One more piece!

Between swimming with family one day and spending a fantastic day at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin with my dad (that's a topic for a whole other blog! If you are an aviation nut click HERE for some photos!), I managed to find time to work on the railroad. I have one more piece of rail to install in Prophetstown. The industrial siding will be home to Eclipse Manufacturing (see previous post).

The mainline is up and running and I have reinstalled the lift out bridge... except I did not cut the rail and roadbed. I am going to live with it as a duck under until I can't take it anymore and then I will address the situation. I didn't want to lose the head of steam I had going! I want to finish track installation and then move on installing the Lenz Set 90 DCC system!

I will post some photos of the completed track work very soon!
That's it!
Scott

Update

I have had some "extra" time on my hands this week and have made great progress on the railroad! The mainline is complete now from Walnut East to the staging yard (Mendota). I have figured out the track configuration for Prophetstown and I am now ready to complete that portion as well. My plan was to have all the trackwork done this weekend... however, I have run into a small glitch- I am out of rail joiners! I went to a local source today and they are out! So the "Golden Spike" ceremony will have to wait until next week after I have had a chance to pick-up additional rail joiners... I am still shaking my head.

The track layout for Prophetstown is now going to be more prototypical to what actually existed there in about 1940 or so. I have used the Sanborn Insurance maps to attempt to replicate the track layout and position of the local industries, including the Eclipse Lawn Mower Co. According to the Sanborn map, this company actually existed. I need to do some more research on that... not necessarily railroad related, but just an interesting piece of history. Okay, I couldn't resist... I Googled it and got a lot of links... but this one actually shows the factory! What a find!

http://genealogytrails.com/ill/whiteside/cityprophetstownbusiness.html

I have also modified the trackplan to show industries that were present in the towns I am modeling, ie Eclipse Lawn Mower Co. I hope to post that very soon, along with another line diagram showing the updates.

That's it for now!
Scott

Pictures of latest trackwork

Below are a few photos of the completed trackwork in Walnut. The "other" track at the diamond is the CNW RR. It will not be powered, but I am hoping will add to the idea of a connection with the outside world.

The track that has the Rio Grande (brown) Hi-cube parked on it is the interchange track with the CNW.

 

I am now set to progress East (railroad east that is) from Walnut and continue laying track. More pictures as more track is completed!

Thanks for stopping!

Scott