Staging area upgrades (aka more space)

Most of the gurus of our hobby advise that one should allow plenty of room for staging area(s). In its latest iteration of Philip's Creek, I thought I heeded that advice. The two staging areas, representing locations north of Muswellbrook and south of Singleton, are much larger than their predecessors and my operating schedule has been set up to ensure some items of rolling stock are parked at various locations around the layout.

And yet, gradually over the past few years, the staging areas have become more congested. Of course, I only have myself to blame as I have succumbed to temptation when appropriate new items of rolling stock have come to market. I am not one to pack unused items into storage containers so I needed to find a solution to this dilemma.

Increasing the length of the staging areas is not possible as there is no opportunity for expansion in the garage. Therefore, I returned to a solution I had used in a previous iteration of Philip's Creek, a mezzanine level for each staging area.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The construction of both was fairly simple, a sheet of ply with a timber frame. The upper level mezzanine, Muswellbrook, was cantilevered using two large angle brackets. The lower level, Singleton, is supported by smaller angle brackets and hangers from the underside of the upper deck. 

The immediate catalyst for the construction of the two shelves was the refurbishment of the Mount Windeatt module. My most recent post included a photo which gave a graphical representation of the proposed work. 

 

 

Work has started with the removal of the existing scenery and track. A new sheet of styrofoam has been laid in anticipation of the new scene to be created. Part of the new work would take away a small portion the lower staging area. Of itself, the loss of this space is not significant, but when combined with the present overcrowding and my potential to purchase extra rolling stock, it makes the need for extra space more imperative.

 

As yet, no track has been fixed to the mezzanine storage areas; just some loose pieces have been placed in these areas until the reconstruction has been completed. Access to the lower staging is a bit challenging but hopefully, operations will improve with train movements being more focused on realism rather than the need to create space in a staging area.

So it's on with the reconstruction of the Mount Windeatt module. But then again, Joe at Casula Hobbies have just released an impressive new range of CX carriages!   

Setting up Philip's Creek (version Kellyville)

It's taken a while but finally, Philip's Creek is now being unpacked and reassembled. There has been some minor damage, mainly items which broke loose during the move but the effort to box up the modules has paid off. Some other damage was sustained when I installed one module, Kingston Plain, above another, Mount Windeatt. However, these are relatively minor and will be corrected when other landscaping tasks are completed. 

Right now, the reassembly is like a game of 3D Tetris as modules are placed where required for version Kellyville. To date the main focus has been on the construction of the support structure to carry the lower level modules and getting sufficient track laid on the lower level so that I can run a few trains over a little distance before I start work on the upper level. Some modules destined for the upper level will have to remain boxed until the appropriate support structures are established.

As I have been reassembling the layout, there have been a few adjustments.

We all learn lessons from our previous efforts and Philip's Creek is no exception. Version Kellyville will have larger staging areas and slightly wider aisles, two issues that caused me problems on version Hornsby

Previously, I had inserted short piece of track over the interface between two modules but this has now changed. Now track will be laid across module joints without any considerable of future demolition. While one should never say 'never', it is very unlikely that Philip's Creek will again be moved by me. The track and scenery has value to me, but I need to acknowledge that the disposable value of the layout is in the locomotives and rolling stock. Therefore, the next time that Philip's Creek is demolished, a skip bin will probably be in close proximity. If, by chance, the person demolishing the layout wants to retain its integrity, the person can use a Dremel tool to cut the track at the module joints. However, more likely, it will be my angle grinder which is used to facilitate demolition.

The early work has shown me that I need to be much neater in my wiring underneath the upper level module. Previously, it didn't matter if wires hung below the support frame but no longer. Now any wiring must not be visible when viewing the lower level module.

Lighting for both the upper and lower modules will need to be improved. The need for lighting for the lower level modules is obvious but the lighting in the garage is not too good and I'll need to improve it.

 

So work continues on a layout which, about two years ago, I foreshadowed was almost complete. Well, not quite!!