My layout in the making

[dynamite25]

Ok piccy time as i got the digi cam off my brother now.

First pics are of my loco fleet and Rolling Stock.











Next pic is of my Hornby Orient Express train



Next two are of my control area and H&M 2000 Controller in it's place





Next three pics are of the fiddle Yard at the end i just finished yesterday

[Guest]

Is that the Flying Scotsman pulling the Orient Express?

A few years ago we went on a day trip on the "Northern Belle", a service run in the UK by the Orient Express company. The train was pulled from York to Durham by the Flying Scotsman and it was one of the most memorable and enjoyable journeys I have ever made.

They didn't hold back either so what a flood of memories it brought back to be on a steam train belting through the countryside with all the sounds, smells and experiences that go with it.

I was so gratefull to Richard Branson for helping to keep the train in the UK where it rightfully belongs.

I have a couple of pictures somewhere if you are interested.

[dynamite25]

Yeh post them Rich always good to see real locos.

[Guest]

Apologies for the poor quality but it was nigh on impossible to get a good shot and the combination of the bright sunlight on the top of the loco and the shade from the canopy made exposure very difficult as well.

Anyway here's what I got:

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[Guest]

i have also been on it, cant remember when or where as i was quit young.

i do remember having the window down though and my hand up feeling the breeze, we went through a tunnel and as we came out my hand was completely black!

lol.

....i have also seen Thomas the tank engine and all his friend

cant remember where that was either but im sure you all know.

[dynamite25]

Cool Pics Rich and thanks for posting them.

[dynamite25]

I got the incline sorted today but only that as for two hours i was searching the net while in the loft instead of working on the layout.

Anyway heres what the incline looked like before i changed it.



And heres what it looks like now and as you can see i reused the 6x1 board that was under the incline but just turned it over,so the cutout was on the right instead of the left and was easier than buying another 6x2 board just to cut it in half to replace the old one.

[Guest]

what u need is some nicly modelled retaining walls for the sides of the incline.....!

will pm you !

[dynamite25]

Hi guy i will be having small retaining walls on the incline and taller ones at the back of it and i will be have retaining walls to cover up the gaps under the upper level and thanks for the link in the PM you sent me.

Today i started to cut the 6mm ply sheeting for the upper level but can't do much till the weather picks up as i need to cut my 9mm 4x2 and other left over 9mm sheeting into 2 Inch x 4 Feet strips for the upper level to sit on,so mostly this afternoon i have been just running trains around the layout and also move all my ply sheeting out of my bedroom into the loft.

[Guest]

i would love to have a layout the size of yours ! - you really have the space to allow all sorts of scenic modelling to be done....

sadly i just dont have the space

[dynamite25]

Abit of a update when i come to do the upper level i will need to get into the corners of the layout so on one side i will have a removeable 2ft square board that will have a small village on it,but the otherside i was just going to crawl under the layout to get to the back of it but i thought wait a minute i have a 2ft square piece of baseboard on the lower level that hasn't got a thing on it.

So i will cut that 2ft Square section out so i can get to the back of the layout to work on the upper level but the steam engine sheds sit over that bit on the upper level,so i will make that section removeable so i can get to the back of the layout to work on it and then replace it to operate the layout.

Heres a picture showing what section of baseboard i will be removing but the pic is of the board before the rest of the baseboards were fitted.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v284/dynamite25/Cutout.jpg

[dynamite25]

Ok i have cut the 2ft square section out and took two hours to do i have taken photos as i did it so you can see how it was done.

First Pic shows how it was before the boards were removed.



Second Pic shows the framework without the boards there.



Third Pic shows one side cutout.



Fourth Pic shows both sides removed and one section screwed back in the other way and two new legs have been fitted,aswell as the one that was in the middle before i removed that section.



Fifth Pic shows half of the baseboard refitted back in place.



Sixth Pic shows half of the second baseboards refitted back in place.



Seventh Pic shows both track put back in place so i can continue running trains again.

[dynamite25]

Just alittle update on the layout.

I have manged to get the wood cut that will sit on top of the supports for the upper level to be screwed to give it more support and i had to undo one half of the fiddle yard,and reposition it 1inch towards the other half to give me more room for the supports for the upper level because when i added the extra track it took what space i was going to use for them.

Which took about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours to unpin the track and move it over and then re-pin it down but had to move the trains out of the way first so i added some sidings on the otherside of the layout,just to store the trains while i did the fiddle yard then put the trains back into the fiddle yard once finished.Tomorrow i will fit the supports and the 3 inches strips i cut today and fit the 6mm ply sheeting for the upper level.

[dynamite25]

Today i got some of the supports for the upper level in place so it's piccy time again.

So here some pics of the supports i've put in for the upper level and the excess needs cutting off for the return incline.







And heres some with the 6mm board on top first one has two screws put in to hold in place and for the second one i have just place the supports in place and placed the 6mm sheet ontop.









And heres some from under the upper level.















And the last one is of a plug socket i wired up so i can plug it into my extension cable so i can use the drill over the otherside of the loft,while i have other things plugged in the extension cable on the other side.

[Guest]

it looks abit tight in there just enough room at the top though to clear the roofs and chimneys!