Model Railroading > Progress Pictures - The 2018 Penn Central

I have been pretty buried-work-wise but wanted to share a number of progress pictures with the group. I have been pretty busy on the layout as well, as I set the beginnings of many structures into their proper places all over the layout and enhance others gradually that were started a while back. I still have two complete peninsulas to build - the port peninsula that is about 31'-3" x 2'-10"), and the second major mainline peninsula, which is about 18'-8" x 9'-1". The framing for each should be up by the summer. I also have to complete the benchwork all around the helix to staging after I finish wiring it all....that should also be done by the summer with trackwork starting to round that peninsula shortly thereafter. Staging under the railroad will be set on 1 x 12's prefabbed with track, on the benchwork. All track in staging will be Peco code 100 with Insulfrog turnouts.

This will be a long pair of posts...starting today with more posted tonight. The ultimate goal is to get scenery underway this summer starting at the Grasse River/St Lawrence JCT area.

So let's see what is happening...

We will start with locomotives and related.....Picture 1 and 2 are of PC GEVO 5224, fresh from GE after a major wreck repair, arriving in primer...Selkirk slapped a few decals on it to get it back on the road....

Picture 3 is less than stellar patch on a New Haven GP38, rushed through Altoona after an engine rebuild.

More to come...

Bob

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We'll take a run over to Watertown to look at the small and new locomotive running repair shop there....it supports the units servicing that branch and the local industrial area.

Picture 1 is the new engine house itself....

Picture 2 shows the sand tower and fuel plant - between the rails I will install modern leak-collection trays.

Picture 3 is taken at the small North Watertown station looking at the "Test Signal" I have installed in a primitive way, to see how long these signals will last. It has been lit, day and night, 24/7 for 119 days now....the LED's are holding up well...I bought a ton of these 3-head interlocking signals at under $10.00 a signal. Painted black, their lack of intense detail is not terribly evident. I am making a 3D model of a more proper ladder and landing/access structure that I can 3D-print to replace the factory ladder. but they light well and look quite acceptable. Each head has a red, yellow and green LED in it. Given I can buy 5 to 6 of these for every one 3 head Tomar signal, and the enhanced detail will cost me pennies to make, my entire layout will be signaled at a relatively low cost. These folks made this 3-head signal at my behest and make 2 head and single head ones too.....I am working on him to make target type signals....

Bob



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/20/18 10:13 by navarch2.

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Here is a bit of progress in other industries on the Watertown branch....

Picture 1 is the west end of the Wire Woven Hose Co.plant. The lead rounding the building to the building's right is the running track to the New Your Railcar car and locomotive repair facility.

Picture 2 shows a bit of progress on the Watertown Polymer Products plant. The structure is composed of two Atlas kits, and a Walthers Pellet facility. When completed the model will include a truss pipe bridge over to the plant, and various sundry plant attachments and roof details.

Picture 3 shows the approaches and tracks of the New York Railcar plant. To the right will be an Agway elevator, with 2 sidings feeding it. The Burger King is on the outer edge of the the small downtown area of West Watertown, which will fill the center of the peninsula.

NY Railcar is made from two Walthers paper mill buildings,lengthened by a factor of 2, a Promotex office building, and a Bachmann background facia on the other end. 3 tracks enter the building ( The picture is a few days old - the 3rd track is now in, to the far left...)

Bob

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Last post this afternoon.....more tonight.....

Picture 1 and Picture 2 and Picture 2 are the Calcium Carbonate plant at the south end of St Lawrence Yard. More enhancements are being made regularly. Still a lot of work to go....

Bob



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/20/18 10:17 by navarch2.

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Lots of progress. Always happy to see what's happening.

boejoe Wrote:
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> Lots of progress. Always happy to see what's
> happening.


Ditto to boejoe's comment. Your hard work looks awesome Bob...

Steve H...

Nice structure Bob !! I see pieces of a number of Walthers kits in there and a Bachman industrial piece. --- Ken

Hey who said building a layout is'nt FUN!!!! Great job Bob appreciate the progress photos, shared enthusiasm and enjoy your posts.

Btw that carbonate plant is exceptional, awesome work,
well done.

Alex

Posted from iPhone

Like the NH GP38 even with the CDOT decal but is it real with the PC marks ?, (I have never seen that one)

Ed Stewart
Jacksonville, FL

Bob that's a nice EL lashup behind the GEVO....... good stuff!!

Posted from iPhone

boejoe Wrote:
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> Lots of progress. Always happy to see what's
> happening.

I'll be posting more late tonight or early tomorrow. stay tuned :)

Bob

Thank you Joe and Steve, will keep posting in the future.

It is a lot of work to take on a layout this large....but I have great help and will be posting more about that soon :)

Bob

hartrick24 Wrote:
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> boejoe Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Lots of progress. Always happy to see what's
> > happening.
>
>
> Ditto to boejoe's comment. Your hard work looks
> awesome Bob...
>
> Steve H...

Kemacprr Wrote:
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> Nice structure Bob !! I see pieces of a number of
> Walthers kits in there and a Bachman industrial
> piece. --- Ken

Hopefully it will end up looking as good in reality as it does in my mind...lol... Thank you Ken :)

I will be posting something tonight that you may find interesting for your steel mill....

Bob

EL3672 Wrote:
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> Hey who said building a layout is'nt FUN!!!!
> Great job Bob appreciate the progress photos,
> shared enthusiasm and enjoy your posts.
>
> Btw that carbonate plant is exceptional, awesome
> work,
> well done.
>
> Alex
>
> Posted from iPhone

Thank you Alex.....it is a work in progress...still "designing" it as I go....lots more to do.

I enjoy posting progress images. It is a lot of work to tackle but the kind comments are greatly appreciated.

Bob

calsubd Wrote:
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> Like the NH GP38 even with the CDOT decal but is
> it real with the PC marks ?, (I have never seen
> that one)

Hi Ed....my entire layout concept is a fictional "what-if"...NH never had any GP38's, so that prototype unit itself was a prototype "foobie" painted by CDOT for contemporary Shoreline east service.
MY mistake was missing blacking out the CDOT logo but I fixed that tonight :)

My merger occurred in the year 2000, not 1968. This is why there are 13 SD70ACe's and a few SD70M's painted for PC...and why there are PC SD40-2's, SD39's, SD70 spartan cabs, AC4400's, GEVO's, GP 60's, SD50's and 60's, C415's, M420's, SD80's, SD90-43's, C32-8's, C30-7's, B36's (when Jason gets them out) etc...etc....

I'll post images over time.

Bob

EL3672 Wrote:
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> Bob that's a nice EL lashup behind the GEVO.......
> good stuff!!
>
> Posted from iPhone

That update was easy given the Atlas U23's and Intermountain GEVO's

Well, we can't make a modern-day PC with no Conrail, no CSX, no BNSF and no Guilford, and not upgrade railroads like LV, EL, Chessie, B&M, D&H, BAR, MEC, VTR.....you will see contemporary power and rolling stock from all those railroads on my layout.

Bob