July 2019 Construction Journal

Helix Construction

7/4/2019 - Over the July 4th holiday, I did quite a bit of work on the helix. For starters, I got the rest of the lumber cut for the helix and the connector modules. I also turned my curve template into a track guide that I could use for drawing curves into the plywood. This makes it easier to get the roadbed installed in a clean manner. 

I also discovered that the previous elevations on the first layer of the helix were incorrect. The first curve started higher than I had originally anticipated (1.5" up) and while the first two quarter curves were OK, the third one was not rising nearly enough. I removed the riser blocks, remeasured, and now I've got the right grade in place. I got the cork secured to the first helix deck this morning using ALEX DAP Clear Caulk, as usual. 

After getting the heights adjusted, I put down a short piece of track and checked the clearance with a double stack car, which is the tallest car I have. Even at the exit from the helix, there's still plenty of space. There's also enough space on either side of the track, even when you account for the spacer blocks. 

While I was cutting the other lumber, I also burned through my scrap pile to make about 120 4" high spacer blocks out of the 1x4 material. 

7/6/2019 - After the roadbed adhesive was dry, I laid the Atlas Code 83 concrete tie track on it. I put down a thick bead of caulk and then spread it with a putty knife. With very little work, the track lined up with the center line of the cork and I used my Fast Tracks Sweepsticks to help maintain the curve alignment, especially where the pieces of track were joined together. The end result was a smooth double track section of track.

7/9/2019 - I wired up the inner and outer loops using 20 gauge feeders connected to 14 gauge bus wires. One of the limitations of the RR-Cirkits detection coils is that you can only fit three wires through the middle, so instead of running the feeders through, I'm running the bus wire through the coil to a terminal strip. There will be one terminal strip for the outer loop, one for the inner loop, and one for the common wire. The Watchman board will be mounted on the inside of the helix and then connected into the LocoNet/Simple Serial Bus wiring.

After getting the first layer of track wired up, I added the next layer of lumber and support columns. Once I made the final corner, I don't have to cut custom supports for each layer -- I just grab more from my pile of 4" blocks. I'm using wood glue on the bottom of the 4" blocks and screwing into the top using drywall screws. I'm also using clamps to help provide a good seal. 

7/10/2019 - Continuing work on what I did the night before, I laid the rest of the roadbed and since the caulk set up quick enough, I went ahead and laid the track too. For the outer loop, I cut all the pieces first and then tried to put them into the caulk. However, I ended up having to adjust the rail. For the inner loop, I put down one piece at a time and it was a smoother process. After getting the track down, I glued down the spacer blocks all the way up the incline. 

7/11/2019 - I continued working my way up, adding the next plywood sections on top of the spacer blocks. 

7/14/2019 - Unfortunately, the next layer of plywood got in the way of adding roadbed and track. The end of the previous deck's track ended in a somewhat difficult place to reach. However, I was able to get the roadbed and track connected up. At the end of this deck's track, I added the track to the end and secured it as far as I could. This will make it easier to connect up the next layer of track. 

7/15/2019 - I finished wiring the track and glued down the spacer blocks. These take a while to dry, so that was it for the night. At this point, the front of the helix is 12" high, it's heading to 21" high to connect to the wall to the left. 

7/17/2019 - I added the plywood and roadbed to create the next layer of the helix tonight. I had waited to add the last spacer block, so I went ahead and glued that down and screwed the plywood into it. The clamp will help make a good glue joint. With the plywood down, it will be easier to run the bus wires for the previous deck and get the feeders connected up to them. The front of the helix is now 17" high from the support table to the top of the plywood. 

7/24/2019 - I glued down the track to the roadbed on layer #3. I also glued down the next set of spacer blocks to support layer #4's plywood subroadbed. 

7/25/2019 - I was unhappy with the look of the duct-taped bus wires running all over the inside, so I got some plastic wire clips. I added those clips on the support blocks and then snugged the bus wires at the end of the run with additional suitcase connectors. This keeps the wires loose enough to prevent pulling but keeps them from getting in the way. I also hooked up the feeders that weren't connected to the bus wires yet and ran trains up both tracks without any issues. I also figured out that I need to replace the three four-circuit terminal blocks with a ten-circuit block and one four-circuit block, since I need five bus wires to reach the top of the helix. 

7/31/2019 - I topped out the helix tonight when I added the last layer of plywood. I'll still need to add the horizontal connectors to the wall after I get the roadbed and track laid down, though. 

South Wall

7/4/2019 - The south wall of the layout is where I'll eventually connect my peninsula, but for now, it's connecting track from the east wall to the helix. I got all the lumber cut and ready to be assembled. 

7/6/2019 - I got all six benchwork sections assembled and put up more shelving brackets. I had to remove a door that the contractor put in to take advantage of space under our fireplace. I decided in case I needed access, I'd rather have the door off its hinges than have to rip out benchwork in an emergency. 

There will be two more sections (one upper, one lower) of benchwork to finish the connection to the back room. In the back room where the helix is, there will be one 8' section on the bottom and one 4' section on the top. The bottom sections will have Homasote and plywood tops, while the upper sections will just be plywood on an open grid section. I'll fill it in with scenery sometime in the future.

7/25/2019 - I installed two more vertical standards on the south wall and fitted the modules into their spaces. I'll have to adjust the bottom module because either I mis-measured the wall or something has moved. 

DCC/Electronics/JMRI

7/5/2019 - I continued making progress getting blocks wired up to my RR-Cirkits Watchman boards. I realized too late that I should have soldered the leads to the coils while sitting at my worktable instead of trying to do it under the layout. I only have three more to do under the layout, after which I can correct my oversight. 

I also did some rework on my panel layout. In a previous post, I used the classic CTC machine graphics as a backdrop, but decided that I wanted a more modern looking panel. In addition, I wanted more of the layout to fit on a single panel screen. I'm also using a smaller indicator in the track to indicate occupancy. 

All the turnouts shown here are now wired up. I'm using the dashed line to indicate track that is not being detected. In block 100 on the upper track, I'll add my staging yard turnouts. The other end of 103 will be the west end of the yard with the crossovers once I get those turnouts wired up. The other alternative to the small indicators in the track are the larger ones, shown here:

I removed the CTC background on this panel and set the background color to the neutral gray color.