3 x 20 Industrial Spur Switching Layout


L

Laidoffsick

3 Railer
Yes it is 3 rail, thank you for noticing ;) 3' wide x 20' long, with a liftout section to span the door. Originally it was going to be a smaller static display to photograph all the custom work I do for clients and/or Ebay. Now it's grown and will be fully functional to switch cars.

The frame was bulit with leftover wood flooring from my bar and gameroom. Bellawood Austrailan Cypress, very hard and durable, yes a bit over board but I was gonna throw it away anyway so what the heck.

Got the stringers up for the backdrop, and most of the masonite up now although I haven't got the pix of the hardboard instalation yet. Kinda stuck at the door section right now as to the best way to do it. I know what I'm gonna do, just need to bust out the saws to make the intricut cuts.

Track lighting has been installed with a light every 2' for now. They alternate, spot, flood, spot, flood and so on so I have the ability to really light up a section when I need to shoot photos. If I have to, I will add lights to make them every 18" instead of every 2'.

Messing around with some track for spacing reasons. I already have my track plan figured out but maybe changed during construction. Working for the railroad really helps planning a switching layout as far as knowing where i need a siding/runaround and things like that.
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The Liftout section across the door:

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Preparing for the hardboard backdrop. The cord is for the track lighting that plugs into a switched outlet, it will be hidden behind the backdrop.

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Lots of adjustable lighting:

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WOW looks like a great start! 3-rail huh? Now thats something you dont see much lol. The lighting looks good too, im going to need to do that at one time or another for my M&ET layout lol
 
My big question at the moment is whether to paint the back drop with the usual blue, white, and some scattered clouds OR spend the $400-$500 and cover the 4' x 20' backdrop with a print from Backdrop Wharehouse?????

Though I spent hours looking at their website, I can't really find one that will blend in with the industrial spur look I'm going for.
 
I think I'd go with the painted masonite back drop. No point in paying those kind of prices if you can find a satisfatory photo back drop.
 
Got the masonite up today. Joint compound is drying. Tomorrw it's sanding and maybe some primer, then more sanding, joint compond, sanding, and more primer. It's been over 100 degrees here and I hate sanding anyway :( We'll see how it goes tomorrow ;)

The piece over the door will be fastened with velcro strips so I can remove it along with the liftout in front of the door inorder to maintain use of the door. The room has double doors leading outside but the small door leads to the garage and all the tools. I thought about blocking the door permanently but...... NAH!

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Very nice!

One question on the track lighting - can an operator throw shadows onto the layout? I'm trying to decide between track lighting or an overhead valance for my shelf layout.
 
Well the ceiling in this room is 9'... not the standard 8', so the lights are very high, they have lots of adjustment, and are centered primarily on the middle of the "shelf". I am 6' 3" and haven't had any issue with shadows. I did have shadows when I had fewer lights, but only because it was lacking coverage. Thats why I add more lights, and alternate spots with floods. Depending how much it darkens up once I get some track and scenery down, I may add more lights as the bulbs are only 50 watt anyways. I also replaced the standard wall switch with a slide dimmer switch so having too much light is not even possible. I am installing mirrors on both ends of the layout as well, so that should make it even brighter, besides making it appear longer than it is. I have tons of options with this type of lighting, and considering the fact that I am building it for photo shoots, it should work out perfect.
 
very nice switching layout.can"t wait to see it further along.
 
Well I haven't had much time or $$ lately as it's all gone towards some major repairs/maintenance on my truck. You know, new driveshaft, wheel bearing hub assemblies, brakes, calipers, brackets etc etc. You get the idea.

Finally I had some time to do some work on the layout. Got the back drop sanded and primed with Kilz. Cut all the plywood for the sub-base and attached it, including the liftout section across the door.

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I'm not happy with the pull out section of the backdrop that goes over the door so I'll make a few modifications to it before I paint the sky on. I need to redo the 2 joints anyway so it's gettin there.

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We had a little earth movent here in CA and it cracked the joints in the backdrop. I'm gonna have to bust out the joint compound and tape and redo the joints. I was hoping to get away with not taping the joints, but too much movement for one reason or another here in CA.

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A quick "sketch" of the track plan. Remember this is O scale, everything is HUGE! lol

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Wow..!! That's some nice prep work and bench....What did you finally decide for the backdrop..??
3-Rail...that's a "novelty" around these parts....
 
Well for the backdrop I'm gonna spend about $50 and paint it myself. Nice blend of blues and white for the horizon and maybe some clouds later on after I get some buildings or fronts in place. I decided to pass on spending $500 on BackDrop Wharehouse coverings ;) They look awesome but O scale is expensive as it is w/o throwing down 5 bills on some wall paper.:rolleyes:
 
Got the 1/2" Homasote cut and installed. Experimenting with different levels of roadbed for the tracks (main, siding, and industry track), and the base coat painted on the back drop. Not to worry, I have lots of fading, horizon, and clouds to do yet so when it's all done, you'll only have the solid blue towards the top 1/3 or so.
 
Detail shots of the liftout and pullout sections for the doorway. I debated blocking the door, but it leads to the garage, so I don't want to lose access especially during the construction. Up next I need to order the 2 mirrors for the ends, and decide what I'm using for the 3 different levels of roadbed.
 
Very nice work so far. I really like the way you handled the door problem. When I lived in California, I had the same problem with small earthquakes opening up cracks in the masonite seams. I finally did the seams with bathtub caulk, which might seem odd, but it's flexible enough to take some movement without showing cracks through the paint. Since you just have the backdrop only in one color of blue, now is a good time to consider the idea.
 
Thats exactly what I did and then some! I chipped out the spackle that was in there and filled the seam with latex caulk. Then when the drywall guy was here the other day texture matching a repair in the ceiling downstairs, I had him tape it up and feather it out with mud. Lightly sanded it, a couple coats of Kilz, and then the blue paint. I shouldn't have any more trouble with the seams and cracking now. Hopefully! :)
 
Well I haven't got much progress to show yet. It's been all about collecting materials for the next steps. Roadbed from California Roadbed, more track, turnouts, paint to finish the back drop, and the 2 pieces of mirror for the ends. Also been doing some experimenting with Kadee couplers, and 2 rail wheels with the gargraves track and Ross Custom switches. Even though it's 3 rail, I'm gonna run Kadee's on everything because it looks so much better. Now I'm experimenting with the under track magnets, and above tie magnets. Just waiting for everything to get here. Ohhhhhh, and I'm still working with the track layout, because I'm not happy with what I have. I have to finish some custom buildings so I have a better idea of space, arrangement, and turnout placement to get all the cars spotted in both directions.
 
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