The current plan is to work only on modules 1 and 1a until they are both running well and scenic’d. Then to continue onto modules 2 to 5. This will include:

1. Laying all the track and turnouts, including the addition of 2 more loops of track
2. Wiring the track and turnouts to the control panel, including the installation of NCE SnapIt’s and LightIt’s
3. Building the control panel, including the turnout controls and directional LED’s
4. Installing working signals
5. Wiring to a NCE Mini Panel using Macros to set up turnouts and signals for each of the 7 loops
6. Cutting the South Platte River extension from module 2
7. Tidying up the Cherry Creek river bed on module 2 and installing the bridges
8. Extending the main line, wired to BUS stage only, through modules 2 to 5 to a temporary loop on module 5 for runaround loop testing
9. Testing that all the tracks run well
10. Building all of the kits (about 8 or more) planned for the modules
11. Ballasting with the new Arizona Rock & Mineral ballast
12. Adding the kits and low level grass and scenery
13. Creating the Denver Market area south of the C&S 7th St area
14. Building the front range mountains which will separate the Denver C&S 7th Street area from the Crested Butte Mine at Gunnison County
15. Installing the kit for the Crested Butte Mine and attaching to the mountain scenery

Then I can finish laying the track on modules 2 to 5 (the DUT tracks are already laid) and install dozens of station platforms. But that is a job for another day! Unlikely to be this year.

Rebuilt module 5a which completes the DUT coach yards and loco servicing. Used a 915mm continuous hinge and bolted it onto module 4.

No idea if I am going to be able to winch modules 2, 3, 4 & 5a up as one unit. Will test shortly. Fastening the pull-along winches to the ceiling is a big job but the hardest part of the operation is getting the winches to release the wires after pulling up the modules so that they return to level bench-work.

Finished the framing for modules 5b and 6a. After much thought have decided to use continuous hinges along the back 2.3m edge. It makes track and turnout wiring so much easier. The modules cannot be flipped once you add scenery and buildings but by then the track and turnouts should be well bedded in.

Just need to add plywood or MDF to the frames and it will be time to start laying track – at last.

Modules 1 & 1a bolted together and

level with modules 2, 3 & 4.

Connecting the L girder framework for modules 5 & 6 to module 4 is next on the list followed by the framing and the connection to module 7.

For an understanding of which module is which click here to view the trackplan.

Making good progress. All of the spotlights for Phase 1 have been installed together with 6 spotlights over my desk and the working area of the garage. As can be seen from the photographs all of the tools,  modeling parts, kits and scenery supplies have now been placed in plastic boxes on carts under the layout. All of the carts and furniture are on wheels.

Time to start connecting all of the modules that make up Phase 1.

Soon after my last post in January we actually moved into our new home and began to shift all the boxes and furniture out of my garage and into the house. That is when the fun really started. At first I was busy moving into the house but when I came to work on the layout modules that we had moved from Townsville I ran up against all sorts of challenges, in particular adding longer replacement legs to the modules whose legs had been damaged in transit and adding complete new legs and  frameworks for two of the modules that had been shipped legless to sit on. I also decided that the section on which modules 5 & 6 were built needed to be rebuilt and as I have never been happy with my track-work on that section Ii removed all of the tack pending a re-build.

Then disaster struck. My largest module, made up of three 6 foot modules (Mods 2, 3 & 4) bolted together, fell over whilst i was adding a new leg. It took a whole week with 2 pull-along winches, 2 double pulleys and 2 car jacks to lift the module into the air and right it on its broken legs. A mess as can be seen by the first two pictures. The third picture shows the module on it’s new and stable legs and the forth, a picture of modules 11 & 12 on their new frameworks and legs.

Kato Test Track — Speed Matching Update

Speed matching was put on hold pending the big move. Unfortunately I did not put away all the locos and freight cars sitting on the test track layout . So to punish me for my carelessness the whole test track layout fell over as I was positioning modules 1 to 4 in place. After I finished crying I picked up all the loco and freight car bits and put it in one big box which I have yet to inspect. I am not looking forward to finding out what a mess my brand new Atlas GP-30’s are in. The lid of the control panel of the test track layout was also broken off its hinges.

I considered breaking up the Kato test track but on checking my CADRail drawings I realised that it could fit onto the module 6b L-girder framework as a temporary part of the re-build of modules 5 & 6. As the track-laying for modules 6a & 6b are part of Phase 2 of the layout, that will not be started for a year or three, so in the meantime the test layout could be well used for loco testing. A modified part of the track-plan follows. To see details of the three phases of construction check out https://denversrailroads.com/DPoverview.htm.

As can be seen, with a minor alteration a connection can be made between the Kato test layout and the main layout. This could be used as a convenience to move trains between the layouts or the test track could be operated as the Leadville branch of Denver’s RailRoads, as it was originally designed.

As of the date of this blog all of the modules are now in place but I still have the following woodworking jobs to complete:

• Install 20+ stand alone spot lights, including 13 over modules 1 to 5, 4 over modules 5 & 6 and the remainder over my work desks situated around module 10.
• Add longer legs to module 8
• Bolt modules 10 & 11 to module 8
• Finish building the framework for modules 5 & 6
• Attach modules 5 & 6 to module 4 at one end and module 7 at the other end
• Bolt together modules 1 & 1a
• Build new module 9 ( a long time into the future)

I can then start the track-laying for Phase 1.  To understand which module is which check out the track plan at https://denversrailroads.com/Denver/DR-Layout/DR127A3.pdf.

On to Batch #2 made up of three Atlas ‘Gold Series’ EMD GP-30’s, all from the same production run. They are:

• #2893 Atlas 40 003 773 EMD GP-30 Phase 1, Road Number 3001
• #2894 Atlas 40 003 788 EMD GP-30 Phase 2, Road Number 3027
• #2895 Atlas 40 003 774 EMD GP-30 Phase 1, Road Number 3002

Atlas ‘Gold Series’ locomotives are at the top of the Atlas N Scale range and are all fitted with ESU sound decoders and AccuMate Chinese made couplers.

The maximum speed for a EMD GP-30 is 71–83 mph (114–134 km/h). Quite a bit higher than the SW7 top speed of 65 mph.

In addition to the above I have 4 older Atlas GP-30’s. Two are GP-30 Phase 1’s (manufactured in 2006 according to Train Control Systems [TCS]) and two are GP-30 Phase 2’s. They are:

• #994 Atlas 42816 EMD GP-30 Phase 1, Road Number 3006 with TCS ASD4 decoder installed by Gwydir in December 2015
• #995 Atlas 42817 EMD GP-30 Phase 1, Road Number 3008. TCS ASD4 decoder in stock ready to be installed.
• #1390 Atlas 47546 EMD GP-30 Phase 2, Road Number 3016. TCS ASD4 decoder in stock ready to be installed.
• #1391 Atlas 47547 EMD GP-30 Phase 2, Road Number 3019. A TCS ASD4 decoder needs to be ordered from Fifer Hobbies (8 ASD4’s in total required) who have the lowest price of $36.49.

Fifer Hobbies can be found at http://fiferhobbysu770.corecommerce.com/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=13668.

Let the speed matching begin.

I actually finished constructing the Kato Test Track Layout some time in November 2020. Originally I was going to finish the layout as the C&S Leadville branch and as you can see from the control panel (which is actually a printout of the track plan created in CADRail) there were to be 3 switching industries, a small yard and a passenger station. I even went as far as to paint the rails and ballast some of the track.

Unfortunately no matter what method I used – and I watched a number of different videos on Ballasting Kato track – I could not satisfactorily hide the Kato plastic simulated ballast. The exercise was useful in my being able to practice different ballasting techniques but by then it became clear that to build the layout up to a semi completed stage would take some months and I would not be able to complete the layout before the home was finished and I could work on my main Denver’s RailRoads layout, after the storage boxes and furniture currently filling up the layout area were removed.

However the layout is an excellent test layout, having two parallel loops of track and a number of sidings.

The layout, as in the following photograph, is set up to test run my 4 newest locomotives and, using a scale speedometer (the Accutrack II – highly recommended), to speed match using CVs 5 and 6. More on speed matching in the next blog.