Layout Construction - October 12, 2009

Tunnel Construction
Now that all of the benchwork is secure and the pink foam is glued down, it was time to concentrate on the bridge/tunnel area. I added the supports for the bottom of the creek and top of the tunnel.

Now the base support for the creek is in. The tunnel area will need to be finished before the bridge can be built. The tunnel will feature a half tunnel wall to hide the background. In the foreground, the fascia board will cover the center section leaving two access holes to the tunnel track on either side.

A view through the east tunnel entrance. The pegboard masonite will be covered and not visible after the scenery is put in. At this point the cork roadbed has glued down, but the track has not been set.

I Can See the Light
I also installed the under cabinet lights for the lower level. A scrap piece of peg board was used to test the height of the fascia. I was concerned about the fascia covering the lights and being small enough to not block the view of the lower level. It looks like during work and operating times a stool will be required. I used 23" under cabinet lights that are inter-connected from Walfart. A good deal at only $9 a piece. There is a limit of 5 connected lights.

A view of the lower level lights with the main room lights off.

Layout Construction - September 26, 2009

On to the other side
I completed the the benchwork for the Denton and Geraldine levels. Added the foam sub-base for the track on the opposite side of the tunnel/bridge area.

Here is a closer view.

Over the Bridge and Through the Woods…
I experimented with using a piece of aluminum channel for the bridge support. This bridge will be typical of the ballasted deck bridges that the Milwaukee used on this line.

This type of bridge construction was from a video I saw Tony Koester do for the "Dream, Plan, Build" series from Model Railroader. The aluminum channel provides a solid base for the bridge deck and ensures that the bridge is straight and level.