Conrail's O&WV Division Layout Update - August/September 2024

[@frankcintulajr7917]

My 2 cents…. You do an awesome job on your layout and videos. You’ve inspired me to finally start working on my layout that after 25yrs of buying rolling stock, buildings and locomotives have been collecting dust. Finally bought a computer program and started creating what’s been in my head for all this time. I understand the losing interest after a set back on a hobby. Take some time off, regroup and breach the obstacle in front of you. Keep up the great work.

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you! Glad to hear that you are getting going on your own layout! I am slowly getting back to working on things a little more each weekend. Hopefully by the end of this month I'll have some good progress to show.

[@TouchoftheBrushModelWeathering]

Firstly great update. Second: for the river scene, try expanding the abutments to make a wall with a hill above it so you can still see your wall but also have scenery above it. Maybe have trees or thick bushes above the wall that goes into the water. Thirdly: your curves. I suggest the 30" curves so that you can run 86ft boxcars easier. If you redo your curves, create an easement for a nice angle. You will have to redo parts of the yard but it wouldn't be so bad. This also gives an opportunity to redo some the scenery that you might not be satisfied with. And last BNSF 767 is a motor I used on my RR a couple of times. Pretty cool to see the model!

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you! I will be expanding the bridge abutments for sure when I get back to work on that scene but am going to focus on reworking my curves first. I will definitely be going with a 30* radius on the rebuild at a minimum.

[@randydobson1863]

Hi CR Steve & it's is Randy and i like yours video is Cool & Thanks CR Steve & Friends Randy

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you Randy!!

[@amy-bradcoleman9734]

Really enjoy these videos Steve

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you!

[@AlleghenyNorthern]

Love all the prototype custom builds for CR. it's always cool to see the amount of research and planning that goes into those and while the differences might be subtle enough that manufacturer's won't make them - it's neat to know you'll own something no one else does. doesn't mean anything to the casual observer but to a railfan and modeler it's awesome. for the bridge/river area - have you considered retaining walls? it's not uncommon to have a series of retaining walls with slopes in between them which can either be stone faced or vegetated depending on the design. about a year ago i was involved in project that had a two-tired gravity wall - each wall was about 20' tall with a 20' sloped stoned area between them. makes for an impressive backdrop. if you really wanted to go wild, you could model the building of the retaining wall - would be a neat place to showcase some excavators, dozers, and some other big toys.

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you! The prototype builds are probably my favorite thing to do on the channel and they all tend to be fairly simple. I think a retaining wall will probably be on atleast on side of the scene when all is said and done. I’m probably going to focus on fix my curve issues first and chip away at the bridge scene over time.

[@KirkPohto]

Hey Steve! It's normal to go through lulls like that, especially when it stops being fun. Take a little time off to clear the mind and realign. I have 10+ decal projects in various stages of completion that I just haven't had the motivation to work on lately so it's been a push to get some benchwork done in the mean time. Regarding layout changes, maybe you'd want to scale back the yard to only a few tracks to service local industries? Or maybe tie into a branch line? (Think of Lewistown Jct in PA.) That would give you the best of both worlds by keeping a yard to display local power and rolling stock while also creating more scenic spaces for rail fanning. With as many 4-axle locos as you have, rotating them out as local power would be cool to always keep something on the layout. Regardless of whatever you ultimately decide, keep up the great work when you're ready to get back to it.

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you, Kirk! I think I will downsize things a little with the yard when I rework and redo the curves. Hopefully Ill be starting on one end of the layout in the coming weeks and can make some progress and get back going again.

[@christophercutler9594]

Suggestion: you don't need to make major changes to the yard. Just have the 3rd track from the south wall go into the 4th track earlier. Then the 4th track would be the end of the yard ladder, with the switch from the 4th to 5th track being the top of the yard ladder, and being a left switch instead of a right swith. The fourth track would then curve up at least 8 inches earlier, making room for your main tracks to have a bigger radius. You could even use that fix with the 5th track as the top of the ladder instead, and that would shorten your yard by about 16". Hope that helps.

[@ConrailSteve]

That may be what I end up doing with the yard. As of right now I plan to rework the mainline curves first and then see how the yard ties in. Hopefully only have to rework a few switches

[@dannyking748]

Maybe on your bridge the wood that is behind the abutment you could cut it back flush with the layout and use sheets of paper to kinda of make a hill that slopes down to the foam tape it down then cover it with plaster and work in the bridge to make it look more natural. You could work it down to a river with a small dirt road on the side. I know you don’t like plaster, but plaster of Paris works well and easy to work with.

[@ConrailSteve]

I'll keep that in mind. I just wish plaster wasn't so messy to work with as anytime I use it it tends to end up everywhere lol

[@johnwhalen3037]

That's funny as I'm building a welded rail train as well

[@ConrailSteve]

Did you start on it last winter? I remember someone posted working on one on the Conrail Modelers Facebook group and that actually is what gave me the push to start on mine! Hope your train is coming along well!

[@conrailfan6277]

Those LMS units are sweet Steve!! It's definitely a bummer knowing you have to make a layout change, when my Wife and I bought a different house 9 years ago I had to tear down my HO Conrail layout, I now have a 15x10 Basement space but I'm seriously thinking of going to N- Scale and Building a route where I could have staging on both ends representing Elkhart yards on one end and East St Louis on the other!!! Keep up the great work Steve!!!

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you! Hopefully the track changes I have to make will make the layout more enjoyable in the long run. That sounds like it would be a great layout if you build it!

[@conrailfan6277]

@ConrailSteve I've been keeping a journal for about 17 years in my Semi, when I go to a factory to deliver the auto parts I carry I like to note how it's set up, if it has tracks and how they're laid out, I used to pick up at a Plastics factory and the dock guys let me walk around their silos and check out the track arrangement for the hoppers and how they unload them!! I have a bunch of industries I can model with that info!!! Take care Steve!!!

[@Cowboy_Steve]

Howdy CRSteve! Hey brother... no worries! It's OK to step away for a while and take a break. Sometimes you need a little time away from your hobby so it doesn't start to feel like a chore. I've got plenty of your older vids to catch up on lol! Other than the radius of your turns what do you think contributed to the derails? Cars too light? Couplers? I got to run my ScaleTrains UP C45AH on the club layout with 21 double stacks just last weekend. Purred like a kitten! Well done and thanks for sharing 🤠

[@ConrailSteve]

Hey Cowboy Steve! I originally had suspected car weight as being a problem early on but have since added weight and brought up my fleet of freight cars to NMRA standards and am still having issues. The reality is that with the length of trains I want to run the 22-degree radius is just too tight to reliably handle things thus it's time for a change!

[@Railfan-uf9mw]

Ooooo love the 97 as delivered BNSF warbonnet still waiting for Scaletrains to do Thiers

[@ConrailSteve]

I was going to wait for the Scaletrains one myself as well but caught a deal on the Athearn and counseled pass it up.

[@Railfan-uf9mw]

@@ConrailSteve I’m patience because when you have patience you got the best reward because I have this attitude of everything always works out is your integrity man

[@Motherslug-q7l]

Bridge scene with a roadway under next to river or stream you could easily place a retaining wall made to look like concrete or bricks down to roadway making the hill less of a hill and more about the retaining wall as the other side of the river make that the hill with high brush and trees is what I would do. Even maybe make the bridge footers stick out more could show off more of your Bridge pillars, just a thought

[@johngauthier3601]

Do a winged bridge abutment going toward the bench work

[@ConrailSteve]

I need to order those as that would definitely help solve some of the issue. Thank you for the idea!!

[@dennisarmes3473]

hello steve !!! first, let me say it is rather good to get depressed about our pikes because you can only go upward, which i am sure you will !! go watch some proto trains, visit a hobby shop, have a few cold brewskies ... you still have a top notch pike that most of the world would love to have. as for the bridge, i would suggest the heavy-duty interlocking pilings seen around docks and bridges as this would be relatively easy and quick to do. for the derailments, is it just the lmx engines or all of your 6 axle units ? its a tough and shitty job to tear up track... for the yard, i would keep it and even expand it to the right as your diagram shows us there is viable room to add track going to the right. for the track changes, do your pencil/graph paper "engineering" and take your time... get friends over and pick their brains, then "hire" them if they can do good, quality work. depressing, yes, but think of the fun you will have runnin' those beautiful cr/crq engines when you are done !!!

[@ConrailSteve]

Hello! I like the idea of the pilings around the bridge. I think I may raise the foam up higher and use that. The derailments and a mix of diffeant locomotives as well as different freight cars string lining around the curves. Too many cars that are too heavy going around curves that are too sharp is what it comes down to. I'm slowly working out a plan and hoping to start redoing one end of the layout in the next few weeks.

[@dennisarmes3473]

@@ConrailSteve excellent, steve, you are getting started with some good ideas... it could be worse, you could have derailments and NOT know the problem, therefore you would have 2 problems (derailments AND not knowing why !!) rather than just the 1 you have now. btw, some of my "best re-engineering thoughts" have come from the simplest places... one of my favorites is plain, old bobber fishing. nice and quiet, sandwiches and a couple of brewskis while sittin' on a folding chair at a pond !!! just an idea, steve !! i am retired now and was an OSHA inspector for the D.O.E. for 30 years and have been at hundreds of demolition/construction sites in my day... sometimes you just got to get in there and start the demolition, which is much better than letting things fester inside us !!! btw, i will travel and come and help you if you wish... i am serious,too !!! denny armes springville, ny 716-592-0540

[@clintfroke9353]

If you raise the creek a little more it will make the slope less noticeable.

[@ConrailSteve]

I will definitely being raising the creek/river up once I get more foam.

[@ModelingSteelinHO]

2:30 - 5:23 How about an old dilapidated trestle bridge piles or abutment ?

[@ConrailSteve]

Thats a good idea! I'll keep that in mind as an option!

[@clintfroke9353]

Have you looked to make sure there's nothing hindering the turning of the trucks of the 6-axle locomotives?

[@ConrailSteve]

Yes I have checked the trucks on the 6 axle unit's. The problems I am having are happening at random on locomotives as well as freight cars and the only thing in common each and every time is that is that the issues always occur on the curves.

[@garyweber2867]

Hi steave maybe more foam under the bridge mabe bridge 20 ft above the water so its easyer to slope the hill maybe lose the road a tug boat with a trash bardge might be interesting

[@ConrailSteve]

I think you may be right on adding another layer of foam the more I look at it and will probably be going that route. I wish the scene was deeper, but I don't believe I would have enough room to fit a tugboat although that would be neat if I could!

[@charlesemerson6763]

Sorry to hear about your mojo doing a runner but it does come back. As for your layout curve radius is everything. You can the nicest laid track in the world but if your curves are tight then big cars a nono. I never went below 36" as a minimum. At least you still have a layout. I just had my shed built, 15M x 6.9M ( 50' x 23' ) and I'm stalled waiting on an electrician to wire it up that isn't going to charge the earth for it and I still don't have a plan yet.

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you! Would you recommend 36" as being the best for curves? I was planning on going with 30" but would consider going to 36" if it would be trouble free in the long run. Hopefully you find an electrician soon and can get to building!

[@charlesemerson6763]

@@ConrailSteve Steve, I certainly would. A lot depends on your track laying skills but 36" is the minimum I would use. Micro Engineering flex track is good for curves because once curved it will gold it's shape and not try to straighten at the ends. And don't forget transition curves, they really help lead a loco into the curve.

[@Killbuck.Southern.Railroad]

If you tear the yard out may I suggest a small industrial park to switch around on?

[@ConrailSteve]

That is defiantly a possibility should I end up removing the yard. I'll have to see how things look once I redo the mainline curves and decide from there.

[@railfanjayden]

Love the coal cars

[@ConrailSteve]

Thank you!

[@danielvillardi2875]

What are you going to do with the track that runs along the back of the scene below the bridges?

[@ConrailSteve]

That track is going to be removed as it is part of the lower level of the layout that didn't work out and is not used.