James River Branch: News Archive

Website News Archive: December 2009

15 December 2009

No progress on the layout recently, as I've made an excursion back to N scale for a bit to breathe new life into an old project that needed some TLC. I don't see returning to work on the layout until the new year, now that the holiday rush is descending upon us, so this may be the last entry for 2009. Have a great holiday, everyone!

8 December 2009

I've chosen the theme for my new layout. Here's a hint in the form of a pun: it could be regarded as narrow-minded. I might also start work on it before the James River Branch is finished and sold—it's just too exciting to wait!

6 December 2009

Almost immediately after receiving the billboard kit, I assembled and installed it on the layout in short order as the first post-sale-decision project to be completed. It actually came out better than expected, so I feel good about pursuing my plan to wrap up the James River Branch at an accelerated rate that does not compromise the quality of craftsmanship. If things continue to progress like this, I think whoever takes possession of the layout should be very pleased.

5 December 2009

The decision to sell the James River Branch upon its completion and pursue a new Z scale modeling direction has proved to be quite liberating. It's allowed me to think in terms of entirely new modeling challenges; meanwhile, the layout is seeing some very healthy progress (although nothing image-worthy at the moment—much of the work is infrastructure stuff). Projects that had become bogged down by the protracted special effects design process have taken off, since now I really only need to deal with their cosmetic completion.

Meanwhile, ideas for the next layout have been coming fast and furious. Here are some of the more noteworthy concepts under consideration:

a small logging railroad terminal around the turn of the century
ferry terminal for the CNJ or similar line, set in the 20s or 30s
junction between two major lines in the rust belt during the 40s
part of a decaying northeastern industrial complex in the late 60s

While this is an exciting process to be sure, it's also just a little frustrating, because I don't have a good solid direction yet, and everything is quite nebulous. But I'm confident I'll settle on something at some point—I'm not on any clock, so it'll happen when it happens.

2 December 2009

2010 will mark a big change for the James River Branch. Some regulars might think I've gone off my rocker, but I've actually seen this point in time coming for quite a while: deciding what to do next, layout-wise. And what's next is a new layout. No, I'm not abandoning or aborting this one, but I am altering my approach to it: I will finish it within the next few months, and then sell it. With this decision will come quite a number of changes in the plan: I will not be building any of the remaining planned animation effects for it, and the existing ones will be removed. This may seem odd—one might think they'd be a strong selling point—but in reality they're more of a support burden. Animations like these are not perfect, flawless devices; they break down easily, or become "fussy" and "arthritic." I know this from many years of building them. I would not want the future owner of the layout faced with failing devices, nor do I wish to be saddled with their repair and service. I'd rather the layout be streamlined and more reliable, so the owner can enjoy it without interruption for many years. Other changes will be coming as well, but these will be detailed later; right now, I've got to gear up for the big push to finish the remaining projects while maintaining their high level of craftsmanship. Even though I'm no longer building it for myself, I'm not about to offer anyone anything less than my best.

1 December 2009

Tonight, while I was starting to unpack the layout from its trip back after the open house (yes, it's been sitting still packed and untouched since then), I was suddenly and inexplicably inspired to have a little fun with a mirror and a camera. First-surface mirrors afford opportunities for interesting photographic effects; for one thing, they allow you to stick a camera measuring some 75 by 92 by 110 scale feet into spaces where only 1:220 people can fit—in other words, you can capture images that are otherwise impossible to obtain. Here are the only two out of about a dozen test shots that were in any way useful. The first was taken with the mirror resting diagonally in the middle of the river (with the camera likewise angled); the theoretical position of the Z scale shutterbug would be along the edge of River Road. The second was taken with the mirror leaning up against the tall bridge; that Z scale photographer would have been standing on the bridge at the end of the station platform. While none of the results were potential award-winners by any means, the fun little exercise provided me with a roadmap for future photography, when I'll be prepared to pose a train and take multiple exposures for the Helicon Focus treatment.