2 rail at last

[robert.]

Bob, it is an outer loop and a semi folded dog bone. My dog bone is just 2 reverse loops. one above the other. that's why i have such a long bridge.Inner and outer loops are not connected. The whole layout is a group of failures that are coming together nicely Probably by the end of this summer i'll take it down. I started this layout before the birth of my 3 year old daughter. Now i need this space. My layout measures 5x10.5. it sits in a room that is 6x11.3. On the 11.3 side is my closet. Every morning i turn sideways and walk towards clean clothes. Clothes that my wife wont hang in this closet anymore. It's to much of a pita. for her to walk to the closet. I made a few major mistakes while building this. For my second level I used plywood that i got for free from a dumpster. It's 3/4. If i had used 1/4 for the second level my grade would be less. I raised the ground level of my inner loop by half an inch. That helped. The climb is not the problem. It's all on the downside. Trains come down rather quickly. My grade start at a turnout makes a 180% turn,then goes 9ft, turns 180% and hit a turnout. I have some traction equipment to run on the inner loop. Along with an rs3 with 3 or 4 cars. BUT MOMMA BEAR SAYS "WE NEED THE ROOM"
Next fall I'll build a hollow core door layout in n scale that will store away in my closet. Funny thing is momma bear forgot that that 5x10.5 layout is stuffed full under underneath. Filled with her art supplies!!! Packed carpet to bench work

[rogruth]

Robert,
Are you going to tell Momma Bear what's under the layout or just let it disappear? Does she remember that it is there?
Are you going to be in big(ger) trouble?

[robert.]

She knows but that stuff is not in the way. It's out of sight under a layout that is in the way.

[robert.]

Almost ready for decking. My iPhone flash makes powder pigments look fluorescent

IMG_8508.JPG

IMG_8507.JPG

[prrjim]

I have a friend who uses latex paint to weather his rail in HO. He took a sample of Polly Scale "Railroad Tie Brown" to the local paint store and had them make a can of that color. Then he paints the rail and ties and all at one time. After that he lets it dry for a couple of days. Then he goes back and with his finger nail or a piece of wood, can scrape the paint off the top of the rails and peel right off.

He has a very large HO layout and has done this for years. The advantages are that the stuff comes back off the top of the rails very easily. and since removing the paint does not use an abrasive, it does not put scratches in the rail head the might collect dirt.

I have done this process on his RR a couple of times and it works very well.

[robert.]

Added some corbels for style points. These are cut from 100 year old furniture molding.

[jwmathews]

FWIW, many years ago when working on our old 2R modules for an NMRA Division annual train show, I had some brown latex interior paint left over from a quart can that was used for painting the wood framing & legs of a couple of layout modules. Using a small brush, I hand-painted the sides of the Atlas flextrack rails. (One can even get away with just painting the sides of the rails visible to spectators standing outside the layout.)

My point is that real steel RR rails rust to a flat brownish color which does not match the color of concrete or creosoted wood ties. In my personal opinion, hand-painting the sides of rails is not significantly more time-consuming in total, considering time required to mask portions of track, or go back over railheads to remove paint therefrom.

Regardless of method used however, painting rails to simulate the color of the prototype will vastly improve the realistic appearance of 2R model RR trackage.

[robert.]

Deck the bridge with ties of walnut fa la la la la. 30 hours and counting

[bob turner]

Why walnut? Can you drive spikes in that?

[robert.]

I salvaged the walnut from a piece of furniture. I'm cheap and the wood was free. M.E. track flex will be used.

[rogruth]

That looks as if that will be an interesting scene you are building.
Please show us up-dates as you go.

[Seaboard Air Line Fan]

Robert,

Haven't posted much here lately, but just getting back into it.

I did read your "fa la la la la" statement the other day and it just now hit me by what you meant (I'm thick as a brick some times).

More please!

[robert.]

For some reason auto correct placed a few words in there. If i post photos and text from my phone . Usually the text part gets funky.

[bob turner]

I had to disable autocorrect. I liked not having to capitalize, but spent way too much time fixing alternate words.