The Carolina Sandhills Lines in HO Scale

[davefoxx]

Almond.  I painted the exterior walls almond, leaving the interior gray.  Not bad progress for a weekend.  Actually, looking at both of these sidings (this and the siding where the three covered hoppers are tied down to unload sand), I feel a great weight has been lifted with the resolution of this area in north Aberdeen.  Keep in mind that this layout is five years old.  That’s a long time to get around to solving the problem.





DFF

[packers#1]

Those are some great looking overall shots; the sand area looks perfect! I haven’t noticed a ton of cold storage in the area, but there are a TON of old beer distributors that used to get rail service.

[davefoxx]

I'm loving all the "little" changes to the layout. Is there any way to get an over viewing shot of the whole layout to get an idea of how everything fits together?

Hopefully, these will fit the bill:

1) The overall picture.  Aberdeen & Briar Patch Ry. staging at top left and the Aberdeen & Rockfish RR staging at top right.  The Seaboard System is the roundy-round, and all roads interchange in the yard at bottom right.



2) Aberdeen, North Carolina.



3) North Aberdeen, with the A&R mainline taking off to the right.



4) Southern Pines, North Carolina.  That’s the Aberdeen & Briar Patch Ry. climbing the hill in the middle.



5) The trestle/lake/kudzu scene.  A&BP on top; SBD underneath.



DFF

[Chris333]

That's a lot of railroad right there.

[davefoxx]

I received the Trucks N’ Stuff dry bulk trailer today.  As expected, the details are a little clunky up close, but it adds a bit to the scene.  I may order a second trailer.



DFF

[chuck geiger]

What a great looking layout.

[ski]

Dave, your layout looks fantastic! You probably have mentioned previously, but what are the approximate dimensions of the layout?

The siren song of HO has been calling to me lately...

[davefoxx]

Thanks, @chuck geiger and @ski!

The core of the layout, i.e., the roundy-round, is 6’ x 10’.  With the different additions going in three directions, the overall layout is approximately 11’6” x 17’6” with the drop-down shelf to extend two tracks at the end of the yard deployed.  The layout is only 14’ long when the shelf is dropped.

DFF

[Jbub]

 
I'm glad I asked for the overview shot. Impressive work Dave, you've shown that you can still have a lot of railroad with a larger scale and roundy round table.

[John]

So Dave is an artist .. but I think the key to his layout is staging .. which allows him to operate and move stuff off stage and back in ..

[EJN]

I'm glad I asked for the overview shot. Impressive work Dave, you've shown that you can still have a lot of railroad with a larger scale and roundy round table.

I totally agree. And what stands out to me is that nothing on it seems contrived or "forced" even though it is relatively small for an HO layout. I also like the fact that it is an island layout. It has depth to scenes. Just like the real world.

[davefoxx]

Wow!  Thanks for your kind words, guys.  That’s very humbling.

Today, I got back on the beer distributor’s warehouse.  I painted the doors and roof.  They’re now installed, as well as the glass in the windows and the utilities.



‘Round back I did a little terraforming with lightweight spackling to back fill to the new foundation.  I’ve got some retaining walls to build on both of the rear corners against the hill.



DFF

[Bendtracker1]

Dave,
I sure like the way you built the foundation in hillside.  Something you don't modeled much! Kudo's
As a suggestion, you make want to add a lot of riprap in the middle of that fill for good water drainage and add more down the left side of the parking lot.
Gutters would be a god thing also.

Sure hope their building insurance provides for water damage?

[davefoxx]

Dave,
I sure like the way you built the foundation in hillside.  Something you don't modeled much! Kudo's
As a suggestion, you make want to add a lot of riprap in the middle of that fill for good water drainage and add more down the left side of the parking lot.
Gutters would be a god thing also.

Sure hope their building insurance provides for water damage?

Haha!  Yeah, I already have ideas for plausible drainage as this comes together, although I will admit: (1) it’s almost impossible to see that side of the building from normal viewing angles around my layout, (2) French drain, and (3) it never rains on my layout. 

DFF

[Bendtracker1]

Haha!  Yeah, I already have ideas for plausible drainage as this comes together, although I will admit: (1) it’s almost impossible to see that side of the building from normal viewing angles around my layout, (2) French drain,

   

and (3) it never rains on my layout. 

Knock on wood...

Of course you could always just cover it in kudzu and say it's there and no one would be the wiser?