Good News x 2

[Parthia27]

I'm just writing this post on the train returning from London to Derby.

 

Today I got an all clear from my surgeon at the Royal Marsden Hospital regarding the recurring cancer I have been battling since 2008, my next MRI will be in January 2015 so if I can avoid any complications I can get on with stuff.

 

I was also fitted with a new obturator (plate) which means I can now talk clearly for the first time since February (some will say this is bad news).

 

I have been holding off doing any serious modelling whilst awaiting the outcome of today as if the news was not good regarding either the discovery of a tumour or failure of the obturator I would have been back under the knife next week.

 

So, what to do now. I have a number of HO loco projects to crack on with, including an Athearn Genesis GP38-2 wreck I picked up on eBay, a BNSF Kato SD40-2 detailing job and an SP MP15AC rebuild for Mr Palette of this good parish.

 

My main decision though is to finally bite the bullet and invest in a shed to put a permanent US layout in.

 

I've been really inspired by what Dr GF has been doing.

 

I have the cash available to adequately fund the project (shed base, shed, fit out and installation of electrics). My problem is space. The maximum size of shed I can squeeze in the back garden is 12 x 7 feet.

 

For an HO ISL this would be fine and that maybe is what I will have to build.

 

I have however recently acquired a reasonable fleet of a BNSF Genesis / Intermountain six axle bruisers including ES44s, AC4400's SD70MACS and SD70Ace's to go with my BN / BNSF EMD Dash 2s.

 

Ideally I would like to construct something that would allow some form of mainline running and a small amount of switching, though I think this may be a little ambitious for a 12 x 7' shed.

 

The alternative is to dispose of my HO stuff and go N scale, but this is not my preferred option as I like modelling in HO and other than UK 2mm Finescale, have never really been bitten by the N Scale bug. Nothing against N Scale, I just do not feel it has the presence of HO.

 

So what to do?

 

Any HO ideas from forum members would be appreciated, but I want to stick to a minimum criteria of #6 turnouts, Code 82 / 70 ME track, a minimum radius of 24" and reasonable operating potential. All of these criteria do limit the feasibility of doing much more than an ISL in the space I have but some clever soul may know otherwise :-).

 

Anyway just approaching Derby so I have to go.

 

Cheers

 

Chris

[Pugsley]

Good news Chris!

 

I'd keep the 6 axles in the cabinet for now, and build something that will fit the space available.

[acko22]

That's Great new Chris,

 

Hopefully this is the first of many All clears and you can get on with more models!

 

Regards

 

Gareth

[PaulRhB]

Good news indeed

Why not have a twin circuit mainline round the outside on say an 8 inch wide shelf with deeper scenes on the corners using the space made by using 3ft radii. Then build a narrow 4 track yard one side with a branch round to an industrial centre or short line centre aisle of say 9 ft long so you can walk round the end. Build it up high so it's a duck under to get in and out. Another option is a high level mainline racetrack and a lower level short line come industrial area.

[dave_long]

That's so good to hear Chris. I'd consider having two layouts one above each other. It would allow you two different places/roads as well.

 

Regards

[warbonnetuk]

Good news Chris. Looking forward to see what you come up with

 

Dan

[backofanenvelope]

Or maybe you could build modular and then join it up to the rmweb get together

[Parthia27]

Well, that is good news

 

That would get my vote. For an idea of a how effective a simple layout can be in an even smaller space, have a look at Steve Cook's "Tunnel 4" on the old RMWeb. It was operationally a bit limited, but if you have two layouts at different heights, that won't be a big problem. (No reason why you cannot have a figure of 8 to double the length of the run, too...)

Simon et al....

 

Thanks to all for your good wishes.

 

The last 6 months have given me a kick up the back side to get on with the things I want to do.

 

The cancer that I have is Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma (ACC). It is very rare Head and Neck Cancer which grows along major nerves and requires specialised oncology and surgery which is only available at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London (a wonderful institution which I do as much as possible to support in what little ways I can).

 

ACC is very slow growing so can be kept at bay for a number of years with surgery and limited amounts of targeted radiotherapy using a technology known as Cyberknife. The down side is that it is persistent, I had a recurrence last year following an initial bout in 2008, and the long term prognosis is not great. It will always return, sometimes even a decade or so after the original occurrence. Eventually, if any of the related side effects don't get you first, it does jump to a secondary site such as the liver, lungs or brain and then you are in trouble. It can be tough at times but that is my lot and I came to terms with it a number of years ago - I'm not ready to go upstairs for a while yet, I have too many things to do and places to go, and more importantly need to be around for my family for a while yet :-).

 

Now where were we?

 

Yes, Tunnel 4 - now that does bring back memories.

 

I think that separating a Tunnel 4 type layout and a Freemo compliant switching pike would give me the best of both worlds :-). Good idea to all who have suggested this. I will have to somehow accommodate my workbench, machine tools and spray booth into the same are but that can be done by using the space under the layout(s) ensuring I have good lighting available. 

 

I have been out in the garden this evening and think I could widen the shed to 9' to give me a rough internal area of 8' x 11' which would work better.

 

I'm off work till 1st September as I am still on some very strong painkillers which are not permitted at the ranch, so the wonderful Mrs Clover has offered to drive me to a few shed showrooms tomorrow to get some ideas. I'll provide an update after the grand tour.

 

TTFN

 

Chris

[Andy Reichert]

Best wishes from a newcomer you don't yet know!

 

I wonder if if you have garden space, culd you have two separate major shelf layout sides inside the shed and run the linking main line(s) out of doors (through openings) . Switch indoors in rainy weather, enjoy long runs in fine weather.

 

Andy

[alfsboy]

Great news though I dont know you personally .I would love a layout with 6 axle locos .Keep it simple and the big locos will take care of themselves .I would run a mainline continuous with long trains  and an industrial are or even a largish loco servicing depot .I always liked the original Cat Mountain and Sante Fe  type layout .There is nothing as satisfying  as a decent run and a long freight train 20plus cars .I had one for a few months until my garage roof went awol and ruined it all ..

Martin

[shortliner]

Chris - great news, and long may it continue - all the best

[Parthia27]

Thanks for all your good wishes guys, I feel very humbled.

 

Anyway, today has been research day. I didn't get out to look at sheds, but have spent my time looking at the best position for a shed in the garden which I (or should I say Mrs Parthia) have now decided upon and the final size of the shed which is going to be 10' by 6'. I have gone for a smaller size because whilst I want the shed to meet my requirements I do not want it to take over the entire garden as that too is important to me.

 

So with location and size sorted I have revisited the type of layout I want and in line with Mike Cougill's suggestion in "The Missing Conversation" I asked myself why I want a layout at all rather than how I am going to get there. Having thought about this I came to the realisation that all the layouts I enjoy, and those which I have enjoyed building have 4 things in common:

 

1) A set of easy to achieve mechanical standards wrt track size, wheel size, couplings, track type etc. I have now developed a standard for any ISL I build which incorporates Code 70 Track, #6 Turnouts, Code 88 Wheels, and Sergeant Couplers.

 

2) A high ratio of scenery to track, simple uncluttered scenery, and a use of the minimum amount of track that is required to service the small number of industries I want to model.

 

3) I always want to run realistically dirty, weathered and detailed locomotives, rolling stock and structures. I am not a great fan of passenger operations and I know I am not talented enough to achieve RPM levels of weathering and detailing. I do however know that I can achieve a level of weathering and detail wrt my models which is enough to keep me happy and which has drawn a number of positive comments in the past. I am not great admirer of graffiti on prototype railroads, though I greatly admire those who can replicate it in the smaller scales. Based on the aforementioned facts and my love of the green empire I always come back to my customary 1980's timescale and a BN Washington or Minnesota operating locale, rather than a more contemporary time period. My BNSF theme may therefore not be the way to go. On the positive side I already have a good roster of BN equipment enough of which is already finished to my personal tastes so I'm starting to think a decision to go BN is a no brainier. On the negative side I think I may once again be taking the route of least resistance by going back to the BN, I have acquired a good fleet of BNSF locomotives and cars. I am not a collector so they just gather dust in the loft when I'm not using them and represent a lot of cash which is doing nothing. I need to think more in this area.

 

4) Finally I love to watch and listen to locos crawling around a layout on secondary track, I think that maybe my wish for mainline running is a fantasy rather than a real want.

 

All of the above lead me to a conclusion that a 1980's based BN branchline with an ISL flavour would be the type of layout most likely to ring my bell and perhaps being able to gradually move towards a BNSF transition theme for such a line is also a good plan for the longer term. I will sleep on this decision and revisit it tomorrow and over the weekend.

 

Finally I have been doing much digging around the web looking at the best shed base to use, shed suppliers, security, insulation and the provision of adequate power and light. All I can say is that it has been very revealing and has lead me to revise my budget upwards by a goodly sum. This is not a problem, I just need to make sure that I proceed with this project with my eyes open and not skimp on creating a comfortable environment to occupy.

 

So there you have it. A lot of thought summarised as best I can manage. What I do realise is that the whole project excites me a great deal. I have a buzz and anticipation that I have not felt for a while. :-))).

 

More tomorrow.

 

TTFN

 

Chris

[Theakerr]

I will try to describe something I saw in a Model Railroader a nuber of years ago that might suite your purpose.  Specifically it is essentially two roundy round layouts joined together.  One on the outside and one inside but separated by a senic divide wall with appropriate entry and exit points   One has scenery and the other has a number of hidden sidings that are connected at two points to the scenic section (or more points if an elevated portion is incorporated).  The scenic portion can be on the inside or the outside depending on where the operator is positioned so that you can watch trains go by.

[Allegheny1600]

Hi Chris,

Great news on the medical front, I hope that doing this project will give you the motivation to kick the big C into touch (for a good long while, at least). I find your story very humbling, puts ones own aches & pains into perspective.

Anyway, if it were me, I'd be very inclined to backdate the green empire to early to mid seventies in the PNW and have a good few Alco's chugging around but nothing wrong with later periods! I'd certainly stick with what you know and love!

I know it's tight in 10' x 6' (10' x 8' better?) but I might be inclined to go for a looped figure of eight with perhaps an average gradient of 1 in 40, probably down to 24" curves though and make it that it is a scenic feature having two grade separated lines around most of the circuit. Simple industries could then be placed at various locations and levels around the circuit.

I'll have a think and see if I can refine this for you!

All the best,

John E.

[Allegheny1600]

Hi again,

This is the sort of thing I was thinking, drawn in Anyrail using ME code 70, No.6 turnouts, average curve radius of 26", red warning marker at 24".

I tried to get a long main loop as a sort of staging siding but in the time, failed sorry!

It leaves you with an approximate operating well of 5' x 3' and most of the action would be in the corners.

Just a quick suggestion for you!

Cheers,

John E.

[Parthia27]

Simon and John, thanks for your ideas. I have just got back from a shed "showpark" the other side of Burton Upon Trent and had a good look at the selection of sheds they have available. I compared a 10 x 6' with a 12 x 8' and the difference is staggering. Mrs Parthia agrees a 12 x 8 will be better so that is the way I'm going to go. The cost is significantly higher if you factor in things such as a larger base, more insulation, more wood to line it etc but in the long term it is a better option.

 

The shed I've got my eyes on is this one which when painted a nice shade of Missouri Pacific Blue will look superb.

 

 

http://www.ukgardenbuildings.co.uk/heavy-duty-apex-p-221.html?osCsid=671e0d522a6e88beb5bfa68d09928f8b

 

Now I've got to look at the budget I have available and the amount of extra saving I'll need to do.

 

TTFN

 

Chris

[Colinw62]

Hi Chris

 

Good to hear you news and look forward to catching up soon. 

 

re the shed, have a look at these chaps http://www.sherwoodsheds.co.uk/pent-apex-sheds.asp

 

no connection other than as a satisfied customer. 

 

Colin   

[Dr Gerbil-Fritters]

Hello Chris,

 

I'm so pleased you've been inspired by what I've been doing, and I'm really pleased you feel well enough to start thinking and planning.

 

Definitely get the biggest shed you can.  My shed's internal dimensions are 13 feet 6 by 7 feet six, and it's less than half what I really wanted to build my dream pike.

 

On the other hand, it's meant that what I have is manageable as a one man band, and its still eats cash like you wouldn't believe even before you buy any trains!

 

What I would say, is that although it hurt at the time (short arms, deep pockets me) I don;t now begrudge a single penny in the internal insulation, smooth ply internal walls, decent lighting and a proper electrics set up.

 

It's like a room with a layout that just happens to be at the bottom of the garden!

 

Whilst I'd never suggest what a man should do with his own layout, I think you might be surprised at how much satisfaction can be had by accepting the space limitations, and not trying to build a mainline layout.  I put a nice looking 3nd generation EMD consist together the other night and it was over a yard long... add on a reasonable length of train and I was looking at nearly thirty feet!

 

So embrace the small, relax those turnouts to #8s and spend an hour working at a real time pace setting out cars and blocking the yard.

 

Give the operator plenty of space too - my benchwork is only 14 inches wide, and it still looks like a lot of space to plop scenery onto!  It gives me room to move around, which actually helps make the layout feel much larger and more spacious.

 

Keep us up to date on progress!  

[Northpoint]

Chris - I've been pout of touch for a few weeks but I echo all the good wishes already expressed.

 

Having seen your expertise in the flesh on several occasions, we expect even greater things from you now!

[Talltim]

I'm glad you're feeling inspired. Not got much to add really, but if you get a shed, think about what you want to do with the windows. The good Dr's shed has high windows, presumably not to interfere with the layout.

 

[skipepsi]

It is also a security measure no access through the windows.

[Parthia27]

Hi Tim, that is a good point. PGF has a type of shed known as a Security Shed which I am also giving serious consideration. If I have windows, I will go for toughened glass and make sure there are internal blinds or equivalent to close and hide the shed contents at night and when I am elsewhere. The prospect of having natural light is appealing as the shed will also house my workbench, spray booth and a workstation for my machine tools. I'm also leaning towards a heavy duty frame, thick floor, heavy duty door and extra thick T&G walls. None of this will keep out a determined thief but it will help my peace of mind.

 

Cheers

 

Chris

[Parthia27]

Dr GF, many thanks for your kind words and encouragement.

 

You are right about the shed being a money pit, I have been getting quotes for a nice base, adequate electrical supply, and materials including insulation, paint and plywood for internal dressing. My budget is being revised upwards daily but I refuse to skimp, will go for the biggest footprint possible, and as you say make it into a house room at the bottom of the garden :-).

 

My biggest problem atm is coming up with a plan. I have three plans in my head atm, all influenced by Lance Mindheim but relocated to Seattle. I'm ok with utilising up to 2 of the available walls, but when I consider a third wall or come up with a plan with more than 4 turnouts I get a blank. I have always tended towards small simple layouts in the past so I feel spoilt with the space I will have. Unit trains are going to have to wait until we get rid of the kids and me and Mrs Parthia move into a bungalow with a massive loft :-). I have loads of Kato Unitrack so giving my grain, coal and intermodal rains a run is not a problem when I'm home alone :/).

 

Cheers

 

Chris

[Parthia27]

Urbandale and Grimes use only four turnouts.

That would go nicely on three walls, and you could use the fourth to provide staging.

By putting a bit of distance between the run round and the end of the line, and operating the pushing move at slow speed, the line would seem longer than it really is.

Good idea Simon, many thanks :/).

 

Cheers

 

Chris

[Parthia27]

Hi All,

 

I have to say that the ideas and work of Lance Mindheim, Mike Cougill and James MCnab will be highly influential on the final plan I develop. My intention is not to mimic their work but to apply their principles and ideas to a contemporary BNSF layout based in or around Seattle Washington.

 

My focus has been on an active industrial spurs in the north-east of the town Kent on BNSF's Seattle Sub bisected by 80th Avenue South. This spur is served by a BNSF crew out of South Seattle as part of a daily job. 

 

Overview

 

 

Detailed Overview West of 80th Avenue South

 

 

Detailed Overview East of 80th Avenue South

 

 

Streetview East

 

 

Streetview West

 

 

I am trying to put together a plan not just including this spur but also a portion of the yard adjacent to the BNSF main. My efforts so far have been very compressed due to the 12 x 8' space I have available. Traffic variety is excellent including Grain in Covered Hoppers, Plastic Pellets in Covered Hoppers, Merchandise in Boxcars and Building Materials conveyed using a variety of Centerbeam, Bulkhead and HiCube boxcars. I have also noticed on the Youtube clip which lead me to scout this area that the local switch job also conveys chemicals in tank cars and scrap in gondolas.

 

There is also and area a few blocks to the north east around South 187th Street where there is yet another industrial spur fed off the same yard which is also very interesting.

 

 

For those with a Union Pacific fetish the UP main from Tacoma to Seattle parallels the BNSF Scenic Sub through Kent to the west and also boasts some interesting local industrial spurs.

 

In addition to Kent I have also been looking at Harbour Island in Seattle, I won't get started on that now though as it is time for my beauty sleep.

 

Cheers

 

Chris