Remaking of the Ridley Keystone & Mountain

[tompm]

Deano your wish is my command.

Here are the painted foundations.



Foundations glued in place.





Station Platforms in place temporarily to see how they look. I will attach them permanently once the scenery around them is done.





Next is making the station building foundation. I need to figure out the exact location for the station building and the roads around it. For the roads I have the Walther's Asphalt Street kit. Never used it before but I am willing to try.

[tompm]

After a great deal of thought I have decided to shelve the Engine Terminal. Trying to make it work was just getting more and more frustrating. The idea is not dead as it will be incorporated most likely in the future expansion of the layout.

Doing more thinking I came to the conclusion the station needed a third track. This came about as I thought about operations and how passengers and baggage would be handled at the station. I took a close look at the rear doors on the station building and realized they are not for passengers. They are too plain and business like. The passengers would use the platform stairs which would access an underground concourse to the and from the station. Baggage presents a challenge. There are not elevators to the platforms and no one is carrying baggage upstairs. As of yet I have not found any elevators I can model for the platforms. I have a few ideas but in the meantime the baggage will be brought through those rear doors and loaded on trucks which will be driven to the platforms. The process will be reversed for incoming trains. With all that being said I can now justify having a track between the platform and the building.

Adding this third track also brings me back closer to the original track plan. I spent the past week or so thinking about the track layout and tonight I put it together as seen below.









I ran a couple of test locos using my LNE Atlas S-2 and the Unlettered Bachmann 4-8-2 Light Mountain. The NYO&W Light Mountain is temporary out of service. I proved to myself tonight the stalling on the frogs is from the missing pick-ups. I have a new replacement piece that has the pick-ups. I just need to replace it.

The video shows the tests.

https://youtu.be/nBL5d7McpjI

[tompm]

The RK&M has its first customer delivery tonight! More to come.

[ezdays]

I am impressed with the size of your layout, lots of possibilities.

[UP SD40-2]

Very nice Tom!  

Looks good, I for some reason always do the overkill way, when I lay new track I usually run trains for about a month, just to make sure after all the running and settling is done in that time all is still good  .

[tompm]

Thanks guys!

As I stated I am returning to the original track plan. There are some minor changes due to either the unavailability of track or what will work. The plan called for a siding for the Northern Power & Light plant. I followed the plan as close as I could but since I don't have any 15 inch radius curved track I had to use all 18 inch.







I am thinking about moving the wye so I can install longer storage tracks.

Here is a video of the delivery.

https://youtu.be/dr_3PyZCqi4

[mr bachmann]

its taking on the new look , its strainge how we revert back to the original track plan 

I'll be following this , thanks for sharing

[tompm]

I moved the wye and lengthened the storage tracks for the power plant





I then reworked the connection from the inside track to the third track.





Next I think I figured out a way to get the Cement Company Diorama back into the layout.

[Tyson Rayles]

Quite a project you have going there. Makes me feel like a slacker for my lack of progress.

[tompm]

Thanks Mike.

I had one those inspirational moments and I figured out how to get the Cement Company Diorama back into the layout. Once I selected the corner I had to adjust the mainline tracks.





Then I placed the diorama on the corner so I could determine what I had to remove from the diorama and from the layout.





Cut and remove the foam board from the layout to fit the diorama.



After trimming/removing parts of the diorama I put in place.





Lastly I added the connection track using some flex track and a #4 switch.

[Schraddel]

<p>Tom, and here was the point when flex-track becomes your friend. Lutz<br></p>

[tompm]

Time to put down the roadbed. At this stage I will not being attaching it to foam as I need to make sure there are no problems with the track once it is on the roadbed.

First area to be done is where the third track passes the passenger platforms.





Roadbed is down. I did cut out for the platform foundation.







For the next industrial siding I chose the Golden Valley Canning Company. I made cardboard mock ups of the footprint and used them to figure out where the structures will go.

[Schraddel]

<p>Thumps up! Lutz<br></p>

[tompm]

Started working on extending the roadbed along the third track.



Going around the curve.



The other side of the curve and the Power Plant siding.



The third track and the switch to the Power Plant siding



The Power Plant tracks and the cannery tracks.



Another view of the curve and Power Plant tracks.

[tompm]

Be prepared for a lot of photos as I had a really good weekend.

It started with putting down the roadbed for the inside track. At the Water Tower Diorama because there were switches near a portion on the outside track was done.





Going around the curve.





Next I decided to glue down some roadbed and track. I had to do both because flex track was involved and I needed the track to keep the roadbed aligned.





I also determined what I could put in this corner. It is the O. L. King Coal Dealer. I made cardboard cut outs of the buildings. I do need the kit to determine the height of the coal trestle and thus what grade will be required.



Here is a photo of the kit. I am waiting for the kit to arrive. It was supposed to be here on Friday but has been delayed.