The View from One Year

I've finished the subroadbed for the middle level. Here's an overview that shows where the mainlines will go:

It's been a little over a year since I first started this layout, so I thought I'd take a moment to reflect on my progress. My first thought is that it has taken much longer to build this thing than I imagined it would when I started. I think I figured it would take three or four months to do all the benchwork, tracklaying, and wiring, and that I'd be running trains before Christmas 2006. Not quite! There are a few reasons it's taken so much longer. First, I haven't had as much time as I probably imagined I would when I started. That's not a bad thing, it's good to have a life besides a train layout. There have also been times when I didn't want to spend the money it would take to make progress, such as buying turnouts (the most expensive part so far, but I haven't bought any electronics or engines yet!).

But probably the main reason its taken longer is the complexity of this design. It's one thing to design a folded dogbone with three levels and two helixes on paper, it's an entirely different challenge turning that design into reality. I spent a few months just conceptualizing the helixes, checking my measurements and deciding on the type of framing. Laying out the trackwork in Chattahoochee proved to be quite a challenge as well, and then actually making all those turnouts fit gave me a few headaches.

But I feel like I'm over the hump. The second level framework and subroadbed has gone together fairly quickly, and today I started laying track on the north helix. I've switched to using Atlas code 83 flextrack instead of MEC. The MEC is a little more realistic but the Atlas track flexes a lot more and is much easier to form smooth curves with. So laying track on the helix has actually been easier than I imagined it would.

So my goal now is to get trains running before the holidays. Then I'll finally get to focus on the things I've always enjoyed most about model railroads--running trains and working on buildings and scenery. I hope the next year finds more progress than the first, especially considering that with a new baby on the way next spring I'll have much less time for trains after that!