Feather River Canyon in N-scale

[freedj]

What sketch are you using on your arduinos for the servo control?

[rodsup9000]

What sketch are you using on your arduinos for the servo control?

I built my own sketch from parts I found on the Arduino forum and then had some help on it to slow the servos down.

[coldriver]

belated thank you for the op sessions at the Kansas City N Scale weekend Rodney.  I had a blast running this extremely lengthy westbound shown here approaching Keddie. 

[rodsup9000]

     For the OPs weekend, I thought I had enough rolling stock on the layout to keep everyone busy. Well I didn't, as some of the locals were done
     well before the sessions were over.

     So over the last few weeks, I've been renumbering some cars. About 90% of my rolling stock is Kadee/MTL and I have a lot of cars with the same numbers   
  I started on some tank car for all the oil/gasoline dealers that is or will be on the layout. Before decaling them, they got body mounted couplers and weight
  added to them by taking them apart and adding lead sheet to the stock weight.
  I have a minimum weight of 23 grams for all rolling stock.










  Using a toothpick, I scratched off one or two numbers and added decal numbers. I didn't bother with the numbers on the ends of the cars



 

[rodsup9000]

     Before the cars go on the layout, I make carcards for them. I have Shenware carcards and waybill software, but haven't figured out how to use it yet.
  So for now, I've been using Excell to make them. I'll just use Shenware for the waybills. There is a couple N scale layouts here in the area that has photos
of the car on the car cards. So I've been playing around with seeing if I can do it.
 Here is what it looks like in the print "preview"
 

 


 I might make the car number smaller and the photo a little smaller as the waybill covers up some of the photo.
 Don't pat attention to the waybill as I just put this one in there to see what it will look like.

[rodsup9000]

  For the last few days, I've been working on Keddie Yard to make it operable for a upcoming session in October. I only needed 4 tracks for sorting and the interchange track for the Quincy RR. This will add another operator to a session. The operator will only have 6 to 8 trains to work with each train only having 1 to 3 cars to work. He will also work the Quincy interchange track.

 I used ground throws for now for a session or two to see if the yard will work the way I think it will. If it does, all the ground throws will be replaced with servos and control panels.

[rodsup9000]

 
  I've been playing with Keddie yard and high line staging. I plan to operate 2 GWS (Great Northern, Western Pacific, and Santa Fe) trains from the high line staging yard and 2 SWG trains to the high line staging. My average length train on the layouts is around 50 cars, but I only have room for 21 car trains with locos and caboose in staging. 










 So, a major rebuild is the works. I really didn't like the "snake effect" on this part of the mainline as well.

[rodsup9000]

  This is what it looks like this morning












 I had set the original grade on the layout itself to 1% (helix is 2%) as the prototype is. But wanting to add some stock pens to what was Belden and changing the name to Merlin siding, I'm going to increase the grade to 2% so I can get the siding level instead of the 1% that it is now. That may mean that I'll have to rebuild all the way back to Pulga (the first siding after leaving Oroville.

[rodsup9000]

  Got the sub-roadbed with Micore done on the staging yard and the cork almost done. The sub-roadbed is about half done on the mainline.

[rodsup9000]

  The track is laid in the staging yard. It'll hold a 47, a 49 and 55 plus car trains.
This is 50 cars.
 













 The first would be staged where the far locos are. This train will have to me moved before a inbound train could be sent to it.




 

[Cajonpassfan]

Or, you could run a train with"only" 54 cars
Good to see more progress on the RR.
Otto

[rodsup9000]

 Thanks Otto

[rodsup9000]

The benchwork is done. I'm ready to start laying cork

[rodsup9000]

 
  Found out that I only had a few pieces of HO cork left, so I ran to the hobby shop and bought another box. That was sticker shock as the last box I bought was about 5 years ago. It was less than $30 out the door, and this box was almost $60 out the door. Ripped 12 strips down on the tablesaw, to the same width I had used before and got all the cork glued down. I remembered to paint everything this time before laying track.

All the old wiring was ripped out as I only had a single buss wires feeding everything from Oroville yard up to Keddie.
I will now have a main buss and then sub buss for each section of track between the turnouts and the sidings. The high line side of the wye and the staging yard is the reversing section. All the feeder wires are soldered on the staging tracks and working on reversing section buss.

[Cajonpassfan]

Nice going, Rodney! It already looks better!
Otto