Aerial View & Expansion Progress - November 4, 2013

It was back into construction mode over the weekend and I'm happy to report that all benchwork for the layout expansion is now complete! Since the layout shares space with my art studio, I had to make a few hard decisions regarding the final size and shape. In the end I settled on an 11' x 8' U-shaped footprint that will allow for some nifty scenery and interesting operation. It all comes down to how much railroad you think you can live with (and finish in a reasonable amount of time).

Last month: October 1, 2013

Today: November 4, 2013

The new "Canyon" section is 8' long and 2' wide, ballooning out to 3' wide for a 15" radius curve at one end. The base of this section drops 14" below the rest of the layout to allow for some dramatic vertical canyon scenery. Trains passing through this section will be between 70 and 94 scale feet above the canyon floor on a 3% grade up to the mines. The new section is supported by two sturdy, 36" tall metal shelving units recycled from my previous layout. The aisle between sections is approximately 36" wide. I'm putting the finishing touches on an expanded track plan now and will be posting a revised version showing the new sections in a few days.

I've also been working on some new rolling stock projects and structure models and will be posting about those soon as well. Thanks for checking in!