PRR Bellevue Sub Build

[nycjeff]

Hello Curt, I really like the way your engine servicing area is shaping up, can't wait to see it finished. Jeff

[postalkarl]

Hey Curt:

The diesel fueling facility looks just great. Can't wait to see it in place.

Karl

[ACL1504]

Curt,

Service area looks great, well done SBG!

Tom

[PRR Modeler]

Afternoon All,

Thank you Jeff, Karl, and Tom for following and your kind words.

Today I made a piece of the fascia. It's wider than normal to support the UP5, a toggle switch, and the control box for the turntable (yet to be installed). Yesterday I glued blocks and clamped them to the plywood overhang to support the fascia. I also glued the ash pit edges in place and stained with Hunterline Creosote stain. The 2 separate pieces will support the rails going over the pit.

I also made a trip to Lowes for 2 cans of clear flat spray which will be used for the roundhouse project starting tomorrow.

[PRR Modeler]

Afternoon All,

A couple of days ago I painted all the RH parts their respective colors (walls dark brown, windows and doors sage green, wooden beams dark brown, and concrete interior pads sand color, outside concrete MM aged concrete). All the spray colors are flat including the clear spray.

Over the course of 3 days I did the following on the walls (pictures in order)

1. Paint the walls dark brown (started out red) and sprayed with flat clear.

2. Applied a diluted mortar wash (craft gray and Tamiya white mixed and diluted with water). After a heavy coat it was wiped off with T-shirt pieces slightly damp several times then sprayed with flat clear.

3. Bricks painted 6 or 7 different colors (I forget) then sprayed with flat clear.

4. MM aged concrete applied to exterior trim, then applied a 2.5% A&I wash, after that dried I applied gray then black weathering powder.

5. All the colors I have used so far.

This is the first time painting individual bricks and I have mixed feelings about it.

[PRR Modeler]

Afternoon All,

Today I figured I better install and test the turntable before getting serious about the roundhouse. I started out reaming the hole for the pit since one side wasn't laying completely flat. After hooking everything up electrically I couldn't get a power light to come on the control box. I switched the 4 leads in case they were reversed and nothing again. I took the control box apart thinking maybe there was a battery in it-nope.

It was at this point that I learned that the bridge has to be in place to complete the circuit . The 130' TT is the DCC one that came out several years ago, but has a older control box. I gave up on DCC programming after issues with the provided controller losing it's memory 3 times.

I now have a working turntable installed, on to the roundhouse. 

[deemery]

Hope you caught the discussion on John Siekirk's S&S thread a couple pages back where we talked about aligning roundhouse tracks with a turntable.


This is coming together very well!


dave

[PRR Modeler]

Afternoon All,

Dave thank you for commenting and reminding me of John's RH installation and I did go back and review how he did the track alignment. It was very helpful .

The one day job of laying track and powering it in the roundhouse floor to the turntable bridge ended up being a 2 day job. I was making great progress yesterday then started having a intermittent power issue that I couldn't figure out. I called a knowledgeable DCC friend (Jon Shubert) and he gave me a couple of things to check today.

Everything started out properly then the power issues started again. I started messing with the turntable area extension buss and discovered what was most likely a bad solder joint. I cut it out, spliced in some new wire and everything works.

I started out testing the 3 RH tracks with a Genesis FP7 and decided I better try with my largest steamer (2-8-8-2) and it worked fine. I ran the steamer 3 times on each track in and out of the RH tracks onto the bridge without issue so I consider it successfully tested. Tomorrow I plan on starting the actual RH build. 

[ACL1504]

Curt,

Nice job on the turntable. JS has saved my bacon on more than one occasion.

Good progress my friend.

Tom

[Mark Dalrymple]

Looking good, Curt.

Nice progress.

Cheers, Mark.

[deemery]

My plan for various engine terminals is to have each storage track with an on-off switch.  It would be A Bad Thing to have a bunch of locos parked in the roundhouse all drawing DCC power (and making noise) when most of them should be sleeping. 


dave

[nycjeff]

Hey Curt, I'm glad you got the turntable working to your satisfaction. You are not the first and you won't be the last to have this problem. Can't wait to see your roundhouse build. Jeff

[PRR Modeler]

Afternoon All,

Thank you Tom, Mark, Dave, and Jeff for your kind words.

Dave- I plan on having 1 switch that will kill the power for the entire RH/TT area. That's what I had before and was happy with it (wiring is not my friend!).

Over the last 2-3 days I put the walls and windows together. I had issues with MM model cement (what I normally use for plastics) actually holding the walls together for some reason. The next try was with CA (hate to use it on buildings). It held better but not great so I taped the pieces tightly together (painters tape) overnight and that looks like it worked.

Today I mounted 2 amber lights in the RH. I figure with the walls in place you won't see the wiring. I also mounted details on the concrete pad. Tomorrow I'll start mounting the rear walls (background of picture). I can't put the foreground walls up until I get the welding light kit in. These will go into the hole around the welding details.

[Jerry]

Curt it's starting to take shape.  Nice work.


Jerry

[ReadingBob]

Wow Curt!  You're really making a lot of progress in a short period of time.  I bet you're anxious to get trains running again.