The Palisade Canyon Railroads (N)

[N Scale Brad]

The hotel building shown in the last couple of updates is now done. I went with the name Overland hotel as that was the name of one of the hotels in Carlin that was torn down. This building houses the speaker for the Carlin yard switcher so the front windows are blocked out and the side windows have no glazing.



Here is the finished roof with the 3D printed vents, roof access shelter, and air conditioning equipment. That's the WP or eastbound paired track running behind the building.



Here is an overall view of the downtown block. There will eventually be either a gas station or store to the right of the casino. Still need to add some figures to this scene.

[N Scale Brad]

Thanks guys, Allen, those roof top details are from the set that Loren posted about recently. That's 9 pieces out of a set of 180 pieces. I have always detailed the roofs of my buildings. It was great back in the day to walk into the hobby shop and pick out the cast resin ones from Cal Freight and others but I would have spent as much for the few pieces I needed for this project as I paid for this whole set.

[Allen]

I thought so. I'm gonna have to pick up a couple packs of those...

[N Scale Brad]

It would be well worth it, they will last you for years and many projects.

[N Scale Brad]

In the continuing development of the town of Carlin on my layout I have been working on a pair of houses. These are 2 more of the 3D printed Sears houses I got from a seller on ebay. The houses are finished and I am waiting on a pair of laser cut wood kit garages to go with them and finish the scene. As I have done with other scenes on this layout, these houses are mounted on a removable plastic base.



Both of these houses have nice big front porches so I added some detail there. The one story house has an operating porch light, some furniture, and figures.



The 2 story house has the speaker for the Carlin road switcher hidden inside of it. The side window were left unglazed to let the sound out. No figures on the porch of this one, only some furniture and a couple of potted plants.

[N Scale Brad]

I forgot that your abandoned farm house came from that line of 3D models. The single car garages were a bit too wide for my lots so I've ordered a pair of Blair Line wood kits.

As others have stated, those houses are very nice and you did an outstanding job detailing them.

[N Scale Brad]

Thanks Loren, I have come to realize over many years that finishing and detailing structures and scenes is one of my favorite parts of the hobby.

[N Scale Brad]

In the past couple of weeks the garages got finished and all 4 structures of this diorama got glued to the base. The garage kits were identical but using different parts that come with the kits, I tried to make them look a bit more individual. I have been adding the landscape and a few details to the scene. Fences, shrubs, trash cans, and AC condenser for the 2-story house. Mail boxes are next, and them maybe some small trees and some clutter around the yard.

In the 2rd photo the seam is noticeable when looking down but when looking straight on these seams are not as visible. This is one of the largest of these plastic bases I've used and this one got a bit warped and in the front along the road it bows up. I made need to place a screw about where that Ford Fairmont station wagon is and use the vehicle to hide it. Or, it may just settle down as it sits on the layout.

[Allen]

Looks good Brad, I like those stepping stones around the two story house.

[N Scale Brad]

Thanks Allen. It's an easy way to add interest to a scene. They are just Evergreen titles broken off from the sheet.

[N Scale Brad]

Hello again,

It has occurred to me that when I was giving a tour of the layout section by section I had neglected to say much about the staging yard. The staging yard was where this layout got it's start in the fall of 2014. The yard bench work is over 11 feet long and was built in one section with all the the track and turnout motors being installed while it was sitting on saw horses so that made wiring easier. The yard is actually two yards which are offset by 1 helix turn or 2-1/4 inches. The upper yard, on the left in this photo represents Portola and points west on the Western Pacific and the lower yard, on the right in this photo represents Sparks and points west on the Southern Pacific. The WP yard has 4 tracks and the SP yard has 5 tracks.



Both of these yards have a return loop with each being it's own DCC block using PSX-AR circuit breakers. The upper yard loop is carried over the lower yard loop via a scratch built brass viaduct. The Showcase Express display case on the wall behind the yard holds engines that are not being used in the current layout era.



Each of the yards has it's own control panel. Using Azatrax IR sensors, the reverse loop turnouts will move automatically. These are the white stands, one of which is seen in the first photo. Another set of these sensors in the SP yard will allow for automatic roll over so that one train will leave as one enters. This is controlled by the Auto/Manual toggle switches on the control panel. Besides the control panels, the front fascia is lined with Digitrax UP5 panels and throttle holders.

[Allen]

Thanks for the explanation Brad, I have often wondered about your yard and how it works exactly, that very clever.
Thanks for taking the time to show us!

[N Scale Brad]

Just added two more Wifi throttles to the layout using a pair of older mobile phones. We got new ones and these were too old to get any trade in so after moving the service to the new phones, I added the WiThrottle Lite app to them and made custom wallpaper for each one. Then made these holders for them from scraps of tempered hard board and mounted it on the fascia of the staging yard.

[N Scale Brad]

Over the past few weeks I've been working on a gas station scene in Carlin and just finished this weekend. This is a link to posts on my blog about this project. https://palisadecanyonrr.blogspot.co.../gas%20station

[Paul S.]

Terrific modeling, Brad!

[Allen]

Another great looking scene Brad, well done.

[N Scale Brad]

Thank you guys, this particular kit has been a joy to work with.

[N Scale Brad]

Since last fall when I posted the last update, I've spent a month in Japan then after returning have been working on finishing several projects related to my Japanese modules in preparation for a 5-day exhibit coming up in April. I have been running trains and practicing operations on the Palisade Canyon layout. Mostly by myself but did have a friend over recently and we ran a couple of jobs together. He is an experienced operator so I value his input on how I can continue to improve the operations scheme.

During the winter months before leaving for Japan I attended the International Railfair in Sacramento and picked up a WP book that I had been looking for. I learned from that book that the SP had trackage rights over the WP line between Weso and Flannigan, Nevada to give them an easier connection to their Modoc line. So now instead of all eastbound interchange traffic coming from Sparks, it can also come from Klamath Falls.

Here's the Klamath Falls to Ogden Manifest (KFOGM) coming off the WP line at Weso. A lot of lumber loads eastbound and lumber empties westbound on these trains.

[Uncle Pete's Basement]

How big should the wet bar under the layout be?

[Paul S.]

Hmmm, now there's a good question. It might even be the next evolution in layout planning and design, Uncle Pete's Basement. I'm not advocating wholesale violation of Rule G here, either, just to be clear.🙂

[Uncle Pete's Basement]

Paul, mine would have to be a dry bar, but the mini fridge can certainly be well stocked. Guest operators who have to pee in a cup will be sent upstairs to the jail cell.

[Chuck Geiger]

This is amazing, nobody models this area, well done!

[N Scale Brad]

So true Chuck, that was one of the reasons I model it. Plus I like all the bridges in this area.