DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Discuss All Facets of 2-Rail, 1/48 Scale, Model Railroading
up148
Posts: 3969
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 10:52 am

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby up148 » Wed Dec 21, 2022 8:56 am

It's easy to see the club has learned a lot over the years. Your modules are extremely well thought out and you've corrected most, if not all, of the pitfalls associated with modules. My old Module group used the typical 2 x 2 legs with cross braces and they were very wobbly at best. I don't see them installed, but do you use leg levelers? Most convention centers back in the 90's had woefully uneven floors making set up interesting even with levelers.

gregj410
Posts: 2483
Joined: Tue Aug 30, 2011 7:19 pm
Location: Maryland

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby gregj410 » Wed Dec 21, 2022 5:10 pm

Most convention centers back in the 90's had woefully uneven floors making set up interesting even with levelers.


I watch carpenters set up lasers so all the doors headers line up. I’ll bet that could be an efficient way to set up modules. Reference marks on all the legs once everything is set. Subsequent shows break out the laser and set everything to the reference marks.

Chris Webster
Posts: 818
Joined: Mon May 25, 2015 7:25 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby Chris Webster » Wed Dec 21, 2022 6:12 pm

up148 wrote: Most convention centers back in the 90's had woefully uneven floors making set up interesting even with levelers.
It's the modules -- not the floors -- that are uneven.

Module construction is about the trade-off between ease of construction and ease of use (transport, setup and teardown.) The HO "Sipping & Switching Society" guys have perfected ease of setup by having module standards that are a bitch to build! Here's drone footage of one of their past meets: Sipping and Switching Society Flyover

Their modules are torsion boxes built out of thin Luan plywood, so their modules are so stable and strong that they lay their track right to the edge and run trains over the joints without any rail joiners. Most of their modules have metal folding table legs, with extenders atop wheels -- they don't need floor levelers because their torsion box design means the modules don't warp.

Another video: Sipping & Switching Society of NC November 2022 Raleigh, NC Set Up at the NRV Train Show

User avatar
R.K. Maroon
Posts: 2921
Joined: Tue Feb 22, 2011 9:20 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby R.K. Maroon » Thu Dec 22, 2022 9:38 pm

up148 wrote:Do you use leg levelers?

We do not. We typically set up in three places -- an event center, a gymnasium, and my shop, all of which have reasonably level floors (my shop is new and near dead-level). In our experience, the track does not have to be perfectly level for most equipment to run reliably. So, with no need, we haven't pulled the trigger on leg levelers. I am not a fan of threaded levelers, so I would try shims of some sort if needed. I have thought about fabricating an assortment of slip-on leg shoes in various thicknesses. These could be routed from wood or 3D printed. But buying a couple of packs of door shims would be a whole lot less work.

Chris Webster wrote:It's the modules -- not the floors -- that are uneven

We have been watching for warping of our modules but so far they have remained straight and flat, with the oldest modules now seven years old. I think the box design with the 2" foam glued in and the use of quality lumber really helps. Also, our modules have always been kept in a controlled temperature space. No potato chips so far.

Chris Webster wrote:Module construction is about the trade-off between ease of construction and ease of use (transport, setup and teardown.)

I wouldn't say those are mutually exclusive. There is a club in our area has a portable layout that was both the Bataan Death March to build and exquisitely painful to transport and set up.

gregj410 wrote:I’ll bet that (lasers) could be an efficient way to set up modules. Reference marks on all the legs once everything is set. Subsequent shows break out the laser and set everything to the reference marks.

One of the clubs that sets up at the local show uses lasers to level their layout. To alleviate concerns about eye safety, and to make sure that the laser is never blocked, they set it up about eight feet in the air using a tripod. They have a stick with a mark on it with a base that sits on the rails. It sure looks tedious to me -- evidence, perhaps, that having fancy technology and tools does not always make life better.

Jim
Slow progress is better than no progress

up148
Posts: 3969
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 10:52 am

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby up148 » Fri Dec 23, 2022 9:13 am

Well, I think common sense, thinking things through and building on experience has a lot to do with the success of your modules and set-up........your club has obviously done that.

User avatar
R.K. Maroon
Posts: 2921
Joined: Tue Feb 22, 2011 9:20 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby R.K. Maroon » Sat Dec 24, 2022 11:32 pm

A few of us in the club got our holiday shopping done early, so we had time for an unplanned work session at the shop today. Our modules have a 3/8" square "lip" at each end. Putting two modules together thus creates a hidden pocket for the shared leg. This notional side-view drawing shows how this works:

Image

The top of the lip is at the deck height of the module, which is shown by the dotted line. The modules are built so that the bottom of the lip sits on the top of the leg panel. This ensures that the decks of adjacent modules are co-planar, which goes a long way to ensuring that the track is smooth across the joints. Note that the sides of the frames actually extend out further than shown in the diagram, hiding the ends of the lips and leg panels.

So one of things we did today was to get all the 3/8" lips glued to the module ends. We use a lot of clamps to make sure these joints are straight and flush:

Image

Sometimes it's good to have "too many" clamps:

Image

I hope everybody's holidays are filled with family, friends, and good cheer. Merry Christmas!
Jim
Slow progress is better than no progress

up148
Posts: 3969
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2008 10:52 am

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby up148 » Sun Dec 25, 2022 12:39 pm

Back at you Jim. The more I read about your modules the more impressed I am..........outstanding.

User avatar
R.K. Maroon
Posts: 2921
Joined: Tue Feb 22, 2011 9:20 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby R.K. Maroon » Mon Mar 13, 2023 12:07 am

The DFW O-Scale club took our portable traction layout to a local train shown this weekend. I used the event as motivation to service a group of traction models that I acquired a few years ago from John Fisher of Corvallis, Oregon. John is an expert modeler, specializing in restoration and refinishing of vintage (and often distressed) models. The models came to me with their finishes in excellent condition. There was some minor damage (mostly loose parts) from shipping but nothing major (thank goodness). These models had not been run in many years, however, and so there was quite an assortment of wiring and drive issues and a good bit of cleaning of wheels and gears. By the time of the show I had nine models serviced and ready to run. I shot a lot of video and plan to post a compilation video to YouTube sometime soon. In the meantime, here are some clips:

Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

I should note that Ohio Public Service (OPS) was an interurban from Toledo to Port Clinton and out onto the Marblehead Penisula. John remembers it from his childhood in Toledo. He adopted it has his home road, taking home-road-level liberties with equipment rosters and color schemes. It works for me.

Jim
Slow progress is better than no progress

bob turner
Posts: 12833
Joined: Sat Jan 13, 2007 7:57 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby bob turner » Mon Mar 13, 2023 1:33 am

Beautiful! I admit- I am a closet trolley freak. I have only the steeplecabs, but when I was a kid I rode the Baltimore "Peter Witt" cars to grade school, along with the occasional PCC. I rode the Philadelphia & Western back and forth to work in 1960 (when I needed a change from the PRR from Rosemont to Suburban Station) and while in Pittsburgh getiing my BAC111 rating I rode the PCCs all over the place.

Thanks for the gorgeous photos!

User avatar
R.K. Maroon
Posts: 2921
Joined: Tue Feb 22, 2011 9:20 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby R.K. Maroon » Mon Mar 20, 2023 11:32 pm

I have posted a video of the traction models to YouTube. Here's the link:

https://youtu.be/UA9AWYuYZJ4

Nine of the eleven models in the video were built and finished (or rebuilt and finished) by John Fisher, so I gave him a sneak peak to make sure I had identified the models correctly (I had not). I mention this because a line car, which belongs to a fellow club member, appears in the video and we had no idea of its origins. John correctly identified it as a Yakima Valley Traction prototype.

Image

The photo is from the American Rails website and is credited to Drew Jacksich. We think the model is a scratch-build, but if somebody knows otherwise please let me know.

Jim
Slow progress is better than no progress

Nortonville Phil
Posts: 191
Joined: Sat Jul 31, 2010 10:05 pm
Location: Red Oak TX
Contact:

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby Nortonville Phil » Tue Mar 21, 2023 11:59 am

Here is a short clip of my Williams Bachmann Peter Witt car in Baltimore colors running on the DFW O layout at the show.

https://youtu.be/DyWhCWmTvWI
Phil Randall
Trinity Valley Traction Co.
Red Oak, TX

My trolley blog:
http://bluebonnetlimited.blogspot.com/

https://youtube.com/@cug6?si=BCFnDDtUw2eVKamo

Dallas Fort Worth O Scale Modelers

User avatar
R.K. Maroon
Posts: 2921
Joined: Tue Feb 22, 2011 9:20 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby R.K. Maroon » Mon May 22, 2023 9:37 pm

Back in December, I posted several photos showing construction of new modules for the portable mainline layout of the DFW O-Scale club. These are just a few posts before this one, so they are easy to review if interested. I am a bit surprised I haven't provided an update, but there were a lot of distractions in the intervening months, and progress has not been as rapid as hoped. Here is a shot from January showing a test fit of the new modules:

Image

The foam was not yet glued when this photo was taken. We have learned from experience to pay A LOT more attention to getting the foam decks level and aligned with their adjacent decks. Slight misalignments were acceptable for B-truck diesels, but completely unacceptable for rigid-frame steam (of which I have a lot). We did our best to control deck alignment when gluing in the foam, but the foam itself proved to be less than perfectly flat. Getting this straightened out consumed a lot of time (and is still ongoing). After some experimentation, we found that dry wall mud worked well. This can be seen in this photo, which shows the outside mainline in place on the new modules:

Image

Two details to note in the photo above. First, the module in the foreground is not new but a legacy module that has been reworked to install a curved turnout. The outside track is the outside main, the diverging track from the turnout is for a shared passing siding/interchange track between the outer and inner main. Second, the outside main is eased here. The easement is required to move the alignment from six inches from the edge of the layout on the curve to three inches on the tangent section. The easement is supposed to be a spline curve, but this one is a bit out of alignment. We may go back and work on it once the layout is operational and we see how it runs.

A few photos from today, showing the work on the inner mainline and shared siding. This first one shows the cork roadbed glued in place:

Image

The tangent track sections in the distance not installed. They feature hand-laid track and were salvaged from the Lou Cross layout (thank you, Jay Criswell, Dennis Mashburn, others? Maybe Ed Jakl?) . It's a bit of a surprise that the track did not get the full Right-o-Way super-detailing, but it's nearly identical to the way we lay track, so acquiring Lou's salvaged track is an incredible bit of good fortune for us. In parts of the layout, like on curves or around turnouts, we have found it better to lay new track ourselves instead of trying to fit old track. We go through a lot of ties doing this. Here is today's supply, fresh from the dipping vat:

Image

Here is the other end of the layout, showing similar track work with ties in place:

Image

We use a product called a Gapmaster to establish and hold rail alignment across the modules. The gap in the cork and ties in the middle of the photo above is where the Gapmasters are used. Here is a photo showing three Gapmasters (two installed, one loose) and one "homemade" equivalent:

Image

We all wish we had discovered Gapmasters years ago. They are head-and-shoulders better than the homemade devices, which themselves are tedious to fabricate and install. Over the years we have installed well over 100 of the homemade devices, and we have plans to replace all of them.

Jim
Slow progress is better than no progress

sleepmac
Posts: 547
Joined: Sun Nov 22, 2015 4:10 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby sleepmac » Tue May 23, 2023 8:37 am

Wow Jim. That is great stuff. Thank you for all your photos!

Dan Weinhold

gregj410
Posts: 2483
Joined: Tue Aug 30, 2011 7:19 pm
Location: Maryland

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby gregj410 » Wed May 24, 2023 11:13 am

After some experimentation, we found that dry wall mud worked well


Does that bond to the foam after it dries? I like using foam where I can but any time you introduce water to foam it takes forever to dry. Nice work!

User avatar
R.K. Maroon
Posts: 2921
Joined: Tue Feb 22, 2011 9:20 pm

Re: DFW Portable Layouts -- Mainline and Traction

Postby R.K. Maroon » Wed May 24, 2023 12:36 pm

It's a good question, Greg. The dry wall mud sticks to the foam very well. My guess is that this is partly due to the "open pore" surface finish of the foam and partly due to the nature of dry wall mud, which, after all, has to stick to vertical walls and upside-down ceilings.

Jim
Slow progress is better than no progress


Return to “O-Gauge, 2-Rail, Model Railroading”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 22 guests