Point of Rocks MD!
You don’t have a chicken processing plant yet. I know someone who would be perfect to run it, starts with an R and ends with an R.
Ric Goldinger?
Ruce Chandler?
Back in October, 2008, I put in a new siding in Occoquan. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but it is very hard to reach when operating and has been problematic for quite some time.
Today, I went out to level it as it was way off plum when the Strongs came to visit last week. Not only that, but the Nelly Stevens Holly needed severe trimming just so I could walk along the path. After studying the problem, I decided it was easier to just remove the siding.
After about 30 minutes of work, it’s gone.
So, I lose the opposing switch in Occoquan; there’s still the interchange, Smith Pond Mill, and McCown Freight (above center), but all of those face the same direction.
The track that leads to McCown Freight is my run around, but also serves as an LCL stop, so the track is seldom empty; thus there can still be a challenge switching.
I don’t think I’ll miss trying to uncouple the cars on that spur.
There is always improvement. It interesting reading back through this thread and seeing the evolution of your railroad. It is a goal to someday pay you a visit. And of course you are always welcome on the D&BHW.
Jake, I would love to have you visit! That invite goes for anyone else that comes to the Washington area.
Meanwhile, on the Green Springs yard, I have finally got up the gumption to redo the whole yard.
It’s sort of a mess.
The yard was once covered with ballast, but it’s not anymore. Washed away to somewhere. I had a few troubles with the switches as well, so it’s time for a rebuild.
The basic design will remain the same, but I think I can get a bit more room on some of the yard tracks by relocating a switch or two. Moving the center of picture switch away from the end of the yard should help.
The track is unscrewed and removed. The ballast is all that remains.
I plan on rebuilding all of the switches; when I first made these I had battens underneath; they be rebuilt with battens in a dado cut instead. The yard will be covered with the same rolled roofing around the turntable.
Here’s a shot of it all hosed off and dried.
Damn, that was quick…
You still plan on extending it, like we talked about or just rearranging some things?
Nah, I thought about extending it, but it would make it harder to walk around while not really giving me that much more room. I think the yard is pretty good as far as the design goes now, and if I move that switch back I’ll gain a bit more storage space.
I was pleasantly surprised when I hit Home Depot this morning. I had noticed that they had semi-transparent stain in their store and I needed some for my switches. Only $3.50 for 8 ounces. Neat. Unfortunately, their web site did not show that they carried the roll roofing and I thought I’d have to make a trip over to Lowe’s. But, I walked over to the building supplies and found they had exactly what I wanted.
I would hate to carry that up on a roof, but it wasn’t too bad to take it to my yard.
I unrolled it and started cutting it to shape.
Since I have a bit of a curve, as well as the oak tree to contend with, I decided to make the covering in three different sections.
I’m going to wait to glue it down. We had a tiny bit or rain last night and I would like to make sure the boards are dry before I cover them.
I hate to question what is going on there , but I found that Roofing Felt , as it’s known over here , gets quite wrinkly in the Sun .
Our Roofing Felt is the fine grit on backing type , and luckily for me , I only used it in the major station area . It did distort the track , so I took it all up .
So can anyone say if the roofing there is tried and tested ? I’d hate to see someone having to rip all the track up again .
Mike
Mike Morgan said:
I hate to question what is going on there , but I found that Roofing Felt , as it’s known over here , gets quite wrinkly in the Sun .
Our Roofing Felt is the fine grit on backing type , and luckily for me , I only used it in the major station area . It did distort the track , so I took it all up .
So can anyone say if the roofing there is tried and tested ? I’d hate to see someone having to rip all the track up again .
Mike
Not to worry, too much, anyway.
I’ve had part of the area covered for a couple of years with no signs of wrinkling. I can’t remember exactly when I covered it, but it just looks weathered now. This is a picture from last year.
I also have had it down for five or six years for my roads in town (maybe even longer). I think this picture is from 2010 and the road had been down for several years at that point. (Wow, things have changed a bit in town.)
Of course, only time will tell. But my experience so far has been quite favorable.
Thanks for the enlightenment , Bruce ; having had a problem with our version , it frankly bothered me to see you putting it there .
On the other hand , it looks so damn perfect for the job . The odd thing is it does not get all that hot here , if we get up to the 90’s people start dropping like flies .
Anyway , I’m glad it works . Keeps the weeds down too .
Mike
Rolled roofing is essentially the same material that asphalt shingles are made from. Its quite a bit different from roofing felt, or tar paper. I roofed a building with shingles I cut out of some rolled roofing, and its held up for quite a few years.
David , we don’t do shingles over here , we use tiles or slates----except on garden sheds where we use wrinkly wroofing felt .
Mike
What we north of the 49 call that is 90 lb. rolled roofing. (Weighs 90 lbs./100 sq. ft.) It also comes in lighter versions as well, but we still call it 90 lb. LOL. Once down where you want it, it will stay there with minimal fasteners because it has some heft to it. Not like Tar Paper, we call that 15 lb. Felt.
Mike Morgan said:
Thanks for the enlightenment , Bruce ; having had a problem with our version , it frankly bothered me to see you putting it there .
On the other hand , it looks so damn perfect for the job . The odd thing is it does not get all that hot here , if we get up to the 90’s people start dropping like flies .
Anyway , I’m glad it works . Keeps the weeds down too .
Mike
To tell you the truth, that’s why I post this stuff - to encourage discussion and expose any potential problems ahead of time. Thanks for your concern. It sure gets hot and humid here, though this summer seems to have been cooler than most in recent history.
It does look OK, but the ballast looked awesome when I first put it down.
I think it lasted for a few days. It apparently evaporates as there is no evidence of any ballast under the platform at all. 
I failed with ballast on a hard surface as well. My elevated section once had J-Channel on each side and the track was filled with ballast to the J Channel. Problem was it was directly under the drip edge of my porch awning. Every rain I would have to re-ballast to keep it looking fresh. When my LS Shay was new it fouled on the J-Channel so I cut off with a knife and later removed what was left. Ever since it’s been bare PT wood under the track. I have some spare shingles in the garage that are not the same color as my current roof. Maybe I will try them for a better look.
Much improved, Bruce. And I see where the switch has been moved. Maybe we can fit a few more cars into that siding…
I have a lot of that stuff down being used for roads, and it’s directly in the sun most of the day, no problems at all with it.
What did you use to glue down the roofing?
Much improved, Bruce. And I see where the switch has been moved. Maybe we can fit a few more cars into that siding…
I have a lot of that stuff down being used for roads, and it’s directly in the sun most of the day, no problems at all with it.
What did you use to glue down the roofing?