult for a few reasons. The only choke point (i.e. less than 3 ft. wide) in the operator aisle is located on this section of the layout (see #1 below). The track itself makes it's only close approach to structure in the basement where the track must pass between the supports for the basement stairs and a lolly column holding up the house (#2 below). Finally the bench work in this area is tricky. Do I build a double sided bench that holds both the Cheat River grade on one side and the top of Cranberry grade on the other? The grade separation between the two will be over 15 inches at this point and the two scenes must be separated by a double-sided backdrop which could make the bench work difficult. Or do I build two separate benches? If I do this the bench holding up the Cheat River grade will need to be somewhat shallow (16" or less) which could limit scenic possibilities and/or lead to problems supporting the backdrop (#3 below). Click on the track plan to enlarge it to see the details.



I designed the track plan with 3rd Planit and, so far, the tack plan has been right on; everywhere the track was supposed to fit, it has fit. However, the track plan is only as good as the measurements that I took of the basement. If my measurements that positioned the structures in the center of the basement were off, then there is a possibility that the track will not fit. Heretofore this has not been an issue as the track has not been close to structure. Furthermore, when I measured the basement it was cluttered with 'junk', which has since been moved elsewhere, and I made at least three passes at measuring the obstructions in the basement and they did not all agree.

To help resolve these questions I decided to lay out ('loft' in nautical terms) the track arrangement for the last of the Cheat River grade on the basement floor. I began by lofting the curves and straightaways on kraft paper per the track plan. In this way I would not be tempted to cheat on the curve radius to make the track fit. I then taped the completed kraft paper templates to the basement floor using the track plan and measurements offset from the basement walls and existing track to locate the templates; again to prevent cheating by forcing it all to fit.

To my great relief everything fit, exactly as the track plan indicated. The picture below shows the overall view.



The lolly column in the center is the choke point in the operator aisle. The aisle should be about 2' wide at this point and is, but I'm a big guy and from actually standing there it feels tighter. However it is literally only one point that the operators have to pass, using John Armstrong's design principles this should be OK.

The next photo shows where the track must pass between another lolly column and the support holding up the basement stairs.



It should JUST fit. The leftmost line on the paper template is the left hand side of the allotment for that track, 2" offset from the track center line. Since I did my 3rd Planit using track center lines, but lofted the templates using the full clearance for the swing of cars, I believe that the two are in agreement. I'll have to test this point with both full length passenger cars and articulated locos when I lay the track, but I have no qualms about notching that 2x4 if I need more clearance.

This final photo is the overview from another direction.



The faux wood grain cabinet next to the lolly column (right) has been moved back to make sure that it does not contribute to the choke point.

Seeing the track lofted on the basement floor confirmed a decision that I had already made, I will build separate bench work for the Cheat River and Cranberry grades. This is partially a decision of convenience, I can get this section done faster that way and put off some vertical alignment decisions until later. I hope that I will not regret this choice later on.

Now back to building.

First Train Runs in Hidden Staging

This Friday (7/22) I was able to run the first train in hidden staging. It's taken a lot of work to get to this point (although the months of May, June and July have not been the best months for model railroading).

Here are some pictures of what hidden staging looks like:

Tracks 1, 2 and 3

Tracks 4 and 5

Yes, the track is not the straightest in the world. That's because the black-tie track is old (1970's) AHM sectional track. When I noticed that this stuff was not laying down straight; I ordered some Fast Tracks 'Sweep Sticks' to help me get it right. The track nearer the camera is better because of this.

The staging tracks were constructed in the aisle on the plywood sub roadbed and then slid under the mainline. When I did so, one of the pre-installed servo switch machines (see 'A Few Simple Solutions' post 6/15/11) had a benchwork joist right under it and there was no clearance for the machine. So it had to be re-mounted above the plywood. That's shown in the following photo:



The servo needed to be mounted far enough to the side to clear rolling stock which, in turn, required that the throw bar be extended. This was accomplished by soldering another length of PC tie below the original. The wooden tie that you see is there to support the longer throw bar so that it doesn't sag.

Here's a video of the first runs. The sounds that you hear in some clips are from a sound decoder equipped steam loco elsewhere on the layout; the air pumps were coming on at random. The beeps that you hear are the Lenz radio throttle that uses a cordless phone as the wireless link. I test all new track with the plastic diesel that you see in the video; having a plastic diesel derail and fall to the floor is less traumatic than doing the same thing with a brass steamer. This diesel has a very old MRC DCC decoder that is not a silent running type, ergo lots of motor noise.



Runs on Tracks 4 & 5 are followed by a run on the lead for tracks 4 & 5. Tracks 1, 2 and 3 were not wired up and ready to go on Friday night. I had hoped to finish them this weekend, but there's still more work to be done.

Small Videos

I have been reviewing the page view and video play statistics of this blog and it appears that a lot of people read the pages but do not play the videos. I'm guessing that some of you do not have the Internet bandwidth or the computer horsepower to play the videos even in standard definition mode.

So as an experiment, I'm going back and redoing some of the original videos in 320x240 size. Some of the files are still large, but the bit rate is very low and even a dial-up connection should be able to play them. Quality is not what the HD videos are, but it may be better to watch these than nothing at all.

If these smaller videos are what you need, let me know - leave a comment. Otherwise I will not take the time to convert more videos.

Installing a DCC Decoder in a Brass Steamer - Part 1 (320x240)

Installing a DCC Decoder in a Brass Steamer - Part 2 (320x240)

DCC Decoder Install into an O Scale Diesel

Some Short Videos of my Layout

Installing a DCC Decoder in a Brass Steamer

Creating the videos below was a long and painful process, but they're finally done! The videos take you step-by step through the process of installing a DCC decoder in a brass steam locomotive - a Sunset/3rd rail B&O Q4b in O Scale to be precise.

There's no reason to be hesitant to disassemble and modify a brass locomotive; and the Sunset locos seem to be well soldered and sturdy. Hopefully these videos will give you the information and confidence that you need to tackle the job yourself. In fact, getting the installation right took me a couple of attempts to find the right combination of miniature connectors and flexible wire to make the installation work - but that is all explained in the film. Be sure to view the videos in order.

There is one omission that I must mention. In hooking up the backup light I forgot to film (or mention) the necessity to include a resistor in the line going to the backup light. This resistor is necessary once the backup light is hooked up directly to the decoder. Use a value of 500 to 1000 ohms and put the resistor in either line of the LED backup light.

In viewing the videos, do not click on the "HD" unless you have high speed internet and a fast computer (dual core processor and good video card); and you still may want to allow the video to buffer before playing.

Part 1

Part 2

Fast Tracks Tips and Techniques

A few months ago I purchased a full set of the Fast Tracks turnout construction fixtures. The point/frog forming tool, the stock rail forming tool and the turnout fixture itself for a #6 switch. The videos on the Fast Tracks website provide a good overview on how to use each of these tools and I watched them before buying.

However, the O Scale fixtures are a little different then the ones for the other scales, and are not covered by Fast Track's videos. In addition I developed some techniques for using Fast Tracks that may be helpful. So I made this video to demonstrate all that I learned.

One more tip that came up after I finished the video. I installed a bunch of these turnouts in a yard ladder and as part of the installation I checked for shorts. While I did not find any dead shorts, I found some leakage between the left and right rails. This drove me nuts for a while until I isolated it to melted flux bridging the gaps in the PC board ties. Since the Oatley flux is a tinning flux, it's mildly conductive. So if you use the Oatley tinning flux, be sure to clean it out of all of the gaps (or use less flux than I did). I found that "Goo Gone" is a good cleaner to use for this purpose.

This is the first video that I've posted that is compatible with the iPhone & i Pad. If you have trouble loading or playing this video, please leave a comment outlining your problems so that I can correct them. Like this video? Leave a comment. Don't care for videos? Leave a comment. Like videos compatible with mobile devices? Let me know; if there is enough interest I can go back and change other videos.

Thanks.

A Few Simple Solutions

Mounting Tortoise Switch Machines

When I first started building this layout, I had to put in 3 single crossovers, requiring 6 switch machines. I spent a considerable amount of time under the layout affixing switch machines - and bumping my head. Now that I'm working on the yard ladder into hidden staging and I've come up with a simple and obvious way to attach switch machines without all of the hassles.

The problem with attaching the Tortoise machines is that the built-in mounting ears are too close to the machine to reach easily with a screwdriver. Plus the machine is small and it's hard to position it critically and drive the screws without pushing the machine out of place. To alleviate these problems I've attached each Tortoise machine to a scrap of plywood. The size of the plywood is not important so long as it extends well past the machine proper. The plywood is, in turn, mounted to the underside of the layout. The plywood forms a 'handle' that makes it easy to position and screw the machine in place without movement.

These photos should be self-explanatory.











You'll notice in the pictures above that the actuation mechanism of the Tortoise machine simply extends past one edge of the plywood mounting plate. In this way it is not necessary to drill a hole for the actuation wire through the mounting plate. Also note that I have pre-drilled and countersunk holes for the mounting screws. Four holes are not really necessary, but it provides some flexibility in where the mounting screws will be driven. The combined thickness of the mounting plate, subroadbed (plywood) and roadbed (cork and foam) is well over 1". This would be too thick if I were using the music wire actuator that comes with the Tortoise; but I am already replacing the actuator with heavier wire, so I simply cut this wire longer.

In O Scale a #6 switch is approx 18 inches long and track center-to-center spacing is typically about 4"; so switches cannot be densely packed and there is plenty of room under the table for these oversize plywood mounting plates. In the smaller scales, this approach may not be possible.

Mounting Servos as Switch Machines

I'm taking the opportunity of motorizing all of the switches in hidden staging to experiment with servos as switch machines. While I will eventually experiment with the servo actuators from Tam Valley Depot and Duncan Mcree, I currently have an ESU stationary DCC decoder that drives servos. To use the decoder that I have I had to buy a servo at the local hobby shop (ouch!) rather than pay less and wait for it to arrive via mail-order. How to mount the servo was a problem. After thinking about it for a while, I decided on the following technique. I simply glued the servo to a right angle bracket sold in home centers for building decks.





The bracket is Simpson 'Strong Tie' A21Z, note: this is the right angle bracket with one arm longer than the other, that's the arm that the servo is glued to. I used Gorilla Glue to attach the servo. I roughed-up the bracket and servo with sandpaper before I dampened the bracket with water and applied a THIN coat of the glue to the servo, then clamped the two together. Since I used a thin coat, this time the glue did not foam up all over the place; I've finally found a use for Gorilla Glue.

Here's the servo switch machine installed:





For fitting the actuator arm, made of music wire, to the servo crank I came up with what I think is a novel solution which you can see here:



I bent a length of wire into the shape above. The length of the straight section to the right should be enough to reach up through the subroadbed, roadbed and through the throw bar on your turnout. If in doubt, make it longer, any excess can be cut off after installation. The form of the wire on the other end is shown in the detail close up here:



The distance between the bends should match the hole spacing on two opposite arms of the servo crank so that it fits like this:





In case it's not obvious how to get the bent wire into the servo crank, here's a short video on how it's done:



The self-retention feature that you see in the video works because I am using relatively stiff 0.039 wire as a actuation arm. That allows the right angle bend at the end to exert enough outward pressure to hold the arm in place. If you use significantly thinner wire this might not be the case.

This 'n That

It been a while since my last post; 3 of the 4 weekends in May were taken up with activities away from home that kept model railroad progress to a minimum. That is not to say that I got nothing accomplished. Here are photos of a scratch built 62"/48" curved turnout that I started in May and, technically, finished in June. The paper template for the turnout is laid upon the back of a 2' x 4' ceiling tile. Why a ceiling tile? My last scratch turnout was laid down on a piece of plywood and each spike hole had to be pre-drilled - a real pain. The spikes (actually "Perfect" brand track nails) push into the ceiling tile easily and hold well enough to solder the turnout; when the turnout is finished the spikes can be removed and reused. The ceiling tile is, in turn, supported by plywood as it would bend and break otherwise.

Here's the frog laid down:



And a close-up of the frog:



Stock rails in place:



One Closure rail in place:



The Completed turnout:



Close-up of the frog-wing-guard rails:



This latter picture shows the frog before the excess solder was cleaned up by filing and sanding.

The Fast Tracks frog/point form and stock-aid tools were used to aid construction. I have to say that I enjoy hand laying turnouts; I just wish that I was more adept at it as it still takes me far too long. However getting a smooth running turnout that is an exact fit for the location is nice. For instance, the 62" outer radius exactly fits the curve where this turnout will be located and the turnout was made with the code 156 rail found in the old (1970's) Atlas flex track as the hidden trackage is the old Atlas flex.

Another May project: I did some mold making. A couple of months back, I saw some "Ultimate, Make-A-Mold Master Castings" rock castings by Ultimate Scenery Center (www.ultimatescenery.com) on a vendor's table at a train show. It was love at first sight with these castings; unfortunately, I had expended all of the money that I wanted to spend that day. I recently found some of these castings at Mainline Hobbies in Blue Ridge Summit, PA (BTW an excellent train store) and snapped up a couple.

These are highly detailed, urethane foam castings that the manufacturer actually intends to be used as masters for the purchaser to use to make his own molds. I like this concept, no longer do you have to be in a gray area of legality or morality by making a mold from someone else's casting.

I started with #123 "Pennsylvania Shale", a large (13" x 9 ") casting exhibiting both stratified and 'blocky' rock in the same casting. It is a good match for the rock formations found along the rights-of-way that I model. Here's a photo:



Here's a detail picture:



Click on either photo to get a full-size view.

I was going to use the technique that I used in my O Scale Trains article to make an open-face mold, but the manufacturer included detailed instructions for making a reinforced latex 'glove' type mold, so I decided to follow their instructions.

Here's a photo just before starting the process. I used the same 'Mold Builder' latex mold compound that I bought at Michael's and used for the OST article.



Mold Builder is not the manufacturer's recommended mold making compound, but I had it on hand. I don't know if the substitution effected the outcome. The surface that I am building this mold upon is a 18" x 18" ceramic floor tile obtained from Home Depot. I chose the smoothest 18" x 18" tile that I could find, although this was a floor tile and not a glazed wall tile like I build smaller molds on. To make the tile's matte surface smoother, I coated it with clear gloss spray from a spray can. A smooth surface will prevent the latex from adhering and facilitate removal of the finished mold.

And here's the first coat of latex applied.



The latex is brushed on. The first coat of latex must be applied thin and without bubbles - unless you want bubbles to be a permanent part of the mold and of each subsequent casting; so watch your brush strokes. I extended the latex beyond the sides of the master casting to form a lip on the finished mold about 3/8" wide.

Here's a pic of the mold after a couple of coats of latex have been applied and dried.



Ultimate Scenery instructs to apply four coats of latex before the next step. Being a 'belt and suspenders' type, I applied five.

Next you are instructed to apply a coat of latex and wait for it to get 'tacky' then layer the entire thing with gauze. The gauge is supposed to be forced into all of the cracks. Even though I cut my gauze into 3" long strips for ease of manipulation, this master casting has so many small cracks that I could not get the gauze down into all of them; it would lift out and/or bridge over the detail. Maybe the latex that I used was not tacky enough.

After the gauze is applied, you're supposed to add another coat of latex before - as I read the instructions - the latex/gauze coat has had time to dry. I did this and it lead to further lifting of the gauze from the master. Here's a picture of the mold after adding this overcoat of latex:



After the latex/gauze/latex coat as dried; four additional coats are to be added before the mold is done. Just to be sure, I added six.

Here's what the finished mold looks like ready to be peeled from the master casting:



And here's a video of removing the mold from the master casting:



Making the mold took a lot of latex, the lion's share of the jar was consumed in the 14 layers of latex that I applied.

So now it was off to make a casting from my new mold. I mixed up a batch of plaster in an empty Cool-Whip container and I thought that I might need two of these to fill the mold. Mixed the second batch and it was just about enough to cover the face of the mold, but not fill the body. I switched to a larger mixing bowl and two additional large batches later the mold was filled. Here's what it looked like:



The chocolate pudding color of the plaster came from a failed attempt to color the plaster with the craft store acrylics that you see peeking out in the upper right of the picture. Actual rock samples and photos taken from the area I'm interested in are a chocolate type brown, but darker than the color I got with the acrylics.

Filling the mold took a LOT of plaster - the majority of a 5 lb. container is in that casting. Next one I may only fill the face and not the entire mold. After 24 hours to let a casting of this size dry and solidify, I took it out of the mold. Here's what it looks like:



The casting is not bad, if you can look past the weird color (which will be fixed by spray paint). The details seems to reproduced well, however there are a few bubbles that will need to be fixed, probably the result of my pouring technique.



A final observation: If you look at the pictures of the mold, you will see that some gauze extended beyond the latex rubber. I cut most of this away, but did not seal the ends of the gauze with additional rubber. During casting the gauze absorbed water and wicked it into the mold between the layers of rubber. This made the mold slimy and it took on a milky color. Now two days after demolding the mold is beginning to dry out and return to it's normal state. It's possible that this is responsible for the chalky white deposits that you see in the close-up. I find it hard to believe that water between the layers of latex made the mold slimy, but it did. Next time I'll try sealing the gauze completely.