Gibbon, Cozad & Western - "The 100th Meridian Line"

[CRL]

Mike - Does your scenery allow a horizontal rock ledge running about centered at the height of your tunnel (basically the height of your first layer of foam)? If so, you can hide the seam for the lift off mountaintop in the rock ledge. You can lay the lower half of the rock ledge in plaster on the first foam layer, then after it hardens, lay a sheet of wax paper or Saran Wrap over the first foam layer & plaster and butt the upper half of the plaster ledge hard against the lower half of plaster. After the plaster sets up, the wax paper or Saran Wrap should leave only a very small seam between the upper & lower halves. Depending on your plaster carving skills, you should be able to hide the seam fairly well.

It’s easier to do than to try to describe how to do it. You can let the upper & lower edge of the ledge wander up & down as they do in nature, but the hidden joint will be basically level.

[packers#1]

I don’t think there was a scene where he painted a tunnel and a train flattened him, but I know there’s scenes where he ends up in front of an existing tunnel and gets flattened by a train

[davefoxx]

Something I have to deal with that you guys usually don't have to consider is the complete lack of foliage. Like a pastry chef covering their screw-ups with icing, grass and trees (and kudzu  ) hide a whole bunch of sins with fit and finish of the base.

You aren't kidding about kudzu hiding a multitude of sins on my layout.  If I could get away with just kudzuing everything, I would!  Think about how fast I could complete structures, if I could just kudzu the crap out of 'em.  I wouldn't even have to mask off the windows for paint on those DPM-style buildings. 

I do not envy you and your lack of foliage.  Kudzos and good luck to you!

DFF

[C855B]

I shudder at recollections of my own firsthand encounters with kudzu while railfanning. I'm reaching down to scratch my ankles just in the memory of emerging from a kudzu patch to "get that shot" and subsequently going crazy that evening with the painful itch of dozens of chigger bites.

Does your scenery allow a horizontal rock ledge running about centered at the height of your tunnel (basically the height of your first layer of foam)? ...

I could fudge such a feature since it does happen in a couple of places in the canyon, but this particular location is a smooth slope down to the river bed. On the practical side, tho', making the detached layer at that point would require another vertical(ish) seam since that level of the terrain stretches about 8 feet into the background of that shot.

I'm still thinking a hinged door on the fascia. If Otto @Cajonpassfan can get away with one, so can I.  Oh. Hi, Otto! 

[CRL]

If you can reach the tunnel area from the facia, that’s clearly your best choice.

[davefoxx]

I shudder at recollections of my own firsthand encounters with kudzu while railfanning. I'm reaching down to scratch my ankles just in the memory of emerging from a kudzu patch to "get that shot" and subsequently going crazy that evening with the painful itch of dozens of chigger bites.

My own kudzu recollection while railfanning in 1994 involved me falling into a two-foot deep hole that was completely camouflaged while chasing two practically brand new SD70s tripling the hill on Saluda Grade.  I’m lucky that I didn’t break my ankle or leg.

DFF

[C855B]

Closing the loop on this leg of the layout is taking entirely too long.    I'm trying to catch the ambience of the canyon, but there's so much going on in the 1:1 it's hard to wrap my head around it and do it justice. So I haven't taken the magic profiling tool to the mountain yet for fear of painting myself into a corner while I continue to pore over dozens of pictures from the scouting trip. At least the tunnel and bridge placements are somewhat defined at this point. All I need now is the 80' version of that concrete deck bridge to close a gap to resume laying track.

[davefoxx]

Persevere!  You'll get it.  In the big picture, foam is not too expensive, and the misfires can be recycled into other scenic forms.  I like that photo angle through the bridges and tunnel.

DFF

[CRL]

I would try to capture the feel of the scene you’re modeling... not try to copy the scene exactly. The desert changes every time the wind blows or the rain falls. Pretty sure that when the UP decided to daylight the tunnel, at least part of the decision was to stabilize the ROW and not have to worry about landslides closing the line.

[davefoxx]

Okay, I'm dying to know:

1) How do you fill that gap between the two truss bridges where they meet at an angle to support the track?  It doesn't appear the truss bridges are skewed.  How did the prototype accomplish this?  Just extend the girders under the track?

2) Will there be any problem bending the track through that joint (I can't tell how wide the track will be on those spans)?

DFF

[C855B]

I'm fairly sure the prototype extended the girders. Unfortunately I couldn't inspect firsthand; getting to this area is the domain of true off-road 4x4, not mom's SUV. The gap on the model isn't that big - 1/16" at most. I'm not going to do anything with it since it's for all intents not visible given the close spacing of the ties with the Micro Engineering bridge track.

The model bridges, like the 1:1, have enough width for a mild curve through the spans with plenty of clearance. Dry testing with a length of flex was one of the first things I did, proving it was possible to emulate the slight angle - at most it's 1° of 36" radius. Only remaining test is running a pair of DDA40Xs and a GATX "whale" (100' and 94' long, respectively) through the curve before nailing things down.

[davefoxx]

That's good to hear, because the slight angle looks really good and adds interest.  I'm looking forward to seeing this come together.  Be sure to post the test photos of the DDA40Xs and GATX whales going through there.  Apparently, size matters to the UP.  Yowza!

Oh, and before "nailing things down," reconsider glue.  The bridges won't survive a good hammering. 

DFF 

[James Costello]

@C855B  Mike, I've assume you've seen these, but the two 7idea Productions blurays have drone footage etc that may help filling in some of the "big picture" scenery and may help / inspire:
Caliente Sub - https://www.7ideaproductions.com/shop/union-pacific/UPCALIENTE
Cima Sub - https://www.7ideaproductions.com/shop/union-pacific?product_id=99

As far as the task at hand and scenicing that awesome canyon to the grandeur you aspire to, I am reminded of the great @GaryHinshaw word's of wisdom to me when I was trying to finish my thesis a few years back - perfection is the enemy of good (paraphrased) - on a project of your scale.

[GaryHinshaw]

"Better is the enemy of good enough."  (That last word is important.)  Of course, on a project like this, better and good enough are entirely subjective.   Mike will know it when he sees it, and it's fun for the rest of us to follow along. 

I'd love to see an overview shot of this peninsula.  It must be impressive in its scope.

[James Costello]

"Better is the enemy of good enough."  (That last word is important.) 

I know I was going to botch it Gary!