I finished the mainline test of my DCC equipped locos.

Out of the 23 DCC equipped locos three have either completely or partially lost their minds while sitting idle for a long time.  Sound human??

Two of the three are 20 year old Rivarossi's with Arnold decoders.  One does not run at all on DCC but I will fire up a DC power pack and test it with DC.  The other is being stubborn and will not accept changes to CV's as listed in the original manual that came with the locomotive.  It runs but there is so much momentum cranked in it takes about 20 feet of track to stop.

The other is a Broadway Limited Pennsy T-1 duplex.  It would not take commands when I first powered it up then ran ok after a reset using CV 8.  Ran for a while and then stopped.  Light stays on but will not reset or take commands.  I will be doing a manual reset as in the DCC instructions but I will need to get into the tender.

Anyway, I did test a freight train behind an Athearn Genesis Big Boy.  Tracked well at varying speeds in forward and reverse.

I did make a couple of repairs to the freight cars that have been sitting in boxes.  How does something break sitting in a box?  Maybe due to being moved seven times over the past 20 years.

First run on this section of powered mainline.

Woo-hoo.  Only took two and a half years to get here.

Not exactly a golden spike moment.  Well, maybe half a rusty HO track nail moment.

Starting with the DCC decoder equipped locos.  Four axle diesels first and progressed up to eight axle units.  Ran forward, backward and at varying speeds and no derailments.

Today I will be testing the DCC equipped steam first and then switching over to DC power to test the locos without decoders.

Then adding freight and passenger cars behind the locos and repeating the testing.

Since the curve radius ranges from 33" to 45"  most of the locos looked good coming around the curves.

The one diesel that looked a bit awkward coming around the curves was the Pennsylvania Railroad Centipede from Broadway Limited.  It looks like this is due to the model being designed with two very long front and rear bolsters.  On each bolster there is the four axle power truck plus the two axle idler truck.  A 100" radius may make these look good.

A few pics from two weeks ago.

This section of the mainline laid down (about 40% of upper level mainline).  It starts as a double track along the long wall on the left and loops around Fuhgeddaboudit Yard on the right.

The yard's arrival and departure tracks connect to the mainline along the long wall on left.  This creates a long siding up to the yard entrance and exit along the wall with the windows.  This should help keep the main clear when traffic starts to backup.

Yes, that is 3/8" threaded rod coming down from the ceiling joists to support the deep overhang.  I just need a couple of smoke stacks to disguise them.

I am using sheet cork roadbed in the areas where there will be a ladder or servicing.  Otherwise strip cork roadbed.

Cork roadbed and track held down with Dap latex caulk.  Except for turnouts which are not secured to the cork.  Since turnouts are usually the part of the trackwork that may require removal, repair or replacement I am not securing them directly to the roadbed.  If necessary I will be able to slide the rail joiners back, remove wiring from the rails and lift them out.

Another look back.  This time to Feb. 12, 2019

Expansion of Gravesend Yard to include a passenger station and coach yard.  Still test fitting on cardboard.

A look back to Oct. 31, 2018

Test fit of the lower level yard (Gravesend Yard).

I laid cardboard over the framing to act as temporary roadbed and used metal T-pins, that I purchased at an office supply store, to hold the track in place on the cardboard.

The colored construction paper is the footprint of structures and provides a good guide for laying track in a crowded yard.

A little layout status update

I started laying track for the mainline for a section of the upper level.  I had expected to complete laying track, dropping feeders, running the track buss and testing by the middle of this week.

Well there are expectations and there is reality.  I may have the track laying complete by mid week.  Then add the feeders and buss to be ready for testing by next weekend.

I was scheduled to host this coming Thursday.  Since our get togethers are on hold it looks like I will be having all the fun alone.

By testing I mean running all my locos.  DCC locos first and then switching power to a power pack and testing the DC locos.  Forward, reverse, slow, medium and fast.  Then add cars and repeat.

Oh, oh I just did a count of my locos.  Turns out I have 23 DCC equipped and 48 DC locos.  I must have had a lot of senior moments since I do not remember when I bought all this stuff.  I guess I blacked out and wound up at train shows.

March 22, 2020

Fuhgeddaboudit

A very useful Brooklyn word that can be used in a positive or negative context.

Examples:
1.  Luigi's Restaurant has the best linguini with clam sauce.  Fuhgeddaboudit if you think you can find any better.
2.  He is dumber than a rock.  Fuhgeddaboudit if you there is anyone dumber.

The Fuhgeddaboudit sign

This is a sign along the Belt Parkway in Brooklyn at the exit that leads to the Verrazano Bridge between the Borough of Brooklyn and Borough of Staten Island.

I note "Borough" since Brooklyn is one of the five boroughs of NY City.  At one time the sign read "You Are Now Leaving Brooklyn Fourth Largest City in America".

The City of Philadelphia took exception to this.  You know Philadelphia, city of brotherly love, home of the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall and a football team we New Yorkers fondly call the Filthydelphia Beagles.

The City of Philadelphia filed a lawsuit against the Borough of Brooklyn demanding that the sign come down since Philly was officially the fourth largest city and Brooklyn was just a lowly borough.  Anyway Philly won so the sign had to change to something unique.

Some more Brooklyn signs

So now I am thinking about names for businesses on the layout.  "How Sweet It Is Candy Company" and The "Oy Vey! Coal Mine".

I forgot to mention how I came up with the name for the railroad.

Originally I planned to model the New York Central Water Level Route.  If you are familiar with NY Central motive power you would probably consider it fairly mundane except for the 4-6-4 Hudson and the big 4-8-4 Niagara.  At one time they had a triplex but that was a one off.

The Pennsylvania Railroad had some unique steam power with their duplexes and a big steam turbine.  In the late sixties the NY Central and the Pennsy merged to form the PennCentral which eventually met its demise and became part of Conrail and Amtrak.

One day I was reading through a copy of Great Model Railroads and saw an article about a Union Pacific layout that spanned the 1930's to the late 1960's.  The UP had some truly unique steam and diesel power.

So now I decide that I would freelance a railroad spanning 1930's to 1969 based on a fictitious merger between the NY Central, the Pennsy and the UP.  I could run Niagaras and Hudsons pulling passenger trains and duplexes, Big Boys, eight axle diesels, gas turbines and a steam turbine pulling heavy freight.

The catch is that none of this will run or look good on curves smaller than about a 30 inch radius.  So my layout needed a minimum radius curve of 36 inches on the main line.

So now I have to build a model that spans a continent.  Lots of scenic opportunities but little reality.

Well hey, its my railroad.  Who needs locations like New York, Cheyenne, Los Angeles, Sherman Hill and Horseshoe Bend?  I certainly do not.

Locations will include Gravesend, Fort Green, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Flatbush, Bay Ridge and Fuhgeddaboudit (I will explain Fuhgeddaboudit in another post).  These are all names of neighborhoods in Brooklyn, New York where I grew up.  Except for Fuhgeddaboudit.

Hey, its my railroad.

March 19, 2020

A little advice when building a model railroad - get help.

This is a major undertaking and given my age I have one shot to get it right.  I will not be tearing it out in 15 years and starting over.

At an NMRA Gateway Division meeting I met Dale DeWitt who I recognized from a meeting of the local camera club.  Dale is a member of a group calling themselves The Gandy Dancers. The Gandy Dancers have been meeting weekly for many years at the members homes.

Note to all - Explain the term Gandy Dancer to your spouse before you receive an e-mail with Gandy Dancer in the title.  Wife envisioning me at a topless bar and getting e-mails from the dancers.

One of the Gandy Dancers members, Tom McKenzie, developed the initial layout design after he and I discussed my givens and druthers.

Over the past two years this group has been my brain trust and has provided quite a bit of guidance and physical labor in building the railroad.  I learned what worked for them and what did not work.  Why duplicate what did not work for someone else when you can have more fun creating your own problems.

Below are a few pics from May, 2018  This is the beginning of the construction of the framing on one side of the room for the upper and lower levels.

The long peninsula in the middle was for the lower level stub yard.  That has been moved to the wall on the left and is now a through yard.

 

March 19, 2020

Starting Point January 8, 2018

We moved into our house on Dec. 31, 2016.  The house had a very large unfinished basement in which I could build my empire.  Additionally the HVAC systems and water heaters were set along a side wall and not centrally located as in most houses.  Lousy for heating, cooling and waiting for the hot water to get where you want it but great for a model railroad.

My wife is a photographer and needed a studio and the basement was the perfect location for one.  It also is a walkout with direct access to the gardens behind our house.

After space negotiations we divided up the basement between photo studio, train room and a combination photo client reception area and train crew lounge.

By the end of 2017 the basement was finished and I could start work on the railroad.  A few pics of the room on Jan. 8, 2018.  Long and narrow - 14 ft. x 41 ft.  Note the multiple waste pipes that must be turned into scenic elements.

This last image shows the "rotisserie".  I got this idea from a Model Railroad Hobbyist Magazine online post.  If I built the railroad in sections and mounted the sections on the rotisserie I could minimize time under the layout.  By rotating the section I could work on top and bottom sitting or standing.

March 18, 2020

I should start this blog off with a question that I have been asking myself.

Why would a 71 year old man want to start a multi-decade project?

I started asking myself that question two years ago when I first launched this model railroad construction project.  I have come up with several answers that read like the answers to a multiple choice question.  There are no wrong answers.

A.  I believe I have an abundance of longevity genes.
B.  It is something I have wanted to do since I was a kid.
C.  I have finally negotiated to obtain space from "The Management".
D.  I need to do something with all that stuff I have been collecting for the last 25 years.
E.  "The Management" has told me I need to do something with all that stuff I have been collecting for the last 25 years.

"The Management" (a.k.a. wonderful wife) has actually been quite understanding through all this and encouraged me to go for it.

I have images from the start of construction in early 2018 that I will start posting along with descriptions of the progress.