March 24, 2023
Back on track after a wonderful visit with grandkids. My son-in-law helped me rip enough 3/4″ plywood to cover all parts of the layout. I discovered going to the local lumber yard was not only cheaper by $20/sheet than the big stores, but also was an actual 3/4″ thick!
The wye at Gerber had been marked using the full-size plan but was not fitting. When checking the CAD drawing, it showed 6′ between ends of the 180-degree curve with my 36″ radius. Obviously, inserting the wye should have increased the distance between. Operator error on the drawing. I ended up cutting the #6 wye down, changed the radius to 34″ with a short 35″ transition curve.
Track lines were being transferred with a pounce wheel. But marks were hard to see on the plywood even with a flashlight. I tried marking with a permanent marker through the holes but found the best solution was to cut a slit and then mark.
I preferred working on Homasote but price was over $55/sheet.
The engine house was a little too close to the yard lead, so that part was cut out and moved over. Newfound real estate was used after aligning the layout edge to the valance.
Other work accomplished included wiring 110-volt outlets around the layout. The plywood for the trackage connecting Proberta to Red Bluff was installed. Eventually I will add the Reed Creek Bridge saved from my last layout. Debating if I want to redo approaches on both sides. I built 50′ and the actual prototype was 100′. I have more distance for the scene.
