Maine Central, Lamoille Valley

Maine Central, Lamoille Valley
Click image to link to my web site, nekrailroad.com

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to everyone out there. Here is a photo I staged on the layout for the season. Enjoy:

Thursday, December 04, 2008

Busy Fall

I have not posted anything since my return from the NER Syracuse convention but that was not because I have not been busy. I hosted an open house on November 22nd and in preparation for that I did a lot of projects and worked quite a bit on the layout. I'll get you up to date on what I've been doing and also discuss what is in the works for this winter.

First, I wanted to make some changes to the layout area, to give it a more finished look now that I completed the other half of the basement (non-railroad family room). So time was spent working on curtains to hang below the benchwork and to install carpeting. I really have enjoyed having this in place as it makes the area so much nicer looking and the carpet feels great under the feet.



The skirting was made from material we purchased and then sewn into panels by my wife. They are all 44" wide, so it is easy to get in where needed. They are attached with clothespins glued to the back of the fascia boards. It is also easy to disconnect the panels at a few clothespins and pull the material back to work without actually removing a whole section. The skirting does a good job of hiding the support legs and the shelving that holds layout supplies and kits. This makes it much more attractive for visitors. I am very happy with the results.



The carpet I installed is made up of 20" square tiles sold in a box by Home Depot. They are ready to lay down onto the concrete floor and include padding. They don't move when put in place but are easily lifted and moved if needed. Installation went real quick and works well for a layout as I only need to carpet the open areas, not under the layout. The squares extend under the skirting a few inches. I can remove sections if I am really doing some dirty work and want to protect them from damage. Here is a look at a section with unfinished benchwork so you can better see how they are placed onto the floor:



These were the main room enhancements. In my next posts, I'll show you some of the locomotive projects I completed as well as some scenery and detailing work done in Hardwick.