| Name of railroad: |
Chili Flats & Pacific |
| Size: |
11 x 52 feet (approximately 500 square feet of track
and scenery) |
| Bench Work: |
- L-girder and framed plywood
- The layout is an average 53 inches to the mainline base height
above the floor.
|
| Prototype theme: |
Freelance portrayal of western railroads in Northern
California and Western Nevada patterned after the Southern Pacific,
Union Pacific, and Western Pacific railroads. |
| Time Frame: |
Transition from steam (1950) to diesel and stretching
into the early 1970s. |
| Layout style: |
Walk around peninsula. The layout is designed around
the concept of keeping trains running around the layout for the public
on the three main lines with switching operations going on in a number
of local yards and industrial siding areas. |
| Layout Routes: |
Three looping main lines, plus an independent, live
overhead wire, electric interurban line. There are multiple interchanges
(crossovers) between the main lines. All main lines have direct access
in and out of the hidden lower level fiddle yard by way of two helixes. |
| Operational Control: |
- Digitrax DCC throttle controls.
- Walk around (home-built) DC throttle controls.
- Throttle controls (DCC or DC) can be independently selected
for each of the main lines, fiddle yard, and local yards.
- Local yards have independent DC throttle controls when not using
DCC.
- The Electric Interurban line will use a home built control circuit
for automated hands free continuous operation.
|
| Roadbed: |
Homasote on plywood with additionally some cork roadbed. |
| Track: |
Code 80 flex track (Atlas) |
| Length of Track Runs: |
- Red line = 113 linear feet, 3.4 scale miles
- Yellow line = 173 linear feet, 5.25 scale miles
- Blue line = 119 linear feet, 3.6 scale miles
- Fiddle yard = 180 linear feet, 5.45 scale miles
- Electric Interurban line = 37 linear feet, 1.12 scale miles
|
| Turnouts: |
- Peco medium (#6) and long (#8) turnouts.
- There are approximately 150 turnouts and all will be powered
with Tortoise turnout motors.
- Turnouts are controlled from four main (one for each line and
fiddle yard) or local yard/industrial area panels. Some of the
mainline interchange (crossover) turnouts will be controlled in
parallel with the main panel at the location of the interchange
on the layout.
|
| Minimum Radius: |
- Red & Yellow lines = 26"
- Blue line and Fiddle yard = 24"
- Electric Interurban line = 10"
|
| Maximum grade: |
- Red, Yellow, & Fiddle yard lines = 2%
- Blue line = 3.8% (2% over most of line)
- Electric Interurban line = 8%
|
| Scenery: |
Hard shell with plaster rock molds; 25 percent complete |
| Backdrop: |
Free hand painted sheet rock |
| Completion: |
- Track work = 90%
- Scenery = 40%
|
