On the layout side of things, both mainlines were finished just in time for the decision to be made that a crossover from track 1 to track 2 would be beneficial. I tend to call these two tracks the "mainlines" in reference to their locations as an NMRA module. However, the truth is track 1 is the engine-house and yard lead while track 2 is actually the main line proper. Thus, the need for a crossover to allow access to the engine-house lead without having to go through the yard, and vice versa.
One might note a subtle change in the track structure. It turns out Walmart sells HO scale cross ties! They just don't brand them as HO scale cross ties! Tyler Rogers put me onto this, where these wooden stirring sticks can be cut in half and made into scale length wooden ties. They only cost $2.50 for a pack! Also, both mainlines are elevated on proper roadbed, rather then being at ground level such as the lead and work tracks. The historical W&A RR was originally laid on a roadbed of dirt and clay. It was graded out to be capable of holding two tracks. Although ultimately only one was laid. By the 1880s, the railroad had been regraded, ballasted, and re-ballasted. I'm modeling the railroad with a layer of cinder as the roadbed, with dirt and clay shoulders as originally graded. 
This design also matches the color and level of the tracks as seen in "Lady and the Tramp." A happy bonus. The cross over will likewise be made of stub switches, and two harp switch stands from Precision Scale have been obtained. Once this has been completed, work can turn to the turntable and turntable pit. To which Tyler Rogers has been dutifully working on when he isn't busy beating his head into the club's own steam facility. (More on that later) I can not thank Tyler enough for his work on this project. If there is something about this hobby I enjoy, it's sharing it with others and pooling our skills.
Other projects include building structures for the layout. These include a switchman's shanty modified to look close to the one seen in Lady and the Tramp, building a working coal tipple, building a water tank with movable spout, and this big project...the roundhouse itself.
The roundhouse will get an update all it's own. In this post, let us look at the coal tipple.
The tipple was given to me second hand as a kit from unknown origins. It was put together originally by Charlie Strike for his layout back in the 1980s. When I got it, it had been reduced back to it's kit form and needed a lot of love. I went back and forth on the use of a coal tipple over a coal stage. Stages were very popular in the 19th century at locomotive service depots. Usually a dock with a small crane, coal would be loaded into locomotive tenders by use of a large tin bucket hoisted by the crane. It was a laborious and time consuming task. The coal tipple reduced the amount of overhead required, and was capable of servicing more locomotives. Being that Marceline was intended to be an intermediate point on the railroad, where locomotives on trains where changed and serviced, having a coal tipple would seem the logical route.
The tipple is made from strip wood, and to make it operate a small loop was affixed to the bottom of the shoot. This allows a length of music wire to be hooked into the loop, and raise and lower the chute based on the orientation of a Tortoise switch machine under the layout bench-work.
I'm pretty pleased with the way the tipple came out. Rebuilt, weathered with Micromark "Age It Easy" and detailed with the operating chute, it will hopefully become a centerpiece on the W&ARR.
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| Marceline Track Plan V2.0. As designed by Tyler Rogers (It's already outdated.) |
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September was also the month of the week long club set up at the Gwinnett County Fairgrounds. This show is one of the more well attended shows our modular club attends. The layout is set up in an exhibit builder on the fairgrounds, and is open to the public during fair hours. This years layout was simple to the point of being almost boring. However the general public enjoyed the show, and the camaraderie of friends more then made up for the last of variety in the track plan.
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Other building projects included this signal tower for Marceline's crossover. This kit is made by Minikits, and was a pretty strait forward build. Once primed and painted, the four walls were assembled atop a custom foundation made from bass wood to represent a deck platform. This kit is unique in that it has the trim and the wall sections molded individually. Which makes painting a real breeze. The structure is painted in the W&A's signature colors of oxide red trim and whitewash. I'm not exactly sure how I settled on these colors. As the white buildings would weather pretty quickly. However, the whitewash typically would be used as a cheap sealant. Traditional whitewash is made by mixing powdered lime with water. It aids in sanitation by coating and smoothing over the rough surfaces. In the end, I like the look as it gives the railroad a very neat and tidy appearance. 
Inside, the upstairs area is detailed with a wood board by board floor, a small railroad interlocking machine, one signalman, and his desk. The pan for this structure is to have it with a signal bridge with pan and ball signals that can rotate. These would be mounted to the signal bridge over each corresponding track, and consist of a round disk, or vane, that rotates against a painted white board to provide an extra level of viability. An operating design of which Tyler and I are scratching our heads over. More on that as is comes.
For information about early railroad signals, I highly recommend J. B. Calvert's website Early Railway Signals.
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