cnw6847

Not a very exciting update but the remaining upper fiddle yard track has been laid.

On the lower level, brass nails have been knocked in either side of the board join and the rails soldered to them.

A mini drill with cutting disc was then used to cut the rails.

Once the upper level join is done i'll move onto wiring the layout up.

4 hours ago, simon b said:

Looking good! I'm inclined to agree with your brother about adding a second scenic board, it's easier to do it now rather than rip it about later. But, I suggest before going any further with the scenic works on the existing boards, run some trains with what's all ready there. Make sure the layout works to your liking, incase you want to adjust siding lengths or add points ect.

 

If you do want to add a second board, this pic is all the inspiration you need: 

 

 

-You could move the CT building back to ease the curve in their siding, and create a concrete yard area for their trucks to park up. -lots of interesting scenic work there.

 

-Cross the high level tracks over the low level tracks as in that pic, makes hiding the exit tracks alot easier.

 

-You can use some of the space to extend the fiddle yard if needed, points take up alot of space. 

 

 

Thank you Simon. I agree getting what’s there wired up, test run etc is best way to go.

Space is also as issue as I have other projects on the go at home and the layout will eventually have to return there.

Thank you for the photo.

Its a great location.

The remaining upper level tracks have been laid, completing the main board track laying.

Thought i'd try a grain hopper in the upper Blommer factory siding. The building will hide the first hopper at the end of the siding and also the end of the station which will hopefully give the impression it could go on further.

A view of the length of the layout. Just the upper storage tracks to lay..

My brother has suggested scenicing the second board and add a third fiddle yard board. Possibly.

The concrete on the bridge has had a weathering wash to tone it down.

Then, its all been glued into place.

The mirror card works best with cars as vans look a bit obvious with the reflection showing one facing each other technically one going the wrong way.  But with cars it looks like two separate ones. 

The platforms can be placed into position but not glued until they're finished (theres four sections of platform in total). The back commuter track has been brought forward slightly to correct position. The other upper trackwork can now be laid.

I thought i'd pop an F40 on the layout with the two coaches to see how its looking after the bridge is fixed in position.

11 hours ago, simon b said:

 

Works better than a mirror I think, as you say a suggestion is all that it needs. A mirror would show too much detail and break the illusion, like the fact the two cars are driving away from each other. The mirror card blurs it into shadow so you can only see the shadow of the other car, not which direction it's pointing.

 

Besides the shimmer effect just looks like a hot day in the city...

Thank you.

I'm looking forward to seeing it in a more complete state with the city backscene too.

23 minutes ago, DanielB said:

The mirror card trick looks good, giving more of a suggestion of something beyond the bridge. Plus the reflected light makes it look sunny on the other side of the bridge, which wouldn't happen if you used a photo backdrop instead.

Thank you. I think a suggestion is all thats needed really.

Be interesting to see what its like when its all installed and sceniced.

3 hours ago, 298 said:

It's one of those where you wouldn't notice it until it was pointed out, then it might be a bit jarring. Furthermore, you'd have to chop up some of those Mountain Spew trucks so one had a back end on the front, so the reflection in the mirror would show another rear of a going away vehicle, and not the front. 

Am I overthinking this? Possibly...

To be honest by the time it’s all done I don’t think it will be very noticeable anyway. 
 

Only the zoomed in photos highlights it.

To me it just gives a brief impression of something beyond.

Just now, Keith Addenbrooke said:

Mirror card is not something I think I’ve seen used before (conventional mirrors are more common in this type of situation, particularly on American Model Railroads).  The photos seem to show something of a ‘shimmering’ effect from the mirror card.  Is this more pronounced on the photos than in real life?  Just wondered, Keith.

The card version is about half mirror compared to glass full mirror, if you see what I mean.

I didn't really want full mirror as I think it shows too much going on.

The camera on the phone may show more light in there.

It will be darker when everything is in place too.

I thought about installing the road underpass bridge last night at dads but realised I’d forgotten the side walls 🙄.

Its been painted and weathered except for the concrete road which may need doing afterwards to blend with the rest of the road.

The depth of the bridge is really the size of two kits. As it’s fairly dark at the back there didn’t seem much point in getting a second kit.

A friend of mine suggested a mirror card option to reflect the scene creating the depth.

I cut a piece out and placed it directly against the back of the bridge.

I’m pleased with the outcome.

A little progress to report.  At Monday nights Waveney Modellers Group monthly meet I started assembling a Walthers River City Textiles background low relief kit. There are enough parts in the kit to make a rectangular building though albeit not enough windows are supplied. 
I shall blank the back unseen ones out.

The ends are made from two pieces.

I cut the cork out and test placed the building. It will go right up to the edge to look like it extends beyond the layout. The track will be in concrete, the siding had to be moved slightly to allow room for the building. After the photo was taken I removed some off the bottom so the large loading doors will be level at ground level

One of the platform shelters was put in position and the front track placed in the rough position.
The bridge needs installing before track can be laid.
Dad and I discussed the upper Blommer Chocolate siding and we decided it better to go all the way behind the building

Progress was a bit limited last night.

I really need to get the bridge finished and in place in order to lay the upper tracks.

The station platforms really need to be finished too but they can be removable for a time.

I did lay the back stand alone commuter track. This is the one i'm thinking about having a shuttle system for then the upper front two tracks can be operated separately along with the lower level. The layout will ideally require two operators and could have three trains running at a time.

I laid out the other track to be used once bridge is in position.

The commuter track laid is on the right

A piece of foam board was cut to give a rough idea what the end backscene will be like and it blocks the fiddle yard out quite nicely.

Dad found up a tank car to pose at the Blommer Chocolate siding. A couple of commuter coaches sit on the newly laid station track

23 hours ago, 298 said:

Blommer's is to close...:

https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/news-photos-chocolate-factory-closure-further-reduces-downtown-chicago-rail-customers/?fbclid=IwAR0Rl3zUYnt59XCiUZNqrOf7KUuQB-vuEkRMYxTzdsgnZTVDee2-me1_XRU

Thank you for posting the link. I had seen about the Blommer factory and also the Chicago Tribune factory. A shame really a its a really interesting switching area.

There are some excellent video clips on youtube.

2 hours ago, Murball said:

Really interesting layout, thanks for posting.

Sad news about the closure, all the more reason to immortalise it in model form!

Thank you, it seems to mean more now. Although not a exact replica of the area hopefully the layout will give an impression.

I think the metal extension looks ok.

How does it measure when positioning boxcars?

You could always adjust it so two are parked together beside doors. Thats if you're using the same size boxcars.

On 22/03/2024 at 08:49, Clive martin said:

Back in the mid 80 s me and some of the lads in my local model railway club were very keen at rebuilding our airfix 31s as refurbished machines then being out shopped from Donny works ,removing the centre body stripe bands plating over the headcode panels etc and in some cases a repaint into the then new Rail Freight livery ,great days!

My brother did a similar conversion at the time and my dad sprayed it into Railfreight Grey.

It was proper modern image at that time.

It looks like the Athearn SW7 chassis. I don't think they've reissued it with DCC.

I wonder whether a Proto 2000 SW chassis would fit

I had an unexpected evening at dads last night so a bit more progress was made.

While we had tea we watched some youtube videos of the Blommer Chocolate, Chicago Tribune and the Morton Salt switch jobs. Some sharp curves to them. 

Well worth a watch for interesting switching.

I've laid the Chicago Tribune siding with a fairly sharp curve (2' off the point) and the siding will go through the building the length of three 50' boxcars.

I cut a piece of cereal packet the size of the space available with a boxcar size hole in it and I think it will just work. (it wouldn't stand up without the spanner! 😂)

I may make it a little narrower on left hand side although a boxcar clears it with plenty of space and it hides the exit of the layout.

There will be a backscene the building goes against though.

The lower fiddle yard was also laid.

4 hours ago, simon b said:

That's going to be fun to operate, plenty to keep you busy and easy to extend the layout to the left past the factory if you wanted to add some extra sidings to shunt. 

 

Hope you dont mind but one question I have, is have you left enough room between the CT siding and the exit track to fit the CT building in? It does look quite tight. A possible alteration for you to consider is to bring the two points closer to the road in the middle of the board, that would let the tracks around CT spread further and give more room. You could even hide the exit track by running it underneath the upper level as it exits the layout. 

Thank you Simon and for your ideas. Much appreciated.

If we move the points further down we’ll really make the headshunt too short to get the loco and boxcars in.

The CT building is planned to only be a maximum of 1” deep, probably a bit less and that can go flat across the backscene. Will see what it looks like and if we don’t like it we could think about possibly make a change.

Currently the road crosses at the end of the points.

The track going out under the line high was something we did think about but thought accessing the hidden sidings might be tricky.

I spent last evening at dads and a little progress was made.

To start a little bridge tweaking was done to allow the rear top section to fit properly and to double check everything is in the right position. Thats now sorted and the bridge has been removed and brought home for painting.

The bridge really needs installing before any track laying on the top level so we had a look at the lower level.

As all the track had been removed for baseboard work it took a little while refreshing our memories and setting it out.

Dad had some spare track so kindly gave it to me for the project. 

The first point was then installed which is the angle line to the front of the board and the back siding to the Blommer Chocolate factory. I laid the chocolate siding but it may need slight alteration when the building is built and in position.

The second point was laid which kicks back to the Chicago Tribune building.

Ideally i'd have liked the CT building siding more to the front of the board but its not really possible but as its compressed into a much smaller space than the real thing I think it will work ok. The building frontage will be about 6 inches so room for the boxcar entrance and a lorry loading point. The siding was just placed in position to see what it looks like.

After measuring the length of the track in front of the CT access it appears we should be able to get three boxcars with a MP15 and possibly a GP15.

A birds eye view down to the Blommer Chocolate factory which is on the right.

Schneider trailers seem to be regular at the factory so had to try one in place.

The Chicago Tribune siding goes off to the right. It needs laying properly next time.

The building will be just before the black on the fiddle yard and will act as part of the backscene.

I think sometimes there’s the zoomed in internet/magazine photo factor that quite a lot of is lost when items are running on a layout and seen bye eye a few feet away.

Your 31 looks excellent.

3 hours ago, simon b said:

That's coming together very well, are you having platform access from street level?

Thank you Simon.

I’ve not really thought about it that much but I think I’d like to keep the bottom part more industrial looking etc and suggest the passenger exit is off the platform further to left.

That will be behind and beyond the Blommer building then 

Just now, DanielB said:

That's really starting to show an idea of what the finished scene will look like. Very cool.

Thank you Daniel.

I’m pleased with how it’s looking and once a backscene is in place it should set it off.

I popped in to dads on the way to work this morning and dropped off the platforms ready to hopefully start track laying next visit.

I couldn’t resist roughly trying them in position to see what they look like.

there’s just room for them and the tracks planned.

Obviously they still need painting.

With a coach

4 minutes ago, YT-1300 said:

I picked up the Cab Car I have from Contikits, there is a standard Bi-Level on eBay at £76, I was tempted but had problems with the seller before so wont buy from them.

 

Really looking forward to seeing your layout develop

In Metra days i've seen cab cars used in a rake of coaches so a second on a train.

They're decent prices at Contikits.

I'm not sure when Walthers last made them. You don't see them for sale very often.

Thank you, will try and update asap.

10 hours ago, simon b said:

 

The top level being on a shuttle is a good idea, just sit back and watch between shunting the lower level. Would the C&NW have any commuter operations into the 90's, or would it all be Metra by then? 

 

I've been collecting stock to build something similar, though set in the late 60's with New haven and Penn central trains. 

On the top level only the back track will be on a shuttle. The front track and siding will be controlled.

RTA then Metra took over from the railroads in the late 70's to early 80's I believe.

Chicago commuters were even better in the railroad days. Be good seeing Penn Central stock on a layout.

3 hours ago, YT-1300 said:

I'm slowly building up stock to run a commuter service on my future layout, which I'll incorporate my current one into. 

 

At present I have an F7A & B set in RI Red/Silver livery which I'll be repainting in Maroon (A unit) and Red/Yellow (B Unit), an E9 currently in UP Yellow which will be getting the livery modified to represent an RI ex UP unit.  I also have just one commuter car, a Bi-Level cab car in Red/Yellow.  I'm looking to pick up more coaches but they are hard to come by!

 

The commuter service out of the Chicago Terminals is fascinating to me

That will be good. I like the RI too.

Contikits have a couple of coaches.

http://www.contikits.com/US HO.htm

This book is also very good.

4 minutes ago, simon b said:

Platforms looking good, are you going for 3 coaches long? 

 

I'm not too familiar with the routes that pass by the chocolate factory  site, but would this line have seen a Metra e8 or f40c?

Thank you Simon.

the plan is have a three coach train on the back track hopefully using a shuttle  system. 
Two coach trains on the front track that will be manually controlled with the freight trains.

The E8s would have used the line. I think they were retired late 93 early 94 but will stretch it. I have an undec Proto 2000 E8 to paint up.

I don’t think the F40c’s would have run on that line but may do one.