Finally! Storage for Big Steam!

Nicely done Dennis.  I like the bumpers you built with the gravel backing.  I also like the opportunity you have to make the island so you could access both sides of your engines.

Nice solution! I like the independent power switches for each track. Nice craftsmenship.

Looks good, thanks for sharing

Really cool! I like the gravel you choose. It looks like it belongs there with the track.

Looks Great, the Engines look Great, Neat Idea...Wow. Keep us Posted. Happy Railroading.

I was thinking of doing the same thing, but put the parking on casters so the whole island can be moved and connected to the main track from outside the loop at will. I am restricted with space, so when it's time to play, I just move the parking into place and then store it near the layout once finished. I was thinking of a 2'x8' to make two from 4'x8'

BTW, who's BB and AC9...look great!

Nicely done!  

Peter

Great job!!!  What did you use for the ballast?  Looks terrific.

Wow, I love it.  Lots of room for big steam, as you say, although that good-looking yellow set of locos to the left looks pretty good there, too!

nicely done!

Very nice job.

Well done!

Look very real.

Andre.

Thank you all for the great responses and support! It means a lot to me coming from fellow forum members. The current ballast is a mixture of Woodland Scenic Gray blend (B1395) with a touch of brown (B1386) thrown in. I plan to topcoat it with WS black cinders (B1376) and some brush and weeds.

Lee, the first thing my son did was run those fine yellow locomotives into the bumpers. The sad thing is he is 17 and drives a car! Better on the layout than in than in the car, I guess!

NICE JOB! 

Very nice....I love it!

Nice job.....I really liked the way you used the Leds to get a visual as to which track is powered up. Did you purchase those LED's or did you make them up yourself?

-Pete

Dennis

Superb love the toggles at the end to control each siding

Steve

Pete,

I purchased the LED lamp holders from Radio Shack (#276-0271), before they were going out of business. I installed the assembly in a flat washer and glued the washer to the top of a piece of 3/4" gray plastic conduit cut 5/4" long. Both were painted black prior to installation. From there, I just soldered the wires to the rails of the track beneath the stone piles, so when I power up the track section, the light comes on.

Dennis, thank you for the dtailed reply......I really like your idea and the way you constructed it......I like it so much, if you don't mind, I am gonna steal it...

nice job, again

-Pete

I have no patent on it - you're welcome to it! In fact, I'm kinda honored that I could offer something that someone would want to emulate. Thanks for the ego boost 

Did you use three wyes or one wye and 072 switches?

I used 3 wye switches. On the two side-by-side switches, the inner spurs run straight and the outer spurs have an O72 curve on each to make them run parallel.

Dennis - Very nicely done.  They look right at home there.  Are your track bumpers strong enough to withstand those high powered locos?  I have had problems with the ones that I have used giving way under a rough hit.

Art

Full or half 072 curve?

Very impressive work here.

Really creative idea.

Love those engines.

Better on the tracks than on a shelf.

CGWforever,

A full O72 curve gets the outer spurs to run parallel to the inner spurs (no curves attached to the inner spur). The two wye switches are connected to the single wye switch with no additional track.

Art,

So far, my 17 year old son (who drives by the way) has run the UP PA's into one bumper and ran the Big Boy into another! They have flexed slightly but so far have 'held their ground'. If one of the wooden posts falls off, I figure that should look right at home.

Better a bumper give in than break pilots

Who's BB and AC9 please?

Sam,

The AC-9 and the Challenger are the two engines in the pictures and are both my engines. The Big Boy is on the outer loop and isn't in the picture. I have collected those three engines in the last two or three years and are all among my favorites. The AC-9 was upgraded with a cruise board by Boxcar Bill (here on the forum) and is my favorite engine to run. It crawls like a champ! He did a great job! Thinking about doing the same with the Big Boy! It is a little sensitive and inconsistent, but still a great engine.

Thx Dennis, I meant to ask who makes the models....I am guessing Lionel? Thx for the reply though

Oops! Sorry! All three are Lionel. The Challenger is the JLC version.

Nice.   May be fan that out a bit,  fill in either, or both sides, and a Korber 304 house would fit. You would need the extension(s). Tough to fit a TT in there, but it might be possible.  Again wonderful project, I like the bumpers and lights.  Mike CT

Hey, better he learns on model trains than cars.  My youngest had similar experiences driving my trains.  Eventually he turned out to be a superb driver (of both cars and toy trains, I let him drive any of my cars or trains now).