jwb's 2012 New Year's Resolution Challenge

[jwb]

Why change the names? I have a lot of Rio Grande stuff, and in fact the track over the bridge is dual gauge. The same people who won't like an Appalachian coal mine right under the Moffat Tunnel will be even more bent out of shape at dual gauge thru the same! But It's My Flippin' Layout, no club politics or nothin'.

[jwb]

The cardboard web is coming along. I still don't know exactly what to do with the sewer pipe. I once thought about covering it up with scenery, but that will just ensure that a plumber will need to get to it.    

[faraway]

...I still don't know exactly what to do with the sewer pipe....

How about putting a thin layer of oil on it and cover/hide it with paper/plaster part (e.g. rocks etc.). That part should be removable if you choose the correct shape.

[Tyson Rayles]

You might try taking a piece of felt and spraying it with hair spray then sprinkling it with ground foam/dirt then placing it over the pipe. You could use clump foilage around the edges to blend it in maybe?

[jwb]

My current thinking is that any complication at all in the plumber having access will add to the perceived complexity of the job and thus his bill. Still leaning toward just leaving it out there.

[Southern Tuxedo]

My current thinking is that any complication at all in the plumber having access will add to the perceived complexity of the job and thus his bill. Still leaning toward just leaving it out there.

Too late for that...but don't worry the plumber will bring his best friend and trusty helper Mr. Sawzall to make his life as easy as possible. I, of course, am just kidding, but seriously have you ever seen some plumbers work....

My concern would be the spinning snake, that he would be using in that clean out to remove any obstruction, splattering shi....um...well...hum...you know, all over.

Hopefully you will never need it, but if you do, I would protect the layout with layers of plastic and drop cloths.

Mark

[faraway]

My current thinking is that any complication at all in the plumber having access will add to the perceived complexity of the job and thus his bill. Still leaning toward just leaving it out there.

My idea is to build a "cap" that can be removed within seconds. The oil was intended to prevent the cap sticking while under construction.

[Tyson Rayles]

If you ever have to call a plumber moving a peice of felt out of your way will be the least of your worries!
I had a freind years ago in a simliar situation. When the plumber was done about 20% of the layout was destroyed. He told my friend he was sorry about the damage to his "kids" toys but it couldn't be helped. The best thing would be not to build anyway near that pipe but of course that's not always doable.

[doctorwayne]

You're making some pretty good progress, but, when you have a moment, could you give us another photo similar to the one with the jigsaw, but taken from farther back, please? I'm assuming that pipe is a clean-out, but I think that with some careful planning, you could not only hide it completely, but also make it instantly accessible and be able to protect the nearby layout, too.

Wayne

[jwb]

OK, Dr Wayne, I think this is what you had in mind:    
And here's the same shot with the old mine model added to give an idea of how the scenery will fit:     The web is almost done, except for any new work that might come as a result of people's ideas on what to do about the pipe. However, this is close to the edge of the project's scope in any case.

Next task will be to get the track over the bridge spiked back down (jigsaw knocked it out of line) and replace the Moffat tunnel portal, and decide whether the scenery around the portal is within the scope of this project.

[jwb]

Here's the Moffat Tunnel portal back in place, leveled up, and sitting in a pool of white glue:
   
And here's the problem I'm looking at with the scenery in this area. The prototype portal isn't just a portal -- it stands out some distance from the side of the mountain, and it's surrounded by various other add-on structures.    
The fact that the pipe is in the way is another part of the situation. I'm trying to decide how far I want to go in modeling the area behind the portal, and exactly how I'll handle the scenery to do it. And whether I'll try any of that as part of the current project.

[doctorwayne]

Between your difficulties with the tunnel portal and the position of the mine, the situation with the pipe is more complex than I had expected. My initial thought was to simply make a tree-covered foam lift-out or lift-away section for access to the pipe. You could have then used a sheet of aluminum to fashion an open-ended cone - the small end to fit around the cleanout opening, and the larger end (3' or 4' in diameter) offering protection to the layout from burly plumbers' bellies (and any spillage from the pipe). To implement this now, though, would require that the mine also be part of the removable section.

The blower building, or whatever the support structure is for that tunnel, can be made from .060" sheet styrene. If the size warrants it, buy a 4'x8' sheet (it's useful for many projects, and a lot cheaper than in the small packages from Evergreen).

Wayne

[jwb]

For now, I'm going to declare work on scenery around the cleanout and past the front of the portal as outside the scope of this project. A recent layout room in RMC was described as comparable to a "high-end jewelry store". I never intended to sell diamonds out of my layout room, and there you are!

[MasonJar]

Do you have a sketch of the room with the benchwork and pipe indicated? How close is that cleanout to the edge of the layout?


Andrew

[jwb]

Here's a sketch of the trackplan as of 2004, though there have been changes. The scene here is located between Drains (name taken from John Allen's G&D, but also appropriate) and East Zenith, in the lower right center. The cleanout is maybe 10 inches from the front of the benchwork here.