Confessions of a scenery wimp

I admit it. I'm deathly afraid of doing scenery. There, I said it.

Layouts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 had no real scenery. Oh, I built a few structures. I built a few freight cars for layout 2, and even a scratch built bridge. I've never built mountains, roads, trees, grass, or even ballast (my Dad was responsible for our ballast attempt on layout 1). I've read all kinds of articles and books on the various topics, but it has been a huge struggle for me to start.

Well, here is the first attempt at scenicing the track, with "concrete" ties and ballast:


Still a lot to learn. The ballast surface isn't as smooth as I'd like it (modern class 1 track tends to have remarkably even ballast), the color turned out darker than it started before the glue dried, and the rail side color is brighter than I expected. There are other issues, too, that bug me. I consider it a so-so start but on the positive side I'm now familiar with all these techniques and ready to try again.

I took step-by-step pictures of this process, but given that it didn't turn out as well as I'd like I won't bother posting them. Maybe with my next attempt -- there are a lot of things I'm going to try differently.

George Washington's birthday

Lots of little things have happened since the last post on progress. I made a trip to Caboose Hobbies last Tuesday, on the way to Denver airport, then the kids and I made another trip on Saturday. As the momentum builds on the layout I now have 3 kids with definite interest (the other could not care less, but that's cool, too).

So let's see what has happened in the past week:

1. I built a short test section of scenicked track, using leftover blue foam and a bit of leftover Peco track. In the process I learned a few more things that don't work plus some that do, and now I have a test section that looks decent. I will cover the process I used in a later post after I've completed the ballast for first section of track on the main layout.


2. Started the track scenery work on one section of the main layout. In the process I realized I needed to finalize and document my scenery plans for that area of the layout. You see, you can put ballast on the track, but properly done it will "spill over" onto the track side ground. This means you probably should have the track side ground scenery in place, or at least know what it will be so that you know you won't need to do this. If you start thinking about that you then realize that you should also know the exact dimensions of the right of way, which means you probably need to understand the whole scenic plan for that area. So, I've been making drawings and doing research on prototype rights of way and also of the dimensions of things like streets, blocks, buildings, etc. in similar midwestern cities (Google Earth has a nice tool for getting exact linear dimensions.)


3. Lots of decoder work with Daniel. The big effort has involved his Bachmann 4-4-0 from a train set he got 4.5 years ago, a tiny locomotive with a design not updated since 1979. No one in their right mind would add a decoder to such a locomotive, but we have a cunning plan -- and actually it's working really well. We've taken progress pictures and will describe the process in its own post when we finish. Daniel found a way to isolate the motor from the track pickups without having to take the tender (where the motor resides) apart. We plan to house the decoder in the first box car behind the tender. At this point all is working except we need a permanent solution for the box car to get power from the track. We asked for advice on this at Caboose Hobbiesm but they told us to call on Wednesday when their N scale expert is back.


4. Daniel also installed, with my help, a TL1 decoder in a tender of a Proto 2000 2-8-8-2. I installed a DZ123 in this back in 2005 but the rear light in the tender receives direct power from the track, with a small diode/capacitor light board to make sure the light only was on when the DC power was in one direction. On DCC the light was on all the time. The rear light now is controlled by the DCC F4 function, and Daniel did almost all the work himself.


5. Athearn support has been just great regarding decoder problem with the HO scale F59PHI locomotive that I mentioned last week. They sent us a new board which arrived on Saturday, but unfortunately the symptoms persist with the new board. Sent them a follow-up email this morning.


6. Daniel successfully installed 4 other decoders in various Kato and Atlas Santa Fe locomotives. We can now run the Super Chief train that we got in 2006, tested once on DC, and hadn't run since! Unfortunately, the motors for the F7Bs both are now failing to run intermittently. We've taken them apart and verified the problem is the motor itself. Kato doesn't have a support line like Athearn, Atlas and Digitrax so I'm stuck right now. I'll post a question to an on-line group.


7. We started trying to figure out how to add a decoder to an Athearn 2-8-0. Couldn't find any instructions on line, except a couple comments that it can be done. I bought a TCS M1 decoder at Caboose Hobbies because this is thought to be the absolutely tiniest decoder available, and it does fit under the plastic coal load in the tender if you scrape out some of the excess plastic from the casting process. It looks like wiring up the motor won't be too hard, but the front light appears to be independently powered from the engine's pickup wheels, so I'm not yet sure how we'll wire that from the decoder in the tender.


8. Daniel solved a clicking problem with a Kato F7A locomotive. Found some debris that got caught in the gears above one wheel. Good to get this experience, as we are both gaining confidence in our abilities to address N scale locomotive problems. We are certainly not experts yet, but we're not novices anymore either.


9. Picked up some scenery books at Caboose Hobbies, including one on backdrops that my oldest daughter, Paige, picked out because she is interested in painting them.


10. I also wrote some posts earlier last week while traveling, including a third one on the detailed design (for the freight yard) that is nearly ready for publication.

For the coming week the focus continues to be scenery. The goal is to complete at least the track and track side scenery for the SAMR line -- about 21 feet, double-tracked, with 9 switches. Almost certain not to be completed in one week, but want to have portions that are complete.

Monday, Monday

Did manage to clear my work desk of half-finished projects, as I'd hoped. The last one was finishing up the BNSF decoder install. The problem was simply that one of the motor wires was folded up and subsequently too short to reach the decoder.

Alas, once I got the BNSF dash 8 running it was apparent that the motor squeaked and needs cleaning. Back on the problem log -- but at least a little closer to working.

As a side note, while my son Daniel was doing some math I picked up an old project to convert an Athearn F59 PHI locomotive (in full New Mexico Rail Runner dress) to DCC. I wanted to test the decoder with the NCE tester I mentioned in the last post. Well, decoder is fine, problem is with the Athearn board, so I sent an email off to their help line. We'll see what happens. I'd like to get a small HO layout set up using the Bachmann roadbed track just so Daniel can play with it a few more times before he goes to college.

Best Laid Plans ....

I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work. -- Thomas Edison

Of course Edison was describing his attempts to invent wonderful things. I'm only trying to find a way to make my track look realistic. But I seem well on my way to finding 10,000 ways of not making my track look realistic.

I suppose I could give up ... but I expect to live with this layout for decades so I'd really like to get this part right.

Part of the problem has been lack of correct materials. I drove around Saturday trying to find Matte Medium ... it's so prevalent in Model Railroad books that I thought I could find it somewhere local at one of the various "hobby" stores, but nada. There are a few other suggested ingredients, but that one was key. Oh well -- I have to fly to visit a customer Tuesday and I'll drop by Caboose Hobbies along the way. Then make another attempt at track scenery later this week.

For what it's worth I did make some progress. I've figured out the measurements, including slope grades, for the track sides and found a really good mix of ballast. And I have a test sample track-with-roadbed-and-subroadbed just waiting for experimentation when I get back from my business trip.

On the plus side I also finally -- and I do mean finally -- got the darn Kato RDC to work with the Digitrax DN143K2 decoder. I bought this for my son for some event -- one I can no longer remember -- in 2005 and first tried to add the DN122K2 decoder (DN143K2 predecessor) back in early 2006. It was a miserable failure. From time to time I've tried again, sometimes destroying the decoder in the process. This is a really nasty installation because the internal electrical connections are so finicky, but yes, today I called my son over, handed him the throttle, and said "see if this works". It worked great, with all the lighting functions, and he spent the next two hours operating trains. Chalk that up to one more experience point with decoders.

Speaking of decoders, I've also been fighting with a DN163A0 for the BNSF Atlas dash 8 -- the first N scale freight locomotive that I bought on that fateful day back in 2002. The lights come on bright and perfect, in the appropriate direction, but the motor just sits there. As part of the debugging process I finally opened up the NCE decoder tesk kit I bought from Mike last year, as an upgrade from the free decoder test kit Digitrax provides with their starter kits. It was a useful exercise. At this point the problem is isolated to the connection between the motor and the decoder. The motor is fine, the decoder is fine. I want to get this off of my work table so would like to resolve it tomorrow.

One other bit of fun -- the Amtrak Superliner cars frequently derail going over one Peco switch, but none of the other Peco or Atlas switches. Occasionally, but not very often, other cars derail on this switch. Naturally this switch is in an inconvenient spot, right next to the box and far from any of the layout sides, so I have to crawl in-and-out frequently during the diagnostic process. The NMRA N scale gauge has been helpful, but not conclusive. I've found that the Superliner cars have wheels that are slightly narrower than the standard, which is why they derail more often than most. As to why the switch causes this I still haven't found the problem. At first I thought it was an overly-wide flangeway between the frog and the guard rail, but I'm not sure that is any wider than other Peco switches. Now I'm focusing on the points, but still nothing conclusive. Another learning experience that will hopefully help later on.

My goal for tomorrow is to clean off the work desk of projects and be fully ready for restarting on the track ballast problem when I get back from the business trip later this week.

Goals for weekend and beyond

My main goal for this weekend is to give scenic treatment (i.e. track paint and ballast) for one short section of track on the main layout. This will be a fairly involved process, but over the past few days I've made progress on testing various methods and researching what the prototype looks like, and I think I'm ready to go.

During the past few days I added a couple design posts, worked on the track scenery techniques, started preparations for the DS64 tests, and repaired a small number of locomotives with help from my son. In the process I felt like I was getting too scattered, and needed a clearer focus for the work.

I decided the key thing I want to emphasize is the "fun" factor for myself and my helpers in the family. We want to run trains, yes, but right now we also want more variety in terms of the trains we run and the places they go. This means adding more track and making the portions of the main layout that are currently off-limits usable again. Ideally the first part of this effort will be connecting the middle tier staging to the main layout because we need that space to store more trains on the layout.

Now, I could just proceed in this manner without thinking about track paint or ballast. Indeed, most modelers recommend deferring the ballasting of track for near the end of the process, after the major scenery projects are over, due to the mess and the tendency to "spill" things onto the ballast, forcing it to be redone. In addition, some modelers recommend not ballasting until all track is complete and you've run a few operating sessions, because there is a good chance you will want to change some part of the track arrangement after you experience how it operates.

However, the truth is while I have theories about how to scenic the track I don't really *know* because I haven't done it for this layout. I want to have completed the track scenery for at least one section that includes switches before proceeding with new track, because there is a good chance that I'll adapt my track-laying techniques as a result.

Therefore the goal for this weekend is to scenic a short section of double mainline track without switches, then next week I'll try an adjacent section with a crossover.

Once that is done I may decide to ignore the ballasting until all track is in place. Or I may decide that it looks so cool that I will want to complete it, at least for areas where I know the track arrangement won't change. But either way once I've completed this I can proceed to more track-laying with confidence that I know how the scenic details will be added later.

In the (Wednesday) Evening

With trains running there is some definite momentum. Fixed three more items from the problem log today and made progress on the never-ending concrete-tie project.

The first item was to fix Loconet cables. Without going into details, Digitrax Loconet cables are 6-wire phone cables that users typically make themselves. When I was doing this back in 2007 I didn't realize that it was important that the wire orientation, left-to-right, be the same on both ends of the plugs. If you ignore this requirement Loconet itself still works, but later when you try to use RailSync it will fail. So, today I surveyed the Loconet cables on the layout and corrected the plug ends where needed.

The second item was to move one of the UR91s (the Digitrax one-way radio transmitter, of which I have two) from the top of "the Box" to a spot along the fascia on the east side of the room. This required setting up the Loconet cable. In addition, I have 8 vanilla Digitrax UP5 panels at various points in the layout and two UR91s, all of which are powered by a single Digitrax PS12 power supply (up to 10 such devices are supported on one power supply). This requires a single 18 gauge (or so) wire connecting all the devices to provide a "return" path for the current that comes in via Loconet. This return wire is labeled UP5 -- and I made sure that the labeling is now extended to the entire layout.

The third item was the Amtrak P42 locomotive problem mentioned yesterday -- where it "clicked" from time to time during normal running. Turned out this was a piece of debris that got lodged up high in the gears above one truck. The bad news is that in the process of debugging this I broke a piece of plastic, so now the loco runs great but if you pick it up from the track the truck is apt to fall off. So, one problem fixed, but a new item to order and install a replacement part for the same locomotive.

For the concrete ties I found that I still don't have the colors right, even after adding dullcoat. Sigh. I also tried a few more methods to "sand" down the fake wood grain without good result. I think I need a visit to an art supply store to seek out more options here.

Grainy Concrete

More progress. One of the goals of the week was to address three of the issues on the problem log. Already two are done.

The new DT402D (two-way radio) throttle was having an issue where at times it would seem to lose communication with the base, so we'd have a runaway train. I read the manual and made two changes. First, there is a throttle setting for maximum battery conservation -- that comes set by default and I turned it off. Second, the manual said that if you hit the Loco key once you dispatch (lose control of) the locomotive. Odd -- I'm not sure if that was the same behavior on the DT400R throttle -- but on that one it wouldn't have mattered while running wireless because changing locomotives required plugging in. So I now know to avoid that. Not sure if the problem is solved, but I now have it in "monitoring" state.

The other issue was to resurrect the Kato Amtrak P42 Genesis locomotives that I bought in 2002. Back in late 2002 or early 2003 I tried a method of track cleaning that someone recommended -- using metal polish. VERY BAD IDEA. It left a partially-insulated coating on the track and on the wheels of the engines that were unfortunate enough to be used for this experiment. I then compounded the mistake by installing decoders in the P42s in 2006 without first verifying that they were working fine with DCC. Now I had two non-working locomotives and didn't know whether the problem was DCC related. I set them in my project box where they stayed until last night.

I brought out the old Digitrax Zephyr, the Digitrax low-end starter set, which I bought in 2005 and used until I upgraded to the Radio Super Chief (now replaced by the duplex version) in 2007. I kept the Zephyr because it could be used for my son's HO set and also used for testing locomotives at the work desk, which is what I used it for last night. When I put the P42s on the programming track the decoder could barely be read for one and not at all for the other. Then I tried putting them upside down in one of the N-scale foam cradles I have (a must for any N-scaler) and tested again, this time with electric alligator clips connected directly to the wheels. Much better connectivity -- both decoders were easily read and I could actually get the motors to spin in track mode. So, using this, I took a wheel-cleaning brush (also a must for any N-scaler) and used that while the moter was running, then followed with rubbing alcohol and a q-tip to clean off any left over gunk. Afterwards both ran beautifully on the track, although one of them developed a "click" after two laps that I'll try to look into today. It was fun -- for the first time in about 7 years we ran the Amtrak superliner, and the first time ever with the MHCs that I bought in the interim.

This method definitely goes into the engine cleaning arsenal.

Otherwise, I also worked on the main task for the week, making the Peco track look like it has modern concrete ties. I put 4 layers of paint on the ties hoping to cover up the fake wood grain and found that even then some of the wood grain shows through. Rats. (Hence the title of this post.) Probably will need to somehow sand off the wood grain. Will be looking at that today.

Otherwise it looks pretty good -- I need to make the color a little more grey, but before I do that I want to add rust to the rail sides and the rail clips and spray some dullcoat on it today and see how it looks after some weathering.

For the rest of the week I will continue to focus primarily on the concrete ties, but in between will continue to address the issues on the problem log.

Tuesday Afternoon

Another post title based on a song title. But the real purpose of this post is a progress update.

Item #1 from this week's task list is done. I have to remember to run the CMX once per week for track cleaning, and over time I'll learn how to optimize this exercise. Once optimized I'll write a post on it.

For item #4, I've ordered the track, per my post from last night. That's all I wanted to accomplish for this task this week.

I've also made progress on item #2 and on one of the items on the problem log. I'll write more on those later this week.

In addition, I added one item to the problem log. The Kato SD90/43MAC (CEFX 118) which has the new decoder runs very fast at speed setting 001. I suspect that I may have accidentally modified the speed table CV when I was resolving the address problem.

And when the Trains come marching in ...

The title is a punny reference to the latest Super Bowl winners. It was a fun game. I was making progress on the layout at the start but by mid-3rd quarter I just focused on the game.

Regarding the weekly task list from last Thursday we got most of the targeted stuff done, plus a few things not on the list. #1, the switch machine issue, is resolved temporarily in that the crossover switches do work automatically with only one Tortoise and the derailments have stopped. The solution didn't take long -- it was the same concept I was trying in 2007 but this time with better materials. However, it's now only a proof of concept -- when I start the project to automate all the switches I'll re-do this solution in a more solid manner.

#2 is done, as I noted on Saturday, except that I need to finished writing up my post on the power cabinet. #3 is done except that I need to start the weekly routine of using the CMX car. The only major goal I didn't complete was that I didn't get started planning #4.

In addition to the planned tasks 3 other things were done. I resolved #5, as I reported earlier. My son successfully did his first decoder install on his own, a DN163K2 "plug and play" Digitrax decoder into a Kato SD90/43MAC. Worked on the first try. The only minor glitch here was my fault -- the locomotive number on the shell is 118, but when I assigned that as the DCC address it wouldn't run. Eventually I worked out that 118 is considered a 2-digit address in the Digitrax system (the cutover to 4-digit addresses starts at 128), and knowing that we were able to get it running immediately.

The other bit of work this weekend came as a result of a problem we ran into on Sunday. One really nice thing this weekend was that Daniel and Emma joined in a mini-operating session with me which lasted about 2 hours, only ending when I said it was bed time. Emma did well figuring out the DT400R throttle and is getting pretty good at making sure the switches are set correctly. On Sunday she asked to start again, but after a while a short occurred.

As I investigated the short I found that the PSX showed both Power District (PD) 1 and 2 as shorting, which seemed wrong. We stopped playing, but when I got back to the layout later I started a mini-project to investigate whole layout wiring.

As it turned out the short was caused by an engine going over a switch that was set incorrectly, something I didn't think about because we don't use that switch right now. But, it was a useful exercise. I found that PD1 and PD2 were not fully isolated, because when I cut the gap in the Peco code 55 rail I didn't cut deep enough into the ties. I also learned, to my surprise, that when the layout has no power one of the rails (the "left" or "black wire" rail) is still connected electrically across the PDs and the ARs, but the other rail is isolated. This must be the standard way circuit-breaker devices like the PM42 and PSX operate, but I didn't expect it and as a result I was confused for a while about the problem symptoms.

One other point I've been aware of for a while is that in PD-1 the rails are not completed isolated, but instead register something like 100 ohms of resistance between them. Not enough to prevent operation, but it bugs me. I'm adding this to my problem log to work on again.

Another problem added to the log is to investigate why the D402D (new two-way radio throttle) loses connectivity from time to time. My first step will be to actually read the manual.

Finally, as a result of this investigation I also ended up fixing some of the track around the electrical gaps.

So what tasks to work on this week? Here is the new list:

1. Track cleaning.
   
   Get the CMX car running over all track on a weekly basis.
   


2. Track scenery.
   
   This is the item noted in last week's list. This is a potentially big project, with goal of being able to make the Peco code 55 look like realistic, modern, concrete-tied track.
   


3. DS64 deployment.
   
   Also noted last week. This project is to figure out how to get the stationary decoders working with the switch machines.
   


4. Extending middle tier staging.
   
   First step is size and order the needed Atlas code 80 track. Once it arrives the project will be to build the track from the middle tier staging to where the hidden track meets the sceniced main line track.
   

My goal for the end of this coming weekend is to have a happy solution for item #2. This is a big task that will require a lot of thinking and trial-and-error, and my experience is that I get more done if I also have some smaller tasks as part of the same timeframe goal. So I'll also target item #1, ordering the track for #4, and to resolve 3 of the items on the problem log. I don't think I'll start the DS64 until I have an answer for #2.

In the year 2525

The title has absolutely zero relevance to anything, except that today I snapped the 2,525th picture on the digital camera I got in 2005 and it reminded me of the song from long ago.

The real purpose of this post is to provide an update on the progress regardingthe goals for the weekend. Item number 5 was resolved, per the last post, and yesterday and today I dealt with items 2 and 3. Item 2 is completely done -- the power cabinet rewiring and organizing is complete, the Digitrax panels are in place, and I've even fixed the incorrect Loconet cables in the staging area. I'll cover this in a new post on the Wiring Standards theme, either today or tomorrow.

The cabinet and wiring work took many, many hours (6? 8?). A lot had to be changed and I wanted the final result to be as "done" as it can be given that there are still some unknowns about the remainder of the layout. My son has observed that there are certain "fun" activities in model railroading that he loves to participate in, starting with running trains but also including repairing rolling stock. Other tasks, he observes, like construction, are not as fun. The power cabinet task was definitely in the "not fun" category, but now that it's over I'm very glad it's done, and it will make future operations and maintenance much easier. The best part was that everything worked the first time I tested it, even the middle tier AR section. Sometimes -- rarely -- things happen that way.

I've also cleaned the remainder of the middle tier staging track so that I can store rolling stock, part of task 3. In order to complete task 3 I have to bring out the CMX cleaning car and start the weekly track cleaning process. I hope to do that tomorrow.

Here are a couple of pictures from today. The first can be titled "Earthquake!" as it shows the staging area after I put a bunch of staples in underneath to hold in the loconet wire. Each staple really shook the cars on the layout:


The second pictures shows the staging area after all other work was done. You see cars are now organized on the middle tier and, if you look closely, you'll see the Digitrax throttle panels now installed on the front of the layout.


My next task is item (1) from that earlier post.

One problem fixed

The feeder wire problem from yesterday has been fixed. This took a while -- eventually I admitted that I couldn't reach the original location of the feeder wire, as this was on the back side of the staging loop, so I re-soldered it at a location near the joiner:


The problem of access to the back parts of the staging is something I'm going to have to solve, as this may also be an issue on the corners of the main layout. Probably I'll need to get a Topside Creeper one day.

Meanwhile, there was another problem I listed in last night's post, but I've since re-edited that post to remove it. I thought the PM42 was misbehaving but it turned out I just failed to plug in its power when I moved the power cabinet back into place. Oops. I was surprised that without the power the PM42 still passes on current to the tracks.

Saturday Night

It's Saturday night and I've finished all the tasks that I targeted for completion by end of day Sunday.

1. The power cabinet shelves are in place -- screwed in for extra stability.
   
2. The re-wiring underneath the south end of the layout is complete. When I explained to my son what I planned to do -- essentially convert the wiring from the original wiring standard to the new standard he said "that will take a long time." In truth, it takes about half as long as it takes to wire a new section. The feeder wires above the layout are unchanged, unless I have to add extra pairs of feeders due to new gaps for the power district boundaries (I had to add one this time). I do need to increase the number of power terminals and rewire the power bus as a result, and the feeder wires below the layout need to be reconnected, relabeled, and for half of them, converted to a red wire.

In addition, Daniel has been very busy fixing all the "to be repaired" cars in the project boxes, as well as repairing couplers on a few locomotives. He's done this so well, and seems to enjoy it so much, that I plan to start him on some decoder installs next, then ease him into the more difficult domain of locomotive repair. If this continues we'll get far more done on the layout this winter than I had thought possible.

On the negative side I've found two new problems. One of the track repair areas has proven to still be iffy. It looks like that track will need to be removed and replaced entirely. I think I'll choose that as the starting point for my Sunday scenery project (more on that in a moment), so that I can address two tasks at once.

The other issue is that as I started cleaning the middle tier return loop in staging a feeder wire came loose. Simple in concept, but it's a hard-to-reach area.

However, with all that out of the way I have a relatively free day tomorrow to tackle train stuff. My plan is to try to figure a way to make the Peco code 55 track on the mainline look like modern track with concrete ties. A couple years ago I started this project and came pretty close. I used various model spray paints for the tie color, then added rust color for the rail sides and the tie anchors. Once done I added some dull coat and other weathering to make it look realistic. In the end all looked good except the ties. They tended to look too yellow and also the fake wood grain showed through.

Today I took some pictures of real concrete ties near our home. Here's an example:



Tomorrow I'm going to visit Home Depot and try to find a latex paint color that matches the concrete. Latex paint has a number of advantages. First, a quart costs as much as 3 or 4 tiny jars of model railroad paint from a hobby shop. Second, the latex creates a smooth coat over the surface, likely hiding things like the fake wood grain on ties. And if it is TOO thick, you can thin it with water.

This is just an experiment, but I have quite a few scenery books that suggest latex paint for a variety of projects, so it's worth a try.

There are other factors regarding the simulation of concrete ties, but I won't cover them today. My first goal will be just to get the surface looking correct.

DCC order

As I noted earlier, I had an email conversation Thursday with Mike Gleaton at Charleston Digital Trains and got some good advice on the power management module.
I then sent in the following order:

1. PSX4 Power District Circuit Breaker. This the the power management module I decided on. Mike suggested that I probably could get by with the cheaper Digitrax PM42, since N scale with its lower voltage and amperage generally won't run into the same problems HOers commonly report with the PM42. But given my less than positive experience with the PM42 I opted for the upgrade.
   
2. UR92 Duplex Radio Tranceiver. Last year Digitrax released the long-rumored two-way radio communication system. Previously the one-way system meant that you had to plug in the radio throttle to change locomotives. The UR92 is the radio base station for the two way. I'll still keep my two one-way UR91s for any one-way throttles I or my visitors may have.
   
3. DT402D Duplex Super Radio Throttle. This is the latest and greatest Digitrax throttle, with upgraded functions relative to the DT400R *and* two-way radio communication. As I had only one DT400R I've been wanting to get a second one "someday", and now that my son, father, and I are actually running trains the need for an extra throttle has become apparent. One other nice thing is that Digitrax can upgrade my DT400R to a DT402D (as noted at the bottom of the linked page), which is something I'll do after I receive my new DT402D and get it running.
   
4. DN163K2 N Scale Mobile Decoder. This was something I included "as long as I am making an order anyway". I have a Kato SD90/43MAC I got last year which needs a decoder, so this will be it.

Meanwhile, progress continues on my remaining tasks for the week. All the bad track areas are now fixed, I bought the extra shelves for the power cabinet (just have to trim them to fit and install them), leaving me only with the rewiring under layout in the area above the power cabinet. My son and I are also fixing up some cars with minor repair issues that I've been ignoring. So we should have everything on the target list done by Sunday, and even some things not on the list.

Fun, fun, fun

Quick update. First news: we're adding a few more trains and running them. This shows my son adding some cars last night:


I've also made progress on the task list that I mentioned in my last post. Two of the three track problems are resolved. I've ordered the power management module and a few cool new DCC components, which I'll describe in a post when they arrive next week. Since I don't have a DCC programming track set up yet I've started using ops-mode programming, which allows you to change the CVs (configuration variables) for DCC locomotives while they are on the main track. This is so darn convenient that in the future I'll probably only need the programming track for problem diagnosis. Not sure why I took so long to try this feature.

Here's a picture of the power cabinet as it exists right now:


So, obviously there is still a lot left to do, but first let me describe what has been done. The cabinet itself is in place, with rollers on the bottom to allow it to be moved out easily for access underneath the layout. You can't see it in the picture, but in order to fit the cabinet underneath I had to saw a slot at the back of the cabinet, on the top, to fit it around a diagonal brace. One nice side effect is that this prevents the cabinet from moving unintentionally. The cabinet is placed right in front of an outlet.

What I have yet to do is work out how all the components will fit inside the cabinet and finalize the wiring. Actually I don't think I can truly finalize the arrangement until we've operated for a while and seen what components need frequent access, as those should be near the front and top. However, after the power management module arrives next week I'll work out a semi-permanent solution, saving room for future components.

One thing I am sure I'll want is more shelves, so today I'll stop by Home Depot and buy two more. This is a standard Home Depot upper cabinet, intended for installation above a surface, but I've adapted it for under-layout usage by changing the handle locations and adding rollers underneath.

So, we're on track to complete all planned tasks by end of weekend.

The trains they are a-runnin'

Yep, the goal of getting trains running again on Saturday was met. Here is my daughter Laura at the controls of the new Bachmann DDA40X on the layout:



Lots of things, mostly little tasks, had to be done to get to this stage. The final feeder wires were connected last night. Today I got the power cabinet in place with new rollers (more on that in a later post) and ran the remainder of the Auto Reverse (AR) busses from the staging to the cabinet. All the power components, including the PM42 AR device, had been mothballed when I tore down the old staging in December, 2008, and were put up again in the power cabinet. The wiring is still considered temporary, as I want to operate for a bit before I decide the final arrangement of components in the power cabinet. I also had a few leftover wiring and track issues to take care of.

Then I cleaned the track and began running my most reliable DCC engines. The loop from the upper tier staging to lower tier staging and back is just under 190', or about 6 scale miles. There are a small number of track tuning issues I encountered, but far fewer than expected. The AR sections worked perfectly, as did all but one of the Atlas switches.

Over the next weeks I'll run more trains, adding cars and introducing more locomotives from my roster, and fix any track or rolling stock issues as I go.

Meanwhile, I have a host of other projects to start work on. One key one is to finish up the power cabinet. I probably want to add a couple shelves and make the wiring more permanent. I also want to order something for power district circuit breaking, and separate PD-1 (the lower staging) from the rest of the layout. I also need to reinstall the Digitrax ports along the front of the staging, where they used to be with the old staging, and fix some old bugs with the Loconet bus. In other words, there is still alot of general electrical work to do.

Another project is to start automating the switches. Another is to start building the track that will connect the middle tier staging to the layout. And somewhere in all that I want to start adding scenery.

So I'm not sure what to do next. But with trains running while I work, whatever I choose to do next will be even more fun.

Lower tier wiring near completion

Turns out there were 26 pairs of feeder wires needed for the remaining lower tier, including 5 on the Auto-Reverse track. By last night I'd sized, soldered in place, and labeled all the pairs of feeder wires. But none were connected to the terminals. Today I completed the Auto-Reverse wiring, including re-routing the A-R bus wires to a permanent location, and connected 10 of the 21 remaining pairs to terminals.

So, I should have the wiring for the lower tier complete tomorrow. I won't be quite ready to run trains yet. During the process of rebuilding the staging area I've tested track using temporary power set-ups. Now, however, it's time to move to the permanent power setup. I'll be using a power cabinet, described in my first post on wiring. I'll put the power components, including the auto-reverse devices, into the cabinet and wire them up appropriately. At that point it will be time for track cleaning (figure an hour, unless I can recruit some help) and running trains. I'm thinking we should be doing this by Saturday afternoon.

Lower tier finished less wiring

Today I anchored the north side of the lower tier alcove bridge, then put down the rest of the track:



If I have time I'll start on the wiring tonight. There are approximately 25-30 pairs of feeder wires to hook up. I think if I had dedicated time I'd probably average about 6-9 pairs per hour, but usually I get only short windows of time to do layout work, so I'm not sure how long it will take.

I have now used up all my Atlas code 80 flex track stock and have very few switches (2) and rerailer tracks (7?) left. I'll need to order more in order to finish the hidden layout track that connects to the middle tier, so I should make a point of sending out a track order in the next week or so.

Lower tier switches in place

More track laying today, I now have completed the lower tier staging through the remaining switches:



The various boxes lying on the track are used as flat weights to hold the track in place while the glue dries.

Getting close to done with the lower tier. I have a little bit of woodwork to do at the north end of the alcove bridge (currently that side is supported by a lone nail, it needs to be properly anchored), and a little bit more track to lay to connect the lower tier with the main layout. After that I'll wire the new lower tier track. At that point it will be ready for cleaning and once again running trains. Target for running trains again is still Saturday. The wiring task is takes a lot of time.

A Productive Weekend

After finishing up the middle tier staging yesterday I got a lot done today on the lower tier:



Progress today included: measuring and cutting the plywood subroadbed; installing the subroadbed, including some shims at the far end because of the plywood thickness problem I mentioned during the middle tier construction; added the blue roadbed; and put down about 36' of track. The new track has not yet been wired. In addition I've also finished the Visio of the middle tier wiring diagram and prepped the remaining lower tier switches.

I'm now working with all new material again, instead of reusing track and wire from the first failed staging attempt. This helps speed things along -- more than I thought it would. At this rate I should be able to complete the lower tier this week.

Addendum to Atlas Switch Prep Procedure

Last spring I wrote a post on how I prepare Atlas code 80 #6 switches for use in staging. As I was finishing up the middle tier I ran out of the switches I'd bought back in 2006 and started using the switches I bought late last year.

I am happy to report that Atlas has improved the switches since 2006. The frog is a lot cleaner and the area where the point rails meet the closing rails (the red circle in that post) seems to have been re-engineered to be almost perfect out-of-the-box. I found that switch prep was a lot smoother as filing was not needed for those areas.

The other huge plus is that the straight switch rail is now nearly straight, instead of being slightly curved away from the diverging route.

Unfortunately I also found that the outside point rail doesn't seem to close as nicely against the outside rail (the green circle in the previous post). Previously I rarely saw a problem with these, but now I may need to file these down in most cases.

Still, the net is quite an improvement.