The Transcontinental PRR

[eric220]

A small cadre of Gandy Dancers came over tonight. The ROW was extended another quarter mile. It's now within the city limits of Morrow!



@mighalpern got a total of 16 turnouts were also hooked up to DCC control. Now I just have to update the JMRI panel so I can control them.

[eric220]

In celebration of the occasion,

[reinhardtjh]

I live about 20 miles from Morrow, OH.  I was there once. That was enough.

https://goo.gl/maps/ZCdNBhV5SQy

[eric220]

I live about 20 miles from Morrow, OH.  I was there once. That was enough.

https://goo.gl/maps/ZCdNBhV5SQy

If you go to the intersection of Main and Park you'll notice a funny shaped building with the Little Miami Scenic Trail running right past it. You also might notice a caboose in the side yard. The trail is the old PRR ROW, and that building is the old station.

That said, I'm not actually trying to model the real town of Morrow, OH on the layout. I just call it that to make the "Train to Morrow" joke. My Morrow is a little bit bigger (but not much), and features an interchange with the N&W.

[reinhardtjh]

If you go to the intersection of Main and Park you'll notice a funny shaped building with the Little Miami Scenic Trail running right past it. You also might notice a caboose in the side yard. The trail is the old PRR ROW, and that building is the old station.

That said, I'm not actually trying to model the real town of Morrow, OH on the layout. I just call it that to make the "Train to Morrow" joke. My Morrow is a little bit bigger (but not much), and features an interchange with the N&W.

This is it: https://goo.gl/maps/LsgW2dRy8NT2

[John]

a nice little town of DPM buildings

[eric220]

No pix, but I put in some time this afternoon finalizing the installation of the turnout decoders. This was my first time remote mounting a RRCir-Kits daughter card, so there was quite a bit of testing and redoing ribbon cable connectors before I realized that one of my stall-motor driver cards has a dead output. A replacement has been ordered, and this one still has 7 good outputs, so I'll put it aside for later usage. In the meantime, I've updated he JMRI panel, and I tested it with a run of a K4 pulling seven cars on a commuter run. I can now officially run trains in and out of Penn Station River City without having to jump up into the alcove!

[eric220]

Spent a few too many hours in the basement last night. The end result was the completion of the helix.



I'm back to flex track! Unfortunately, I'm also at a standstill in eastward progress until I can get my hands on some code 55 #10's.

I ran a freight pulled by an L1 down to the bottom. It started out alright, but by the time it got to the top, it had thrown both traction tires. Looks like I need to break out the BF-16's and try the camera car. Maybe double-head some K4's.

[davefoxx]

Congratulations on completing the helix!  But, is it me or some trick photography?  The top layer of the helix looks like it has a spot that's not an even rise (it appears there's an abrupt incline where the thicker plywood and cork roadbed meets the thinner plywood).

DFF

[eric220]

It's an odd mix of both. The grade actually does increase a bit on that last turn, but not nearly as much as it appears in that photo. Note that the top level appears to separate from the level below it, but if you follow it around, they come back together. I'd say that most of what you're seeing is a camera trick.

[davefoxx]

What I'm seeing is that the bottom of the top level of the helix and the top of the next level down are not parallel.  It really closes together as you approach the transition between the two types of plywood, heading downhill.  But, if it works and there are no derailments or stalls, it's probably best to leave it alone.

DFF

[eric220]

I see what you're talking about, in fact I was struck by the same thing when I first posted the photo. Take a look at the next two levels down. They also appear not to be parallel. I'm guessing it's fish-eye lens type distortion. I'll double check it when I get home to be sure there's no sagging or anything.

The other thing that may be accentuating it is that in addition to the plywood being thicker on the top turn, the track is also sitting on cork. In addition to changing plywood thicknesses, that transition also goes from cork to no cork, so there's a lot of material hanging down. In fact, the clearance below the transition is tighter than anything below it.

[davefoxx]

I see what you're talking about, in fact I was struck by the same thing when I first posted the photo. Take a look at the next two levels down. They also appear not to be parallel. I'm guessing it's fish-eye lens type distortion. I'll double check it when I get home to be sure there's no sagging or anything.

The other thing that may be accentuating it is that in addition to the plywood being thicker on the top turn, the track is also sitting on cork. In addition to changing plywood thicknesses, that transition also goes from cork to no cork, so there's a lot of material hanging down. In fact, the clearance below the transition is tighter than anything below it.

You're right, it does appear that there may be a hump in that second level, too.

I don't think that the thickness of the plywood is causing a camera trick, because, regardless of the height between levels, the distance between each level should stay constant, except at the transition.  Then it should be constant again, although with a slightly different ceiling height.

DFF

[eric220]

Well, for now I'm just hoping that I'm right, and what we're seeing is just a combination of optical illusion and lens distortion. If you're right, I've got a lot of work to do...

[Cajonpassfan]

I'm back to flex track! Unfortunately, I'm also at a standstill in eastward progress until I can get my hands on some code 55 #10's.

Eric, I have two leftover right #10's you can have if that would help. PM me if interested.
Oh, and there's one on feebay...
Otto K.