Work Session

I am having a great Christmas break. Yesterday, Jack came back over and offered to work for his time running the trains. I gladly accepted - of course, the micro brew beers he brought just sweetened the offer! Anyway, we spent some time sculpting the hillside and tunnel area in Hermanie and talked alot about the way the mine is oriented. I had designed the track layout and built the module before I bought the Walthers mine kit and as the photo shows below, it's sort of backwards to the optimal orientation. The shift leading into the mountain is at the top of the rear structure, facing the viewer, so there would need to be at least a small hillside in the right front corner of the module. Also, the truck loading building (with the black base) blocks the view of the tracks and makes operations more challenging than necessary.

Since we had the skyboard down to work on the Hermanie hillside (just left of the photo view), we talked about moving the track (I really didn't want to do that!) and finally, Jack turned the mine around and we figured if shorten track WCC 3 it would fit pretty well. We took down the truck loading building and I think it will really open the module. Stay tuned for a new photo.

We did run trains and I say things went pretty smooth. Jack might not agree. I thought moving the IR port from the Irwin Yard to the Hermanie module would improve things so the yard operator (me) would not block the signals. According to Jack, I shift my position from the last operating session and was still blocking his path when he was wireless! The real challenge is that the Digitrax panels stop in the Irwin Yard, I still need to add the 2 remaining panels in E. McKeesport and West Staging. I told Jack the challenge I had creating the LocoNet cables and he said he would give it a try. Long story short, he was able to build the 2 cables, cutout the panel location in E. McKeesport and now we have control panels from end to end of the layout.

It was a very fruitful day!

The Big Picture

Last week, I was talking about the first operating session with a co-worker, Vic. He enjoyed the stories I was telling but said he could not visualize the layout based on the blog entries ... so, here's the big picture. Fortunately, my basement is open enough that I can step back and take a couple overview pictures.

First, the layout is L-shaped running across almost the entire back wall (as you come down the staircase) of the basement, approximately 24' in length. The L is on the left as you face the layout and runs another 14' - enough for some mainline run but mostly I like switching trains. In fact, this is one of the things that Lisa keeps shaking her head - why don't I have a circle to run the trains continuously. Sometimes, I wish I did have a loop so I could break the trains in or run them in the background while I work on some scenery but for the most part, I like this configuration.

To help people orient, when you face the layout you are looking north - so, like a map, west is always to the left and east is to the right. Above is a picture of the layout from the closest part as you walk into the basement, the West Staging yard. This yard provides the trains that come from the railroads off the layout. Trains pass under the Route 30 highway bridge onto the layout proper and enter East McKeesport. One of the key points of interest here is the interchange with the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie (P&LE) railroad. This is also where the May Stern Furniture factory is located, a fascinating structure that I will blog about in the future.

As the trains passes around the curve onto the long arm of the L-shape, heading east, it passes through downtown Irwin and the Irwin yard. A branch line off the Irwin yard curves around onto a 2' x 4' peninsula that projects out from the layout and is the Westmoreland Coal Company (WCC) Mine No. 4 in Hermanie PA. The PRR mainline continues past the Irwin yard, passing over a railroad truss bridge (not sure if this will be the B&O or another line) and terminates in the East Staging yard.

And that ... is the big picture!

First REAL Operating Session

A fellow Cub Scout Leader and friend of mine, Jack, stopped over several weeks ago to drop of some scout papers and asked to see the layout. I showed him my embarrassing progress and he offered to help. Over the weeks I managed to get a second Digitrax DT-402 infrared controller, a little more scenery done (like around Dailey Coal & Fuel), create my own Employee Time Table (which I'll post sometime) and generally get the trains to run.


On Thursday, he came back over to run trains. It was a blast! We both had a great time. Jack thought "running trains" would be driving them forward and back. I had a plan to actually operate the trains. First he ran an eastbound train through the layout to get a feel for the throttle and then a west bound through freight. I had him take a local over to East McKeesport and spot some cars while I made up a couple of trains in the Irwin Yard and ran a couple of mine runs to Westmoreland Coal Company (WCC) Mine No. 4 in Hermanie. Jack was doing pretty well when I checked on him. He had a particularly difficult tank car to spot at the West Penn Power siding and I was impressed he was able to hook the engine up and push it back. He was a little sheepish when he said he pushed it back with his hand!

Below, Jack works the PRR-P&LE interchange in East McKeesport.

So Jack learned the game "challenge" of operating trains and I learned some really valuable lessons on the PRR Irwin district.

1. It works. Two people operated trains and rarely got in each other's way.
2. The P&LE crossing over the PRR mainline is confusing to novices - hard to tell how to get from one track to the other. Have to point this out before I send other newbies there to spot cars in East McKeesport or pick up or drop off an interchange.
3. The IR receiver is in the worst spot possible! I kept blocking Jack's line of sight, since the IR receiver is right where the Irwin yardmaster is always standing! 
4. Jack also had a great idea for my mountain problem which view block separating Irwin, the east staging yard and Hermanie.
   

Oh, and on the second local he took to East McKeesport, he spotted the hopper car behind the tank car on the West Penn  Power siding ... without using his hands!
Looking forward to another operating session or two before the end of the year!

Before And After

Earlier this year I figured an industry for the odd P&LE siding that appears to run right off the layout. In fact, once I get a fascia mounted, I plan to put a small piece of plexi-glass to be the "end" of the rail for that track.  Since I am modeling the late 1950s, I thought a coal and fuel oil company would be interesting, especially a little family run business. I came up with Dailey Coal & Fuel, named after my co-worker, Paul. This past week, I added a little scenery just to spruce up the spur a little. All I need now is a sign ... and that darn fascia!

Before ....

After

More Awesome Finds

Recently, I had a chance to stop into one of my favorite hobby shops, T&K Hobbies in Bridgeport OH. This fantastic store is pretty far from my house ... on the other side of the state! .... but on the way to my parents house so I try to stop in when I can. I always find a couple of car kits marked down to what I consider "train show" prices, and there is a huge selection of parts, details, cars, engines, and scenery materials. I could easily spend 3 hours browsing because there are so many nooks and crannies to the store ... not to mention the huge layout in the center of the store. T&K is where I found the Heinz Pickle Car that I like so much.

Anyway, this particular trip yielded a really special find - more detail parts. For less than $2 apiece (Ok, one was $2.50!) I got a collection of lathe's, drill presses, work benches, etc. to detail the interior of a couple of the industries on the layout. I already have a couple in mind for the ground floor of LAS Fabrics. Imagine a bandsaw shaped machine that looks like it could be an industrial sized sewing machine, with a piece a fabric draped over the table and a scale size woman standing in front of the machine. All of this visible through the large pane window with interior lighting.

Cant' wait!

Capacity Planning

Last week I decided I needed to determine the car capacity for each siding on my layout so I know how many cars would fit as I make up my trains and get my operations set up. I started to walk around the layout with a tape measure but then I came up with a stellar idea.

I created a train of 8 40' boxcars - the typical car on my layout and ran this train around the layout measuring the siding length. Of course, many of the sidings, as well as several tracks in the Irwin, East and West staging yards already had cars on them. So I had other engines pull those trains out of the way for the priority 1 CLC-1* train do it's job.

In a sense, I had my first operating session!

* Car Length Capacity

LogoNet

This weekend, I had mixed success. I have been struggling with wanting to be completed to a certain point but so much needed to be done! For example, I want to have an operating session with a couple of friends and I finally have a DT-400 and DT-402 so we can run 2-4 trains. But I really need the UP-5 panels to plug the throttles into. Yes, they are IR capable so we can walk around a little but you need to plug in to select a loco to run. And to attach the UP-5 panels, I need to put up the masonite fascia. Besides buying and cutting that, I need to paint it ... you get the idea.

Saturday it occurred to me that I could go ahead and temporarily put up the panels - so I did. I installed one at each of the offline staging yards and one in Hermanie. Brilliant! I got some phone cable and tried to make the 6 conductor connectors and that was an exercise in frustration. I only had to make 3 cables but it required crimping 2 connectors on each cable and I could not get them to pass the tester plug.

Finally, I used a pair of always closed tweezers to hold the wires and then I could fasten the plugs. I was able to build 2 of the 3 but finally gave up on the third - I will come back to it later. In the meantime, I have 4 plugs left from a package of 25!

Operations, Part 3

I found an article on the NMRA Operations SIG website, "Guide to Using Carcards and Waybills" by David Doiron. I have not yet read it, but wanted to pass it along to those interested.

Operations, Part 2

I've been reading through my collection of books and articles on model railroad operations to figure out how to get operations started on the PRR Irwin District. I actually hit on a potential idea. I already have trains scattered around the layout, I can just start with the 3 or 4 I have on the Staging tracks, call those through freights and locals and start there. Maybe ....


Below is a list of my reference materials.
Books
How To Operate Your Model Railroad, Bruce Chubb, Kalmbach Books, 1977
Operation Handbook fo Model Railroads, Paul Mallery, Carstens Publishing, 1991
Realistic Model Railroad Operations, How To Run Your Trains Like The Real Thing, Tony Koester, Kalmbach Publishing, 2003
The V&O Story, Allen McClelland, Carstens Publishing, 1984

Magazine Articles
Car Cards and Waybills, Railroad Model Craftsman, Feb 1978
The Train and Industry Blocking System, Dan Holbrook, Model Railroader, July 1987

Miscellaneous
Model Railroading Operations series of articles, NMRA Gateway Division, http://www.gatewaynmra.org/operate.htm
Card Card Operation, Steve King, date unknown
How To Develop A Card Order System Of Operation For A Model Railroad, Merv hardman, date unknown
DVD: Running Trainings, Paul Scoles, http://www.micromark.com/RUNNING-TRAINS-DVD-BY-PAUL-SCOLES,9129.html
Op Session Design - Freelance and Prototype, Byron Henderson, http://home.earthlink.net/~bhender730/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/ops_dsgn.pdf
Operations SIG Operations PRIMER, NMRA Operations Special Interest Group (SIG), http://www.opsig.org/reso/primer/

Operations, Part 1

I am really trying to spend sometime running trains instead of just moving the engines and a couple of cars back and forth. I know I need to spend some time getting my Digitrax DCC a little further along. I finally have a second controller (a DT402 to go with my DT400) and I should install a couple more plugs. Of course, for that I really should have the fascia installed first, so then I can install the panels. To do that, I need to make a final decision on 8" fascia vs. 10" ... Ok, the stall tactics continue.

Meanwhile, I want to get some trains running. I have car cards made up for all the cars on the layout and I have some temporarily car holders for all the tracks. I wrestle with creating the necessary waybills - do I understand things enough to make a decent first shot? I have every book and article imaginable but still struggle getting started. Last night, I had to move some cars around so I could rust the rails on the P&LE staging (done) and ballast the engine track in the Irwin yard (done). Doing those projects got me to thinking about getting some temporary scenery down to help the layout look a little more finished, then come back with building and details, even if I need to remove some grass and minor scenery to make changes.

More to come....

Track Plan

I finally got CADRail reinstalled on my machine so I can grab an image of my track plan. It's an L-shaped plan that is basically 13' x 24'. The primary features are an East (Greensburg) and West (Monongehela) with an on-line staging in Irwin. The peninsula is the Westmoreland Coal Company, No. 4 Mine in Hermanie. East McKeesport is the entire left side of the layout between Irwin yard (in the center of the layout) and the West Staging. 

Pennsy Cabin Cars

Got a chance this past weekend to double the cabin cars (cabooses) on the layout. I have a drawer of unassembled kits I've purchased from train shows and hobby shops. Sometimes, they are more detailed than I expect so they sit in the drawer for a while. These were Bowser kits and they are actually pretty detailed, even down to brass wire for brake lines. I choose not to go that route but I really like the tiny plastic hand rails. I also built a Bowser 40' gondola that has been sitting around for a while.

A very productive weekend!

Making Progress

I wax and wane with my hobbies and model railroading is not exception. Usually the bug bites me again right AFTER all the fall train shows but this year I got an early start. There are 3 shows coming up over the next few weeks and I am starting my shopping list.

In the meantime, I've been spending my time working on scenery. I am not an artist and I always hesitate at this step which is why my layouts always are half complete. I've already ballasted and scenicked the Irwin yard. I am almost done with the East (Greensburg) staging yard and have started to ballast the track in Herminie with the coal spills. I finally installed the concrete retaining walls that support Rt 30 across the tracks on the west end of the layout. I have an idea how I want that hillside to look but not sure if I can get it just right. Of course, the light over the area burned out and I think I have to replace the fixture so I've stopped working there.

Pretty soon it will be time for some masonite for both the backdrop and fascia. I want to get the permanent waybill holders and Digitrax panels mounted, then I can finish the scenery to the front of the fascia.

Bargains

A couple of months ago, I discovered that Hobby Lobby was cutting back on their model railroad stock. I was on a business trip in Michigan and happened to stop in. I found several Woodland Scenics figures and a few JL Innovations details for about 1/2 price. I thought I hit a gold mine.

Turns out it was merely silver! We were out shopping yesterday and stopped at a local Hobby Lobby that's nearby our house but not real convenient. They had marked down the rest of their JL Innovation stock to $1.51 to $1.72 each. Mother lode! I grabbed everything they had, 11 items including some duplicates but I figure every house in the Herminie mining camp will have propane tanks. And I might have to have more than 1 gas station now. I also got some Model Master paints for only $1.18. I cleaned house.

Vacations and Lists

Well, I'm back from a fantastic vacation with the family and settling into the routine at work - if my work can ever be said to have a routine! Anyway, over the long weekend I wanted to spend some time with the layout and here, on Monday, I finally find/make the time.

One of the things that I consistently do when I cannot get downstairs to work on the trains is create lists of things to do. My wife is a much better list maker as I tend to scratch down items on different pieces of paper, rarely organized or prioritized. It's almost a brain dump of what I want to do.

Then I get to the layout. I pull out all these scraps of papers, these ideas of tasks, goals, need-to-dos and my mind freezes. Suddenly all the items in the list seem like that will take a lot of time, I probably don't have the materials I need and I know I don't have the skills.

How do I solve this dilemna? I need to create better lists!

Switchthrows II

After installing all the switchthrows, and doing a little scenicking in the Irwin Yard, I discovered  that even thought the Caboose Industries swtichthrows are not to scale, and their black ... you could easily overlook them. I remembered reading somewhere long ago that someone painted the handles white. So I did that and really liked how they stood out against the background. After further consideration, I decided to paint the "turned" side red so that an operator could quickly scan the tracks and see if any of the switches were thrown the wrong way. I'm pretty pleased with the overall effect.

Bachmann GP-7

Micromark has been advertising a Bachmann GP-7 for almost 50% off retail. Now I'll admit, I was intrigue. They had it lettered for the Pennsy, it looked very nice in the photo and amazingly came ready for DCC. I did manage to add a DCC controller to my S-1 and F-3A but I'm still not confortable soldering a $20 electrical card! I mentioned the GP-7 to Lisa enough times that she finaly said, "Why don't you buy it already?"

Well, I was not really angling for permission but it was my way of debating with myself. Would it be worth $45? Would it run poorly and I would forever be disappointed? And while I was a locomotive roster and stage through trains for my locals to skirt around, was now the right time to start building the collection? Well, I took the plunge.

And wished I had bought two! I took it out of the box, dropped it on the track and it ran immediately on address 03. I did not even have to replace the couplers with Kadee #5s (my coupler standard) - just back it up to a string of cars, CLICK and pull forward. Sweet! Smooth, very smooth. Took me a while to work though the Digitrax manual on how to program the address to the locomotive number (8805) but then I was good to go.

In fact, it runs better than the S-1 ... a lot better. The S-1 is irritating me. I wonder if I bouched the CVs? Hmmm. Time to go back downstairs.

Pleasant finds

Occasionally, I travel for my business and I usually try to find local hobby stores. Most of the time, they are too far away to visit given that I usually work until 6 PM or later. There are some places that look very interesting but are too far away - again because of my late work hours.
On a recent trip to Orange County, CA, I found a wonderful little shop called The Train Crossings ... and even more wonderful people working there. They were very helpful and had a tremendous stock for their size. I could only spend a few minutes browsing and I forgot my wish list but I did manage to find a couple items to bring back to the Irwin district.

Check out their website at http://www.thetraincrossing.com.

Switchthrows

Some time ago I decided that I wanted to use the Caboose Industries instead of switch machines because I liked the idea of pausing the train, taking the time to manually switch the track. I found an excellent article some time ago that showed an excellent way to install the throw rod and make it look realistic. I installed about 10 or so of the devices over a couple weeks but gave up because (1) it was a bit tedious and (2) I needed more Caboose Industries 202S switch throws.

A couple weeks back I finally bought the last 5 that I needed (perfect 5 pack order). Yesterday I decided part of my problem was using too thin wire (I think it's .025" but it may be smaller) so I got some .032" from the hardware store and last night started installing the remaining devices. Well, first I had to repair 2 or 3 that had fallen apart but I got on a roll and ... ta da! ... installed all 28 by the end of the night. One I had to glue the connecting rod (I *love* super glue) and I let it sit over night but today all the switch throws are installed.

I painted all the stands white to help them show up against the background and I think I might add a red target when it's thrown counter to normal .. so when the normal is straight and it's set to curve.

What's next?

The Beginning

Like most folks with a career and family, I try to make time for my favorite hobby - model railroading. However, demands from the office, activities with the kids, and sometimes just not really motivated to head to the basement, I spend more time thinking about trains than running trains. So ... I thought I would create a blog to collect some of my ideas, plans, steps and missteps.

I got started in model railroading when I was probably 11 or 12 years old. My dad built an HO railroad for my that slid under my twin bed. Extremely clever design, unfortunately we did not know the difference between brass rail and nickel silver so everytime I pulled it out, I had to clean the track. Naturally, it spent more time under the bed than pulled out and running.

When I was in high school, I moved the layout to the basement and added a small yard. Now I could sort trains and have a purpose. I began to get interested in operations - although I did not really grasp much of what I was reading, I was still fascinated that there was more to model railroading than running trains. I was hooked once I read Bruce Chubb's How To Operate Your Model Railroad. (Side note: it was a picture of one of the control panels on his layout that convinced me I wanted to be an electical engineer ... all the way until my junior year of college when Penn State disabused me of that notion!)

That started my quest to build the perfect layout ....