# I'm Back, New Railroad too!



## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Yes indeed, I'm back. I've been away for too long doing other modeling in O and HO scale. However I've obtained two small G scale locomotives and I'm looking to put them to good use. To sum it all up, my new railroad, still in the planning process, is the Bard Creek Railroad which will depict silver mining near Georgetown Colorado. I would follow a prototype, but I decided instead to pursue a fictional line which uses prototype practices. This allows me to run whatever I want under an individual label. If wanting more information, follow this link to my blog about the railroad:

Bard Creek Railroad on Blogger

I'll be sure to update this regularly, but for now I can only plan. Also, if anyone has some suggestions, by all means throw your two cents in here or by commenting on the blog, either way I'll see it pop up in my email.

As I said, I'm back and believe me it has been too long. I can't wait to start looking around and looking for info.

Thanks!

--James


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## vsmith (Jan 2, 2008)

Somethings off with the link, it takes me to a blank page.


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## Randy Stone (Jan 2, 2008)

welcome back James.


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## pfdx (Jan 2, 2008)

Try this Vic: 

http://www.bardcreekrr.blogspot.com/


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Yes, use pfdx's link until I can fix the one above. Anyone know how to edit already published posts? 

Thanks! 

--James


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

James, welcome back, 
After so many hours you need to contact a moderator to do that, use the Alert button upper right of the post. Quickest way I know. 

Usually when I announce I'm back, my friends blankly stare and mumble, you left? How ya been? 

John


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

James, 
You should look for a copy of this book, out of print I'm afraid, but might be found second hand.... 

John 

http://www.micromark.com/up-clear-creek-on-the-narrow-gauge-by-harry-w-brunk,10017.html


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

James:


The window to edit a post is open only for a couple of hours. After that you need a new post.

Chuck


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Chuck, Totalwrecker, 

I see, I'll keep that in mind next time I share a link. Thank you. 

As for the book, that looks like a must read for what I'm doing. Thank you for bringing that to my attention. I see by the description that the book is a compilation of articles originally from Narrow Gauge and Short line Gazette. While in Colorado, while helping family move, I stopped into a train store and saw a whole stack of past issues of this publication. I'll be in the same area over Christmas. I will also look on Amazon, perhaps it is there? 

Anyone know of the years these articles were written in the magazine? 

Once again, thank you. One thing I felt I needed more of was reference material, this might be just the ticket. 

--James


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Found the book on Amazon.com for a decent price of $49:

http://www.amazon.com/Up-Clear-Cree...lear+Creek

Hope this link works









I already own a couple copies of the magazine which these articles were originally in, I just don't know where this 54 article series started and ended. If I remember correclty, that hobby store was selling the magazines for $1 an issue, so for $5 more I might get not only the articles but also a lot of other helpful info as well.

--James


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

You're welcome, I didn't know much about the Clear Creek part of the line before reading Harry's accounts. 
I subscribed to the Gazette last century when I was doing On3. 

For the reading value alone buy as many of those mags as you can, lots of great tips. 

John


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Blog has been updated with a couple of new posts. I've continued to address my layout bench work design and I think I like the design concept where it stands now rather than my previous idea of building a cart to haul the modules around. I plan to go out and price some items to get an idea of my bench work budget. I've also published an impromptu list of items a may need when constructing the layout. 

I plan to hand lay track with materials from switchcrafters.com. Still deciding on whether I want their composite ties though. I will also need to find a power supply that is capable of handling up to about 3 small Bachmann locomotives no larger than their 2-6-0. I'm thinking around 6 amps or so. The next time I upgrade would be when I switch to DCC, but I won't do that until either I have a large enough display to require walk around control or until I have an expanded budget that would allow me to purchase a DCC system.

Scenery will be from Woodland Scenics as well as the natural world and the hardware store. Buildings as of now will be scratch built, and probably a thread on it's own.

Anyways, I'll continue to update the blog every couple of weeks or so until actual construction begins when I've squirreled away enough money to match my budget and I have a few days to get a start on construction. I'm hoping that by the end of the first week of construction I can have trains running, but that won't be until the weather starts to warm up and give me enough space to cut and assemble the modules.

Let's see if I can get a working link this time:

http://bardcreekrr.blogspot.com/

--James


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## David Fielding (Sep 7, 2013)

I'm struggling with trying to design my indoor layout in a modular fashion so I've been following your blog. 

On your new design, with the sideways U shape, will you be able to stack these? Will the upper level be strong enough to hold one or two modules stacked on top? 
Or are there removable posts to support the open end of the upper level? 

I'm very interested in the final weight of your 30"x96" module. Many of the modules designs I've been considering are 30"x48". I suspect your module will 
start out at a reasonable weight...but I'm wondering what it might weigh after you finish adding buildings, scenery, and track...etc. Can't wait until you have a prototype 
built... 

Your original idea of a cart to haul 3 modules around was interesting...though again I was wondering about the weight of the cart plus three 8' modules...seems 
like you'd need a small tractor to haul it around...


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

David,

As of now, I do not know for sure if the sideways U shape will support weight on top of it, the only way I'll know for sure is if I build a module and find out for myself. Removable posts, bolted to the outside, are an option I was considering for plan B. Plan C would be that I have each module be it's own scene, and so I have a front panel that is essentially a frame. Plan D might be to use aluminum for a lightweight supporting frame, and just bolt the plywood to the aluminum frame to give it rigidity. That new dremel tool that cuts all sorts of materials will handle light aluminum no problem. I do think that 5/8" plywood can hold significant weight, but that brings me to your other point:

On the subject of weight, I plan to only have strips of plywood and the U shapped cross pieces for plywood. 5/8 cabinet plywood, in a 4x8 sheet, is heavy, but the key is to cut out any extra weight. Track, buildings, depending on how much of each, will likely add about 20 lbs to the overall weight. For buildings, I will be using basswood and balsa for a good portion of the construction, very little heavy plastic. Train of course will not be present on the layout while being moved, so that leaves track. There's not much that can be done to reduce the weight of track other than use light rail such as code 215 and code 250.

One idea I did have, should the weight become too much, is to have casters (rollers) on one end and a handle on the other so I can roll the modules around like one of those large travel bags everyone uses nowadays. When you look at a 36" tall bag with a 24" handle, the bag is nearly 5 foot tall. In theory, 8 feet wouldn't be that much of a burden to roll into a convention hall for a train show. 

I am going to the hardware store today to look at various grades of plywood, and perhaps I'll be struck with other ideas.

One other idea I had was to use lighter plywood, but build modules using a strong design that requires little material. The best example I can come up with is called "Waffle style benchwork" where a frame is made of light plywood, then it is sandwiched between two sheets of light plywood, and those sheets have all unnecessary plywood removed from them, resulting in a frame with many holes. It wouldn't cost that much more. from my online estimates, a 4x8 sheet of cabinet grade plywood is around $40 or more. While a 1/4" piece of plywood is around $10. So if 4 sheets of 1/4" plywood is used to build the same module that would have only required 1 sheet of 5/8" plywood, then the price works out to be about right.

This is why I'm giving myself plenty of time, and I'm a firm believer in having a solid plan before proceeding to avoid expensive mistakes.

--James


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

I've been using the last couple weeks to work out my module design, and I think I finally hit on something good. Truss bridges use the forces of compression, tension and sheer to transfer weight from the deck to the ground. Certain materials are better than others at handling the different forces. Metal is great for handling sheer. Screws, bolts and gusset plates handle that job every day. Plywood, when on it's side, handles compression and tension well, but unless reinforced, cannot handle forces while laying flat. Dimensional lumber can handle compression and sheering well, but tension will break a board unless reinforced.

"Reinforced" implies additional material which in turn adds weight. Truss bridges use the design to manipulate how forces are handled. I then thought, why not apply the same principals to the module construction.

Instead of one piece of plywood acting as a bracket to hold all the weight of additional modules, I decided instead to make framework out of 1x2 lumber sandwiched between two pieces of light lumber. Most of the lumber stays under compression and is thus stable. Screws and bolts will mostly be under sheer and only the outside framework is under tension. Below is a side view of my bracket design concept:










The left side shows the framework and the right side shows the pattern for the light plywood. Green represents lumber under compression when weight is applied to the top of the module. The red shows lumber under tension. The joints are all under sheer, and so the hardware holding the frame together is under sheer as well. Each material used is under their ideal supporting positions. Surely this is stronger than simply plywood alone.










Plywood is then used to hold together each bracket. Additional 1x2 supports may be used as needed. The plywood can be around 1/4" thick, and will be very light. 1x2 lumber is also quite light. The framework may be as little as 20 lbs if I do it correctly, but may be able to carry 60 -70 lbs of weigh on top. No, I don't now this for sure, but this is something I'll have to investigate when I have access to a saw and a hardware store.

As for carrying the modules from the vehicle to the show hall, I was thinking of adding wheels or casters to the bottom of the module on one end, and so I role the module along.

And this is the look I hope to achieve:










--James


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## BigRedOne (Dec 13, 2012)

Are you planning to use the inside (flat floor) for storage? 

Why not just have legs, possibly removable or foldable, to support a sufficiently rigid top? 

I've been pondering a modular railway too, and I find myself leaning to construction which actually resembles real railway bridges in both appearance and function. admittedly not good for solid tops with scenery, though.


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Big Red, 

The 'floor' on the inside, though it would make decent storage for smaller items, I plan to use for other purposes. In 1:20.3 scale, I'll need 4-6" of space below the track for even a small creek or dry wash. I plan to also use the underside for wiring, the 1/4" plywood having hole large enough to be able to maintain the wiring underneath. As for the legs, still deciding what to do. 

Thanks, 

--James


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## jjwtrainman (Mar 11, 2011)

Okay, I've got a recap of January and early February for planning the railroad.

Firstly, I've been reading the Internet, as well as thumbing through all the reference books I accumulated while in Colorado. I got some great stuff: A book showing many photos of Colorado rivers which will give me reference when doing water, or for that matter anything near the water. I also picked up a small booklet of old postcards from Georgetown and Silver Plume, a couple have the Devil's Gate Bridge in it too! This will help me decide what colors for buildings, building styles, and of course will give me insight on where the tracks ran... not that the last part is really important to a fictitious railroad such as the Bard Creek. What is important, and probably most important, is making the railroad look the part. So I also picked up issue number 10 of the Colorado Rail Annual at the Colorado R.R. Museum which was completely dedicated to the Clear Creek line from Golden to Central City, then even followed the two main branches into Black Hawk and to Silver Plume; not to mention a few words about the Argentine Central and the Gilpin Tram.


However the biggest thing I've done so far is after looking at Google maps, I created the official Bard Creek Railroad track diagram:

Bard Creek Railroad Diagram 

How is Google Maps involved with this? Simply put, the creek, route length, and general area of where something is on the route gives me a sense of where all of that will come into play on the diagram. For instance, I can tell via Images that the Delson Mining camp is near a very steep, and barren, slope; which implies avalanches. So I made a symbol which tells me to use a snow shed when I model that particular area.

you can follow the other developments on the blog:Bard Creek Railroad 

--James


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## Homo Habilis (Jul 29, 2011)

James:

I've been following the progress of this G Scale Modular layout. Perhaps there is something here that may help you with yours.


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