The West Virginia Central HCD

[sizemore]

The lower switch in square 5, row 1, looks awkwardly placed in comparison to the Feng Shui of the yard and adjacent tracks (its creating an S curve). If it hasnt already been mentioned, it might be considered changing it to a left hand switch, allowing the throw to create the curve preceding it.

Just a thought,
The S.

[PiperguyUMD]

Thanks everyone for the feedback!  Here's my latest revision.  I think this is getting pretty dialed in, and I'm starting to turn an eye towards construction!



Per Lemosteam and Sizemore's insight, I have added the curved turnout to alleviate the S turn on the main in the lower right hand corner.  The siding that comes off the main in the lower left hand corner has been shortened and curved to follow the main.  I think I will put a station here and this will be the house track.  Finally I have flipped the first spur track on the branch line so that the spur is uphill of the branch line.  This looks more realistic to my eye and now cars spotted on this siding won't magically end up back in the yard!

Turning an eye toward construction, I have been toying with the idea of not using an HCD.  I was thinking about using a simple 1x4 frame to attach the folding legs and DCC components, toped with a sheet of 1/2" foam, followed by a sheet of 2" foam.  So basically it would be the same approach that Davefoxx used, except the door would be replaced by the 1/2" foam.  My reasons for exploring this are:

Weight - I foresee at least one more move in the near future.
Turnout control - I plan on using fastrack's bullfrog turnout control and I'm concerned that the width of the door, plus the foam on top will require the throw bars to be too long.
Cost - Skipping the door would save a nice sum of money that could be used elsewhere.

Has anyone explored this type of construction? 

Have a great weekend!

[davefoxx]

That type of construction will work fine, but I don't think you'll save that much money by the time you buy the 1" x 4" lumber and the 1/2" foam.  I do think that you could forgo the 1/2" foam, which will save you money and help keep the thickness of the table down, minimizing your turnout woes.  I'd also remind you that the HCD will be lighter than the 1" x 4" frame, but that's not necessarily significant, either.

I would add that, if you go with the 1" x 4" frame, keep in mind that you are no longer limited to the parameters of a HCD.  Perhaps you can add a few inches to the layout's length or width, which often can pay huge dividends on the track plan (i.e., minimum radius) and scenery.

Hope this helps,
DFF

[PiperguyUMD]

That type of construction will work fine, but I don't think you'll save that much money by the time you buy the 1" x 4" lumber and the 1/2" foam.  I do think that you could forgo the 1/2" foam, which will save you money and help keep the thickness of the table down, minimizing your turnout woes.  I'd also remind you that the HCD will be lighter than the 1" x 4" frame, but that's not necessarily significant, either.

I would add that, if you go with the 1" x 4" frame, keep in mind that you are no longer limited to the parameters of a HCD.  Perhaps you can add a few inches to the layout's length or width, which often can pay huge dividends on the track plan (i.e., minimum radius) and scenery.

Hope this helps,
DFF

I had thought about skipping the 1/2" foam, but I plan on adding a river between the main and the branch line on the back side.  Having the layer of 1/2" foam will give me a nice riverbed, and give some solid backing to the now two pieces of 2" foam.  Here's what I had in mind:



While moving away from the HCD does open the opportunity to grow larger, one of the things that drew me to the HCD layouts was that they are small.  It seems manageable.  I really want to have something that I can finish!  So even if I do away with the door, I need to keep the same footprint, or it will never get finished!

[pdx1955]

Keep in mind that unsupported foam on the edges won't carry much weight and will be subject to damage/denting if you lean on it too much. Without any edge protection this won't move to a new location very well. I suggest at a minimum, build a frame out of 1X2's to attach to the 1X4's in your diagram. The 1x2's will support the foam and give you a solid edge to attach some hardboard fascia for protection. This way the layout could go on-edge in a moving scenario without getting all torn up. 

Peter

[PiperguyUMD]

The 1x2's will support the foam and give you a solid edge to attach some hardboard fascia for protection. This way the layout could go on-edge in a moving scenario without getting all torn up. 

Peter

Great insight, something I completely overlooked - strong case to stick with the door.  If I went with the door, is there any reason I couldn't attach the folding legs directly to the door?

[rodsup9000]

  If I went with the door, is there any reason I couldn't attach the folding legs directly to the door?

 Remember that a door only has the supports around the perimeter and it just has a 1/8 skin on it
You might have to use a 1X4 to get the full width, and then screw the leg set to it.

[pdx1955]

Great insight, something I completely overlooked - strong case to stick with the door.  If I went with the door, is there any reason I couldn't attach the folding legs directly to the door?

Like what Rodney said, I would attach the door to the 1X4's in your diagram by screws in the perimeter and an adequate amount of carpenter's (yellow) glue on the rest of it. This will give a solid foundation to attach your folding leg sets to.

[PiperguyUMD]

With regards to mine operations, I was flipping through a few books last night when I found this on page 165 of "The Western Maryland Railway Fireballs and Black Diamonds"


That caboose was leading the way for so long that they gave it a headlight!  Putting a working headlight on a Life-Like NE-5 will be a fun little project!

[Lemosteam]

I have some in shapeways- you could just shave off the side road number lenses.  They also have LED wire passages...

[sizemore]

That caboose was leading the way for so long that they gave it a headlight!  Putting a working headlight on a Life-Like NE-5 will be a fun little project!

If I may make a recommendation, start with the Bachmann caboose. You can switch out the wheelsets with FVM and get flush windows to boot. The smoke-jack can be replaced with an MT for a little finer detail. If you're using DCC, you could also throw in a TCS FL4 (light function only decoder) with a capacitor.

The S.

[davefoxx]

Great insight, something I completely overlooked - strong case to stick with the door.  If I went with the door, is there any reason I couldn't attach the folding legs directly to the door?

As pointed out, the HCD is hollow and does not have anything to screw into to hold the legs solidly.  I installed two 1"x4" pieces of lumber across the width of the HCD to support each set of legs.  The 1"x4"s were glued and screwed to the HCD (there is some framing around the edge of the door).  Look close in the following picture, and you can see the 1"x4"s and the legs' connection.  Also visible is something I later added to stop the door from swaying so much end-to-end; I found strips of aluminum stock at the home center.  This photo also shows in-progress shot of the braces' installation.  The table is now much more sturdy.  Oh, and that wiring has since been cleaned up.  Since the door is hollow, most of the feeders are run inside the door's cavity, to clean up the layout underneath and to prevent small children from pulling on or hanging from the wiring.



Hope this helps,
DFF