149th Street Harlem Station

[sailormatlac]

What are the brown patterns on the ply? is it re-used from something else?

No. All material is brand new. I superposed the lower waffle plywood over the top plywood sheet and sprayed paint to mark the location for cross members. I followed a trick from Joe Balint from The Sipping & Switching Society.

http://s-ss3.home.mindspring.com/id1.html

Matt

[sailormatlac]

No pictures, but I completed the first module today. I feared the whole thing would warp because of the strange shape, but finally, the final result is quite level. The surface variation is within 1/16th of inches over a 5 feet length.

The larger module (wharf side) is a little bit more tricky and I hope everything will work out fine. I'm pretty sure it won't be as square as the first one.

Matt

[sailormatlac]

Started to glue second module underside waffle. I have to fight against some warping. I should be able to complete it tomorrow evening then add the reinforcing braces before painting the modules.

Note to myself: You never have too much clamps when gluing stuff together!

For cost reason, I'll probably feed the layout with DCC and get a longer cord for my NCE Procab. A keepalive will be installed in locomotives. Upgrading to deadrail will be possible later. I'm unsure about which system I want to try, so I'll thing settle down a while. The main goal is to run trains ASAP.

Matt

[faraway]

.... The main goal is to run trains ASAP.....

I understand that so very much but starting on a fresh base is a great opportunity.

[Mike Kieran]

M youre b log havead andatt, this is an amazing body of work. This thread and your blog have become favorite reads.

[sailormatlac]

M youre b log havead andatt, this is an amazing body of work. This thread and your blog have become favorite reads.

Thanks Mike! It's funny how these blogs started from nothing and ended up so big. Readership is far beyond what I could have imagined in my wildest dreams. I'm happy they can be useful to others as their own blogs are useful to me.

The modules are completed and I'm actually building legs according to a brand new concept designed by my friend Louis-Marie and myself. I'm documenting the process, but I can actually say it has tremendous potential, particularly for Freemo and train show modules.

Matt

[sailormatlac]

Truth to be told, I didn't post a lot of pictures because I wanted to pour my energy into actually building the layout instead of editing photos, writing text and posting. I know myself, if I don't stay focussed on a short amount of time, I'll loose my rhythm!

That said, thing are progressing smoothly according to my planned schedule. Building the frame took more than two intense weeks of work.

Yesterday, I painted the modules and later assembled them. I'm happy to report they are as level as I could wish. I'm truly happy no alignment occured. It was my first time using this waffle frame module technic and I didn't start with the easiest geometric shapes.



I also make legs to support the layout. This is an original design by myself and Louis-Marie. The only shortcoming is I should have followed his advice and used 3" pipe instead of 2". I wanted to save a few bucks but it will end up costing more to fix up. I have the choice of addind diagonal bracing or use larger diameter pipes. It's a little flexible as it is right now, not enough to derail car, but enough to be annoying. If new larger diameter legs are up to my standard, I'll probably make a special article about how to build them. They cost less than 10$ each. Similar looking amovible steel legs can cost up to 100$ each and more in retail.



Layout top is at 51" above floor. It's a good compromise between realistic view and reachability. I'm not very tall, about 5'5", so that's my maximum. My only advice is that a layout should never be higher than your armpit if your are doing intensive operation or track are far from the fascia (which is the case with Harlem Station. Anyway, I'll keep a standstool under the layout ready for such action. We already do that at the club layout and it works well.



Today, I'm gluing 1" styrofoam to raise the terminal above Harlem river (benchwork top). A layer of cork will be glued to get a firm submaterial that can hold nails.

Matt

[faraway]

You built a fine solid base. Must be a pleasure to start on such a perfect surface.

[sailormatlac]

You built a fine solid base. Must be a pleasure to start on such a perfect surface.

Ahah! It's millions light years away from our Hedley-Junction roller coaster!

Seriously, things are going fast since the benchwork had been completed. Being in vacation really helps!



Previously, I said I would add a layer of cork so I could nail the tracks, but I finally decided agains it.

My reasons are manyfold. First, rolled cork is always hard to glue in place without kink here and there. Second, I didn't have enough cork to cover the entire layout and didn't want to induce delay buying more. Third, I thing I invested already enough money in the benchwork. Fourth, the more material you layer together, the more chances are you induce undesired surface ondulations. Fifth, Walthers apron and carfloat are 1" high which fit perfectly the 1" styrofoam. Adding the cork would only more elevation, which translate into a steeper grade on the apron.

So, let's keep things simple and move forward.



I also applied a coat of flat exterior brown paint to the styrofoam and water body to have a basic scenic color to work with... and protecting the foam from melting when spray painting the track!!! Been there, done that! Since Harlem Station was a very muddy and dirty place, that dark brown seems a goof fit. As for Harlem River, I suspect it's water are everything except tropical blue! Can't wait to continue working on the layout! But there's a big challenge as I must build the concrete piers and carfloat apron as quickly as I can if I doesn't want to delay the building process. So time to go study the prototype again.

Matt

[sailormatlac]

Some more progress. I started to install the curved fascia. Easier than I first thought, but extra care must be taken when handling large piece of 1/8 masonite after they are grooved on the back of the curve... I learned my lesson, trust me!

For those interested in Harlem Station prototype, I invite you to read my last blog entry. When I tried to figure out how to make the fascia, I found out Harlem Station had a secondary entrance located near the south-western corner on 149th Street. It was always assumed only one entrance was on 150th Street, but this is contradicted by many pictures and known facts. This also means all sidings that seems isolated by the carfloat apron tracks were in fact served by their own concrete pad connecting with 149th street. From a layout perspective, it means I can add two new car spots to switch! I love it!

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Matt

[shortliner]

Double post - deleted

[shortliner]

Matt - If you aren't a member, it may be worth looking at, and joining, the Yahoo Rail Marine Ops group - You may have to wait a few day for your acceptance to come through - there are some good photos of Boxcab conversions too.

[sailormatlac]

Matt - If you aren't a member, it may be worth looking at, and joining, the Yahoo Rail Marine Ops group - You may have to wait a few day for your acceptance to come through - there are some good photos of Boxcab conversions too.

And I thought Yahoo Groups went extinct years ago with the dinosaurs. I'll try my luck I guess!

Matt

[teejay]

Should be a nice easy transition for the barge ...looks good .

[sailormatlac]

I completed the benchwork this morning, primed and painted everything in brown that was repaired.



Then, I switched my attention to the carfloat apron as it is a key element when laying track.

The carfloat apron is made from 3 Central Valley 72" plate girder bridge. Harlem Station used a 100 feet pontoon type brige thus I had to enlarge substantially the CV bridges. It was an easy kitbashing that took an afternoon. Later, I'll had some Frenchman River Models details on the sloped parts. The rounded corners were also traded for square ones according to prototype. The track is Atlas Code 100 and the turnout is a PECO long turnout cut to length to fit Walthers barge. Later, everything will be planked with real wood decking. I'm not sure if I'll reuse some details from the Walthers apron. I'm eager to keep it intact in case I was to use it for some other projects one day. Who knows! Tomorrow, I'll add the second track and complete the pontoon which I already started to build. I'm quite lucky to have a blueprint from the prototype. Make things easier. Hope to start laying track maybe in the afternoon.



Structural members were cut using a band saw. My goal was to glue the parts by splicing together a beam for a stronger bond. Don't mind the horrible zigzag cut, it was sanded down smooth before gluing parts together.





Using template is the only way to get reproductible results. It made this job as easy as 1-2-3. The slope is the same as Frenchman River Models apron kit so I'll be able to use their jacking apparatus.











Hope you enjoy!

Matt