Essex branch HO v4

[wazzou]

I'd paint the other side red with the word "Duck" on it.   

[nuno81291]

Not a bad idea at all! Maybe a flashing crossbuck style tied into the aux power circuit. There is 2 steps down to the layout room height so luckily I can easily pass if need be, the section pops in and out in about 10 seconds. Hope the rerailer over the gap trick works as well as the last layout. I am undecided on how I will get track power to it or to staging, I planned to make a 1/4 instrument cable as I have lots of that hardware and cable from my day job. Overkill but sturdy non the less.

[nuno81291]

Got the rest of the fascia I needed up to proceed to wiring the remaining switch machines. Have 1 tortoise left to install, did 5 yesterday and all the feeders for the new peninsula branchline. Hopefully get to finish wiring up the remaining tortoises and should be ready to begin powered testing of trackage tomorrow. Roughed in the waters river trestle area, a couple of backdrop pieces to cut and I should be in good shape to progress to scenery. JFRTM soon for me!

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[nuno81291]

At 4:44 today I plugged in the ol’ DCC system. Heard all my sound engines awaken in staging (really need to set the default to off on start...), no shorts. Huzzah! Back in business. 31 switches later and my largest layout yet is ready for powered testing. My throttle battery is dead so I only checked out the yard and the reworked side of the peninsula so far.

There are a couple of things to fix already, I accidentally put an on/off/on switch for one of the tortoise controls, going to swap that. As well as I put a non 1/8 inch switch which I can’t find the nut too... swap that out tomorrow as well. My bridge section is all fitted but I need to finish wiring that. Going to make a 1/4” daisy chain that plugs into the layout side and staging side. My overall thoughts are that I underestimated the amount of work it would be to wire all of this. It was a long haul many hours of getting it to this point. After I test everything I will need to wire up the turntable and install the roundhouse trackage. My industrial spurs in the peninsula aren’t glued yet, left them loose but wired such that depending on building footprints I can adjust their relative placement.

Here is the layout as it stands:

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[nuno81291]

A local makes its way over S. Canal street.

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[nuno81291]

Today I finished installing the  turntable, roundhouse tracks and tested. Found some tracks I forgot to add feeders to, as well as fixed one bad turnout that was causing some engines to derail. Cleaned some more track and programmed a couple of locos I haven’t gotten around to yet. Here’s an obligatory lineup of my roster so far:

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Tomorrow I hope to resume testing, installing the few pieces of backdrop I have not cut yet. I am going to check segment by segment to make sure there aren’t any more missing feeders. Found a few I dropped but didn’t connect to the bus 

Upon reading my manual it says my system is good for 3.5 amps, with 10 sound engines am I at risk of overloading? I don’t run more than 2 at a time but the others are in staging idling. I also need to look at additional throttles for gues operators, preferably limited ones so they can’t program on the main   

Nowhere close to advancing scenery but I hope to get there shortly. Atleast the track configuration is relatively set.

[nuno81291]

Today I installed and painted the remaining backdrop. Put a layer of earth brown down on the bare plywood to help with the coming scenery planning. Put one of my old LED strips up over the yard, should have done that awhile ago. Also began shaping the Waters river crossing embankments. Fixed the yard lead turnout that has a curve immediately going into it that game me issues last night, and dropped the few remaining feeders I missed.

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[nuno81291]

Did a bit more to the Waters landform. Going to be a resin pour crossing so I can put some junk strewn about. Also mocked up some structure/road configurations. A look at my simulated water works rough trackage on the bakery/ Watertown branch. A look up my Lawrence inspired branch of S Canal St, lumber yard and paper mill.

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[C855B]

You, sir, are a manic madman! You are taking your meds, yes? 

Nice to see such intense progress in so short a time. Direct some of that productive energy this way, will ya'?

[nuno81291]

Haha yes there’s multiple factors at play, 3 months not touching the layout after building the yard has given me some time to recoup.. The large A-ha moment for adding the additional staging made my Ops concept much more reasonable. Also just about the end of our fishing season up here so finding more time to get into the basement. After 10 or so partially completed chainsaw layouts I think I finally have one that I will be happy to see through to relative completion. We have plans next year to build a detached 3 car garage/shop which will let this space free up for more hobby related storage versus all of my old contracting tools. Nothing like lugging the chop saw out to make a few cuts or servicing my tractor or truck in the driveway. This will let me cut off the top layer of the shelf that the yard is build on for a non obstructed view valence. I will likely build the rest of the valence over the peninsula and other side before that time as I hope to be largely done with scenery by next spring. For the time being I will probably string more of my old leds above off some 1x2s for a quick and dirty lighting solution. Have some 1:1 landscaping to do today but have more ballast drying from my dye to adjust color. Hope to test a couple of the branch lines soon, the previously built portion is more or less fully painted aside from a few missing ties.

As far as your layout goes C855B, looks like you are making steady progress. Not to mention you are doing some insane modeling with the signaling/printing. Your full buildout is much larger than mine and I am in awe when I see the full track plan. Also you seem to be (rightly so) testing a lot of building techniques as you go and are nailing a prototype, something my sort of freelanced heavily Walthers catalog leaning build makes much quicker. Excited to see your layout progress to scenery in due time! 

And for anyone following along here is roughly the track plan as it stands today:

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[Missaberoad]

Nice plan... It should provide lots of fun ops...

One thought about the long yard on the left side of the plan.
Is there plans to add a set of crossovers somewhere to allow a train that noses in to allow its power to run around without the use of an 0-5-0?

Apologies if it's been covered elsewhere, but it stood out to me and imo would enhance operations...

[DKS]

One thought about the long yard on the left side of the plan.
Is there plans to add a set of crossovers somewhere to allow a train that noses in to allow its power to run around without the use of an 0-5-0?

This.

Also... the fiddle yard at the bottom left seems a bit short to be of much use. Can it be incorporated into the lift-out to make it longer? Or does it extend into the adjacent room?

And also... this is quite exciting:

[nuno81291]

This.

Also... the fiddle yard at the bottom left seems a bit short to be of much use. Can it be incorporated into the lift-out to make it longer? Or does it extend into the adjacent room?

And also... this is quite exciting:

The staging yard shown on the bottom excludes about 6 feet length that is built, I didn’t write it up on the plan and thought it would make it hard to see the majority of the track plan with the balance of its length sticking out.

Now as to why there isn’t any switches on that first track in the 5 track staging yard; like a dolt I framed the freestanding framework of 2x4s and that track sits squarely above the frame making putting switch machines a total headache. I would certainly consider doing it with perhaps a surface mount or spring loaded switches, perhaps 2 micro engineering switches could serve here perfectly. I don’t have plans to operate that staging ladder remotely so you are forced to walk over it to line up the lead for whatever track is in use. Certainly cutting in a crossover would be a good decision!

[Missaberoad]

I definitely think it would greatly contribute to ops.
It would also give another place to run around cars for the industrial spurs without shoving all the way from the main yard, be kind to your brakeman. 😊

And also... this is quite exciting:

Agreed! This is pure filth... 🤤

[nuno81291]

I will be taking a look at putting a crossover.

Thanks for the kind comments about that particular scene, there is some photos I put up thread of the prototype. If you search google for Watertown Branch Guilford you will find some photos of the 1:1 of that section and it is perhaps nastier looking than my initial go at the track work, more vertical curves going on than my kinky mess