HOn3 Rio Grande Southern First District 1938-1945

[Santa Fe Guy]

Great progress Dave.
Rod.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I love the progress. The fact that you just flipped a switch and said "lets do this" and then BAM! No f'ing around.

It's awesome.

[Dave V]

I love the progress. The fact that you just flipped a switch and said "lets do this" and then BAM! No f'ing around.

It's awesome.

It’s the starting that gets me every time.  Just like drinking and pissing...once you break the seal, there’s no turning back!

[DKS]

I love the progress. The fact that you just flipped a switch and said "lets do this" and then BAM! No f'ing around.

It's awesome.

What he said.

[Point353]

I love the progress. The fact that you just flipped a switch and said "lets do this" and then BAM! No f'ing around.

To get from this plan: http://www.polyweb.com/dans_RR/blog/images/sjc/SJCTopView.jpg
to this plan: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/gallery/5/medium_1151-030418233454-54832486.jpeg
wasn't there about 30 pages worth of "measure twice" before the "cut once" began?

[Dave V]

To get from this plan: http://www.polyweb.com/dans_RR/blog/images/sjc/SJCTopView.jpg
to this plan: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/gallery/5/medium_1151-030418233454-54832486.jpeg
wasn't there about 30 pages worth of "measure twice" before the "cut once" began?

There was...  I think the point they were making is that although I sat on the pot for a year and a half, once I decided to sh!t it was a sh!t with extreme prejudice.

[DKS]

...although I sat on the pot for a year and a half, once I decided to sh!t it was a sh!t with extreme prejudice.

There's a mental image I can do without...

[jpec]

There was...  I think the point they were making is that although I sat on the pot for a year and a half, once I decided to sh!t it was a sh!t with extreme prejudice.

Oh...like the day after I ate that Nigerian food...

[Dave V]

I'm actually planning to operate this layout.  I think part of why I lost the bubble on operating the JD was that it was all wrong.  The Middle Division did have some online industry but was primarily a railroad "interstate" with the majority of traffic on its way through from distant division to distant division.  Then there was the fact that the trackplan was nearly worthless for any actual switching.  There were other problems too.

However, the RGS is a much simpler railroad with a limited set of inbound and outbound commodities with a limited set of on and off-line destinations.  So in addition to drafting up some paperwork (RGS switchlists) I plan to reutilize and expand the car card system I never got to work for the JD.  I've also been coming up with track diagrams for the two major towns (Placerville and Ophir will have only one siding so they don't exactly rate a track diagram!).   Also, on the original track plan I had a passing siding at Lizard Head per prototype.  There was a passing siding just beyond Bridge 45B at Ophir that southbounds could use for set-outs into the facing-point switch at Ophir, and on my compressed plan, the Lizard Head passing siding is exactly where it should be to serve Ophir...so it'll do double-duty.  The north end will be scenicked like the Ophir High Line and the south end like Lizard Head Pass and will serve either as Ophir's passing siding for switching the Ophir house track (and Alta Mine) or will serve as Lizard Head for meets and mid-train helper cut-offs.

[davefoxx]

I'm actually planning to operate this layout.  I think part of why I lost the bubble on operating the JD was that it was all wrong.  The Middle Division did have some online industry but was primarily a railroad "interstate" with the majority of traffic on its way through from distant division to distant division.  Then there was the fact that the trackplan was nearly worthless for any actual switching.  There were other problems too.

Good to see you thinking far ahead for ops.  That will minimize the chance of future letdown with your plan.  Similarly, I always wanted to model the RF&P, which would allow me to run all sorts of run-through power, including SBD, B&O, and Conrail, among others, since it was the primary connection between the northeastern roads and the southeastern roads.  That was exciting, but the RF&P was primarily a bridge route without a ton of online industries.  While I loved the RF&P, especially railfanning it, I was always unable to come up with an interesting plan.  This is not unlike your experience with the Middle Division.  I look forward to seeing your RGS plan come to life.

DFF

[Point353]

I think part of why I lost the bubble on operating the JD was that it was all wrong.  The Middle Division did have some online industry but was primarily a railroad "interstate" with the majority of traffic on its way through from distant division to distant division.

Similarly, I always wanted to model the RF&P, which would allow me to run all sorts of run-through power, including SBD, B&O, and Conrail, among others, since it was the primary connection between the northeastern roads and the southeastern roads.  That was exciting, but the RF&P was primarily a bridge route without a ton of online industries.  While I loved the RF&P, especially railfanning it, I was always unable to come up with an interesting plan.

IMO, a bridge route or "interstate" type layout really needs a staging yard to keep feeding the layout with a stream of trains.
While the majority of trains would simply pass through the modeled scene(s) non-stop, the less frequent locals can stop for passengers or to switch any industries.
Whether or not that kind of operation would be satisfying over the long term depends upon your personal preference.

Several years ago, one of the N scale magazines featured a layout representing Summit CA. 
Each end of the modeled scene connected with a large double-ended staging yard underneath the layout.

[Dave V]

Here's what I've come up with for operations...

http://thevollmerfamily.com/Pennsy/RGS_Operators_Guide_v1.0.pdf

[Dave V]

I'd been stewing over the photo backdrops for the layout.  I knew I needed 38 linear feet of backdrop.  Several companies offer scenes from the real Rio Grande Southern territory but none offers as comprehensive a library as LARC Products.  He has multiple scenes for every location on my layout, often in both summer and fall.  But even then, I was wary of dropping hundreds of dollars on a backdrop before I'd worked out all the scenes and the necessary transitions. 

Not to worry...  LARC offers six volumes of backdrop "kits" that are essentially PDFs and Word docs designed to be printed on a standard printer and pieced together with little work.  Originally I bought them to plan for the custom backdrop but I'm thinking I'll just use these.  They're printed on 65 lb paper and I plan to seal them with a flat fixative.  You can see the seams right now because there's a little bit of a fold at each joint, but once they're affixed to the wall they'll be flat and the seams will disappear.



On the left in the picture below will be the yard throat to Ridgway Yard (and that's Log Hill Mesa in Ridgway on the backdrop) and the right side will be Placerville (the backdrop scene there is from Vanadium, just below Placerville, but identically the same geology as at Placerville).



It does well under close-ups too:

[jpec]

Those are nice, Doc. They blend in well with your initial scenery layer - they'll get even better as you make progress...

[Santa Fe Guy]

Nice Dave.
Rod.