Here's the "more" - and LOTS of photos...

I spaced the supports around the perimeter and put one in the middle to support the "roof girders" that would come later.

Clamps are your friend when working alone (an unfortunate reality these days). Since this is "only" staging, I decided not to bother painting the backdrop or do any real "finishing" (taping/topping seams, hiding screws, etc). But I did want a little bit of a finished look. So instead of buying regular masonite - and to keep the area nice and bright - I got white finished masonite that's typically used for kitchen/bathroom backsplashes and such. In this photo and the one below, I'm positioning the backdrop and holding it up with clamps.

One annoying reality of doing this after the track is all in, is that you have to have to put up the masonite twice - once to mock it up for marking, then for final installation.

But the backdrop is only the "sides" of the box(ing in). I wanted a lighting valence, and I figured that would support the "roof" as well. Here's the first piece going in over the east end of Saybrook (the only portion of "on stage" layout that's located in the unfinished part of the basement).

See what I mean about clamps? Here, I've already screwed in & secured the far end of the backdrop, and I'm gluing one side of the splice between the two sections of backdrop.

One of the challenges of gluing backdrop sections together is how to clamp them while the glue sets. Here I've used a long piece of wood to "extend" the clamps along the seam.

Once the backdrop was in place, the next step was to add "roof girders." These were made from two 1x3s screwed together to make an L-girder 1) to make it more rigid across the span, and 2) to provide a wider base of support for the foam board roof.

For additional rigidity and support, I added a cross piece and a diagonal brace.

And here's the first piece of valence going up! At first, I lined up the top of it with the top of the backdrop - but then I realized that wouldn't cover the edge of the foam board roof that would be sitting on top of the backdrop. Since the foam board is 1.5" thick, I raised the valence an additional 1.5" above the top edge of the backdrop.

Here's a better view of the "raised" valence. The foam board roof will rest on top of the backdrop & girders and nest in behind the valence.

Here's my trick for making sure the top of the girder lines up perfectly with the top of the backdrop and holds it there while I screw everything together.

Valence finished! Next comes lighting . . .

For the lighting, I decided to try out some LED tubes. I got a  6 pack of 4 footers from Amazon for $35.

They're very easy to install - basically just install the clips & clip them in. But I did run into a problem with the very first one . . . Apparently, the east end of Saybrook is exactly four feet wide. Problem was - the tube - with the plug - was too long & wouldn't fit!

One of the lessons I'm learning over and over again while building this layout is that you can never anticipate every single problem. And trying to is an invitation to Analysis Paralysis. It's often better to Just Get Started and deal with problems as they come up. The problem with the light length was a perfect case in point. I ended up just routing out enough material to accommodate the plug. Turned out to be a fine solution to what I feared would be an impossible problem!

Lighting done!

And now the roof goes in . . . This was a relatively simple matter of laying the foam board on top, snugging it against the wall and corner, and tracing the outline of the valance so I could cut it to fit.

The roof used up two 4x8 pieces of foam board, cut into three sections to cover the whole staging yard.

But hopefully you'll agree, it came out pretty nice!

That last pic there shows the current state of things. The idea will be to cover the "window" between the fascia and valence with some sort of curtain whenever I'm doing any cutting in the shop (that's the area I'm standing in in the photo above). There's really nothing left to do with the boxing in, but I will need to do more on the "east end of Saybrook" area: Vinyl backdrop & paint - and of course structures and scenery.

But it looks like Major Construction on the layout is finally done! The only thing left to do is decide whether to add any valence to the rest of the layout. I'm still mulling that over. I really like the shadow box effect here (and I have it in the Saybrook Scene as well), but I don't know yet if I want/need to replicate that effect across the whole layout (see Mike Confalone's Allagash Rwy for an example of not using valences).

So all that's left to do here is to install the 2nd/last shop light over the bench (I moved the two shop lights from above staging), and do a massive cleanup of this whole area. Those who know me well know that I'm pretty OCD when it comes to keeping my work areas clean and tidy - so the state of things here is a HUGE departure from my norm!

And hopefully soon there will be at least a small departure from what's become the "norm" in my life lately and I'm able to post more frequent layout updates. Thanks for being patient and for continuing to follow my progress. As always, I appreciate any feedback & hope you'll stay tuned!

Inspirational!

And a darn good read.

 Keeping the layout clean is a battle we all fight and it sure looks like you've got a good jump on it now. I also appreciated the "in progress" photos as there was a lot of good info that they made easy to understand.

I'll be following with great interest!

How wide is that yard?

Looks like it could create an access headache? ....DaveB

It looks good.

I noticed that you have a light fixture directly above the box.  I think it would have saved time and money to just get clear plexi for the top and allow the existing fixture to light the staging yard.

A corrolary to Dave's question above is what is the height of the benchwork from the floor at staging?  You can reach much farther in with waist high benchwork than if it is chest high. 

Thanks Rick!

Really appreciate the kind words! I'll try to be sure and remember to post here as well so there's something to follow

There's good access...

No worries Dave - There's "good" access, which is to say, once I duck under I can stand up comfortably in the back left corner.  If you look closely, you'll see the "pop up" hole. It's not hidden, but the earlier pics don't so it very well. Here are a couple of better photos:

Really don't know why the "pathway in" photo came out sideways (the original isn't that way, but whatever). Access is simply a matter of pulling the fabric aside, going under the yard, and popping up behind it.

That said, I only ever go back there for track cleaning - which now, thanks to being boxed in, should be only a very occasional task. In 6 years of operation, I've never had to go back there for anything else. Well, it was handy being able to get back there to do the backdrop and finish this construction, but you know what I mean

Thanks Russ!

VERY observant Russ! Yes, there's a light fixture above the yard - and, in fact, I plugged two shop lights into a light socket adaptor for lighting for many years. I'd never even thought of plexiglass - very clever! But I think even if I had I wouldn't have used it 1) I wanted better/fuller/more even lighting hidden behind a valence, 2) any dust accumulating on the "roof" would now be visible (and an eyesore over time), and 3) I suspect plexiglass is more expensive than foam board. And it'd probably be a MUCH bigger pain to cut to fit as I was able to cut the foam.

RE benchwork height: I didn't measure it, but I think it's around 50" high. All of the turnouts (and coupling/uncoupling locations) are well within reach. Again - I've had no need for additional access. In an emergency, I have the pop up and can easily reach everything either from there or with a stool.

Thanks guys for weighing in! And don't forget to check out the website