Garden Railway Forum

Much cooler weather arrived this weekend. Today I began to wheel barrow dirt from the former layout site to the new layout... about 100 feet apart... and covering the concrete rubble before a cold drizzle started.

It's shaping up nicely. At this rate you'll be tracklaying in a week or so

Really good progress and I think you can safely say its always going to be more fun working on the railroad.

Don

Work continues on the railway. I redid the timber retaining wall. Originally had them set at 18 inches above the level of the patio. Seemed to high for some reason. Opted to lower it all down to 12 inches. That took several hours to accomplish.

Afterwards I continued moving dirt, covering the concrete fill to roughly form the 180° loop on the east end of the layout. I have to move the pile of scrap lumber that came from my spare room demolition in order to get the loop to fit properly.

Better to make the change now than later regret not doing it. Looks good to me.

Don

I agree Don.

I've been putzing on the layout a bit each evening before darkness sets in. I've begun to repurpose the brick that came down from the room demo. Using it to build a dry stack wall for the loop adjacent to the patio.



As an aside... progress on my laundry room addition. Spent the day fabbing the three exterior walls and erecting them. Next comes the roof.

It's been a minute since the last update. Other home remodeling and upgrade projects pulled me away from the layout.

The current fake pandemic has resulted in my work hours being cut with a subsequent loss of income so the house projects are now on hold and I can get back to the layout which doesn't require much in the way of funds.

I've been making progress on the first of the two raised parts of the layout. Since I'm reusing bricks taken from the house, time is spent cleaning the bricks for repurposing. It's a slow process of chipping off the old mortar. I'm able to prep anywhere from 6 - 10 bricks per hour for a couple of hours each afternoon.

More progress as I've completed the first and larger of the two raised portions of the layout. Views looking inward from each end.

That is an impressive looking structure Dwayne, well done.

philipy wrote: ↑Sat May 09, 2020 6:28 am That is an impressive looking structure Dwayne, well done.

Absolutely!

It looks a lot bigger than previous incarnations? Looking forward to watching progress...

All the best,

Andrew.

Dwayne, it looks like the bricks are "dry" laid, i.e. without mortar, is that correct.

Hi Dwayne,

It all looks very neat and well trimmed. I'm really looking forward to seeing that superb track of yours starting to spread out over the surface.

Andrew

Looks good. It's going to be fun watching this develop.

Thanks all.

@Andrew... yes, it's a bit larger. This portion is roughly L-shaped and is about 30' long x 15' wide. The second portion (to be built) will be about 10' x 10' and holding a return loop which is separated by a gap (Oak Valley) by about 8', necessitating a bridge.

@JimmyB... yup. After spending considerable time cleaning the bricks of old mortar, I simply laid them on the ground. My soil is sandy loam and stable. I poured dry mortar down the holes before hitting with water to set it. Behind the bricks I dumped the old mortar chippings to help with drainage. The soil that is in place currently will be covered with rock and aggregate as I'm going with a dry "desert" theme. Trying to keep plants alive in our summer heat is a PITA. Lack of vegetation should also help with maintenance.

Dwayne, many thanks, it is certainly looking good

With an unseasonably cool day here I started work on the second raised portion of the layout.

Last fall I had built up it's base with rubble from the house project in a teardrop shape for a return loop and had begun heaping dirt on top. Because I have altered the track plan slightly that configuration was no longer a viable option. So I dismantled the entire thing by first removing the dirt and rubble and starting anew.

Tons of work but it's good exercise and helps my 55 year old ass stay in shape.

Pulled together the rubble that will be the core for the second portion return loop. Tossed on some dirt. Need to prep more bricks to construct the final shape.

Some progress on the layout as a few hours were spent working on the second portion of the railway with the setting of the first course of bricks for the complete outline.

Looks like you've laid several hundred bricks there, Dwayne. I think this is going to be your best layout yet!

Rik

ge_rik wrote: ↑Mon May 18, 2020 6:35 am Looks like you've laid several hundred bricks there, Dwayne. I think this is going to be your best layout yet!

Rik

Thanks.