The Madisonville Sub: Contstruction Update #40 - Hardshell on the Upper Level & First Working Signals

A Change of Pace

Every once in awhile, a change of pace is nice. After nearly two years, I made the decision to go back and work on the upper level. Some basic scenery was installed on a portion of the upper level during the Spring of 2020. Construction Update #10 (June 27, 2020) covered the process. Basically, I used profiles made from pink foam, covered by a web of cardboard and then a layer of painters paper glued to the webbing.

The upper level includes a horseshoe curve circling back on itself on a 2.5% grade towards the summit at Cumberland. When I was working on the scenery back in 2020 I stopped short of the curve because I wasn't sure how to scenic the area. Ultimately, I decided to only scenic the isle side of the loop and hide the back side in a tunnel and cut. This would allow access to the back side of the loop from below.

The Tunnel #3 portal at the lower end of the loop.

Looking down grade from the same spot. The hot wire cutter is sitting on the lower portion of the curve. The bottle of glue is sitting on the upper end of the loot.

Tunnel #3 portal after the application of the cardboard webbing.

Tunnel #3 portal after the application of the painters paper.

Tunnel #3 portal after the application of the plaster clot.

The First Operating Signals

Since this portion of layout will feature signals, I decided to add them along with the basic scenery. The signals, cabling, and signal control boards are all part of the "new" Atlas Signal Control System. The Atlas system is easy to install and can replicate anything from simple ABS to a form of CTC. The first two working examples on the Madisonville Sub are simple stand alone intermediate block signals.

Each signal requires a signal control board. These two are attached to the benchwork below the signals. I mounted the signal control boards on a separate piece of plywood. I drilled four holes in the plywood, 2 on the top, 2 on the bottom. I used the top 2 to mount the plywood "lower" while hooking them up. Once the wiring was done, the lower holes were used to raise the board out of view. The signals are plugged in at the top (black plug). The red a white wires along the bottom are power in (12 volts DC). The black wires are connected to the block detectors.