Exploring the World of Model Railroading
I’m at a point where I need to build a helix and trying to decide the direction to take. Whether it would be Atlas/PECO flex track + whole shebang; or KATO Unitrack, or even Tomix Fine Track (very pricey). Over at nScale.net forums, I made a post with some rough estimates of costs for my case and I thought to post it here on my build blog for everyone to see.
It’s been over a week without an update on the layout. I spent the time to rest and reflect on the progress so far. Looking at what’s next, I still do not have a concrete idea of what kind of a helix to build or a finished plan for the lower level.
Today I went to the LHS and ended up getting “a few” buildings to help me contemplate about the industries to add to the layout.
I’m one of those people with a beautiful hardwood floor in a finished basement that’s totally uneven and a disaster to level on. To illustrate my point, on the left, top surface is measured at the back of the layout room where ceiling is the lowest (and this is my reference height), and on the right measured at the blob around the column.
Gods of weather smiled upon me this morning by granting me couple of hours before rain, just enough to finish the peninsula blob and fill the gaps that were remaining from yesterday. The benchwork now looks ready to receive the roadbed and track…
Another productive weekend and although I did not get to finish everything, most of the subroadbed has been cut and fitted on the lower level. I did not get to cut the peninsula blob as I ran out of time.
Today marks a milestone achievement for the layout! All backdrops and uprights have been painted and the benchwork is ready for the next step.
After coming home today, I installed the last few twin track uprights on the peninsula head, completing the major portion of the benchwork. For the kicks, I put couple of brackets on to see what it all looks like together. And it looks good! My crazy idea with a wooden stud cut on angles worked out pretty well.
