Iron Belt layout - track laid (plan w/photos)


Are you planning to do different eras? Maybe run B&O at times and CSX at other times? I love the steel theme, but was wondering what you plan to run.
 
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grande man said:
Are you planning to do different eras? Maybe run B&O at times and CSX at other times? I love the steel theme, but was wondering what you plan to run.
I have some structures for the late-1960's theme, and others for contemporary. They'll be easily interchangeable depending on whether I decide to run B&O or CSX.
 
CSX_road_slug said:
I have some structures for the late-1960's theme, and others for contemporary. They'll be easily interchangeable depending on whether I decide to run B&O or CSX.

An early CSX theme would allow some cool stuff to be run. Have you considered 1986 for "CSX night"? You've got many great options. I can't wait to see where you go with it.
 
grande man said:
An early CSX theme would allow some cool stuff to be run. Have you considered 1986 for "CSX night"? You've got many great options. I can't wait to see where you go with it.
As a C&O derivative, they always have a wide mishmash of schemes - always experimenting. My pike will have lots of vintage B&O/C&O, a pinch of Chessie, some "stealth", and a whole lotta "bright future".

...
Hmmm...shouldn't you be helping the missus prepare for the Turkey Fest?:p

(Yeah I got a lot of room to talk, I know...)
 
Ken just found this thread. OMG!!! that crane is Friggin' awesome. Sorry about the language. Wow. Makes me want to do one, but I'll leave that up to you. Very nice indeed:) :cool: .

In your photo of the southeast portion where the leads and main converge, there is what looks to be styrofoam with kerfs. Is this a commercially made product or did you do that? When I build that would come in handy.

Johnny
 
Thanx Johnny for the kind words!:) I'll need to go back and re-examine the photo you're asking about, before I can give an "intelligent" answer...
 
Steve B said:
Hey guys check out Kens web site, you think the cran and ships are awsome check out the blast furnace and BOF, awsome stuff Ken, it will look superb on the layout

Thanx Steve for the "plug" for my old website, I stopped advertising it because my photography skills back then were sub-par, plus alot of the images with simulated hot metal were...digitally doctored:eek:. I didn't realize in those days of blissful ignorance, how much that practice is despised in the model railroading community!
 
Roadbed latexing (no trains, kinda' boring...)

Hi yall,

With all of the pre-Christmas activity going on, I aven't really had much time to make any dramatic changes to the Iron Belt layout recently. As some of the photos indicate, my track is still not all permanently leveled and/or secured. Before I put all the rolling stock back on, I want to get an initial layer of latex on all the unfinished areas so they won't have that ugly "plywood pacific" appearance. Just as important, I need to get all the tracks painted and the roadbed ballasted - that would be extremely difficult for me (psychologically at least) to do once I have trains sitting all over it!:D

Anyway, I figured I could post a few pics of what I've been doing a little bit each day over the past 40 days. Don't be alarmed when you see paint glopped all over the track in some areas - I've test-run trains over all of it since then and they did not hesitate anywhere.

Here is what the staging yard currently looks like:
ahf.jpg


These are the tools and supplies I needed. Note the label on the top of the paint can, always save that so you can get more of exactly the same blend when you inevitably run out.
ahg.jpg


Since I wanted to avoid splashing any paint on the moving parts of turnouts, I used a micro-fine brush to apply paint to the ties and ground beneath them...
ahh.jpg


...and for everything else, a 1-inch diameter stiff-bristle brush for glopping and shoving paint onto, and completely around, the track and ties:
ahi.jpg


When the paint was semi-dried, I used a 1-inch scrap of roadbed cork to wipe, or scrape [if dried] the paint from the tops of the rails. Cork is the optimum material for this job, since it is firm enough to avoid sagging and wiping the ties, yet soft enough not to scratch the nickel silver rails.
ahj.jpg


...and thats "the way it is" as of Saturday, December 3, 2005! :D
 
I knew you had to be getting something done and it looks like a lot. ;) You are wise to get as much done as you can before you attempt any serious operating. It is very hard to have operatius interruptus once you get ops fever. Sometimes I have to tell my self...'only a test run'...'only a test run'... and finally an hour or so later I will get back to work.:eek: :D
 
Ken, that looks a bit drastic with the big brush but it's a good way of doing it, my paint's on order so i can try it for my self, Never mind the Digitally Doctored pictures on your web site, They are GREAT
 
Steve B said:
Ken, that looks a bit drastic with the big brush but it's a good way of doing it, my paint's on order so i can try it for my self

Steve - and anybody else thinking of trying this approach - please make sure your tracks are soldered either (1) directly to feeder wires or (2) to an adjoining section that is hard-wired. Don't glop paint on tracks connected ONLY by unsoldered joiners.:eek: Trust me, I made that mistake the first time I tried this on my old layout 10 years ago and paid dearly for it...:eek:
 
OMG!:eek: OMG!:eek: i JUST found this thread, and i JUST came back from your website.:eek: i seen the crane, the ship, etc.:eek: CRIPES Ken, YOU are one heck of an AWESOME modeler!!:eek::D;) oh man Ken, i feel about this big(reduces the space between my fingers to the size of a spec of dust). i wish i had known this thread existed long before tonight. i had NO idea, just happened to LUCK out and find it.:eek::eek::D this forum is so big, and i just quickly scan through half of it, heck, there are sections i haven't even been in yet.:eek: GLAD i found this thread tonight, cant wait to see more progress.;) GREAT WORK! Ken,:D -Dean
 
I ain't as good as I once...oh drat, Toby Kieth already claimed that line!

Dean, thanx for the compliments...but gosh you're embarassing me!:eek: The 'hidden cost' of my obsession with those large structures is that I allowed other critical skills (esp. tracklaying and electrical) to atrophy, that's part of the reason it took almost 5 years for me to get off my hindquarters and build a layout for those things to live on. If it wasn't for people here and on the "other forum" guiding me along the way, I'd never have gotten to this point!

Andy - that's my staging yard toward the left of the picture, I haven't quite decided what I want to do with those 'dead-end' [not yet painted] tracks on the right - probably a small diesel service facility, since one of them is my DCC programming track. As for the 'monster brush', I needed that to be able to shove the latex paint under- and between the ties; the dispoable sponge brushes I had been using simply didn't 'cut it' for covering those hard-to-reach bare spots.
 
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But I'm as good once, as I ever was...

For cryin' out loud man, Youve been kickin' butt and takin' names!! Ken it looks awesome!. I forgot about this thread. Sure am glad I stumbled back into it. How many cars that yard gonna hold?

I couldn't resist the Toby Keith thing, seen the video? It's a hoot!

I really like what your doing and the way it's all designed. I'm sure, just by the size of it, you must be proud with the way it's looking so far. Incredible. Keep up the great work.

Merry Christmas,
Johnny
 



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