# Uffington Davis Line



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings all! 

Woo-hoo (at least for me, anyway, you old hands will yawn). I am excited to have put down my first permanent track! 










I got the roundhouse to where I want it, checked and rechecked the approach tracks. I used the preset tracks 00, 01, and 02. Tested it with my lightest rolling stock (BN caboose), and this afternoon glued down the roundhouse with Elmers white glue and the tracks with clear latex caulk. 

"One small step for a man ..." 

I know it's silly, but I hope you can appreciate my enthusiasm. 

-------Steve


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

Enthusiasm. I do appreciate it, greatly. I’m even a bit envious actually due to that turntable. I want t a quality one as well but jeese they're pricey. Oh well, Im a year away from laying track for my next layout anyway so there is time. Meantime Im still collecting peco turnouts and diamonds while I work on old locomotives that I cant seem to stop finding and buying-lol. 
I’m glad you’re finally on your way to laying track. I have been following your posts with interest. Good luck and take your time. 

Scottro


----------



## Chaostrain (Jan 27, 2015)

Congratulations! It's always a great feeling when the track laying begins.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Progress!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Beginning the yard layout. This will take time as much thought and work need to go into the UNDER-track. That is, decouplers, frog feeders, TO actuators. etc. But I am continuing. 










Obviously, very little is hard affixed yet. Still in layout and twiddling stage. 

As always, critique welcomed as it helps me think through issues before they become true problems!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

My first hard affixed track! 

The Curve and three TOs installed. I am using latex clear drying caulk for adhesive. 

By the way, that little LED work light does make an incredible difference for the detail work we older modelers must do. Small, lightweight, easy to deploy - - Much recommended. 









Thanks for reading!!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Slow but steady?! 

Amazing how the camera (well, phone) shows the imperfections so much better than the eye. 



















Hopefully, I will enjoy mostly trouble free ops even given the minor waviness?!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings all, 

Question for the operators out there. I am wondering if I should put in permanent magnetic Kadee 308 uncouplers at both ends of the ladder tracks? 
View attachment 131094


That east end of the layout is a bit of a reach, would there be much call to uncouple from a switcher going in head first? Or could I pretty much always have the cars backed in? 

Key to the above drawing: 

pink = electromagnetic uncouplers (on the main at both ends of the *ladder*) 
Maroon = currently planned/installed perm magnetic K308 uncouplers. 
Red arrows = possible sites of Perm Mag 308 uncouplers


I would greatly appreciate your advice here. Yankee Dabbler sells 308s for under $5 but will of course take a week or so to get here? not sure if LHS has any or not - I can call when he opens.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Continuing to make progress. Yesterday I glued down the 4th ladder track, and the TO for the 6th and final (southernmost) ladder track. The west leg of the TO will turn up and be a run-around of the ladder. Neither that leg or the actual ladder leg is yet glued down. I merely attached them for alignment aids. 

As an aside, I had a heck of a time getting that ladder track to be straight! ME weathered Code 70 track is flexible - - but it is pretty stiff. Not the easiest to work with, but I do like the appearance.


----------



## BigGRacing (Sep 25, 2020)

It does look good for sure ! Will my peco turnouts be almost as good space wise?


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

I have had a pretty good week for progress!









That is the finished yard. Gravity checked all tracks and turnouts and all rolls pretty good! Ran all four of my locos on and off the TT at the new leads and they work surprisingly well. Only the Bachmann 0-6-0 Porter balks a bit, but the Mikado with the 6 axle tender does just fine. 

Now starting the wiring. Here are the ladders loaded - tight but clearance all round


----------



## Stumpy (Mar 19, 2013)

Making good progress!



Stejones82 said:


> Only the Bachmann 0-6-0 Porter balks a bit


I'm pretty sure Bachmann manufactured "balk" and poor pickup into that loco.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Well, It has been awhile. Summer sis take some steam out of me, as those warm months are best used for what I like to call with my wargame friends, "Field work in Ballistics" aka golf. Then fall hit and well, you know how it is. 

I am still, believe it or not, wrestling with a track plan, but have driven a few stakes. So I am ready to begin some mail line track work. 

Here is a picture of the yard area: 









This past weekend, I added an extension off the free southern end of the table to allow for a 22R curve to pass beyond the end of the 4x8 four inches. Which really help in ops planning. 




















The glue dries today, and it will be on to track laying again! Thanks for viewing! 

Steve J


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Turned out okay! I did make two errors, one already corrected, the other is geometry problem. I'm hoping all will be well, but won't know until I actually start laying out the track. What, you ask? 

When laying out the curved foam piece, I laid it on a radius from the intersections with the table edge. That was about a 28 inche radius. I should have laid the 24 inch radius. So the curve may not be deep enough, though prelim measurements suggest that allowed for enough 'slop' that it should work. Anyway, finished product: 











And from the inside. Sprayed "Moss Green" on the inside edge of the guarding hardboard.


----------



## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

Looks good!  

That green color reminds me of Disney's "Go Away" Green. I'm thinking about using a similar green if I ever add a facia to my table.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Not much visible work done, but starting the laying of roadbed and then track.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Continuing. The western straight came out nice. I got the PSX circuit breaker and the Auto Reverser in stalled and wired under the layout. My plan is to wire up every section as I get it installed. My layout is not real complicated, but I have read that this procedure is a good way to prevent mis-wires. Already run trains over that section! 

Working on the southern 22R curve now: 









That is a curved Walthers-Shinohara TO. I soldered a frog feeder wire to it. I had to cut a bit of the plastic backing away from the frog and then solder the feeder wire to it. Not too tricky. My soldering skills are definitely improving. Also, track wiring/soldering is one hell of a lot easier when you have easy access and reach! Y'all of course were right about that yard area!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

More progress this weeknd. 


















And here is the hinged board to which I mounted the PSX circuit boards:


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings all,

So here is my pretty-durn-close-to-final track plan:









So I did the layout for the double-slip TO (SE just off the curved TO) and the double curved TOs of the inside southern loop. Made good use of the laser level to draw the CL of the eastern outer straight and the western inner straight. Laid out that 18R inside southern curve. Cut foam roadbed for all those TOs and got it glued down. Hopefully, HOPEFULLY, in the right place and with good alignment.

That inside curve does come too close to the outer in the SE corner, 1-1/2 inches center-to-center, but not much I can do about it except warn operators not to pass down there. Are there any prototype curves that have interference fits? I wonder if so, what they use for caution signs or signals.










Progress is nice!

I do like working with the foam roadbed. Very easy to bend and cut to shape.

I need to go to LHS tomorrow. ME code 83 joiners are nice and small, but they do not fit onto those Walthers curved TOs. So off to get some Walthers joiners. I have some Atlas C83, but man, are they gargantuan compared to the ME ones!

Snow here in the Twin Cities. About 5 or 6 inches outside. Can't run the blower, can't man a shovel as I hurt my knee yesterday working out. Hopefully my nice neighbor with the big 2-stage will take pity on me and do it. He sometimes does.

Cheers all!

Steve J


----------



## Stumpy (Mar 19, 2013)

Looking good!



Stejones82 said:


> I hurt my knee yesterday working out.


There's a subliminal message.

JK... I need to get my sorry, sedentary, working-from-home-for-two-years arse back under the bar.


----------



## CHRlSTIAN (12 mo ago)

Great idea ! 
Hope you don't mind if I steal borrow it...


----------



## CHRlSTIAN (12 mo ago)

Stejones82 said:


> I know it's silly, but I hope you can appreciate my enthusiasm.


Absolutely !


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

Stejones82, 
Look at the first photo of this entire thread. What is that (12”-?) bar of aluminum with the slots in it? Right beside the can of refried beans. Just curious.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

kilowatt62 said:


> Stejones82,
> Look at the first photo of this entire thread. What is that (12”-?) bar of aluminum with the slots in it? Right beside the can of refried beans. Just curious.


It is a track tool that came as part of a kit from Micro Mark Tools: It went on sale for a decent price and I bought it. The pictures, and maybe even the write-ups show those tools made of plastic, but mine came made of aluminum! They work much better in metal. 









Micro Mark Track Tool Set


I was pleasantly surprised. Against the collective advice of this forum, I purchased (from M B Klein model train stuff) the subject toolkit.  The tools are now made from metal, not plastic! A nice aluminum material. This should make those track tools, especially the solder tool, more...




www.modeltrainforum.com


----------



## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

How do you use it?


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

MichaelE said:


> How do you use it?


 They call it a flex track alignment tool. The idea is to hold the rails straight while you nail the track down. 



http://micromark.com/Instructions/84114%20Track%20Laying%20instructions%20qxp.pdf



I am not using nail, but use the tool to straighten the flex track. I think it works pretty well. I also have a 10 inch straight ribbon-rail gauge that probably works even better.


----------



## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I was using a 5' steel contractors rule when I was laying the long straights. Not much good for the shorter sections. For that I was using a 16" steel rule.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

As Poirot would say, "Making the progress, eh Hastings?"

I have been hard at it as much as life will allow. Glued down the Northern 22R loop to the curved TO glued down Thursday:











Then shifted south and finished gluing down the roadbed for the 18R inner loop. Soldered extensions onto the manufacturer's installed leads from th4e Peco Double-Slip and then glued it down. 

All goes well - - - I will be running trains around the outer loop Tuesday! ! ! ! ! !

Thanks for your time reading!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Pardon the messy table top - - - do any of you have messiness issues whilst under construction? Sometimes I cannot find tools, gauges, scales, etc. <SIGH>


----------



## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

You have lots of wine!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

JeffHurl said:


> You have lots of wine!


I am hoping that they serve as good weights. I use DAP Alex latex clear caulk to adhese the track to the roadbed. 

That northern 22R and the southern 22R curves are both super-elevated using 0.010" and 0.020" styrene. I am hoping that the weight of the wine bottles helps to alleviate my ineptitude at track-laying. This is, remember, my first layout ever. 

But yes, The Good Lord has blessed us with the capacity to keep some decent wine int he house. That one to the northwest is a French Champagne!!


----------



## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Stejones82 said:


> Pardon the messy table top - - - do any of you have messiness issues whilst under construction? Sometimes I cannot find tools, gauges, scales, etc. <SIGH>


No. I wouldn't be able to concentrate in that sort of chaos. I have only the tools near me I need for the task, and afterwards they are put back after I'm either finished or the job changes. Say from track laying or maintenance, to scenery work.


----------



## SF Gal (11 mo ago)

I like the work you have done so far. I got a couple of good ideas for my own layout.
That European hinge to easily remove or flip down a electrical panel is something I was thinking of doing for my lighting power supply assembly but never consider the European "clip top" hinge. 
Easy to remove if needed. 
Everything under the layout should be easy pleasy! 
The Tpins I totally forgot about and could have saved my poor thumbs from push pins in my past work on my layout.
So I just want to say, thanks for sharing! Following....


----------



## Magic (Jan 28, 2014)

_"All goes well - - - I will be running trains around the outer loop Tuesday! ! ! ! ! ! "_
I'll bet some of that wine will disappear Tuesday night.  

When I was laying track my layout looked just like yours.
Maybe worse as I had elevation changes so foam pieces everywhere.

Magic


----------



## afboundguy (Jan 10, 2021)

Stejones82 said:


> Pardon the messy table top - - - do any of you have messiness issues whilst under construction? Sometimes I cannot find tools, gauges, scales, etc. <SIGH>


WHAHAHAHAHAHAHA you must not have seen my build thread!!! And this is pretty clean!!!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

SF Gal said:


> ...
> That European hinge to easily remove or flip down a electrical panel is something I was thinking of doing for my lighting power supply assembly but never consider the European "clip top" hinge.
> Easy to remove if needed.


Wish I could claim the original idea, but I stole/modded it from Larry Puckett, "The DCC Guy." Thanks for the encouragement! Much needed in the real world and this model world!


----------



## Chaostrain (Jan 27, 2015)

Stejones82 said:


> Pardon the messy table top - - - do any of you have messiness issues whilst under construction? Sometimes I cannot find tools, gauges, scales, etc. <SIGH>


I wish I had that problem, that would mean I'm actually working on mine. Ah, but at least I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel and no, it's not connected to a train...yet!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

I have completed the outer loop. Even without feeder wires, it runs pretty good!! 









20220303_090711.mp4







drive.google.com





I am not sure if that link will work but follow it and you will see a train going the full outer loop. I am happy. Now starting the inner loop. I think I will wait to do wiring until the inner loop is laid - then wire them both at the same time. 

Who uses Wago wire connectors? I did this under my yard: in order to limit the amount of suitcase connectors, I would take one leg from a suitcase and put it to a 5 port Wago. Then run four feeders from the Wago. Seems like one suitcase would be better than four penetrations close together. Probably worrying for nothing. But, the Wagos are a lot easier to connect and can be easily disconnected if ever troubleshooting is needed.


----------



## Lemonhawk (Sep 24, 2013)

Wago also makes a main line to feeder connector. The R and L rail go into the connecter and come back out (continuous connection but different wire) then the pick off is an actual connector that would be the feeder. Used on lighting where you a main bus and feeder to a light.


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

I am a fan of WAGOs as well for the simplicity of design and ability to easily release any given wire to them. 
If I need that connection point to be ‘fixed’ to the platform, then the good ole barrier strips work better. Just gotta weave two bare copper wires through them for continuous continuity. No biggie really.


----------



## Lemonhawk (Sep 24, 2013)

You can get shorting bars for Barrier strips. I think they come various terminal lengths, but 2 is most general. Really cleans up all the looping wire your using!


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

Lemonhawk said:


> You can get shorting bars for Barrier strips. I think they come various terminal lengths, but 2 is most general. Really cleans up all the looping wire your using!


Agreed 100% about the ‘clean’ look.
I’m just one of those cheapskate guys that would rather weave a wire before paying for a prefab piece


----------



## Pierluk (11 mo ago)

Unfortunately, I can't watch your video. That's a shame.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Continuing at my ever-so-snail-like pace. 

Wife had a work-dinner-meeting tonight, so I laid ROW! 










The inner loop is done! I laid from the NE curved TO all the way to the SW curved TO. Had to backtrack a bit as I forgot to put in the TO on the western straight that will serve a stub track to a grain elevator. But got it in. Of course, then drilled for the actuator of the points, and sure enough was right over a cross joist. "Blast and begarn!" or words to that effect. Replace the straight with a longer one? Probably should have, but decided in stead to cut 1-1/2" off it and move the TO north. Now just praying it will not interfere with the reverse loop that heads close by there. 

The travails of a novice track-layer. I have no doubt you senior hands are ROFL!!!! 

Now, a well-earned whisky, methinks!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings all,

It has been a week or two so thought I would update.

First, I got all the track of the inner loop down. I have not yet wired in feeders, but perhaps not surprisingly given such a small layout, things actually run pretty well! I have one curved TO giving me problems running in one direction, but that I think will be corrected by the switch point machines keeping tension on them against the rails. Temp fix, I think, will be to put a Caboose ground throw (spring loaded) on it to hold the points. 

Second: I laid out the curve for the reverse loop that goes at a rough 45 degree through the middle of the table. This I did by:
1) Soldering a piece of flex to a length adequate to make the full curve. 
2) Using 18R ribbon rails, I have both the short and long in that radius, i bent the flex carefully to the radius. 
3) Using the bent flex, I pinned it in place and then marked midpoint between the ties using a black Sharpie marker. 
4) I used the ribbon rail, 18", as a guide to draw the midline of the curve. Yeah, I know geometry and all, the outside of the ribbon-rail is actually more than 18"R, but it was close enough.
5) With the centerline drawn, I glued down the WS foam roadbed by splitting the long pieces and gluing and pinning into place.

This process worked quite well and the foam was a good match to the curved flex. I put one insulated joiner and one regular joiner, applied latex caulk, and glued down the flex. Nice and easy. Quick, too, I think I am getting better at this! Because it is a reverse loop and DCC Specialties suggest offsetting the gaps by 3/4 inch, I will just cut a gap with my cut-off tool and glue in a piece of styrene to make the other gap for the reverser. 

One note: right or wrong, I put the short ribbon rail gauge over the soldered flex joint as this is the most likely place to result in a kink. I keep it there as the caulk sets to keep the rails in curve and gauge.

ENjoy some pics!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Pierluk said:


> Unfortunately, I can't watch your video. That's a shame.


I changed the options on the link, please try again.


----------



## MaicoDoug (10 mo ago)

Uff Da? You bet cha. When people ask me how to spell my name I say "Minnesota Smith". They should know better. Nice looking track & barn. I'm also in the construction mode (who is not?).

-Doug


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

auriga1usa said:


> Uff Da? You bet cha. When people ask me how to spell my name I say "Minnesota Smith". They should know better. Nice looking track & barn. I'm also in the construction mode (who is not?).
> 
> -Doug


Hi Doug, that tag line of Bryan, Texas legit? Texas Aggie, here, transplanted to northern wonderland of Minnesota! And thanks for the kind words. It's my first ever layout and I'm having fun! Learning lots.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings all, 

A successful wiring and test of the reverse loop is in the rearview mirror! 



















Did a test run with my least expensive DCC loco. Left the yard head first pulling a small train of a grain-box and two tankers. Ran the outer loop - aligned a TO to change over to the inner loop. Aligned the TO for the reverser and entered with no hesitation, travelled the length and exited just fine, no hesitation. Changed over to the outer loop and then went head first into the yard. 

Stopped the loco over the EM uncoupler and pushed the button. uncoupled first time. Pulled forward and then aligned the escape cross-over. Backed the loco out to the turntable lead track and pulled her onto the TT. Rotated 180 and pulled her off the TT ready for hook up and leave again - head first! 

Did some cleanup on the table. I will try to post a video link soon. Thanks for following!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

What's next? 

Well, I have two Digitrax UP5s to put in and wire to the loconet control network. One will go at the free-end of the table; one will go near where the lower picture was taken from. That way, I can use the DT602 to run trains from 3 different spots, if you include the Zephyr itself. Conceivably, One operator can work the yard using the Zephyr while another will be able to work the mains and eventually the inner switching spurs with the DT602. Should be fun! 

I will have to put the fascia on the western edge as the UP5 will mount to it. Fascia will be 1/4" hardboard installed so that it is about 1 inch proud of the surface to serve as a derail catcher. 

Still figgerin' the inner switching spurs and industries. 

Have some re-work to do . . . . . 

Not bored yet!


----------



## JeffHurl (Apr 22, 2021)

That's great progress! Doesn't it feel great when things work the way you want them to?


----------



## SF Gal (11 mo ago)

Your layout is really coming along and I like the options you have for course changes.
I too use Wago wallnut connectors for all my lighting of street lights and buildings.
If a LED goes out, it easy to just pull it out of the connector and repair the LED without disrupting the circuit.









You will be working on scenery before you know it!!!!


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

Steve, 
Looking darn good brother. All the physical track connections, turnouts, wiring, auto reverse units working on first run has GOT to, as the younger folks say, “hit you in the feels.” 
Been following your build posts since day one. Looking forward to seeing all the spur tracks go in. 
I’m a big fan of dual curve turnouts. Glad you got into them once suggested. Speaking of which; I assume you got the bad point rail straightened out (pun) on that one curved turnout... 
Did I read somewhere that you're concerned about continuity of an Atlas 45deg crossing? The answer is yes. It does go through and, one route is isolated from the other. However, it’s an Atlas. The frogs on those can be as troublesome as a Snap Switch. Chock it up to intermittent quality control at the factory. I’ve had a few not be quite right. I’m not into filing them down, I just replaced them. Considering the quality of the rest of your track, might want to just order one from Peco, Walthers, or whomever. Save yourself-lol. 

I’m watching, 
KW62


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

kilowatt62 said:


> Steve,
> Looking darn good brother. All the physical track connections, turnouts, wiring, auto reverse units working on first run has GOT to, as the younger folks say, “hit you in the feels.”
> Been following your build posts since day one. Looking forward to seeing all the spur tracks go in.
> I’m a big fan of dual curve turnouts. Glad you got into them once suggested. Speaking of which; I assume you got the bad point rail straightened out (pun) on that one curved turnout...
> ...


Thanks for the compliments!! I have been learning so much. WIfeykins says this is a great hobby for me as it gets me into different skill sets and lots of troubleshooting. I did take a LONG time to get from the prelim stage to solid plans and trackbuilding. Glad I did and glad I had it. 

Shouldn't say everything worked perfect at once. First power up of the reverse loop was track fault. "WTH" ... ... ... "Oh yeah" - - - - I forgot to cut one track gap! Easy fix. ANd then things worked great! Nice smooth transitions with no hesitations. 

Anybody following thinking of using an auto-reverser: I think the key to victory is that 3/4-inch offset of the gaps. It would be SOOOOOO easy and tempting to just put insulated joiners on both rails coming off the TO. But it obviously makes a difference to the little elves who live in those wee boxes on the PCB. Crafty li'l buggers, throwing those levers at just the right time!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Quick shot under the table: 










Gotta run - - I'll detail later


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

Nice. What’s the little gizmo w/t ladder looking thingy on it?


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

kilowatt62 said:


> Nice. What’s the little gizmo w/t ladder looking thingy on it?












I think you might be referring to the cable tie that keeps those wires out of the hinge closing. 









Amazon.com: 50pcs 2 Sizes Adjustable Adhesive Cable Ties Cable Clips Wire Strap Cord Clamp for Cable Management at Home and Office + 100pcs Nylon Zip Ties : Electronics


Buy 50pcs 2 Sizes Adjustable Adhesive Cable Ties Cable Clips Wire Strap Cord Clamp for Cable Management at Home and Office + 100pcs Nylon Zip Ties: Cable Ties - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases



smile.amazon.com





And I labeled other items of note.


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

Lmao! Cable tie. I could NOT figure out what that thing was. 
Labeling. Now I understand whats going on. I like the cabinet hinge idea too.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

kilowatt62 said:


> Lmao! Cable tie. I could NOT figure out what that thing was.
> Labeling. Now I understand whats going on. I like the cabinet hinge idea too.


If memory serves they were like 7$ a pair at Home Despot. I will use the other when I mount the timer boards for the other EM uncouplers.


----------



## kilowatt62 (Aug 18, 2019)

I probably have a dozen of that type of hinge, along with knobs, clasps,etc. ex home remodeler here. 
I’m curious, why a timer board for EM uncouplers?


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

kilowatt62 said:


> I’m curious, why a timer board for EM uncouplers?


A Larry Puckett idea. Push the button once and the timers can be set for any duration of on-time. I have mine set at 20 seconds. Should help to prevent burning out the coil. The boards were quite inexpensive but did take awhile to arrive. I once searched Amazon, and they had something similar, more expensive but not crazily so.


----------



## Mannix (10 mo ago)

Awesome work. May I ask you if there is a track plan of your layout somewhere ?


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Hi Mannix, welcome to the forum. 









Uffington-Davis Line design thread


Greetings all, Attached are my best-to-date track plan visions. I do appreciate your input. 1. benchwork is fixed. Scale is HO. Digitrax Zephyr and DT602 already in hand. Era projected as 30s-40s upper Midwest Great Lakes. 2. I want continuous loop with some interesting...




www.modeltrainforum.com





That is the design thread for my layout. I designed it as a double-loop out-and-back. You will see that the design went through quite a few changes and development before I got this far. And I am STILL thinking about he interior for industry spurs. 

I have a 45 degree crossing for that reverse leg, which I will cut the track and install when I have the final plan done. For now I am going back and doing some work on areas that are a bit rough. I hope this helps you!


----------



## Mannix (10 mo ago)

Thank you very much.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings all. 

Not much of note accomplished of late. I did get the first Digitrax UP5 installed.









That gives me the option of running trains from a different place/perspective. That was fun and spent a good half-hour last night doing just that. 

After that went back for some maintenance. One yard ladder track under-track Kadee magnet uncoupler was not working well. My fault, the track did not go square over the magnet. So I attempted to remove the magnet. Hoped to do so without cutting thetrack, but was not smart enough. TIP: If you install under-track perm magnets - - - do not glue them down as I did. There is no need if you cut a nice pocket into your road/sub-roadbed. Them's not going nowheres. I had to cut the track and then pull the magnet:









Here is the repair in progress. Filled the divot with some scrap packing foam I had around, and then glued down a piece of foam sub-road. I am a bit worried that I should have cut out a longer section of the track. Long-term, I will put in a couple of neodymium super-magnets in place of the Kadee. My test trial of those is very positive. 

Question: Will longer cut out sections of flex be less troublesome than shorter ones?

BTW - in this photo you can see how I used a Silver Sharpie on the WS foam roadbed to outline the TOs and track for installation guides when gluing. YMMV! One can also see the difference between the Weathered Microengineering track and the unweathered TOs. I bought some ME weathering solution but have not tried it yet.

WIth Holy Week - my life is rather full so may not get back to this until after Easter. Weather is cooperating for me here in Minnesota and not conducive to outside activities, so Easter Monday may well be spent on the layout!

Thanks for the read!


----------



## SF Gal (11 mo ago)

To answer your question Steve, using flextrack allows you to stagger the joints when refitting track after a cutout.
I would make one rail longer than the other offering less clunk noise during joint transitions. As far as troublesome....joining track between existing, "IS what it is" and will always be.


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings all, 

In recovery mode here, so nothing new on the layout. I tore a meniscus in left knee in Feb., surgery was Wednesday and thankfully only involved a clean-up rather than a repair which would have involved internal stitching. So hope to be back to full activity by the end of the month, or reasonably close. Golf weather does not last forever in Minnesota! 

I did purchase the BLI NW2 Para4 in MILW livery. Nice Locomotive!! Comes equipped with a Gopack Keep-Alive and sound. I am not a huge fan of sound, but do enjoy this one. I can set the CV to have it come up at a reasonably low sound level. I like the start-up/shut-down sequences, and who does not like tooting a train horn! 

Has great tractive power and runs nice at slow speeds. BLI decoders do not have the Fn6 for switching speeds like my Digitrax decoders, but don't really need it. The top Speed is rather slow, but probably prototypical for a switcher. I am quite pleased with the purchase! 

Of other note, I did get the BLI Gopack installed into my GN 4-8-4 Pacific. Wasn't too hard a job, especially as Lady Fortune smiled upon me. Although my loco had none of the indicators that it included the most recent board Rev H, it did! So no soldering required and I can control it via CV should I so choose. With all my dead ME C70 frogs in the yard especially, operation is radically improved. All that starting and stopping of the sound was driving me batty. Much happier. 

Oh I know, I am addressing the symptoms and not the cause with the Gopack. Someday, I will power up the froggies, but that someday is not now. With the Gopack in the 4-8-4, I now only have issues with the two little 0-6-0s I have. And once I finish the interior, they won't be operating in the yard, but will be serving industries. I am hoping that the new Walthers TOs will be more forgiving of the dead frogs. 

That's all for now - - Still here - - Still having fun - - Still spending the kids' inheritance!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Greetings again, courteous followers!

Not much layout work done, but did splurge on a new locomotive! 

Bowser RS-3 in MILW colors, Loksound. 










Just received Thursday evening. Got it out for a test run yesterday, have not even programmed new address yet! But I do like it. My first experience with Loksound, though. So some learning to do. 

That's about all! Cheers to all!


----------



## Stejones82 (Dec 22, 2020)

Really liking the Bowser locomotive. And just learned a cool thing about Loksound - - - - - if you do not 'start up' the diesel (with the F8 key) the loco runs in silent mode - - no sound! So, say if your beloved is watching some soppy chick-show and might possibly not want to hear the beautiful purring and seductive click-clicking of that Alco diesel (go with me here, use your imagination - YMMV!!  ), you can run that puppy all quiet and sleek. Nice feature - - I kinda wish BLI had stolen it!

Next - saw my fav vlogger (Larry Puckett) do a bit on *Caboose *ground-throws with SPDT contacts for frog power/other use. Looked pretty cool and an economical way to both operate the TO and power the frog. MY, if you recall, uses Micro-Engineering Ladder system TOs which all have dead frogs to which I soldered feeder wires for eventual powering. Thinking ahead, in other words, which is new territory for me! 

Picked up two of the Caboose 220S throws from LHS and got to work this past weekend. 

In short: not impressed. While powering the frog is nice (my BLI 0-6-0 Plymouth now runs through nice and smooth instead of needing a push from HOG), the installation was difficult and ended up messy: 










Now I do own that I modified the installation. I had hoped to avoid drilling through the table and foam, so cut the contacts to lees than foam depth of 1 inch. Then I cut what I hope would be a clean 'slot' through the foam sub-road and the foam underlay. That did not go so well. 

Worst: the 20AWG solid wires were not super cooperative in making those bends. 

I might try one more installation. But I will admit, the TVD hex juicers are starting to look more attractive. 

Happy modeling! 

Steve J


----------

