North West Great Northern Layout

[NorthWestGN]

Built and installed the hinged staging yard benchwork this weekend from lumber on hand and some yard sale hinges. Held in place by a 1 X 3 brace about 24” long on the back frame rail.



Now onto to risers, roadbed and track…

Brent

[NorthWestGN]

Initial track plan, 2” track centres for easy 0-5-0 switching and the wye connection added though I’ll only be able to turn short loco and caboose consists.


I like track planning with the actual turnouts and moulded flex track. It gives me a very good idea on curve radius, clearances and natural transitions…

Let me know if you have any suggestions!

Thanks, Brent

[NorthWestGN]

Hi Guys,

After some Mental Locomotive Movement exercises I reconsidered some other aspects of the track plan I posted earlier and came up with this:



In addition to the wye that will connect the North and Southbound staging yard tracks on the hinged addition I've added another passing siding at Fruitvale and reconfigured the yard trackage to give me some added car capacity and space for what will be a sawmill / rail loading area. This will prevent me from having to run a train all the way to Salmo to set out or add cars to a train. I also decided to use what will be the seldom used JFRTM "loop" connecting track as two different  new stub end sidings, one at the north end, Boulder Mill and with location swapping, one one the south end, Columbia Gardens, pushing the Quirk Spur to the southern most point. Whose layout doesn't have at least one "Quirk"

I think that will be about it for track, starting to get a little congested and I'll have run out of the Peco turnouts I've had sitting around for years. It's time to get the construction crew onsite...

Brent

[p51]

You'll be able to do some ops with that as well as roundy-round running for visitors and railfanning your own layout.
And as someone who doesn't live too far from where the GN had trackage rights in the Pacific Northwest, I like the concept!
Here's my Jeep in front of a very well-restored GN jeep at the museum at Tenino, WA, from last weekend:

[NorthWestGN]

Nice! Looks like a period photograph, nicely restored Jeep and Caboose…

[Tad_T]

Nice jeep, Lee.

I have driven and ridden in ones very much like that in a former life.

Tad

[NorthWestGN]

First turnout cut in and rolling stock tested....I was worried the white carpenter's glue I used to secure the track to the cork wouldn't let go but a little 70% IPA spray on got it loose only where I wanted, perfect!, onto the others!

Also found some photos taken along the line in the past... the first is Columbia Gardens..



And the siding at Boulder Mill...


I've drew up some plans for the transfer shed from a local one I found a photo of... I'll flip the placement of it from left to right to work with the available space...



Any progress, even research, is progress, right?

Brent

[packers#1]

Very much so, that scenery looks perfect for a track plan like this, looking good!

[NorthWestGN]

Revised roadbed is going in, this will give me a passing siding and a revised yard lead at Fruitvale. The new turnout is marked "A" and is just ahead of my Mikado in the lower right and a trailing point turnout on that branch will be just before where the current yard lead is located. The current yard lead is being removed and replaced with straight track. The branch on the lower loop is Northbound toward Nelson and the hinged staging yard. The southbound to Waneta turnout and roadbed still has to be added and will be roughly parallel with the opposite end of the new Fruitvale siding in the upper center on the lower level and parallel with the wall...


I'll be off on holidays for a few weeks so any further progress will happen only between my ears... Any Hobby Shop recommendations for San Diego or Los Angeles??

Brent

[John]

what a cool line ..

[ATSF_Ron]

The Original Whistle Stop in Pasadena is a must! Went there all the time when I lived in So Cal.

[NorthWestGN]

Thanks Ron,

I’ll my best to make a Whistle Stop..

Brent

[eja]

I'll be off on holidays for a few weeks so any further progress will happen only between my ears... Any Hobby Shop recommendations for San Diego or Los Angeles??

Brent

San Diego is an N scale waste land in terms of hobby shops

[dandopinski]

That's a beautiful area to model. A friend built his house on the abandoned ROW just west of Salmo on the No.3 Highway

[NorthWestGN]

Well Reeds wasn’t a total wasteland , found a Micro Engineering bridge, a used / mint GN MT flatcar and a couple of used Peco code 55 turnouts, all at decent prices…worth the 15 minute drive just for the bridge I’ve been looking for…

Dan, certainly the scenery attracted me as well as the single main line operation and connection with the CP at Nelson.