Some photos

Here's some photos showing the layout as it stands after a year of construction:

And here's the ugly pull-back shot of the whole thing (well, the cannery side) so you get a sense of size & scale:

In the next couple months I hope to finish:
--the sand & coal bunks for the engine service
--detailing the blacksmith's shop with working forge and lights
--building the cannery (the main industry!)
--rebuild the mine tracks & build the mine
--get more junk & details in!

We shall see what the model railroading gods have in store!

Thanks for looking, and for all comments, criticisms & suggestions.

Awful

Everything looks great except the turnout throws, they are simply awful.

They are so out of scale, they do the rest of your work an injustice.

The Boxcab

The latest project was this wooden boxcab beast Hank, the hapless grease monkey mechanic of Mt. Coffin, cobbled together out of Climax and cast-off parts hanging around the blacksmith shop:

The board-by-board shell sits on a styrene support skeleton that slips on over the Bachmann 44-tonner mech (LED and dual DC/DCC decoder already installed!), so theoretically I can build another more modern one and swap the shells out when I want to shift eras.

Still a few more details to go, but it's a nice addition to the 1900's atmosphere of Mt. Coffin along the Columbia River:

Thanks for looking.

Those Awful groundthrows

Yes, they're a bit big.

And the camera make them seem even bigger.

I call them my "catapults".

I really wish Caboose Ind. would make some N-scale ground throws (their "N Scale Groundthrows" are still too big for HO), but they don't.

It's a trade-off: I (and my kids) really like flipping them with my finger and I can ignore the hugeness, but they do look enormous in photo close-ups.

I'll be building some props to go over them for photography.

And the next layout I build I'll be using slide switches as both turnout control and frog-powerer.

Or, if I like the hex frog juicer I'm going to try soon, maybe I'll just use bent staples to hold the points.

But I agree the catapults can be a bit distracting sometimes.  Guess I just mentally adjust (kinda like "hey: my beer gut is almost flat!"  )

Any suggestions for good manual turnout throws for the next layout are greatly appreciated.

Those..........

........are some beautiful photographs! You're modeling is top notch. Thanks for sharing.

Suggestions to replace the caboose

M.C.,

I bet your daughter would love the Humpyard throws just as much as the giant catapults. I don't have them myself, but have always admired them.

N scale Mt. Coffin & Columbian River -- THANK YOU

Considering the macro size of the layout, as shown in the track plan and the pull-back shot, the micro-scenes represent not only beautiful modeling but beautiful photography as well.  Thanks from an N-scale dreamer.

TRACKPLAN

Please provide a downloadable .pdf file as the author of the Kaslo & Slocum did.  And please print the dimensional information large enough that it survives the page-size reduction.

GROUND THROWS

Lance Mindheim, in his switching layout books, proposes NO turnout controls, except for hidden or unreachable track.  He states that the natural springiness in commercial turnouts is enough to lock them for normal or diverging routes.  Just use your finger to set the turnout.  Of course his books are written using HO scale as a model.  Perhaps N-scales, or handlaid, don't work this way.  If they don't, he says you can "shim" them until they do. 

Another thought is do use under layout bent wire, connecting to a pinball-machine type push-pull knob on your fascia.  In fact there are a handful of ways to throw switches without resorting to Caboose Industries at one extreme or Tortoise or hex frog juicer at the other.  Good luck (especially since I've not tried these yet).

What's so awful?

To be honest, I didn't even notice the ground throws 'till someone mentioned them.  I was blown away by the modeling!  Fantastic work!

I just ordered a bunch of Bullfrog under-the-table manual machines for my small layout.  Haven't used them or seen them being used, but they look great.  I'll be sure to let you know how they work out for me.

Really great modeling and design.  It makes the layout look much larger than it really is!

Thanks

Thanks for all the kind words, gents.

And thanks for the suggestions for the manual turnout control.

Matt F: they are pretty awful, especially with through the camera lens.  Check out these catapults guarding the entrance to the cannery and engine service:

They're pretty darn big & ugly.
Now there's ways to disguise them a little.
I'll be weathering them with powders, as the shiny-objectness attracts attention ("hey! shiny object!").
And I can build junk / bushes to hide them for photos.
Along the raised mainline I lowered them under the throwbar, which helps a little:

[sorry for the bad photo: was playing with the white balance thingy on my camera]

So they're not as big, but they're still big.

Scarpia: I love the look of the Humpyard controls, and if I ever built a larger layout with turnouts in places I couldn't reach then I'd totally use those or the Bullfrog wood ones.

Part of the challenge I gave myself on this layout was "nothing under the layout".
This is actually my "chainsaw" layout to test out a bunch of skills so when I build my "real" shelf layout I'll know what I'm doing.
So even though there are some wood supports under this one, I told myself nothing goes under the ply support, to mimic the real shelf conditions: all wiring & power block / lighting toggles are all in the fascia and in channels in the foam, which you can see in this photo of my daughter running some trains before I ripped out & replaced the two left turnouts:

So I'll be sticking with the Caboose groundthrows for this layout, and for the next I'll probably follow Steve Lohr's article on "Easy Slide Switch Turnout Control" in N Scale Railroading (Jan/Feb 2011).
I handlay all my turnouts and definitely want the frogs powered, and the slide switch sticking out is a lot smaller profile than the Caboose catapults

Glad to see ...

Hi M.C. - glad to see you took me up on the suggestion of a part 2. Until Tom (Scarpia) pointed it out, I had totally ignored the scaling of the ground throws. I have yet to install anything that looks like a throw. I have it in mind, eventually, to install switch stands (probable half-height) linked to the points. For economy, I bought both manual and electric Atlas and Model Power turnouts (going for price, not remote versus manual). I plan on under layout turnout machines - that is something I can handle easily, since I have 24" x 30" dominoes to allow for upside down bench work on them. I have laid out a mix of turnouts and snap-track sections, but have not finalized my track plan yet (to be built mostly with Atlas flex track). All my track will be code 80 (at least to begin with). At this time, the layout is using 3/16" foam filled display board, but will be built eventually with roadbed on risers to provide for varying height/depth terrain most likely formed with hydrocal on corrugated cardboard strip webbing.

Thanks for the extra description on your boxcab. I had forgotten you had already mentioned it being on a Bachmann 44-tonner. What I was missing was what did a prototype have inside.

Please never "chainsaw" this layout, if you can afford not using some of it for another layout. This Mr. Coffin & Columbia River layout is like a museum piece in my opinion. It is an excellent example of how much realism and detail can be done on such a small footprint.

Bought a couple Caboose throws

I bought a couple of those caboose ground throws to try it out in one section of the layout, but I don't think I'll be using them as they are almost as big as a small business office at the grain terminal.  You have disguised them much better below grade and weathered, though, so I might experiment a bit with them.  It is a "chainsaw" after all, right?

(Ground) Throw away

Ed Kapuscinski has a groovy article on how to disguise Caboose ground throws below the turnout throwbar.

The issue with those two groundthrows in front of the engine service is that there's no raised roadbed, so I mounted the groundthrows over the throwbars (could have dug out the space, but dang I'm lazy).

Being a "manual" kind of guy, I really like using my finger to flip them, and so my brain rationalizes their size into acceptable proportions.  We do this all the time in modeling (especially in N scale), and each of us has our peeves.

For me, Code 80 rail just looks wrong, though many have used it for whatever reason and can rationalize (and disguise) it away just fine.

One man's mead is another man's poison

As I get more and more into more "realistic" looking layouts, and especially photography (a very recent interest), I'm becoming more & more aware of those scaling issues and totally appreciate getting called out on them (my love of the catapults is a running gag on another forum).

If you're not using the throwbar to move a slide switch to power the frog, I recommend the spring-loaded Cabooses.  On a lot of my turnouts I have a slide switch under & through the throwbar to power the frogs, and the spring-loaded ones aren't strong enough, so I use the stiffies and cut a channel in the Caboose arm to compensate for the farther movement.

As for the boxcab, it's a Frankencab, cobbled together in the home shop of a backwoods branch line by a Methuselahn mechanic who does his best work between mugs of moonshine.

The main reference photos included these NYC boxcabs:

You'll notice that those are 0-6-0s under the box, and I'd love to use a 0-6-0 mech, but not so good ones out there, especially in terms of electrical pickup.

So also looked at some speeders, and this boxed-up NYC shay:

[Which required a horse & flagman to proceed it "for safety"]

But the real inspiration:

I've had a cab-crush on Toby since my son started into Thomas.

He's boxy.  He wears skirts.  He rocks & rolls.

So I'm kinda happy how my Frankencab turned out.

Here you can see it chuffin' off to work (to be a very useful engine), with a Caboose groundthrow peeking out from behind one of the 20-ton coal cars (designed by Chris Schmuck & offered by Republic Locomotive Works), which shows you can hide them by sticking them on the inside of curves (also good so outswing doesn't bump into them).

Thanks, M.C.

Thanks for the great discussions on the ground throws. Also, quite a bit of info on the boxcabs.

I decided on the code 80 when the code 55 was not as plentiful and the price break on the code 80 was great - I needed to keep my investment within a tight budget. With ballast and weathering, it does not look bad to my eyes. I really like the better proportions on the code 55, but had to draw the line somewhere.

Appreciation

Thanks for showing what can be done in small spaces ... currently planning a 2x8 made of 2 2x4 modules and you've changed my mind about what could be done.

BTW, I've "chainsawed" a 4x14 setup but have saved the 2x4 platforms. I always drop wires through the track centers and then carefully keep the bus & drops routed under the platforms, through the framing to the power pak w/o much hanging down. Undersurface could easily be covered if a shelf application.

"Bending the Iron"

The rest of your work is so spectacular, I didn't want to comment on the CI ground throws, however......

I had the same issue with our club N scale layout in Florida several years ago. I really like the up close and personal feeling of "bending the iron" that you get from throwing the Caboose Industries gadgets but, like you said, even the N scale versions were just too huge. So, I ran actuating wires from the points of the turnouts through brass tubes to the edge of the layout and connected them to O scale CI sprung ground throws sitting on small brackets on the fascia. (The O version has more heft and the sprung model takes care of the longer throw without damaging the N turnout.) In some cases where the turnout was not straight back from the fascia, I used model airplane flexible control cables in plastic sleeves instead of wire and tubes.  

We got the same visceral feeling of throwing a prototype switch without those giant lumps of plastic all over the layout.

Keep your blog going - your layout is truly inspiring!

Chuck Place, Hendersonville, NC

The Cannery is in the Can

Just finished scratch building & installing the Mt. Coffin Cannery Co. ("A taste to die for!"):









Still needs a bunch of details here & there and some weathering.
Not quite sure I'm liking the single-story: I might build a smaller second-story office off-set towards the rear.
Also need to figure out some signs.
Would be great to get the faded white "hand-painted" over the doors, but might be too late for that.
(any/all suggestions welcome)

Tomorrow's supposed to continue the sunny 60+ degree "winter" we're having here in the San Francisco Bay Area, so I'll try to lug the layout out into the sunlight for some better photos.

Now I just need to figure out how to model some mounds of fish!

Thanks for looking.   

Great Keeps Getting Better

As with all of your modeling the building is most excellent. The roof sag is an important detail I especially like. Positioning the guy pushing the door open is a nice touch to really add life to the scene.

How about a little well worn dirt area at the foot of the steps (by the drums) and in front of the side door where the ground has seen a lot of foot traffic?

Seems like there should be a stovepipe or similar sticking out somewhere. I assume they would have something for heat. Can't count on 60+ degree winters all the time!

Again, fine modeling you've got there.

Lookin' sharp!

Thanks for the comments, and cheers on spotting the slight sag in the roof

Good ideas on the well-worn dirt around the heavily-travelled areas.
I'm still debating whether I want to add some planks laid down in a muddy area.
Was thinking of using some tinted matte Modge Podge to create the mud.

But I need to test that out on the test diorama before mucking up this layout

As for the vents: good call.
I'm also still debating on whether to add a small second-story office to the back 1/3rd or 1/2, or just keep it the 1 1/2 stories it is now and add some vents / stovepipes (though most photos I have of Columbia River canneries don't show a lot of roof clutter: you want to pack those fish fresh & cold!).

The final decision will depend on how I feel the composition of the scene goes.

Right now it's a wide, flattish area:

So something towards the land-side doors might balance things out.
Imagine a short upper structure on the left side of this photo:

So, will let the structure sit for a second and see how it sits within the scene.

Maybe all it needs is some seagulls and salmon?

Thanks again for the feedback!
Much appreciated!

Ideas for the cannery

M.C. - When you mentioned something about piles of fish, it "rang a bell". I thought "Now where did I see something about that?" - I knew I had seen something in an MRH article about modeling fish piles. Then I got busy with other things and a day or two went by. Tonight I started searching through the ezines looking for the keyword "fish" - wouldn't you know it shows up in several issues? Aha, I found the article, finally - it was written by Lew Matt and is in the issue 17, July 2011, on page 83 "Mortenson's Fish Market". On page 84 Lew describes making fish from cream cheese wrapping foil using manicuring scissors. He also comments "(More on this later!)", but I think this is when his illness kept him from doing much else, so I don't think I saw anymore on this subject.There may be other ideas you can get from this article.

For what it's worth

For what it's worth, M.C., I think I'd leave the main building alone (other than adding a couple of roof vents as recommended, and I'd look at a roof top billboard type of sign), but what about expanding that small knock out on the side?

I'm not sure how big you can go with the track right there, but even if it doubled in width and went longer, it would be a perfect place for a chimney - after all, there's no reason the office can't be warm.

Boxcab o' Beer video

Thanks for the suggestions: I'll look up the fishy article.  Yogurt foil tops might do the trick (though a lot of little cutting for N scale!)

Scarpia: Originally I was going to have a MTS side-boiler vent stick out that add-on, but the stack was too close to the roof.  But I'll look into expanding it a bit.  A chimney / stovepipe would be a nice detail to have right there.

Well, I finally made a video of the layout at it's current state, and with the boxcab running!
(Only the rear truck has pickup right now: thank goodness for powered frogs!)
But it's still able to do it's job!

Face

Great little video, MC. I don't know if it was intentional or accidental, but that engine has a personality which is clearly visible in the face of the engine. The shadow from the grill in the front of the engine gives it a definite frown. On one of the passes as the engine went buy, I could swear the engine was looking out the corner of its eye. 

Roy

Office

M.C, it looks like you could come out almost to the edge of the ballast, and than take over a single window on the left hand side, and that bump out could be come a decent office. Couple of windows, chimney, entry porch, and voila. Maybe even a dude hanging out reading the newspaper....

the whole thing looks great overall, you're doing wonders selling N Scale modeling btw.

Shed-ding light on the details

Been adding little details around the engine shed and in the shop:





I attached some decapitated T-pins in a hollow wall that poke into the foam so the whole shed can be lifted off for more detailing later.

Would have loved to put an overhead belt drive in the shop, but I'm getting to the point where I just want to get this layout "done," and I still have the mining scene on the back side to finish!

You can see that Hank, in a fit of nostalgia, left his anvil in the center of the shop, even though there's more modern metal-working machines in there.

I don't want a large coal tower in front of the service track, so I'm thinking of using some of Randgust's V&T hoppers that accidentally got vacuumed up as the tarp-covered "temp" coal bins, and I'll build a hoist crane & bucket for loading. Haven't finalized that so I haven't glued the hoppers in yet.

Will probably put in a water trough & tie post for horses on the right side of the shop, and there'll be some tools hanging on the wall as soon as I figure out how to remove those little flimsy brass things from the sticky pad they came on.

On a whim I realized I could rest the camera on the water to get this funkey shot:



It's nice to get something done on the layout, even if it's little details, here & there.
Other detail suggestions appreciated.

Thanks for looking.