April Update and the Golden Spike!

Welcome to the April update. A lot of progress on the Los Angeles Division was made this month! There is still more work to do, but it's getting very close. Interestingly, this was a month of 'lasts', not 'firsts'.

I was able to complete the Ventura Branch trackage. In my March update, I was approaching the end of the branch.

The yet to be completed part of the Ventura Branch was to the right of Coast Staging above. This is primarily crude oil country. A number of tank cars will be required to service this area for oil loading. Boxcars and covered hoppers will service the drilling and drilling supply companies.

First up was to get the two spot industry track in place. A run around is located here. I hope this proves to be interesting for operations. If you're going to use the run around, you will need to move and replace the cars spotted at the industry.

 

I continued working my way up the branch laying track. 

Despite the look of things, there is a plan here. I prefer to assemble the track first before attaching it. I do this to make sure everything fits together as designed. 

In the foreground are the pieces of scrap track that I have on hand. I try to use the scrap for the short pieces as much as possible. I have very little scrap on hand thus far.

And all of the trackwork has been completed. 

I'll be installing a backdrop on the end at the window. This will be useful for keeping cars from launching off of the end and flying 12' down to the stairs below. I can guarantee that the equipment wouldn't be usable after that drop. 

A view of the opposite end toward the corner and Coast Staging. Up next is feeder installation followed by the painting crew, who will change the benchwork color from gray to brown. The brown makes such a positive difference! 

With the Ventura Branch trackage complete, that is the first last, the last of the upper level track along the walls is now complete. 

The major target for the month of April was to complete the upper level of the GEMCO peninsula and have all the track installed. 

When I last halted track laying on the upper level, I stopped just to the right of the 101 Freeway across from Moorpark. Now it was time to get the rest of the peninsula built. 

In the months prior to getting to this point, I was continually thinking about how the upper level would be supported. In the March update, I demonstrated where all the legs were added to support the upper level. 

The cross members for the upper level are clamped in place and ready for welding. The end of the peninsula will be the last of the steel construction. 

Time to weld! I began welding at the far end. This is where the cords for the welder are stretched to the maximum. In hindsight, an outlet mounted in the floor would have been helpful. During construction of the building, I was reluctant to commit to a floor mounted outlet as I didn't want any ending up in the aisles and becoming a tripping hazard.

As I began welding, the work  quickly came to an abrupt stop. Nothing was feeding to my welding gun. What? What is wrong? 

I suspected the spool of welding wire had run out. It had. Crap! I quickly went to the computer and Amazon and overnight delivery!

When the new spool arrived the next day. I was back in business. This was the last spool of wire needed to complete the railroad. 

In order to finish the end of the GEMCO peninsula, a template was needed to determine the locations and lengths of the crossmembers. Now, where is that cardboard template? If you recall, I made a cardboard circle template to map out where the single track helix would be. 

That template is pictured to the right from August of 2024. 

Where is that template now? It has been recycled! In my haste to get it out of the room and out of my way,  I cut it up and put in the recycle bin. It's been gone for months. Drat!

It was now time to cobble together pieces of carboard to make a 80" diameter circle that to lay out the benchwork required for the peninsula end. 

With no big pieces on hand, I hot glued multiple pieces together to form enough of a circle to make a template. Hot glue saved me again. 

I really only needed about 240 degrees of a circle, so this did the job.

Now that I had a usable template, it was time to start laying out the benchwork. The image to right and the one following are views of each end of the template. 

As you can see, the steel under the template is being placed for final measurements. I made sure to double check everything prior to welding. Notice the welding blankets are already in place. 

More pictures of the welding. Time to move the template around again! It's big, bulky, and regularly in the way. 

Welding is now complete. I'm happy with the result and the stability. My contingency was to add extra cross bracing as needed. Fortunately, it has not been needed. The blocks of plywood on the benchwork are the risers. 50+ riser legs. They will all be mounted and leveled prior to being covered with OSB.

With the OSB cut, it was time to get that template out of the room and into the recycling bin. This was the last circle template needed. 

My strategy here was to use the OSB lengthwise from left to right. That enabled me to install the drywall turned 90 degrees and eliminate joints from being lined up. It takes two sheets of OSB and two sheets of drywall to get this accomplished. 

When you're working solo, you need to get creative when lifting and supporting the OSB. In this case, it is lifted in order to allow me to apply wood glue to the top of each riser. 

With the OSB in place, I screwed the top to each riser. In the picture, I'm using a 6' straight edge to provide me an alignment guide for screwing. It worked great! I would use the tape measure to determine the depth by measuring from the end to the beginning of the targeted riser. Add 3/4" to the length and I had a perfect hit rate.

And a look from below. This is the last sheet of OSB used for the build. 

Next up was to begin laying out the drywall for marking and cutting. 

I clamped the drywall to hold it in place while I marked the lines for the cut on the other piece. 

I was relieved to realize that this was the last time I would lug 4x8' drywall sheets up and down the stairs solo. Even though it is referred to as 'lightweight' drywall, it is still heavy and awkward. As I do all my drywall cutting outside of the layout room, that requires me to take the sheets downstairs for cutting. 

To the right is a view of the other end. At the edge of the drywall is the OSB base layer extending 4" beyond the drywall. It will be used as a splice plate.

This was the last riser to be installed on the railroad. It is leveled and clamped in place. The three screws to attach the legs to crossmember have yet to be installed.

The next series of pictures are the completion of the drywall installation on the peninsula. Not the 'last' piece of drywall. Almost though. 

Time to get more of the roadbed installed. I had run out of curvable notched pieces of Homabed. I spent quality time using my bandsaw to make straight pieces, notched and flexible for making curves. 

Apparently I was moving too quickly to get the roadbed laid down. In doing so, I neglected to take many pictures of the roadbed installation. 

Time to buy the last gallon of gray paint. I typically paint the drywall and roadbed gray. Gray will remain under the track to make any thin spots in the ballast less noticeable. 

To date, I have used 11 gallons of gray tinted drywall primer. I quickly realized that I wasn't going to have enough paint to complete the remaining benchwork and roadbed. Off I went to my favorite big box hardware store to buy another gallon. Of course, I now have more gray paint than I will use. I guess I'll store that can under the railroad ...along with a lot of other stuff.

Finally it was time to lay some track. I started with the main track coming into Camarillo next to the 101 Freeway. 

The main track was installed through Somis. The curves are super-elevated. I think this will look awesome as the trains roll around the end of the peninsula. 

With the main installed, it was time to fill in the sidings and spurs. I started in Camarillo. 

The west end of Camarillo is complete. 

The east end of Camarillo was next to be completed. 

Track density is one of the big differences between the upper and main levels. I intentionally designed the upper level to be less dense. A reflection of the prototype. This also stretches out the upper level to avoid having trains in two towns at once. 

On the aisle side of the main is a long spur on the east end of Camarillo. The 101 Freeway will go over it. That is represented by the black road going across the benchwork between the turnouts. I'm looking forward to seeing it populated with rolling stock, buildings, scenery, and an elevated 101 Freeway. 

Up next was the installation of the remaining track in Somis. 

One cool thing about the track here is that sugar beet loading continued into my era. That means the beet trains headed west to the sugar plant in Betteravia, will pick up loaded beet gons in Somis as part of the journey west. 

In the aisle are the aluminum benches I stand on when I'm  laying trackwork. Once all the construction is complete, they will leave the room and go to the garage. To be in my way there.

Here is another look at the Camarillo track with Somis in the distance on the right side of the peninsula. 

Camarillo is in the foreground. The roadbed in Moorpark has been completed in the background on the left side of the peninsula. Moorpark is ready for track!

Another look at the end of the peninsula ready to complete the main level trackwork. 

As the track leaves Moorpark heading west toward the TV on the wall, it will transition to the helix connecting the upper and main levels. In order to ready the helix for connection, I first had to raise it. 

I'm following a similar method to set the helix grade as I did on the 1 2/3 turn staging helix. I put twelve risers under the base level of the helix. The height of the risers increase around the helix base making roughly a 1.4% grade. 

Once the grade was set, I add spacers to stretch and lift the helix. To the right is a box of precut spacers. I use clear pine. 

Spacer installation continued. It actually went pretty quick. Once all of the spacers are in place, I then determine if any additional trimming is needed. Of course there is. All were lowered by 1/8". Apparently I had a calculation issue on my spreadsheet. 

The helix has been lifted. The remaining pieces to be added will connect to the upper level benchwork. This will require some custom pieces for the transition. 

I moved over to the East Staging helix to complete the lift there.

The helix is lifted and leveled. This is a double track helix. As above, the transition pieces need to be fabricated. 

An additional challenge to the connection of the helix to the benchwork was ensuring that I had enough clearance for trains to pass underneath. This required some additional adjustments to the spacers. 

The transition from the helix to the main level is being mocked up for fabrication. I used a thin balsa wood shim under the masonite to match the height of the Homabed. It worked perfectly.

Getting ready to install the last of the pop rivets. I'm SO glad I bought the battery powered pop riveter. I've installed well over 600 pop rivets during construction of the three helices. Having the riveter saved me a ton of time versus installing the rivets by hand. My forearm is still normal size. Had I done it manually, I may have looked like Popeye.

The two mains are mocked in as I develop the transition to the helix. All was looking good. 

The transition has been mounted. I used liquid nails and wood glue to secure it in place. The drill and the tape measure worked well as weights while the glue dried. 

Here we have the last tube of caulk ready to complete the track laying on the double track helix. Once track laying is completed, the caulk will move to Moorpark.

On the left, the main track coming from Taylor is in place connecting to the inside track of the helix. The caulk is being laid down in preparation for connection to the helix outside track. 

Ready for that last piece of track. 

The last piece of track was added. This connected to the outside track of the helix. The Taylor peninsula was completed.

I ended up with a 1/4" of space over my minimum clearance. The transition is nice and smooth. I'm very happy with the result. 

Back to the single track helix and making the connection.

The first step was to finish the benchwork. I wanted to have a rigid connection for the helix transition, I opted to make an OSB plate as a backer for the drywall. Note: I have quite a scrap pile of OSB as a result of the layout construction. 

Readying for the last of the leg only risers to support the OSB plate. Here I am drilling the last hole in steel benchwork. So many holes have been drilled during the construction. I have most certainly received my money's worth from the Ryobi right angle drill.

The scrap box below was thrown away soon after this picture. It was in debris catching service for over 8 years.

The last piece of drywall was cut, contoured, and ready to be installed. This will provide matched benchwork as it aligns with the helix.

Pictured is the installation of the drywall and the last tube of Liquid Nails. 

The next task was to build the transition to connect the helix and the benchwork. 

I used an extra piece of helix top to set the radius. It worked very well!

The lifted helix now has the transition attached to both the helix and the benchwork. The clamps are holding masonite top pieces in place as the glue dries. By laminating the top pieces, I gain additional strength over the span. This is similar to how the helices are constructed. The tape measure is used as a weight again. This is the last piece of benchwork glued with Titebond. I've used nearly 2 gallons of wood glue during the construction. 

With the transition complete, the roadbed for Moorpark was completed shortly thereafter. 

Connecting the roadbed to the helix. 

With the last of the roadbed installed, it was time to install the track. 

I used a LOT of Homabed. There was a small amount left over. If you're looking for Homabed, let me know, I have some extra on hand that I will not use. 

The larger box is the main track roadbed. The smaller box below is the branch roadbed. Overall, I guesstimated well. This is minimal extra given the size of the layout. I'm pretty happy about that!

Both boxes have been combined and the bigger box is sitting in my recycle bin. 

At this point, I have rounded the corner and am mashing the accelerator to get to the finish line. 

The Moorpark track is laid out and ready for installation. The super-elevation tape is the black line on the roadbed in the foreground. 

The last turnout is being readied for installation. I have been using Vasoline on the back of every throw bar. ...well, I think I may have missed a couple. The Vasoline is applied to prevent the throw bar from being accidentally glued down when installing ballast. I have some real model railroad examples (not mine), of turnouts being glued and frozen as the ballast was installed. This should prevent that. 

All of the track has been laid except for two pieces. 

Another view of the completed Moorpark track.

With almost all the track installed, I took a moment to see how much scrap Peco track I had remining. What is pictured is the remaining pieces and measures less than 3 feet. All in all, pretty darn efficient!

And drum roll... installation of the final two pieces of track. Here is the series. 

I'm in the foreground and Jason is in the background. We are installing the last two pieces of track and then contouring the track to make sure everything is smooth. 

And with the installation of the last piece of track, it was time for a celebration drink and the Golden Spike. No, that was not a full bottle of whiskey when the celebration started. 

Now that the Golden Spike is installed. It was time for a few more photos!

The Central Pacific Jupiter and the Union Pacific #119 rolled in for a photo op.

Next to arrive were the colorful locomotives. SSW 9389, SP 7342, and SP 7526.

The locos met nose to nose at the Golden Spike.

In order to protect the Golden Spike, Southern Pacific sent the railroad police to secure the site. I'm happy to report all is safe and secure. 

Now that all of the track has been laid, I can take a moment to reflect. It has been a long journey to get to this point. While the railroad isn't 'done', I now have achieved one of the biggest milestones in this process. The next milestone is the first operating session. 

While I reflect, those of you on my mailing list have receive the below message regarding track completion:

"As Superintendent of the Southern Pacific Los Angeles Division, I am proud to announce that the final section of track was installed today, This accomplishment completes track installation for the entire modeled division.

I would like to thank Jason Rempel, Chief Engineer, for his commitment and help in achieving this goal.

I'd also like to thank Jennifer Watson, Asst. Superintendent,  for her charismatic support during the railroad development and construction.. 

A special thank you to Tim Costello, Right of Way Supervisor, for his maintenance of the right of way during Los Angeles Division construction."

I would also add to that Kevin Looff and Frank Borkowski for their help along the way. 

I regularly get questions about the railroad from model railroaders and non-model railroaders alike. Below are statistics about the railroad:

Construction

1x1" steel tube: 2110' 

4x8' sheets of plywood and OSB - 19

4x8'  sheets of drywall - 131

Spools of MIG welding wire - 3

Wire

12g & 14g stranded wire - 1+ miles

22g solid feeder wire - 1000'+

Adhesives

Tubes of Liquid Nails - 43

Tubes of Alex Plus caulk - 55

Rail Joiners  - 5088 

Flex Track 

Peco code 83 - 3063'

Atlas code 83 - 1125'

Turnouts - 437 total

Peco #5L - 73

Peco #5R - 84

Peco #6L - 109

Peco #6R - 119

Peco #8L - 15

Peco #8R - 15

Peco #7L curved - 6

Peco #7R curved - 8

Peco #4 wye - 3

Walthers Double Crossover - 1

Walthers 6.5L curved - 1

Walthers 6.5R curved - 2

Walthers 7.0L curved - 1

Turnout packages -->

Crossings - 5

2 - 90

2 - 45

1 - 30

I hope you've enjoyed this long update. I'm glad to have reached this milestone! I plan to keep the blog going as the railroad progresses and continue monthly updates. There is still a LOT of work to do. I'll be implementing some innovative designs as I continue to evolve the railroad. 

Rick