Just a few hours left in the month of July, time for the monthly progress report. Due to Patrick's work schedule and some dental troubles, he was only able to spend two afternoons this month. Matt was here 3 times and Jon twice also. As a result, my hours were down too. I still managed to get in more than 2 hours per day average.
In order to see what is going on in the hidden yard, I installed a security camera system.
Each of the 5 cameras is positioned at a stopping zone, a section of track that is controlled by a toggle switch on the panel.
I built this panel to keep track of which engines are where in the yard. The numbers are their TMCC channels.
Here are all 3 pieces of the puzzle ready for action.
Patrick finished the backdrop behind Red Wing Then we put the buildings back in preparation for visitors.
Also during that session, we secured most of the fiberboard for the next section.
I later filled in the missing pieces.
Patrick's next visit, we built the backdrop support wall, and the lighting cross arms.
Not quite ready for track. It still needs Masonite and then that needs painting.
Jon came over, and we brought lighting power to the upper level...
and finished the first string.
Matt spent his time working on locomotives. Most of the engines in this picture would not run on the layout. They suffered from TMCC signal issues.
In addition to lengthening the antenna, he made sure that the railsounds boards had their coils shielded. The factory version is on the right. Our homemade version is on the left.
Then the shield is grounded to pins on the connector.
This is the track plan that I will be working from. I'm sure there will be changes.
I mentioned visitors earlier. That's forum member BandO Bill and his railfan buddy Mike waving from the vestibule of the Mount Vernon, on their way to the Twin Cities. The photo was taken by Craig S. somewhere in Ohio.
Bill and Mike came out to the house. Bill took this one of me inside the helix, rescuing the train. I should have run the track cleaning car around before their visit.
Bill took this one too. Me at the computer giving a Google maps Twin Cities railroad geography lesson. That's Mike in the vest, but what's unusual about this picture is who's standing by the door. Jon (Mill City) doesn't get his image captured very often, so take a good look.
Finally, I shot a few videos this month. You can see the first two further up on this page. The third one was posted in its own topic earlier this month. For those who might have missed it, here it is again. It's a 14 minute trip around the layout. Enjoy!
