Large Scale Central

Track is laid, now comes the fun

Track and Trestles
#1

CLICK BELOW, then click on “Slideshow”.
http://picasaweb.google.com/Bunky39/Putz02?authkey=Gv1sRgCITv45qY38rYXg#

These are shots I took of the putz (layout) I am in the process of constructing in my basement. The platform is built and the track is laid down. My minimum radius curve is 4 feet with 5 feet radius for easement and where it can fit. The areas of the wall that are not painted and at the utility room will be mountains with either portals or cut and fill areas. The duck-unders will have lift out bridges eventually.

#2

Way to go, David. Looks good.

#3

i like that sceleton of a house.
is it a kit or scratchbuilt?

#4
Korm Kormsen said:
i like that sceleton of a house. is it a kit or scratchbuilt?
It's supposed to be a scratch build Pennsylvania bank barn @ 1/2" to the foot. I still need the stone foundation walls and some siding starting to be put up by those lazy little guys that just don't move.
#5

Looking good…

#6

Cool Dave.
Looks like things are progressing well.
Ralph

#7

Nice start. I really wish I had room inside for a layout. My next house is going to have a sunroom where I can have a garden railroad inside and then one outside as well.

#8
Shawn said:
Nice start. I really wish I had room inside for a layout. My next house is going to have a sunroom where I can have a garden railroad inside and then one outside as well.
Shawn,

Wouldn’t it just be easier to build a sunroom in the house you have, with the already established outside railroad, than starting over?

#9

I just wish I had room for any permanant layout :frowning:

#10
Victor Smith said:
I just wish I had room for any permanant layout :(
Just wondering: How much does a home with 5200 total square feet of floor space, living area and unfinished basement with 1.2 acres of land, cost in Socialist Republic of Cali-fornicate? It's about 5 years average annual salary here. Property taxes are about one month's average annual salary. (I get to keep the rest.)
#11
Ric Golding said:
Shawn said:
Nice start. I really wish I had room inside for a layout. My next house is going to have a sunroom where I can have a garden railroad inside and then one outside as well.
Shawn,

Wouldn’t it just be easier to build a sunroom in the house you have, with the already established outside railroad, than starting over?


I have thought about that, but I dont plan on staying in NJ forever, taxes are getting out of hand. If I were to add a sunroom it would bring up my taxes. Im already paying almost $10,000 in property taxes a year. Thats on 9 acres. Last year my County was rank 16 in nation when it comes to property taxes.
http://www.forbes.com/2009/01/22/taxes-homes-property-forbeslife-cx_mw_0122realestate_table.html NJ taxes are crazy.

#12

Shawn, you may as well join the other Jerseyite refugees and cross the Delaware to America.

#13
Shawn said:
Im already paying almost $10,000 in property taxes a year. Thats on 9 acres.
Move south, young man. The mortgage on my home isn't even $10,000 a year. My taxes on 2000 square foot home and 5 acres is around $600 a year. When it snows on Friday, the road here isn't plowed until Sunday. However, $9,000 a year for next day snow removal is a little steep for my budget ;) Ralph
#14

Ralph Thats my plan to eventually head your way but not until retirement. I have too good of a job now. Unless I can get a nice LE job with the NC parks and forest. I could always jump the border into PA but the poconos??? Im better off living in NYC. LOL Thats what the Poconos are becoming.

#15

Progress on my indoor layout. (Pix 14-18) http://picasaweb.google.com/Bunky39/Putz02?feat=directlink

I mocked up the mountains and buildings to get an idea of space and elevation changes. Most of what I have in place here will stay the same.

#16

Yep head south. Move to GA and when you reach age 65 your taxes on 180,000.00 home 3 br on 1 acre. go to 230 bucks a year. lots of other bennies also. One reason why I stayed here instead of moving back west. Besides the climate is pretty good most of the time. Later RJD

#17

David, looks great.

While wasting time on Amazon dot com, I ran across Civil War Railroads: A Pictorial Story of the War between the States, 1861-1865 by George Abdill. I thought you might be interested.

#18

Thanks Steve. That book has been my inspiration for my whole build so far. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in the (mostly Northern) Civil War (War of Northern Aggression) era railroads.

#19

Update, but sorry no pix yet.

All the track is in place. I was able to eek out a 100 feet of mainline, 18 feet of passing siding and two parallel storage yard sidings about 10 feet long each.

Today I set the final grade up against the two walls. I kept the grade just a bit over 1% at the steepest.

Next step will be the overhead lighting and wiring the track blocks. I hope to find a good price on an Aristo Train Engineer at ECLSTS for power.

Then on to the trestle, culverts and bridges.

#20

With all the nice (hot) weather here of late, I have been building terrace walls, decks, planting trees, shrubs and flowers. Why I mention this is my indoor railroad has been on the back burner until today, when we had a thunderstorm that forced me inside.

I have been planning to block sections of track such as the passing siding, and the adjacent inner loop of main line track. The classification yard is individually blocked now.

I had some base cabinets I used as a desk, operators station, with drawers for all the kibbles 'n bits, magazines, etc. Between the track platform and the top of the desk is a control panel with switches to the receptacle where the power with TE are plugged in and the overhead track lights on a dimmer, all the block switches, an ammeter and power on lamp.

I tried to keep all the spaghetti underneath and behind the panel neat so I can troubleshoot any problems easier.

Now with that done, I can begin the scenery with filling in the hills and dales, cuts and fills and maybe a stream.