October Construction Update

October was the month of staging construction. The tracks in the staging yards keep getting longer as I'm installing them. After some thought, I am increasing the maximum train length from 25 to 30 cars. The length is based on a train of thirty 50' cars, plus locos and caboose. 

Work on the Harbor and Valley staging yards continued. As I mentioned previously, a lot of work was put into making the back end of staging perfect. Trains will be turned in the staging yard via the connecting and bypass tracks between the two yards. The entire section is electrically isolated to enable moving trains during the staging process.

The staging tracks will use Tortoise switch machines to align the turnouts. Turnout control will come from a panel and will align both ends of the staging yard. As I develop the panels in the next couple of months, I'll post more information as to my method. I have a few cool things planned.

As referred to in the last blog update, all turnout motors use a sprung phosphor bronze wire to move the turnout throw bars. 

To the right is a view of the completed Harbor staging yard 'staging end' and body tracks. The start of the Valley staging yard 'staging end' is on the right side of the centerline. I have been pretty impressed with the consistency of the radius for each track. The fixtures I mentioned in my last update made making the tracks parallel very easy. The result is a consistent radius. And, it looks good!

The Harbor tracks laid out nicely. It was critical to lay the interior (closest to the fascia) track first. All other tracks are offset from the radius of the first track. Again, the track alignment tools were critical to aligning the tracks efficiently and consistently. 

In order to access the staging level, I decided that helix would be the best way to go. I had a local CNC cutting business do the work for me with their CNC Router. Thanks to my friend Kevin Looff for his suggestions and creation of the CAD drawings. As a result, I have a workable and usable solution for my helices. 

In preparation for the installation of the first helix, I built out the benchwork to support the helix and provide access to the staging yards. The next series of photos are of the benchwork construction. All was fabricated in the train room. Legs for the main and upper levels were added too. 

I opted to build out a structure that would provide a solid base for the helix. Meaning, it was off to my local big box store to buy plywood. After working through a very large stack of plywood, two reasonably good 4'x8' sheets were found. It is disgusting that today's plywood is of such poor quality. It warps quickly. Lesson learned: buy it, cut it, and install it as quickly as possible. 

The two track helix at the freestanding end of the peninsula is planned to be 1 2/3 turns. The spline(s) will connect to the upper end of the helix and the bottom will connect to the Valley and Harbor staging yards independently.

In the view to the right, you can see the CNC cut masonite pieces of helix laid out. Each 360 degree circle is composed of 6 segments. Each is a 60 degree piece of the circle. The access hole in the center will be used for helix construction and internal helix access once complete. 

I'll go more into the helix design in a next month's update when I have construction photos. In summary, the helix shelves will be 1/8" thick allowing me to minimize the grade percentage. 

As noted above, a bypass track was added to facilitate the reset process for the staging yards. In the picture to the right, where the Tortoise is located, is the bypass track directed to the lower left. I will be adding an auto reverser, and have insulated the entire loop at the end of the peninsula (behind in this picture).

In the picture below, you can see the bypass track in the distance. It is on the right side of the centerline and beyond the 3 Tortoises oriented diagonally. 

Below is also the beginning of the Valley staging yard. The single completed track near the centerline is the reference base for all of the other staging tracks. Some additional maneuvering is required to navigate the main and upper level legs. The good news is that my radii continue to be very broad. The tightest is 39".

The next series of photos are of Valley yard construction. The tracks ended up longer than originally anticipated. They are 25' to 31' depending on the location in the yard. My maximum train length has now expanded. I've moved from 25 to 30 cars per train. It's looking like the TankTrain will be a minimum of 36 cars. Maybe even 48!

At one point, I was a bit too enthusiastic and laid too many sections of flex track next to the aisle. As it turned out, I had to pull up two sections of track. The good news is that since I use latex caulk to install the track, I was able to easily remove and reuse the track with no damage to the track. Just a bit of clean up. This allowed me to install a smoother radius for the outer staging tracks. Again, maneuvering around the legs. 

After adding more drywall and painting, I was able to get most of the Valley yard ladder completed. This is the end closest to the helix. The Harbor yard end was started. Both yards will be completed in November. And wired too.

In the picture to the right, the Harbor yard is on the left and the Valley yard is on the right. 

You can see Jason has the Tortoises ready to be installed. The phosphor bronze wire is bent, including the spring, and ready to have the length adjusted for the installation. So far this is working out very well. 

In between getting the staging yards constructed, I continued installing feeders and sub-bus wires. While time consuming, there isn't really anything visible to show for it! 

More benchwork for Ventura was installed as well. As noted previously, the key sticking point and challenge is the truss bridge that crosses over the 101 freeway. Again, this is an iconic bridge with portals which aren't perpendicular to the track. I wanted to provide myself enough space to create a reasonable representation of the bridge. With the benchwork in place, the bridge will be 22" long. I am confident that this will be a good representation of the prototype. I will include the 101 freeway below as well. 

Locating the bridge was a bit of a challenge due to it being at a wall corner.

The bridge location has moved closer to the corner of the wall which will allow the longer length. My challenge was aligning the main while keeping a broad radius. I'm pretty happy with the results thus far. While I'm still getting the roadbed installed, I'll be moving to trackwork in November. 

Below is a series on this area. I'll likely modify and trim the benchwork a bit more for continuity. 

After getting the electro-magnets installed in the Violet Alley area, I re-installed track on the south end, and finished laying the north end track. The wye was completed as well. 

The Tortoise motors will be hidden behind the backdrop and inside of buildings. The prototype Violet Alley is 80+ car spots that were 'hidden' in an alley. On the prototype, all the cars in the alley were pulled out, the outbound cars were pulled from the cut, the inbound cars were inserted into the cut based on the industry location, and then shoved into place. My representation of this job will be quite challenging!

For reference, the track diagram is below. The green tracks paralleling the wall are the Violet Alley tracks. In the pictures above, things will get a bit more isolated once I add the backdrops and buildings. I'm holding off on backdrops until I've completed construction, and wiring, and testing! 

I'm continuing to plow forward trying to get the layout completed. There is no doubt that the LA Division will be hosting at least one operating session for Desert Ops 2024. Of course, the Exeter Branch will host two or more sessions as always. My push is to get the LA Division done. I continue with my goal of having trains running by the end of the year. I still have a lot of work to do, but I'm moving forward. 

For what I call 'cool new stuff', I had SP Los Angeles Division stickers/decals made. I created the logo over 15 years ago. I've had shirts, hats, and jackets embroidered with my logo. I decided to get some 2.5" stickers made and am very happy with the result. They have already made their way onto the back window of two vehicles in the Watson household!

That wraps it up for this update. For November, I'm planning to get the upper level to about 60% complete and the main level to about 90% complete. Again, the push is to have trains running by the end of the year. Fingers crossed!!