HOn3 Rio Grande Southern First District 1938-1945

[Philip H]

Where's the "ignore post" button?

Says the code-able super mod.   

[davefoxx]

All,

This adventure has been fun and fulfilling in a way that my previous model railroading efforts have fallen short...but all adventures must eventually come to an end.

This weekend I began stripping down the benchwork to the plywood tabletop.  I'll be using the same footprint, but atop the old RGS benchwork will rise an On30 empire, the Arizona Midland...a freelanced common carrier of the early 1910s whose primary focus is copper mining.

In 1892, just before the Silver Crash of 1893, the RGS' locating engineer (Thomas Wigglesworth) surveyed for Otto Mears a branchline that would run from the RGS main at Mancos down the San Juan River and then across Arizona to connect to the AT&SF at Seligman, AZ.  My new line represents the far western end of that line but if it had spun off as a separate company.

This will allow me to run the occasional D&RGW or RGS car (I know, I don't care about the 6" gauge difference), but most of my AMRR equipment will be home road and related to copper mining.  A drover caboose will haul the miners and a short passenger train will make the run from the AT&SF connection all the way to Colorado and back.

I'm keeping my HOn3 stuff for now for use with my HOn3 modular club.

Thanks for taking this ride with me.  It's been a blast!

Sounds like somebody has too much free time on his hands.  Get a job! 

DFF

[Dave V]

Alright, you got me...  In the meantime, inspired by the ballast thread, here's a look at ballast on my RGS representing the 1940s.  I may actually have nicer track than the real thing for this era...but it's been a fun break from the razor-edge ballast profile of my former PRR Juniata Division.

Starting at Ridgway, we have weeds, mud, and a little cinder:







Native dirt at Placerville:



A little of everything at Windy Point:



Native dirt and weeds at Gallagher:



Deep cinder at Rico:

[Santa Fe Guy]

Looking very nice Dave.
Rod.

[tappertrainman]

How do you figure out what has been ballasted already and what hasn't?   

All kidding aside, it's looking horrible great!

[Dave V]

I've been doing some work...  Started filling in the scene between the Rico depot:






Rico had multiple “ore dumps,” or simple truck ramps where trucks could dump ore into rail cars. The one near the depot was a simple affair and not especially interesting to look at. I chose instead to use the Grandt Line model of the enclosed Silverton ore dump for visual interest.



Also, the RGS has some animals to haul.  Glad I don't have to model smells too:



Rico from the south:



Also added more weeds and a shed to Ridgway per photos:



Lastly, had a visit today from @Rivet Miscounter who has the dubious distinction of being the first Railwire A$$hat (other than yours truly) to operate a train on the RGS first district.  Unprototypically it did not derail...

[Rivet Miscounter]

So, just wanted to chime in here, especially since Dave made me aware that I'm the first to have seen the layout in a sceniced/significantly-completed state.  (Which, is a lot of pressure.  )  Anybody that has spent more than about 5 minutes on this forum or has picked up a model railroad magazine over the past decade knows about Dave's capabilities, and he has documented his progress nicely including some good video segments.   When I got the invitation, I didn't hesitate at all...if I could fit in with Dave's schedule, I was going to be there.   So--as you can imagine--there's no "shocking, late-breaking news story" here...the layout is very, very nice.   

Yet...

I found myself a little surprised as I visited the RGS First District.   Admittedly, I hadn't read every word of his layout update thread so there were some things I didn't know about.   But just everything about it felt "right"...the overall presentation is very clean...there was nothing that drew my attention away from the layout.   The layout runs great, the locos looked and ran wonderfully, (and sounded awesome) and the mix and look of rolling stock was spot on.   I guess the scenery was probably the best part, in my mind.   The attention to detail to the ground cover, ROW, structures, trees, and especially the backdrops was very apparent.

Dave mentioned to me in a followup message that he knew the best photo locations which is why his photos look better than the layout in person.  I completely disagree with that...to me the layout in person is much better than any of his photos indicate.   Now, I'm not going overboard here...I get it that some of the angles and positioned backdrops and lighting and such will create a nice photo that really can't be duplicated without those studio tricks, but I just mean the overall look of the layout....it was special.

So, to personalize a bit...my favorite things were:
1. The backdrops.  It cannot be overstated how well good photo backdrops set the scene.
2. The ROW.   The treatment of the track, the "non-ballast", the look of the ties....all just incredibly well done.
3. The locos.  Just beautiful models, that run good and the sound element is really cool.  I'm not used to ops with sound, but I can see how it will greatly enhance things.
4. Bridges. They really help sell the mountainous aspect of the area, given the track is (smartly, IMHO) dead level.
5. The open look...after riding the C&TS, the reality is that not every piece of track is carved out of the side of a cliff.   This is captured very well on this layout...nice mix of spectacular and mundane. 
6. Loved Rico...the overall scene, the station, the shops...just fantastic. 
7. And last but not least...Dave! (and his family)   Very gracious hosts and I appreciate them welcoming me into their home and especially Dave sharing his masterpiece with me.   It was a great privilege.

I know, I know.  We're not supposed to throw down attaboys on here,    but....tough, this one is warranted.   

[wm3798]

So what you're saying is Dave is sort of a hack.  I hear ya.

Lee

[DKS]

[Jbub]

That's a nice write up on the RGS 1ST District. It really inspires me to make the best layout I can when the time comes.

[davefoxx]

3. The locos.  Just beautiful models, that run good . . .

Not all of them. 

I know, I know.  We're not supposed to throw down attaboys on here,    but....tough, this one is warranted.   

Attaboys are welcome here, but you've got to earn them.  Dr. Hotballs has.

DFF

[DKS]

Attaboys are welcome here, but you've got to earn them.  Dr. Hotballs has.

This.

[Dave V]

Wow, where's the blushing icon?  Thanks, Doug and guys for the kind words...  Doug, it was a pleasure meeting you!  I've been a hack for so long I'm probably unable to recognize when I've stumbled upon a modest success.  Let me address Doug's points:

1. The backdrops.  It cannot be overstated how well good photo backdrops set the scene. LARC products gets credit for this, not me.  But luckily I was able to secure both the LARC backdrops of the real locations and dirt from the same locations, which makes blending the foreground and background pretty much automatic.

2. The ROW.   The treatment of the track, the "non-ballast", the look of the ties....all just incredibly well done.  Thanks.  Just to be clear, though, in any case where mechanical & electrical considerations had to trump appearance, I went with the former.  But it's not really hard to paint up flextrack, and I still think my track looks "neater" than the real RGS.  In part it's because to follow prototype would be to abandon plausibility and also in part because I still have Pennsy blood in me.

3. The locos.  Just beautiful models, that run good and the sound element is really cool.  I'm not used to ops with sound, but I can see how it will greatly enhance things.  As @davefoxx points out, that was until D&RGW K-27 462 shat the proverbial bed last night...   

4. Bridges. They really help sell the mountainous aspect of the area, given the track is (smartly, IMHO) dead level.  So it turns out the scratchbuilding trestles is waaaaaay easier than you might think if you never tried it.  That I had a wonderfully-designed commercial jig for RGS prototypes helped immensely, but still...  If I can build a trestle with my two hams as hands, anyone can.  As for the level layout, I know some narrow gauge purists would (and have) scoffed at my decision to go grade-less, but my considerations included 1) locomotive performance (the Blackstone C-19s do great on the level but sometimes struggle on grades like at our club layout) and 2) the ability to re-use the layout in a differently-shaped or sized space at a future home (no need to line up grades).

5. The open look...after riding the C&TS, the reality is that not every piece of track is carved out of the side of a cliff.   This is captured very well on this layout...nice mix of spectacular and mundane.    This has been a personal crusade of mine.  For every mile of the RGS carved out of the mountainside (and there were many) there was a dozen running through pastureland or along river flood plains.

6. Loved Rico...the overall scene, the station, the shops...just fantastic.   Thanks, but this was luck...  The 14-foot-long wall happened to be positioned just right for Rico based on my early planning, and so I was able to fit it in with almost no compression.  It's missing the scale track and another siding off the river side of the enginehouse, but all the other operationally significant trackage is there, and the yard tracks are over 7 feet long.  Again, luck!  FWIW, if you model the RGS, you'd better get two scenes correct if you're to be spared the ire of the faithful...  Rico and Ophir.  Ophir's still pretty bare yet but I think everything's going to fit.

7. And last but not least...Dave! (and his family)   Very gracious hosts and I appreciate them welcoming me into their home and especially Dave sharing his masterpiece with me.   It was a great privilege.  Thanks!  That's how asshats roll.  My oldest was busy texting his girlfriend and my youngest was camping with Scouts so I don't know which family you visited...  LOL.   

Anyone who makes it out this way is more than welcome to come see and op on the RGS...  Just let me know!

[CRL]

Your layout is the last of a few I’ve seen that kept the track flat but allowed the scenery to imply the variation in terrain and elevation. I think I’m going to adopt the same approach.

Great job... it’s almost dirty enough.

[Rivet Miscounter]

So what you're saying is Dave is sort of a hack.  I hear ya.

Ha, yes...he's trying, bless his heart.   

that was until D&RGW K-27 462 shat the proverbial bed last night...   

Oops, sorry.  Guess I missed that nugget.  Hopefully it can be revived.