# It has begun...



## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Today I paid a visit to Menard's Home Center and picked up 36 1x4x8's, 2 1x4x10's, 3 sheets of BCX 1/2" plywood, three pounds of #8 1-5/8" screws, and a new bit set and saber saw blades. I already had on-hand a dozen 1x3x8 footers for the risers.

Tomorrow the benchwork begins for my new Deutsche Bahn railroad. I hadn't planned on cutting wood until May, but the railroad trackwork plan has been finalized so let the sawdust start flying.

This will be an open grid/cookie cutter sub roadbed with varying grades, crossing tracks, and different land elevations. I'm certain I'll have a lot of questions along the way for the old hands here. After 30 years a lot of this is new to me, but I'm still pretty hand with a tape measure and a saw.

This will be my first German based railroad. 

Photos start tomorrow.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I completed two of the three tables today. I may be too sore to build the third one tomorrow so I'll have to see what my body says in the morning.

Overall it's going together easily. I've seen worse lumber but I can't remember when. It's rock solid though in spite of the warped leg on the right end of the 9' table.

Table height it 48". Same as the last layout. It just makes for easy dimensional lumber and measurements with less waste.

Still have one more 7' table to build and a 1' extension between the 9' and 7' table to make the back table 5' deep.

Some of the cross supports have 22" centers to allow me to get in there in case something goes wrong. The door where those clothes are hanging also opens and gives me quite a bit more reach too.




























That extension at the upper left is for the 24" radius turns.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

Looks like you’re off to good start!

Mark


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## Magic (Jan 28, 2014)

Looks like some pretty good bench work to me.
Good luck with the build and keep us posted.
Interesting track plan.

Magic


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## patrick.b (Mar 8, 2017)

Looks like a good solid start. Are you planning on adding any horizontal or diagonal braces to the legs? If you aren't going to anchor the table to the wall, you may want to consider bracing the legs in some way.

Also, are you going to have cut outs to reach the back side of the table or will you just use a stool or something? I have read that 2.5' is about the most you can reach from one side.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

The 9' side and the oposite 7' side are anchored to the walls. The last 7' table is finished and in position, but I still have two more legs to make and attach. I'm doing that after I finish my lunch here.

I did not realize how out of kilter this old house is. The 7' table completed this morning had to have the legs shimmed an 1" to level it. Wish I'd checked that before hand, but the legs are screwed and glued like the rest of the tables so there's no moving them. I don't mind the shims, but I would have rather had them sitting on the floor.

Pictures later.

There are four access areas plus being able to open that door at the rear of the room. It is the second door to the bath which I don't use anyway.


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

Michael

Looking good. Before you put the top on drill a bunch
of holes in all of your laterals for later running
your electrical cables and wires. Easier than doing
it crouched under.

Don


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Well, the top is going on temporarily to draw the track routing full size. Then it's coming back off to cut it and then back on permanently. 

After I get the track diagram drawn out full size I'll better know where those holes for the wiring should be. 

*Thanks for the tip*. I better get going or I'll never get those last two legs finished.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I made the last two legs and attached them and also cut and installed the 1' filler panel between the two side tables that extends the rear table to 5' wide.

This 1' extension was needed when I drew the layout to scale from a sketch. I needed it to keep my 24" radius turns in the northeast part of the layout.

After shimming the two outside legs on the 7' table, I screwed the legs to the wall and the outside top rail of the table to the wall.

These tables are rock-solid after all being tied together and anchored to the walls. I've already stood on the end you see where I have the plywood stored for the next step in this railroad.

The ceilings are 9' in my house and I'm only 5'-9" so I can almost stand straight up on top of the table. I just have to duck my head a little. That is going to help when doing the full size drawing on the plywood so I can see if anything looks wrong at a slight distance away.

Well, now it's time for a HofBräu or two. Or three.










Completed framework for open grid track plan:










House is out of square and legs on this side had to be shimmed and then legs screwed to the wall for stability:










Table leg assembled, positioned and glued and clamped. Waiting for drilling and attachment screws:


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I cut the plywood this morning to fit the benchwork and temporarily fastened it down so I could draw the layout for cutting.

A couple of changes made was that now all outside curves are 24"R. I had originally designed the layout with 22"R on the southeast eand of the layout, but found I had the room to expand the curves to 24"R all the way around.

The two dual tracks at the north side of the layout came off of the 24"R about 5" from the edge of the table which I didn't plan for. I changed the angle slightly so that when those dual tracks hit the curve at the northeast side they are 2" from the edge of the table.

Also, the track spacing where the dual mains run into the tunnel on the southeast/south end is 2-1/2" inch instead of the 2" on the rest of the layout. Why temp fate? I'd rather have a little more room between tracks in the tunnel especially for those 90' passenger cars.

I was pleasantly surprised how easy this was to draw from the plans I drew up.

I have to complete the double track, add the turnouts, and the scenic rail line in the center going to the top of the mountain in the southeast section.


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## flyboy2610 (Jan 20, 2010)

Lookin' good!


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## RonthePirate (Sep 9, 2015)

Nice indeed! Some solid woodwork there.
I agree with Magic, very interesting track plan.
I couldn't find it anywhere, but looking at those two radii you listed, are you doing HO?

Well, if you don't make access holes, you can always just open the window and rerail that engine!!

Don't worry about the old carpentry skills. They come back like riding a bicycle.
I hadn't built anything in ages, but on the spur of the moment, built a 12 x 16 train room from the concrete floor up.
I am 70, BTW. So no using age as a reason not to be able to do it.
http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?t=46026


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

It is HO scale. There will be three access panels plus being able to open the door in the bathroom.

I have the entire layout drawn on the top now and found some full size #6 turnouts and curved turnouts and placed those in the correct spots.

I'm having a terrible time though with a grade problem I haven't been able to fix to my satisfaction. I'm still working on it. 

The privat railway in the center crosses both mainlines at about 7.5" minimum, and is causing nearly an 8% grade. It is supposed to be a mountain railway and I thought about using Fleischman's rack flex track. There is a small cog locomotive available too along with matching cars.

There is a rack railway in Bayern that has a max grade of 20%, but the main part of it is a little over 17%

If I run that center track independently of the inner mainline (removing the turnout) I can elevate the track earlier and get the grade down to about 4%. Elevating that track earlier though also hides the dual main lines on the north side of the railroad.

I'm going to have to make a compromise somewhere and that might include re-routing the inner track entirely. Bummer.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

If I move that Privat line track farther west, it won't have to rise quite as high where it crosses now in the photo. It would run parallel to the other side of the loop. There is not that much differenc in height at that point though. The track below is almost at the highest grade it will be (2.5%).



















If I eliminate this turnout (which connects the Privat line to the DB railroad) I can start the grade on the north side on the turn rather than right after coming out of this turnout. I will have to find another point to access the main lines of DB.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I moved that turnout for access to DB to the other side of the loop. Now I have 192 inches to get the track up 7.5" It's no sooner going to come down before it goes right back up again. The grade is slightly over 4%. That's doable for a mountain railroad in the Alps.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Today was sub-roadbed day. 

I cut everything out and started piecing together the sub-roadbed that was on two adjacent sheets of plywood, or those pieces that had to be cut in two because of tracks crossing overhead.

The ground level piece where the main station and platforms will be required a couple of larger pieces, and the lower crossing tracks required a 7' piece.

That 7 footer was spliced into the original plywood using 1/8" luan plywood, screws, and glue. I haven't decided if I will remove the screws. The same technique was used on some single track sub-roadbed on the Privat rail line minus the screws. Those were just clamped until dry. They are holding very well.

The grade for the top crossing track is going to be steep, but still around 4%. I'm not unhappy about that since it is a mountain line and they have some pretty steep routes in the Alps.

Starting in the northwest corner and moving around clockwise:










Coming into the station and platform area just to the right of that curve:




























This section is where the mountain will be. The dual track will disappear into a tunnel as it is descending from crossing the station tracks. I estimate it will still be at about 3.5"+/- as it enters. The Privat line will run around the mountain on a cutout in the side of the mountain and there will be a smaller station, Gasthaus, Biergarten, and some cottages. A road will travel under the dual mainline before entering the tunnel and rise to the top of the hill to the station.










I still have to join some of the sub-roadbed together, but that is for tomorrow. I'm wore out. After dinner I had to get all of the scrap lumber out to the garage except for a few smaller pieces that i will use when i start elevating the sub-roadbed. I vacuumed up all of the sawdust and I'm done for the day.


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## Mark VerMurlen (Aug 15, 2015)

Lots of progress! Looking good!

Mark


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Thanks Mark.

I started the grades today and had to investigate HO clearance heights since none of my other railroads had crossing tracks.

Seems that a lot of guys overseas use 90mm so that's what I used for clearance heights. That's 3-9/16".

It sure looks a lot better in 3-D! For days I've been trying to picture how this will look in my head. The only permanent risers right now are the four risers that are holding up the sub-roadbed at the crossings. The rest of the blocks seen are just helper risers until I get around to the actual heights I need. They are a good stress reliever for the glued joints.

This is the first time I've seen what this is going to resemble when it's finished. Especially the last shot in the mountainous area.


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## jackpresley (Dec 19, 2017)

Thanks for sharing this. Very motivating. Nice work!


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I got most of the risers in today for the elevated portions of the track. I still have 12 more to cut and install but it's coming along. The final grades you see won't change now. The Privat rail line up to the mountain Gasthaus is steep at about 5%. I was expecting it, but it is a mountain railway.

Fortunately the mountain train will only consist of three or four cars.

Roadbed will be going down in a week or two. I need a break after this. I did all this in five days.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Benchwork is finished. Roadbed will start soon. I haven't decided whether or not to use the hard foam roadbed from Life-Like or stick with traditional cork.

The hard foam seems a little wide at 1-3/4". I guess the cork is about the same but I don't have a measurement of the width for it.

I'd like to hear any comments from members who have used the foam.

Last Friday this was just a pile of 1x4's and three sheets of plywood.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I just made an accurate calculation of my effective grades. Going up the mountain line will be 4.76% with easements and curves, and down will be 5.64%. 

The train for the mountain line will always go up the shallow grade and come down the steeper grade. I can live with that for a mountain Private line. 

The mainlines are 3.35 in both directions, effective grade with curves. It looks very gentle compared with the mountain line. Straight grade is 2%.


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## flyboy2610 (Jan 20, 2010)

That is quite a project! It looks like you'll have a lot of fun!


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## Bwells (Mar 30, 2014)

Midwest cork is a shade under 2".


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Thanks. There isn't but a few cents difference in price so I'll stay with the cork that I'm familiar with.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

MichaelE said:


> I just made an accurate calculation of my effective grades. Going up the mountain line will be 4.76% with easements and curves, and down will be 5.64%.
> 
> The train for the mountain line will always go up the shallow grade and come down the steeper grade. I can live with that for a mountain Private line.
> 
> The mainlines are 3.35 in both directions. It looks very gentle compared with the mountain line.


Those are very steep grades. Before you get any deeper into this project, I would recommend that you do some testing and make sure your locos can operate on them, as well as making sure your rolling stock will transition onto and off of those grades without derailments or digging their noses in. A gradual transition onto and off of those grades will help there.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

CTValleyRR said:


> Those are very steep grades. Before you get any deeper into this project, I would recommend that you do some testing and make sure your locos can operate on them, as well as making sure your rolling stock will transition onto and off of those grades without derailments or digging their noses in. A gradual transition onto and off of those grades will help there.


Yes they are!

The easements are very gradual and I don"t anticipate any transition problems.

I will though have to make certain I have several good pullers to make those grades. The Privat line will only have two or three short cars for the steep grade, and the passenger trains will be limited to the same with longer cars.

I really have no way to test this until the roadbed is laid, track is laid, DCC system is bought and wired, and trains are bought.

I will certainly make sure I buy the best pullers though. I've seen videos of longer trains being pulled up greater grades than what I have designed.


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## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

Very nice. How big are those grades?


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Post #22.


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## Lemonhawk (Sep 24, 2013)

https://cascaderailsupply.com/pages/frontpage There is also Homasote road bed. OR you can put down CV ties with caulk and glue ME rail (My favorite) http://www.cvmw.com/.
I like this combination and use a thin layer of DAP Dynaflex to glue the Homasote roadbed down and to glue the ties to the roadbed. Pilobond is used to glue the rail to the plastic ties ( small block of wood to help out a lot of pressure on the rails to get a good set on the Pilobond contact cement. A word of caution about CV ties, they make the ties for turnouts and once you start making your own turnouts, especially a custom curved turnout -you'll never go back (no expensive jigs needed). See Proto87 stores.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I ordered 150' of Midwest cork roadbed today from Trainsets Only. I didn't realize this was such popular stuff in bulk packs. Hard to find. I think 150' is going to be cutting it close. I won't be surprised if I run out. At least I'll know exactly how many feet this railroad is going to be.

Not as hard to find though as finding imported German structures from Reynauld's. They have no indication if something is in stock or not until AFTER your order is placed.

Someone there is helping me out checking on alternate choices from my wishlist of structures to see what is in stock for shipping now.


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