Kudos ... and whatever's greater!

I have to mention the temendous help provided by four people. David James of Brecksville, OH, decided that St. Louis was "on the way home" to the Cleveland area from a meeting in Sioux Falls, SD; thank goodness he has a better sense of direction when routing the bus fleet he and his family own. His 27 hours in two days work on the helix, electronics, and laying track is appreciated far more than I can ever say. Ken Heyl of Ashland, OH, drove the 500 miles (he came a more direct route) to St. Louis and spent the better part of four days helping with bench work and the helix. Ken is the guy who got me away from the model railroading magazines to actually building a railroad almost 20 years ago and has been there to help with three different layouts, but never more than with this latest effort. Bob Gouirand, a neighbor from just up the street, who has never been involved in the slightest with model railroading, showed up one morning with his pick-up truck and said, "... let's go get lumber and start building this railroad you're always talking about." He's been here almost every day since, building bench work, sawing, measuring, inserting drywall screws, and shaking his head at these model railroad guys. I think we've recruited a convert. Fourth, finally, and certainly not least, is my wife Sue. She has done nearly all the painting, starting a year ago when I was too beat down with chemotherapy to get out of bed, and as the accountant of this circus, watching with gracious good humor the $$$ outflow a project like this entails. Without these four, this railroad would not be happening.

This will be the last post for a while; I'll send out an email when it resumes, or you can check back periodically.

Trains Are Runnin'

Trains are running on the Paducah & Lake Erie. Sunday was a looooong day, but the helix is transitioned into the upper deck mainline, and the eastbound track is in from the helix to the entrance to Paducah. The westbound track is in from the helix to the end of the James Creek Railway spur at one of the three coal mines. The work bench is also installed. Below are five photos from Sunday: from top to bottom are 1) the first train to run (David James' Alco) at about 6 pm Sunday; 2) the transition from the helix to the upper deck; 3) David laying track on the upper deck; 4) the Digitrax power components for the helix, which we've made into its own power division; and 5) the work bench, which will include a spur off the lower level that will have the programming track and a RIP track.

I mentioned a couple of days ago about a silicone product we're using to fasten down roadbed and track, and we're quite happy with it. It's fast drying, with no need to tack down either roadbed or track until is dries, and it goes down easily. The first tubes we used on the helix dried white in color and looks messy, but since this will all be hidden, it was a good trial run. We have since gone to a clear-drying silicone and have become much more adept at putting it down, so it looks pretty good. For those interested, the product is "DAP Alex Plus, Acrylic Latex Caulk Plus Silicone" and be sure to get the drys "clear" version. It's about $2.25/tube at Home Depot.

Helix is In!!!

The helix is in (as of 4:55 pm today), complete with trackwork. (The kink pictured in Thursday's posting was "fixed"; we cut out a 18-inch section of track and replaced it.) It only needs to be attached to the rest of the layout and wired. Four photos below from today show (top to bottom) David James soldering in feeder wires; Me, David, and Russ Hachtel putting on the final 3/4 turn of the helix; same three continuing the installation; and the completed 2 3/4 revolutions of the helix dropping about 12" from top to bottom. Russ, his wife Judy, and their son Larry stopped by for a few minutes on their way from Ashland, OH, to Yuma, AZ, and we put him to work. Tomorrow trackwork and wiring starts in earnest.

Mainline Roadbed In

Mainline roadbed is in (top photo), and ready for track, which starts tomorrow. You're looking down the longest (about 27') straight, that includes a couple of tunnels and two coal-loading facilities. Past the monster post, which has been an absolute #@$%?&# to work around, the railroad does a 90-degree right and runs about 14' to the helix, a work in progress. The second photo is of a truly ugly kink on the helix, and all work has stopped on that helix until track doctor David James shows up Friday and works some magic. More photos tomorrow, of track work, and hopefully of a smooth track on the helix. I should mention that to glue down the foam roadbed and the track, I am using an adhesive caulk with silicone, which is fast drying and precludes the need to use pins or tacks to hold the roadbed and track in place until dry. It's the first time I've used the product and I think I like it.