The Carolina Sandhills Lines in HO Scale

[LIRR]

such rail-joiner type gremlins are always a pain. everything is fine for years, then the solder joint fails and you get a dead spot, or it kinks and you get derailments. after decades in the hobby in N scale, I switched to HO. I've used the opportunity to learn from my mistakes. on my new HO railroad i've soldered very few joints. nearly every piece of rail has its' own f eeder. only where I have short rail-lengths (no hard & fast rule, perhaps 3 ~4" or less) is it soldered to the next length of rail. it takes more time of course, but i think it was worth the effort. in nearly 18 months i've had no such issues with connectivity of kinked joints.

[davefoxx]

such rail-joiner type gremlins are always a pain.

Well, that gremlin is back.  Not necessarily a failed solder joint this time, but a vertical "bump" due to the irregularity in the adjacent subroadbed.  But, while trying to pop the track free in a spot to place some shims under a low spot on one side of the rail joint, I started messing with that rail joint.  Everything runs okay through it, except my new Intermountain L&N SD40-2.  The leading wheel set of the lead truck would ride over the rail at this joint.  I almost had it running well, but I wanted it to be perfect, i.e., reliable.  I tweaked on that joint and managed to break it, meaning it still must not have been soldered well, despite it being soldered at the workbench.  I'll have to ensure that my iron is getting hot enough for Code 83 rail.  It always worked fine for Code 55, but this rail joint has been the bane of this layout.

Anyway, while I was at the gym this afternoon, I had a moment of clarity on the treadmill.  Since double-tracking this layout, it really hasn't been the fun that I was expecting.  I don't generally just let two trains run, because the layout is small and it really highlights the lacking size with two trains just going roundy-round.  Also, if this makes any sense, the trains don't feel like they're going anywhere, because I don't have to clear the main and enter a passing siding.

So, I'm going to rip out that section of track, reducing that end of the layout to single track.  However, the double-tracking project was not a complete loss.  The other end will stay double tracked, which really has the effect of two overlapping passing sidings around about two-thirds of the layout.  This should work out fine, and I think the layout will look just a little bit bigger with some single track back in operation.

Photos at eleven.  Hopefully.

DFF

[jpec]

Well, that gremlin is back.  Not necessarily a failed solder joint this time, but a vertical "bump" due to the irregularity in the adjacent subroadbed.  But, while trying to pop the track free in a spot to place some shims under a low spot on one side of the rail joint, I started messing with that rail joint.  Everything runs okay through it, except my new Intermountain L&N SD40-2.  The leading wheel set of the lead truck would ride over the rail at this joint.  I almost had it running well, but I wanted it to be perfect, i.e., reliable.  I tweaked on that joint and managed to break it, meaning it still must not have been soldered well, despite it being soldered at the workbench.  I'll have to ensure that my iron is getting hot enough for Code 83 rail.  It always worked fine for Code 55, but this rail joint has been the bane of this layout.

Anyway, while I was at the gym this afternoon, I had a moment of clarity on the treadmill.  Since double-tracking this layout, it really hasn't been the fun that I was expecting.  I don't generally just let two trains run, because the layout is small and it really highlights the lacking size with two trains just going roundy-round.  Also, if this makes any sense, the trains don't feel like they're going anywhere, because I don't have to clear the main and enter a passing siding.

So, I'm going to rip out that section of track, reducing that end of the layout to single track.  However, the double-tracking project was not a complete loss.  The other end will stay double tracked, which really has the effect of two overlapping passing sidings around about two-thirds of the layout.  This should work out fine, and I think the layout will look just a little bit bigger with some single track back in operation.

Photos at eleven.  Hopefully.

DFF

Good points...sometimes less is more.

Jeff

[davefoxx]

Yes, Jeff, I agree that sometimes less is more.  Go back through the Seaboard Central 2.0 thread, and you will see that I am a proponent of that mantra.

This morning, I completed the trackwork at this end of the single-tracking project (the pushpins mark the new connecting track).  I was able to use one turnout that was formerly one-half of a crossover as the turnout into the new passing siding.  You can also see where I began carving into the foam at the far side of the bridge to eliminate the roadbed where the second track once resided.  This also lessens the slope to the lake, which looks much better.  Oh, and by the way, the former Seaboard Air Line trackage (a/k/a the "S-Line") in this area of North Carolina was single track, so this is prototypical.



For easy reference, this is the BEFORE picture:



DFF

[Jbub]

I like the change. The current setup looks like a railroad. The old setup looks like a model train layout.

[davefoxx]

I like the change. The current setup looks like a railroad. The old setup looks like a model train layout.

You totally nailed that.  I feel the same way.

Thanks,
DFF

[davefoxx]

. . . and the other end is finished, too!  I was able to eliminate a crossover in Aberdeen that now led to nowhere.  It also would have been immediately adjacent to the new curved turnout that forms the other end of the passing siding.  The net effect is two less turnouts on the layout with the single-tracking project complete.  I still need to install an under-table switch machine under the curved turnout.  But, that project will have to wait, because I need some parts to make what I have work since the turnout is too far from the fascia for my 18" long control rods.

BEFORE:


AFTER:

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Happy to see you back in the saddle.

[Dave V]

Happy to see you back in the saddle.

TWSS.

[davefoxx]

I've been working my butt off with my limited free time, trying to get something presentable for the N Scale B60 Photo Thread.  The past few weeks, I've been focused on reinstalling the branch.  Several months ago, I ripped out the grade, because I had miscalculated the height of the overpass needed to clear the SBD mainline.  In its place, I installed Woodland Scenics 4% inclines to get the necessary clearance.  It took a bit of work to straighten the whoop-de-doos out of the grade and to get a decent transition from level to the 4% grade at the bottom of the hill, but it's done.  I have installed the cork roadbed and track up to this side of the overpass (I still need to build a trestle and work on the transition back to level to get to a sorely-needed staging yard to be built on the other side of the gap).

Feeders have been dropped through up to four or five inches of foam and the 1/4" plywood under the foam, which, surprisingly, went much easier than I expected.  I used a piece of coat hanger as a drill bit and was able to push the 20-gauge wire through the hole.  I now need to figure out how to reinstall a Tortoise under that turnout into the siding.

As of this afternoon:


I started building this structure, which will likely serve as a furniture warehouse for boxcar loads.  The siding into this industry is a real roller coaster to transition from the 4% grade back to level to spot a car.  I also created a bit of a bowl at the end of the track to prevent cars from rolling off of the end of the track and to help with coupling/uncoupling.



I wasn't kidding about that roller coaster ride on the siding, although this is admittedly a foreshortened picture.  It does work well, and a car can be spotted on the level spot where the boxcar is sitting.  Other than the reach from the front of the layout, I was able to couple and uncouple successfully without losing the car off of the end of the track.



Finally, as you may recall upthread, I had some problems with a soldered rail joint failing and the curved track kinking.  Well, yesterday, I noticed that I had another failure on the new track on the branch.  Looking into this, I think the problem is the Walther's rail joiners that I'm using (chosen because they look something like fishplates) actually do not grip the rail as well as Atlas joiners.  The result is a weaker joint.  So, I went back in with a pair of pliers to push against the kink and resoldered both rail joints by applying much more solder to fill any gaps between the rail and the joiner.  I forgot to take a before picture, but this 18" radius curve looks much better.  The rail joint isn't so obvious anymore.  See?



DFF

[davefoxx]

By Jove!  I figured out a way to mount the Tortoise through approximately 5" of foam!  First, I had already hacked a slot in the Woodland Scenics riser before gluing the turnout into place to clear the switch machine's throw wire.  Tonight, I cut away about 1/4" off of the bottom of the Woodland Scenics' risers to slip a piece of 1/4" plywood under it.  The plywood will be used to mount the Tortoise, and it also supports the risers that have been cut off.  I let the plywood go wide to straddle the hole that would be cut from under the layout.  I'll trim the plywood back later:



I tried to keep some of the foam risers intact to maintain some structural integrity, and you can't even tell that I butchered the foam from the other side:



From under the layout.  I used a hole saw to cut several holes to clear out the 1/4" plywood and 2" foam that are under the foam risers.  You can see the plywood mounting plate through the hole and even the turnout's throwbar from under here:



After I temporarily mounted the Tortoise:



Somehow this worked on the first try, despite (1) the plywood not even being glued into place yet, (2) the old feeder wires being stretched to their max to power the Tortoise in its new spot, and (3) lacking a stiffer piece of wire for the throw.  The piece of piano wire I found in the scrap box is long enough and holds the points to each side.  But, I would like to get a thicker piece of wire for a better guarantee that the points will stay against the stock rails in the long term.  The experiment worked, though, so I'm not complaining.

DFF

[milw12]

Dave, this is from the weekend thread, but I'm curious how the flat and caboose aren't coasting downhill unless this photo was shot mid-glide 

I'm liking the work on the grade, and the level stretch to spot the car, be sure to take a video if you ever Dukes of Hazzard a train off the mini ramp 
And the ingenuity behind the tortoise machine is solid, it's always a pleasure to see updates on your layouts.

-Lucas

[davefoxx]

Dave, this is from the weekend thread, but I'm curious how the flat and caboose aren't coasting downhill unless this photo was shot mid-glide 

I'm liking the work on the grade, and the level stretch to spot the car, be sure to take a video if you ever Dukes of Hazzard a train off the mini ramp 
And the ingenuity behind the tortoise machine is solid, it's always a pleasure to see updates on your layouts.

-Lucas

Thank you for the nice comments, Lucas!  It's HO, so I have working brakes on the caboose.  Actually, I cheated.  There's a piece of piano wire stuck into the roadbed that the caboose is leaning on.   

I'll have to pose my Southern GP38-2 in a still shot jumping off the "ramp" with a caption, "Uh oh!  Looks like them Duke Boys are in a heap o' trouble."

DFF

[davefoxx]

Because I decided to standardize the layout with ESU decoders, I needed to either replace the sound decoder in my Aberdeen & Rockfish GP38 No. 400 or swap the shell to another frame.  Well, I've been keeping an eye out for good deals and was able to get a hold of this Louisville & Indiana GP38.  At the same time that this order was placed, I bought some parts directly from Atlas to swap the 3600-gallon fuel tank for a 2600-gallon tank (see below).  Although the fuel tank on the real No. 400 is even smaller than this 2600-gallon tank, I'm going to live with this for now, since this tank requires no modifications to the metal frame of the model.

What I haven't done yet is to pop that L&I shell off, to see how difficult it will be for these butterfingers to move the LED lighting to the A&R shell and to ensure that the shell fits without modification.

I really dig the sound emanating from this GP38, because no screaming turbo!



DFF

[davefoxx]

Success!!!  Way to go, Atlas!  There were no wires attached the shell.  Once I figured out how to get the shell off without damage (that L&I shell was stuck!), I discovered that the LEDs are mounted to parts attached to the frame.  At that point, I merely had to slide the A&R shell on.  Since this isn't the first swap for this shell, the minor fitting had already been done.

All that's left is couplers and paint/install the fuel tank.  Woo hoo!



DFF