Photos

There are serious levels in the Sunset Valley, and rarely is it demonstrated as clearly as it is here:

The operator seen here is calling dispatch to find out why he's facing a Red signal up there on the top layer.

Here a log train is descending into camp in a scene directly below the top tracks seen in the previous photo.

One of two passenger stations Bruce has located in Portland, this one is pure fantasy.

This is the inside view of the building just on the right edge of the previous photo. Sorting mail appears to be a major occupation here. Below is the first floor view:

Okay, it's 10:30pm local time and I need to be up before 6am. And I haven't had better than maybe a half-hours continuous sleep in the past 36. So... I'm going to bed. More photos as I have time.

SV, still analog?

Dear Jeff,

Is the SV still analog, or is CMRI now talking DCC?

Happy Modelling,
Aim to Improve,
Prof Klyzlr

CMRI is digital, but not DCC

Prof, I can answer.

CMRI is digital in that it transmits data bits using RS-485 and ribbon cabling, but it's not DCC. The Sunset Valley uses NCE DCC, with some sound decoders for running the trains, but it uses CMRI to operate the CTC and signaling systems.

CMRI is the detection system with its own wiring, and it's separate from the DCC wiring. I know all this because I keep in touch with Bruce, and have looked extensively at using CMRI on the Siskiyou Line. JMRI has CMRI point-and-click programming capability, so you no longer need to write a BASIC computer program to program CMRI to work with your railroad. 

You just get JMRI, CMRI cards, hook it all up, and have fun making your signal system and detectors do their thing. The signals and detectors all need to be CMRI compatible, which does not use the DCC signal to do anything - it uses its own bus and wiring.

Dear Joe, Thanks for that.

Dear Joe,

Thanks for that. I knew CMRI was seperate from the traction-control in a system sense, but IIRC it also had "auto cab forwarding" to take care of block-toggle switching (between analog throttle X and loco #1) back in the day?

Happy Modelling,
Aim to Improve,
Prof Klyzlr

Just 1 word

WOW

More photos

Okay, I've tried this twice now and it hasn't taken. Let's try it another way.

Bruce Chubb was very popular, naturally - here he is signing Les' SVOS pass:

One of the people running trains on the SVOS - this was a logging train, complete with geared locomotives and a series grade....

Ever wonder what a well organized electrical panel looks like? Wonder no longer:

There is a bit of "Deja huh?" when dealing with the SVOS - not only does it contain elements near my home, but it contains a version of the entire run of Joe Fugate's Siskiyou Lines. Here is Bruce's rendition of Roseburg Forest Products in Dillard, Oregon:

Andrew here was running trains pretty much every time I saw him:

To be continued (with about 40 more photos)...

Yet more photos

Another moment of Deja Huh? - Woodburn, Oregon, which I believe is laid out backwards to the real one, but which fits on the layout much better this way:

This unfinished industry captured my eye - it's now Truitt Bros. cannery on Front. St. in Salem, Oregon - and it's something I need to model on my own layout:

And here is the Salem, Oregon Train Station, which, since a refurbishment a few years back looks like this again:

Jefferson, Oregon is located in the bathroom... appropriately enough there is a fertilizer industry there:

A model of a Southern Pacific Daylight "3/4 dome" car that the ESPEE built themselves out of other passenger cars:

Here is a view of the layout going down the backside of the crew lounge:

Albany, Oregon passenger depot:

A corner of the crew lounge room makes for a rather pastoral scene (complete with cows, I believe):

More SVOS Photos

One of the several large yards on the SVOS:

Ah - it's Eugene - and here is the controls for one of the several turntables on the layout:

The SP Dispatcher CTC Panel:

And the Portland Terminal CTC panel:

This engineer is looking ahead to his next signal indication:

Lots of cameras, lots of pictures with Bruce:

Okay, back to the scenery...

More SVOS Photos II

More scenery:

Coos Bay/North Bend Branch:

This gentleman is controlling those two Geeps on the right side of the photo:

And here comes the GN Empire Builder.... through Grants Pass, Oregon?

And right around the guy running the switch job. Note - based on what I saw, you could easily get a run of an hour or more in traversing the mainline on the SVL:

I think that is the same switch job going across the bridge into Coos Bay, Oregon:

Meanwhile the Empire Builder continues and goes across one of the many dramatic high bridges on the SVL:

Time for another comment...

Thanks Jeff!

Always like seeing the national show vicariously through you.  Looking forward to more

Steve

More SVOS Photos III

On with the layout!

It's a busy place:

Union Station, Portland, OR (the one that exists in reality):

Engine house on a logging branch line:

One of the ship terminals in Portland:

Not even the entry stairwell escapes having tracks laid within.... two levels, actually:

Most people's layouts feature construction... The SVOS even features destruction:

They must have been desperate for operators... MRH advertising manager Les Halmos gets the throttle on a slow coal drag - with him is his friend Jean-Francois (aka "J-F") - they drove in from Quebec together. I've heard a lot of French this week. Don't understand a word of it.

Of course, with those bright yellow F-units on the front, someone thought it was a passenger train and routed Les through the passenger station... that's J-F taking a picture with an iPad in the background: 

The Brooklyn Roundhouse in happier days - the last three stalls of the prototype were recently torn down by UP to make more room in their Brooklyn intermodal yard. This necessitated the movement of the SP 4449, SP&S 700 and OR&N 197 to a new home over by OMSI, just across the Willamette River from downtown Portland. It is hoped that this will facilitate more people getting acquainted with the locomotives, all of which are owned by the City of Portland:

Okay, apparently this building was in Grants Pass, OR in 1955 - seems rather modern and art deco for that sleepy little burg:

And finally, before I go visit the sandman myself, a very large sand dune on the Coos Bay branch:

That's it!

Okay, I'll admit that I've got a lot more photos of the SVOS (some of which were the result of simply holding down the shutter release on my camera and letting it cycle).

But I think those were the best of the bunch. Now.. watch for my next post soon, "The great LD-SIG layout tour" coming soon to a blog near you.... right after I figure out which of the 643 photos that I took on 11 (12?) layouts are worthy of posting. I love my digital SLR.... and I love 16MB SDHC cards even more.

CMRI HAS SEEN ITS DAY

NEVER ENOUGH PICTRES

Thanks Jeff

Thanks for the amazing photos! What a wonderful undertaking the Sunset Valley Lines is.

Ken

NMRA Net

For those looking into a way to tie your railroad together into a single network... that haven't really started buying stuff yet... keep an eye on NMRANet. It is indeed coming soon - and based on a sign I saw at the convention was seen working with JMRI here at the convention.

Good job Jeff

Oh, and you too Mr. Chubb. This is one of those "I gotta get a chance to operate someday" railroads.

CMRI is just an early implementation of an ongoing concept

But it has a lot of actual working installations. Unlike a lot of not yet installed modern ideas.

Just because you can get smaller micro pcbs with more I/O and better serial buses for easier distributed processing doesn't change much, except the details. Until you get away from entire block presence or few spots as a detection scheme, computer control of any version is limited by a lack of resolution of the external position and speed of locomotives and cars. The logistics of the program in the center is going to stay the same.

And NMRA net isn't going to change that either. Or it wouldn't need JMRI to run it.

And hopefully...

.....the Model Railroad GPS system will be available again! (hint, hint! ;-> ) Then "Block Detection", as we usually consider it today with DCC, will be all together moot! At least that is what i'm hoping for.

Ken L

Thanks Jeff!

I've been a fan of Dr Chubb's Sunset Valley layout since I first ran across it in his book, How To Operate Your Model Railroad.

IMHO this new version of the SV (which includes many of the scenes from the original) is one of the most under exposed (a little photography pun there) of the truly great model railroads.

Thanks for the excellent coverage of this magnificent layout.

George

just goes to show

how many more pictures an on-line forum can post on a subject of interest, compared to a regular print magazine.

Digital-Vs-Film-Vs-Glass Negative

I could be wrong but I think we started getting poorer results as soon as we went from "Large Format" negatives to 35mm and smaller. Higher end digital cameras ( for the masses ) have come a long way.I have a  10" x 22" print from my glass negative collection that is superb in resolution compared to my Nikon D90. The printer said he could enlarge it to 20" x 44" without loss of quality. My guess is that it could go even bigger. I think he scanned it at 600 dpi.

My camera

I'm using a Canon T3 DSLR with about 12mp and a 18-55 kit lens. Any problems with my photos are probably the fault of the user....

Oh, and J-F is taking a photo with the iPad, not hiding behind it.

Photos

Hi Jeff,

I didn't mean to imply that any of your photos were faulty. I'm in no position to critique your work. I'm just noting that the large format cameras of the past produced fantastic results. I'm not sure that digital has reach the same level as that.

Rob Teed