PRR/Conrail Juniata Division Engineering Report

[wm3798]

Nice work on the finished room...  And always a pleasure to see the JD rise again!
Lee

[Dave V]

The finished room didn't last too long... A pipe froze on Sunday and blew, damaging the room and frying the PS515 power supply to the JD.

We've been feverishly drying the room with the help of ServPro and reconstructing the laminate floor in the hallway outside the room.  Our drywall guy is coming on Tuesday to repair the wall.

All of this craziness will of course cost money...  I may come in slightly under deductible but it's still a bitter pill to swallow during the holidays and on the heels of having just spent so much to finish the basement the first time.

That said we are loving Colorado Springs and more and more this is looking like our retirement home.  I'm loving being an assistant professor and have no desire to go back to staff work, and we love the area so much we don't want to leave.  We've invested a lot in our new home, and as much as we have accounted for resale possibility we've still made it custom for our own needs/desires.  We even installed a hot tub before Thanksgiving.

I'm saying all this to preface the next point...  I'm smitten terribly with the local railroading scene.  I used to model the Rio Grande Southern many moons ago, and I never fully shook the virus.  I mentioned previously the idea of doing G scale outdoors to scratch this insatiable itch, but was worried about doing something permanent.  Well, obviously I'd have to find gainful employment post-USAF to continue to live here, but I really think this is it.  This is home.

Patricia won't abide discussion of dismantling the Juniata Division, and honestly I don't want to part ways with Pennsy or Conrail.  I think I could do a decent garden layout here if I could scrape together the dough and the parts.  Used trackage is the way to go in G given how stoopidly expensive it is.

So discussion of an RGS/D&RGW-themed garden railroad is now open!

[wcfn100]

You get to Delores yet?

http://goo.gl/maps/k7QuM

It's a ways from Springs, but you can stay overnight in Durango which is never a bad thing.

And if you didn't know yet, there's an Hon3 and On3 modular group that show in the area.

Jason

[Dave V]

Not yet...  When I was a kid I wanted to stay with my cousins in the hotel pool in Durango while my father traced the RGS west through Mancos and Dolores.  Regret!

[GaryHinshaw]

Great to hear that you're loving the west, despite the setback.  If you haven't done so already, you should really drive the San Juan Skyway.  Lot's of railroading lore along the route - especially RGS - and some of the most breathtaking scenery in the world.

BTW, I totally get the Colorado narrow gauge thing, but why G?  Outdoor modelling just strikes me as work (to say nothing of the cost).  Does keeping the JD in place preclude space for a nice HOn3 pike?

[Chris333]

Yeah I don't know about G outside. It could be fun, but not as much fun as HOn3 or On3.

As I sure you know, this will mean less puff ball trees and tons of mountains.

Have you seen that small HOn3 display layout a while back with Olphir on one side? It was just a bit bigger than a door.

Edit: Here it is:

[dougnelson]

Dave:

I thought being an SPF was an incurable disease?

RGS + SPF = sick wallet.

Sorry to hear about the water problems.  Hopefully ServePro can make like it never happened.

Doug.

[Dave V]

That HOn3 layout IS well done.

Right now the JD shares the room with my son's little 2.5x5 CSX in Apex, NC Unitrack layout (in which he's lost interest) so the room is pretty full.

G?  Yeah, it's work.  But I enjoy working outside.  Patricia wants to convert part of the backyard into a garden anyway.

HOn3 is more conducive to prototype modeling but I don't have the room unless I also invade the family room/bar area, and I like those areas as they are is (train-free).

[chicken45]

That's pretty awesome. Your wife is also awesome. Clearly, she "gets" the JD and its impact on us.

Working outside is pretty great. I'm excited to see what you come up with! To quote my favorite politician, "We will watch your career with great interest."


But I have to ask...about "the big one."

[Brian M]

Dave,
Colorado is certainly a great place to live.  I live up I-25 from you, in Louisville, just outside of Boulder.  The railroading here is a lot of fun.  There are a couple of garden railway clubs in the Denver area that always set up large track arrangements on the floor at the train shows.  I haven't looked into them yet myself, but I would guess they might know of some garden railroad guys in the Springs that you could get in touch with if you were looking for someone to talk with about local building practices.  I'm also really happy to hear that I'm not the only Eastern road (New York Central for me, though) N scaler that is drawn to doing garden railroading.  And I know it goes the other way...one of the garden railroad guys started talking to me about N scale at the TCA train show after Thanksgiving, saying that he is seriously considering building an N scale layout as he'd like to have a layout that makes it feel like the trains are going between two different places.  Makes me kind of wonder if there is a natural disposition for someone modeling in N to branch out to G and vice versa?

-Brian.

[MichaelT]

That HOn3 layout IS well done.

Right now the JD shares the room with my son's little 2.5x5 CSX in Apex, NC Unitrack layout (in which he's lost interest) so the room is pretty full.

G?  Yeah, it's work.  But I enjoy working outside.  Patricia wants to convert part of the backyard into a garden anyway.

HOn3 is more conducive to prototype modeling but I don't have the room unless I also invade the family room/bar area, and I like those areas as they are is (train-free).

A garden railroad is a wonderful thing to work on!!



lot of options = lot of fun









It was large scale railroading that bit me, then from there I radiated to N scale indoors (cause I didn't have enough room inside for large scale and the Mrs. was NOT going to let me cut holes in the room walls for a whole house run). Even though I get stuck with my N scale layouts, my large scale layouts continue to evolve.

michael

[wm3798]

My girlfriend lived in Colorado for 15 years, and loved the climate and scenery.  She built a nice house in Westcliffe, and assures that the climate is perfect for garden railroading...  Nothing grows for 8 months out of the year, so you don't have near the trouble with weeds and such as we do here back east.

You could probably sell the lawn mower to raise funds for the track!

While you might not get the detailed proto modeling you might desire, you don't have to build any scenery if you have a good view of the mountains!

Lee

[wcfn100]

After my first trip (since living here) to Durango, it was hard to resist trying a little narrow gauge.  If Nn3 was actually Nn3, I'd have something on the work bench.  If I ever find Con-Cor Goose really cheap, I'll probably try the conversion to fit Z scale track.

Jason

[wazzou]

As I approach 50 and the eyesight for N Scale worsens, I have had fleeting thoughts about On3 or On30 and even something outside. 

[Dave V]

Michael, that little layout is perfect for what I have in mind!  I think my iteration would be circling the tomato plants and the hops vines (yes, I grow my own hops for brewing!).

There's always the temptation to run a mine branch all the way around the perimeter of the yard, LOL.