TUNNELS COMPLETE WITH NUMBER SEVEN

My terrain forming efforts have enclosed the full mainline with completion of the ridge over Tunnel 7. This is the tunnel at the RR-West end of Shady Creek Trestle.  This was the final mainline tunnel to be enclosed.  All ten modeled tunnels have been encased.

Closing in Tunnel 7 awaited fine-tuning of the roadbed in this area resulting from the trestle installation.  In contrast to the other trestles on my railroad, I had to cut-in a new spine for Shady Creek.  Inevitably, this upset the roadbed alignment in the area, notably through the area to be enclosed as Tunnel 7.  It took a couple of fine-tuning efforts and then successful train operations through the area by my regular operating crew to approve this area for tunnel enclosure. The key test of the roadbed was that the operation needed to be done by someone other than me, the builder.  This is similar to the concept that one cannot proof read one's own writing.

An added challenge for this terrain effort was that the RR-East end of the tunnel sits atop the area where the terrain from both lower and upper deck merge.  The transition is necessary but complicated by minimal scene depth.  This leads to vertical terrain walls.  I needed to make it somewhat believable and then distract attention to either side.  Fortunately, Shady Creek Trestle dominates the scene, so I will live with the vertical rock walls.  Subsequent addition of trees on the lower deck should help.

Construction of the tunnel enclosure followed my standard pattern, documented in blog posts over the past year.  The first step was to ballast the track through the tunnel.  Second, a tunnel liner was constructed for the inner tunnel. The portals and end liners were built and placed during my earlier tunnel end effort.  Multiple posts a year ago covered the portals, liners and rock sheds.

https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2017/11/tunnel-preparation.html

https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2017/11/tunnel-preparation-2-casting-portals.html

https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2017/11/tunnel-preparation-3-more-parts.html

https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2017/12/tunnel-preparation-4-fitting-pieces.html

https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2017/12/rock-and-snow-sheds.html

Tunnel 7 foundations.  The tunnel liner is in place and the first step off fascia panel installation has been done.  Still to come is curving the lower tail of the fascia around to attachment to the wood blocks just below the RR-East face of the rock shed portal.

Closing in the tunnel with slabs of insulation foam began with contour supports on the back wall and the inside of the front fascia.  Then, it was a simple job to fill in foam slabs around the tunnel portals and then build the ridge.  Once the basic landform was created with slabs of insulating foam, spray foam was applied to fill gaps and add additional rock formations.  The foam was then carved to the final configuration. This was particularly important with the spray foam, as it expanded considerably after the initial application.

The fascia panel has been fully-mounted.  Contour panels are mounted on the wall (right) and back of the fascia panel (left).  The RR-West portal has been encased in insulating foam slabs and panels for the ridge now span between the fascia and wall.

Insulating foam slab construction for the RR-West portal of Tunnel 7.

Spray foam fills the gaps and helps further form the terrain.

RR-West McCredie Springs terrain, including the transition to the upper deck terrain.

Sculptamold applied to the slab foam base.

SP9320E operating as the 05-RVEUY <Roseville to Eugene manifest freight> passes through Tunnel 7 and onto Shady Creek Trestle.

SP9320E stretched out from Shady Creek Trestle back through Tunnels 7 and 5.

Tying it all together, SP9320E is shown below entering the RR-West end of McCredie Springs while SP8283 climbs out of Cruzatte and through Tunnel 7.

THIRTIETH FULL OPERATING SESSION

My HO-scale SP Cascade Line achieved an operating milestone with its thirtieth formal operating session using the full mainline.  This session marked the first time my crew operated with most of the terrain fleshed out on either side of the track.  The crew greeted this with excitement and lots of smiles.  They no longer needed to imagine the Oregon Cascades from bits of wood, paint and track. 

This operating session used my usual format for formal sessions, beginning with arrival in mid-morning.  The initial gathering represents important social time, as the crew comes from the full length of the Willamette Valley.  Most of the crew drives an hour-plus, while the Eugene contingent faces a two-hour drive.

Crew arrival with the usual potluck spread on tables while our chili pots simmer away.

My in-brief focused on radio procedure and a review of Direct Traffic Control as applied to my railroad.  Around 11 am, trains began to roll.  I started the fast clock at 10:30 pm, picking up where the last session in early August left off.  The session began with a couple of trains out on the line, ready to "resume" their journeys.

David L. guides the EUCIY (Eugene to City of Industry manifest freight) over Salmon Creek Bridge, just out of Oakridge.  His train received mid-train helpers in Oakridge before starting the climb here.  This train began the session in Oakridge, ready for the helper to be entrained.

Jeroen G. serves as engineer and Mark K. serves as conductor on the 04-RVEUY (fourth Roseville to Eugene manifest for the date) as their train exists Tunnel 20 headed RR-Eastbound toward Eugene.

Meanwhile, the Eugene Yard crew gets to work.  Jim M., hidden at the far end, drew the Eugene City Switcher and has a string of cars on the track closest to the depot on the left. Randall P. works the RR-West end of the classification yard, while Yardmaster Rick A. organizes the work and RR-East Switcher Pete H. works another cut of cars.

Santa Clara Tower Operator Vic N. organizes his work in the Eugene Arrival-Departure Yard.

Craig L. brings the 03-LAEUY (third Los Angeles to Eugene manifest freight of the date) down over Noisy Creek Trestle.

The 03-LAEUY has made it down to Salt Creek Trestle.  Note that I hang inspiration photos below the major scenes on my railroad, as seen here in the lower left.

David L. has the EUCIY approaching Montieth Rock while helper engineer Scott B. controls the slack point ahead of his helper locomotives.

David L. proudly displays his photograph of the Montieth Rock scene--an important inspiration photo for me, now recreated in HO-scale.

An important feature of the midnight portion of my line-up is a fleet of RR-West priority trains with trailer equipment designations.  This fleet of three priority trains eventually gets met by a RR-East trailer train out of Los Angeles (LABRT--Los Angeles to Brooklyn <Portland, OR> trailer train).  This creates a busy period for the Dispatcher, as none of these trains should be delayed.

Dispatcher Dave H. records data on the Train Sheet.  The track schematic in front of him is laid out on a steel panel, so magnetic tags can be used to help visualize the traffic.

Helper engineer Mike L. watches his train as the BRLAT (Brooklyn to Los Angeles Trailers) crosses Noisy Creek Trestle.  The BRLAT was the first of the RR-West fleet of priority trains. With 89 foot cars in the train, the helpers go on the point (front of the train).

The BRLAT climbs through Cruzatte with helper engineer Mike L. and road enginer Mike B. (hidden behind Mike L.) watching their train.

Mike B. watches the BRLAT pull out of Tunnel 5 toward the summit. The train extends back through Tunnel 7 in the foreground.  This operating session successfully tested the trackage through Tunnel 7 and over Shady Creek Trestle.

The BRLAT enters Cascade Summit as both Mikes look on.

Mike L. cuts his helper set off the point (front) of the BRLAT as the RR-Eastbound RVEUE (Roseville to Eugene Empties--an "XMUG") occupies the Cascade Summit mainline.  Dick E. and Dave C. are the crew for the RVEUE.

Jeroen G. and Mark K. guide the middle of the three priority RR-West trains, the BROAT (Brooklyn to Oakland Trailers) over the Willamette River Bridge and into Springfield.  The developing Borden Chemical plant beside Jeroen will be the topic of a future post.

David L. rolls through Cascade Summit (above, left) with the LABRT, the RR-Eastbound priority train that must work against the RR-West fleet of priority trains.

The CZLAT (Crown Zellerbach to Los Angeles "Trailers") pauses in McCredie Springs as helper engineer Scott B. looks on from the Cascade Summit and Conductor Mark K. copies block authority from the Dispatcher and Engineer Jeroen G. awaits that clearance.  The CZLAT was the focus of an article in the just-arrived Southern Pacific Historical and Technical Society "Trainline."  This was a mostly boxcar train carrying CZ paper products to the Los Angeles area on a priority schedule--hence the "T" symbol in CZLAT.

The BRLAT (above at Cruzatte) and CZLAT (below, exiting Tunnel 20 before entering Wicopee) move toward a meet. 

The CZLAT continues to climb over Salt Creek Trestle toward the meet with the BRLAT at Cruzatte.  The Dispatcher has properly given the RR-Westbound CZLAT priority over the otherwise equal RR-Eastbound BRLAT.  This follows the timetable assignment of "West is Best" between otherwise equal trains.

The lunch break is an important part of an operating session. It provides nourishment, rest, and plenty of social interaction.  We were blessed by good Fall weather, so we could convene outside for lunch.

Seventeen operators joined me for this thirtieth operating session. The railroad is living up to its design focus for hosting such events.

DOWN BY THE RIVER

As I worked on major terrain forming along the mountain grade of my railroad, one spot in the valley portion of the railroad commanded similar terrain attention.  The Willamette River crossing between Eugene and Springfield was one of my earliest efforts with paint defining a scene.  The bridges were installed five years ago during the early part of mainline construction.

https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2013/11/bridging-gap-willamette-river-bridges-1.html

https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2013/11/bridging-gap-2.html

This area also saw some of my earliest artist attempts to both represent the Willamette River and expanding the scene onto the backdrop.  This river crossing also served as the first significant scene for photography as a scene (as opposed to bare plywood and track). With my terrain forming skills well-honed over the past year, it was time to fill in the river banks.

As I noted in my early posts on this scene, space was limited, just as it is almost everywhere on a model railroad.  The early efforts took note of the need to use a shorter bridge than the prototype.  Still, an acceptable solution was found by doing what a railroad engineer would do--order a pair of standard bridges to span the river.  The limited space also impacted the space for the river banks. I extended the cut into the plywood subroadbed on both sides of the river as far as I thought I could.  As I looked at this scene more carefully, I found I could trim a bit more of the plywood, helping expand the river banks a bit more.

Willamette River crossing much as it has been for the past five years. The plywood subroadbed on both sides has been trimmed back a bit more--about an inch or so on the right side in this view.  This makes the approach trestle span a bit more believable.

With the plywood banks cut back, I installed a base for the terrain on the Springfield (right-hand side in the photo above).  I then began filling in the gap with Styrofoam slabs and wedges , starting with the area around the trestle.  With the "fiddly-work" done around the trestle, the rest of the job was fairly straightforward with layers of Styrofoam placed and carved to create the river bank slopes.  Gaps were filled in with spray foam insulation, although that process proved a bit too vigorous.  I had quite a bit of spray foam I had to carve back to the desired terrain shape.

Terrain forming begun for the Springfield side of the river, beginning with filling around the trestle approach.  Note I also angled the edge of the plywood subroadbed to provide a better transition for the eventual covering of Sculptamold.

River bank carved and shaped.  A selection of knives and the Stanley Surform™scraper I use for this step.  I find the shreds of foam easier to clean up than the dust mess made with conventional plaster scenery--I have done both.

I mixed three batches of Sculptamold to cover the foam terrain.  I mixed in quite a bit of burnt and raw umber with the tan paint for the lowest level--closest to the river.  I mixed in less and less of the umber as I worked up the banks.  Although this provides distinct color bands right now, it will provide a good base for more detailed scenery later on.

River banks created.

SP9236W crosses the Willamette River, headed from Eugene to Springfield and on toward the Cascades and then California.

I am glad to have filled in the terrain around this important scene on the railroad.  

SALMON CREEK TO PRYOR TERRAIN

Moving down from Montieth Rock (https://espeecascades.blogspot.com/2018/09/montieth-rock-and-tunnel-21.html), I filled in terrain the rest of the way to Oakridge, including the mainline crossing of Salmon Creek.  I use the "Pryor" name for this area, as that is un-modeled siding located between Oakridge and McCredie Springs.  Ironically, I originally planned to begin my terrain forming efforts here.  Instead, this major stretch of landscape became one of my last.  The tunnels and trestles of this past year simply "commanded" my attention.  

This relatively simple stretch of terrain went swiftly.  I installed the pink foam slabs and then covered the surface with Sculptamold in about a week of work.  Most of this terrain was my basic sloping hillside, formed by slabs of Styrofoam at my desired angle.  That angle is steeper than most natural ground.  Consider that artistic license to compress the scene within the available depth.

Pink Styrofoam panels installed for the terrain leading down to Salmon Creek in the distance to the left.

I filled in terrain around the mainline bridge crossing Salmon Creek. The foreground terrain awaits bridge construction for the Pope and Talbot lumber mill spur.  Filling in around the mainline bridge allowed the terrain to fill in against the back drop continuously through this area.  I used vertical slabs of Styrofoam for the creek area terrain, as that more easily allowed me to form my desired terrain.

Terrain forming for the mainline bridge crossing Salmon Creek.

I created a small hill on the RR-East side of the creek and then got carried away with terrain forming against the backdrop.  I carried that hill too far into the Oakridge scene. Overnight, I wrestled with this and concluded a change was in order.  I needed to open up the RR-West end of Oakridge more to fit the real scene and, critically, to provide space for Oakridge's Beech Street and the signals at that end of Oakridge.  Quick work with a putty knife and a carving knife removed the offending terrain.  I then formed a new end to the hillside and cleaned up the backdrop.  I patched the basic backdrop paint after the Sculptamold was applied.

Salmon Creek hillside extending too far toward the RR-West end of Oakridge.

Excess hillside against backdrop has been removed and the hill reformed.  A ramp for Beech Street has been formed to ensure I do not forget about this feature!

With terrain formed, I applied Sculptamold.  Most of this used my tan earth color, though some areas, especially around Salmon Creek, received a gray paint filler.  I exhausted my supply of Sculptamold with about six square feet of hillside left to cover.  I had placed an order for more last week, right after the Montieth rock exercise. This order arrived the next day after my major Sculptamold effort.  I immediately returned to complete the scene and take pictures before my regular Tuesday night railroad operating group met.  I also was able to cover additional terrain I had formed in the Salmon Creek area.

Montieth Rock and terrain extending toward Salmon Creek.  Note the pink foam patch still awaiting a fresh supply of Sculptamold.

Finally, it was time to run a train through the freshly completed scene.

SP9236W rounds the curve and starts the climb out of Oakridge as it crosses Salmon Creek.

SP9236 climbs toward Montieth Rock.

I have just a couple of major patches of terrain yet to go.  The missing areas require some other activity before I work on them.  One of those is Cascade Summit, immediately above the just-completed scene from Salmon Creek to Montieth Rock and McCredie Springs.  Evident from the photos here, the open areas for the rear part of the summit scene overhead provide open light paths right now.  Lighting for the "land down under" is one of those "other activities" that must precede terrain work for Cascade Summit.  Meanwhile, my crews can enjoy their trains rolling through more completed terrain.

MONTIETH ROCK AND TUNNEL 21

My scenery efforts have moved around to my "land down under"--the area between Oakridge and McCredie Springs underneath the upper layer and Cascade Summit.  Specifically, I have covered at long last Tunnel 21, just before McCredie Springs.  I also tackled my significant sculpting exercise--Montieth Rock (also known as "Rooster Rock" but not to be confused with a similar formation in the Columbia River Gorge).  The rock formation over the RR-East end of Tunnel 21 also needed sculpting, as both formations basically are volcanic basalt plugs. Inspiration photos can be found in books, as both rock formations dramatically frame the railroad action below them.  Once again, Joel Ashcroft's excellent SP Cascades website can be consulted:

http://spcascades.railfan.net/  Specifically, the photo section for Pryor to McCredie Springs has a view of the RR-East face of Tunnel 21 and a couple of views of Montieth ("Rooster") Rock:

http://spcascades.railfan.net/photosPryor-McCredie.html

I began terrain construction in this area by establishing a foundation. A scrap piece of hardboard was supported by scrap pieces of plywood to provide a level platform for Styrofoam for the terrain.  For Montieth Rock, I cut slabs of three-inch thick Styrofoam, roughly sixteen inches square. These just fit between the roadbed and the wall.  I created a stack of five primary slabs and then cut two more smaller pieces that would form the top "crown" of the rock formation.  Referring to photos, I drew outer rough outlines for each slab. Given the undercut at lower heights of the rock formation, this often meant keeping track of the extreme width needed for each slab.  I cut to these lines using my bandsaw.

Rough outline for Montieth Rock formation.

Studying photos, I began carving the rough form to shape, slab by slab. My photo study revealed an outcropping on the RR-West side (the side showing in the photo above).  I needed to keep that extension while cutting back the main part of the rock.  I also discovered a second spire behind the main crown.  This showed in photos from the steam era, available from the Oakridge Museum.  I found I worked best by carving the foam in several iterations over the course of several days, refining the cuts as I went.  Lacking photos of the RR-East (geographic west) face of the rock, I used my own judgement based on similar basalt plug formations.  I kept it simple.  Most photos of Montieth Rock are shot from the area of Tunnel 21 as that is both the most accessible to enterprising photographers and provides both track level and elevated perspectives.

Montieth Rock sculpted and shaped--ready for its Sculptamold covering.

Turning to the nearby Tunnel 21, it too has a shear rock face on the RR-East side.  I built up this terrain using slabs of Styrofoam oriented whatever way made the most sense to me.  Along the tunnel portals, these were one-inch thick pieces arranged vertically.  Above the tunnel and its liner, I used more of the three-inch thick slabs.  Above this, was a bit more using both a vertical one-inch piece and a wedge cut from a three-inch slab.

RR-East portal of Tunnel 21 with the rock face above it roughed in. Note the many wires behind and above the Styrofoam formation.  The hardboard channel to their left will form a conduit for additional wires for the signal system.

An important consideration for the corner rounded by Tunnel 21 is its use for routing various wires to Cascade Summit overhead.  This currently includes both the DCC power and a 12 volt DC supply for switch machines.  I anticipate adding a dedicated booster for Cascade Summit, so I needed to add cables for the NCE cab bus, a grounding wire, and a power cord.  I also added a paired wire set for planned LED lighting under the upper deck.  Finally, I provided a separate "conduit" (slab-sided channel) for the cabling needed for the planned CTC and signal system. 

As I built up the terrain forms around the room corner and above Tunnel 21, I realized I should cover those wires and the slab conduit a bit. I cut a fairing from a styrene "For Sale" sign (a good source for a sheet of plastic).  I installed this around the wires and slab conduit using adhesive caulk and flat-headed brads.  We shall see how this survives over time.  Meanwhile, I will need to add a bit of spackle over the brads and then paint the fairing.

Sky fairing above the rock formation for Tunnel 21.

The RR-West side of Tunnel 21 needed a gentler slope, though it also had what will become rock faces.  This side of the tunnel extends to terrain behind McCredie Springs.  I used my standard terrain technique for locations like this where I first place a back panel against the wall/backdrop and a front base with slope.  I then filled in most of the space between these two panels with appropriate length pieces cut from four-inch wide slabs of one-inch thick Styrofoam.  The hillside slopes down to the room corner, behind the rock bunker I will locate here.  The lowest portions of the hill were filled in by Styrofoam strips, cut and sloped as needed.

RR-West end of Tunnel 21.  The hillside and rock above the tunnel blend to a hillside behind McCredie Springs, off to the right.

Gaps between Styrofoam slabs have been filled with spray foam insulation. All of the foam has been carved and shaped and is ready for a Sculptamold covering.

Finally, it was time to cover all of the shaped foam work with Sculptamold. My initial plan was to do this in two stages--the primary rock areas and then the hillsides.  In the end, I used that sequence, but spent a long afternoon doing all of the Sculptamold.  I mixed fairly stiff batches of Sculptamold for the rock work.  The vertical faces and even an undercut on Montieth Rock needed that stiff mixture to adhere to the Styrofoam base.  I usually add my gray base paint to the Sculptamold mix for rock work.  Pictures showed the rock faces to be darker and a bit warmer than my base gray, so i added burnt and raw umber to the gray paint and Sculptamold mix.  I probably needed an even darker paint base, but I at least have the rock faces showing a bit differently than the surrounding terrain. The hillsides gradually blend from my gray base toward my tan base away from the rock formations.

Montieth Rock looking geographic west (RR-East) past Tunnel 21.

Montieth Rock and the RR-East face of Tunnel 21.

RR-West face of Tunnel 21 and hillside extension behind McCredie Springs.

Working in this "land down under," I recognize I need to deal with the lighting for this area soon.  I plan to install LED lighting.  I have been waiting for this technology to mature, which it largely has, but the need for it is very evident today!  Meanwhile, I have fleshed out another signature geological feature for my railroad.