Large Scale Central

First twelve feet of track laid!

Track and Trestles
#1

South Platform is installed with track, and plants! The plants keep swmbo happy. We found a great miniature fuscia and have added a flat of moss to jumpstart the vegetation. Need to go get a bunch more bags of roofing gravel for ballast, and level out a couple of less-than-ideal spots, but it’s a start! Here, after putting in the wire mesh floor and landscape fabric, covering it with drainage stones, and putting in the bender board channel to contain and level the ballast. The black stuff on the perimeter is landscape foam with ballast gravel tossed into it to make a more natural-looking border.

And here it is with the soil, plants, ballast, and track. Sharp-eyed critics will note an unfortunate dip near the back that will need to be shored up before we run a loco.

another view, with the pots in place

#2

Nice work! Blends into the garden well.

Bob C.

#3

Thanks, Bob. One thing I noticed, but did not capture with the photo, is that the fuschia plants nicely mirror in miniature a mature rhododendron a bit to the right of the frame. My hope is that with some judicious trimming, it will create a subtle sense of forced perspective!

Meanwhile, I have no right hand turnouts. Only left hand. Ebray to the rescue. Hand-laying later…

#4

Alright! You’re on your way!
Can you tell us more about the landscape foam. Looks like interesting stuff.

Joe

#5

Sure thing. I was instructed by the chief architect to plant asap, and was looking for something to build up the perimeter of the platform to retain the dirt. By chance, I ran across of that gap-filling expanding foam called “Great Stuff”. Well, it’s beige and gets mossy outside, but I thought, "I bet there is such a thing as landscape foam.

Googled it. There are at least two brands, one by Great Stuff, and one by Touch ‘n’ Foam. It’s black, very sticky, and good as a waterproof barrier. Spray it on and it expands to about 3x its volume in a few minutes. Solid in an hour. It’s kind of shiny for a few days, but dulls out to a less obtrusive background.

I sprayed too much at one spot and a big glop dripped off. I went to grab it and got black on my hand for several days (it cannot be washed off, only scraped…)

#6

I’ve used the black sticky stuff to direct the course of water in streams. I still have some of it on my work clothes.

Memories.

#7
Michael Moradzadeh said:
I sprayed too much at one spot and a big glop dripped off. I went to grab it and got black on my hand for several days (it cannot be washed off, only scraped...)
Gasoline will remove it along with a few other things that you probably don't want to wash your hands with
#8

Can this stuff be carved?

#9

Sure, with a very sharp HD utility knife or possibly with the hot wire method - but that could be very smelly which isn’t a problem outside.

#10

It scrubbed off fine in the shower over a couple of days. Not saying whether Head and Shoulders shampoo helped or whether I need it or not.

#11

Landscape foam, huh? Hoodathunkit? I learn something every day…

#12

JLF

Let me put it this way, it’s gotta be easier than shovelling dirt and carrying rock! :stuck_out_tongue: :wink:

#13
Hans-Joerg Mueller said:
JLF

Let me put it this way, it’s gotta be easier than shovelling dirt and carrying rock! :stuck_out_tongue: :wink:


You’ve got that right. Been there big time. :confused:
You been looking over my shoulder for the past few years, H.J. ?

But who needs the backaches?
My motto with the track has been maybe just a little bit male chauvinistic…
I used to repeat to myself, again and again, “Get it up, get it up, get it up…” :rolleyes:

I bought a weightlifter’s belt with the name WEIDER on it. It’s wonderful; it turns my body into a crane.

Nowadays I’ve changed my approach to the gravity problem, by the way. Now it’s strictly benchwork and bridges.

Rock moving is postponed untill strong young nephews come visiting, which, come to think of it, these days they seem to be doing less and less often…

I wonder why… :frowning:

Who needs backaches, I asked. Shucks, who needs scenery? :stuck_out_tongue:

HA HA!

#14

Loco test results:
Bachmann 4-6-0 no problem
Bachmann Shay Too tight. Damn
Porter 0-4-0 Non-functional! WHAT?? Did not test when arrived on ebay. Sucker me.
Hartland 4-4-0 test in am.

Moved track to OUTSIDE a 4-foot circle. Pain in the butt, but serves me right. Not nailed down yet. Testing Hartland tomorrow.

#15

Watching with interest… Let me know how the Hartland performs for ya’! I’m betting she’ll be great… But don’t neglect lubrication, OK?

#16

Another beautifull line in progress, I am right there with you on building my garden line. If you need help on that Porter, let me know as I do repair work for the LHS and whatever else staggers into the repair shed. Might just be something simple. Cant wait to see some more pics. Mike and Michele T

#17

Thanks Mike. Looking more closely at the loco, the wheels are filthy, and I bet the internals are gummed up…