Okay, you racehorses want to see some progress, I’m gonna show you some progress…NOT!
Well, here’s the project anyway. It’s a while back, but someone may remember that two years ago I modelled a mine for the challenge; well, that mine is in place, along with the hoist that I built right after the challenge was over. The first picture is the mining district which I want to work on–I almost said “finish,” but that’s too much pressure: I saw what happened to Devon!
The bridge is supposed to be the skeleton foundation for the Glenfinnan Viaduct. This next picture is the gap I need to bridge between the mining office (red) and the wall of the viaduct; it has to be bridged so that a freight car an be unloaded. So that’s one part of the challenge. The second picture shows the size of the gap that needs to be bridged.
You can see here what disrepair the office is in:
I need an auto ramp, also part of the challenge, to go from the dock of the office to the auto/truck/delivery tunnel you see on the left (it’s a hole in the rock wall):
I need to build out a system of ramps and “sluices” (not really sluices, just channels) to get the raw ore from the mine to the ore cars that get placed on the tracks in the tunnel that goes through the mountain. The first picture shows the tracks and the second picture shows the area that needs to be gapped. All of this is part of the challenge.
Now for the stairways and ladders. The workers have to be able to get from the trucks/freight cars/and office up to the level of the hoist, and from there they have to be able to get to the level of the mine, and from there to the area above the retaining wall, and from there to the two mines that will be in the rock wall above the retaining wall (still to be built).
And finally, the stairway to heaven will ascend to the upper corner of the rock wall above the mine.
So here’s my big progress to far: I cleared off the work table, which was no mean feat to get that accomplished, not to mention work up the courage to even get started clearing it, and I found a 2x4, actually two 2x4s bolted together that I used as one of the legs in my first layout, of which there are no pictures, and cut them down to 21" because two times 21 is 42 and I’m working in 1:24 scale. (Don’t ask why I have five plastic school rulers?!?)
So here’s what’s ominously staring at me waiting for something to happen:
