Trenton Transportation Company

[tom mann]

Did you consider making the same track plan (and keeping the same overall dimensions) in Z?  The operations and "play" value of this look great, but those minimal requirements are very limiting (in N).

[DKS]

Did you consider making the same track plan (and keeping the same overall dimensions) in Z?

No, I'm out of Z.

[Philip H]

If you mean the greenery, that's Heki 1675 foliage material plus Silflor Buttercup.

DKS,
As these the only two ground covers?  I really like the blend, and it might help me solve a scenery issue I have around the layout . . .

[DKS]

As these the only two ground covers?  I really like the blend, and it might help me solve a scenery issue I have around the layout . . .

No, those are two I used on the sloped area in the corner, which is what Chris was asking about. The entire completed area features a number of different materials: 4-5 colors/lengths of Silflor tufts, a couple of colors of WS foliage clusters (picked apart to make tiny shrubs), and some homemade clumps of reeds--fiber materials from the now-defunct Sweetwater Scenery Company, pinched into bundles, trimmed and dipped in thick CA.

[parkrrrr]

For what it's worth, CHDK doesn't actually change your firmware. It uses the firmware upgrade hook to get its code running, but it lives entirely in RAM. When you reboot the camera, it's back to the native firmware (unless you set up the SD card so it reloads CHDK automatically on each boot, as I did.)

[packers#1]

The minimum on the outer loop is 7.2". The minimum for the inner track on the passing siding and the switchback to Union Rubber is 6".

Thanks; that is very limiting, but I assume 40' boxcars are fine?
How is switching with a 44-tonner on the 6" loop?

[DKS]

Thanks; that is very limiting, but I assume 40' boxcars are fine?
How is switching with a 44-tonner on the 6" loop?

40-footers don't have a problem; I've dragged some around with a 70-tonner. Switching could be hairy; you need to 0-5-0 couplers together on curves, but there are just enough straight sections to maybe avoid that. Haven't done any extensive ops with this layout yet, so I don't have a good handle on that.

[packers#1]

Interesting; I wouldn't object to 0-5-0 coupling on the curves, doesn't sound terribly bad

[DKS]

Progress with structures. Owing to the layout's small size, structure design involved more creative bashing than usual; for example, each of the two skinny buildings, center below, is made up of bits and pieces from five different DPM kits.







The foreground building in the second and third images is based loosely on Griffith Electric Supply, a fixture in Trenton for generations.

[pwnj]

Wow, that's a lot of angles.  FANTASTIC!

[Chris333]

I know you can't sell them, but you should make molds of those wall sections. 

[wm3798]

I've always liked finding ways to modify the facades of DPM buildings to show how such typical architecture was modified, modernized, and otherwise "renovated" over the years.



Not always pretty, but lots of ways to add some interest and uniqueness to an otherwise bland model.

Lee

[DKS]

Not always pretty, but lots of ways to add some interest and uniqueness to an otherwise bland model.

The area I'm modeling is the very definition of bland; indeed, I cannot imagine it being any more boring and generic. By contrast, the areas you tend to reference are positively palatial. So my goal is to give the buildings some uniqueness by virtue of not being stock builds, while keeping them as utterly bland as I possibly can--the majority of DPM kits are much too "fancy." Also, I'm not looking to win any awards with this layout; it's meant to be a quick-and-dirty bit of fun, so I'm not investing my heart and soul in reworking these kits.

Consider the source: in Trenton, we have mile after mile of the most boring row homes imaginable...



A boring little local restaurant (which is one of the buildings I modeled)...



Even the industries are boring (this one inspired Union Rubber on my layout)...



Check out Griffith Electric Supply in my earlier post: the most exciting thing about the building is the sign with all of those lights.

The fanciest thing I've got going on is the corner bar, which has roots in this place; if anything, the layout model is too fancy!

[wazzou]

It looks like Trenton could stand a little Roundup.

[VonRyan]

It looks like Trenton could stand a little Roundup.

Trenton made. The World took.

Now there's not much left.