Short month, but still a lot got done. I didn't have my usual strong finish, as I've been a little under the weather, but it got off to such a great start, I'm not at all bothered.
I have a new helper from here on the forum. Scott, screen name Miggy, came over a couple times, and we made some great progress.
The dispatcher's corner is really coming together, both monitors got hung.
Eventually, this one will display the layout schematic. This is actually the ATCS monitor for the Twin Cities, which is the area that I'm modelling. Pretty close representation.
Here we see all 16 security cameras displayed on the left monitor. They cover 3 hidden yards, both helixes, and some other hidden areas of the mainline.
This is Scott, getting right "down" to work, as our first project together was to put in the new counter tops.
He applied the clamps to the miter joint, and fastened the unit to the ledge I built.
Then it was time to go into mass production on uncoupler magnets.
Here we see the prep for inserting the magnet into the GarGraves track. Cut away the center rail, and part of two ties.
Here are a couple more, I'll get back to these in a bit.
I spent an hour calling train shops all over the country looking for these simple bumpers for tubular track. I'm still scratching my head over why these are so hard to find. Many say they are discontinued, but they are listed on page 106 of the brand new 2017 Lionel catalog. Go figure!
As if the layout didn't have enough switches, I decided to add four more. Two will form a third track at the BNSF Midway intermodal yard. The other two will create engine pockets at Midway and Shoreham. More on this later.
With the exception of a single 3 pack, all of the bumpers were installed around the layout. I like these because they are cheap and sturdy, so you can actually bump them.
On Scott's second visit, I showed him how to install the uncoupler magnets. After that, he was off to the races, getting 19 of them done in a single afternoon.
I picked up my new Atlas F7's, for my early Amtrak Empire Builder rainbow. The Pennsy baggage and combo are due for a kitbash and a repaint. Sorry Pennsy fans.
Another thing Scott helped me with was pulling more wires over the door. I think I've got it now.
I took an afternoon, and painted the plywood panels lining the aisles.
Doesn't it feel weird drilling into something brand new? I placed this grommet in the counter top.
This old 50 pair phone cable will be used to control a bank of relays under Red Wing. Those relays will turn track power off and on in both hidden yards, when parking trains. Low power to throw the relays, whose contacts control track power.
I made this table to assign which wire went to which relay.
More of the bumpers installed.
It had been quite a while since I had seen Red Wing. It's clean, and I plan to keep it that way.
Same for Pig's Eye.
A little over a year ago, I started this topic about how to control all of my uncoupler magnets. After a fair amount of discussion, this is what we came up with.
Kudos to GunrunnerJohn for the idea of the capacitive touch sensor, the small boards on either end of this setup.
The next big project is underway. I've already explained bits of it here today. This is the old control area for the big hidden yard (before).
This is what it looks like now. The monitor is gone, its function moved to the big screen. Also gone is the track occupancy board.
After a trip to the table saw, it is over in the new dispatcher's corner, leaner and meaner.
As long as I was going for a cleaner more professional look, gone are the hand written numbers, replaced by vinyl stick ons.
Three of the four switches I mentioned earlier have been cut in and secured. It's a little more difficult to replace track between fixed ends. The pins have to be bent and started, then gently pressed and wiggled into place.
Ta-da!!!
Once again, as if I needed more, I added about a square foot to the layout. This was purely cosmetic, as I wanted the edge of the upper deck to line up with the curve of the lower.
This is right at the entrance to the layout, and that is the duckunder bridge.
Finally, for those of you who may have missed it, I shot a short video of my new Empire Builder in action. Enjoy!!!
