We welcome you back to what has become our monthly layout progress update…
featured this month is a new configuration at the eastern end of the layout, a weathered turntable for Handley, and mountains!
Nuttallburg
Tyler Wylie has continued his work on the eastern portion of the layout. Wylie has reconfigured the easternmost portion of the layout with an elevated section to match that of Nuttallburg in the New River Gorge. Featuring several turnouts and three tracks, this affords us the opportunity to have a working coal loadout (flashlight used for reference in photos) for future operations. Below is a gallery from start to present of the work he has completed.
Handley
Jesse Smith has continued work on Handley Yard. In the past week, a weathered turntable was installed. The turntable, weathered by his friend Greig Goodall, is a Walthers 110′ turntable. The turntable is operated with a control box mounted in the benchwork for easy access to turn locomotives and rolling stock. Track power is still yet be configured, but the turntable is operable and will make a full rotation in either direction.
Mountains in the Gorge
Wylie has also continued his work from the track realignment project by roughing in mountains that represent the New River Gorge east of Cotton Hill. Matt Crouch has taken responsibility for Cotton Hill and is in the beginning stages of scenery installation. To date, he’s roughed in mountains in the curve coming into Cotton Hill and carved out and area in the benchwork that will soon represent Laurel Creek.
SACOM meets every Friday around 6 p.m. at the layout at 901 10th Street, St. Albans, WV, 25177.
Anyone is welcome to come and learn, watch, and explore our progress. Those interested are encouraged to join our group. With 15 scale miles of mainline on two levels, we model the Chesapeake & Ohio along the Kanawha and New River Subdivisions.