The Big Helix: Building A Strong Base (253)
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- Опубліковано 7 вер 2024
- When you build a house you start with a strong foundation. And when building a helix the same is true except that your foundation is the base on which it sits. In this video I'll show you how I built the base for the big helix I am constructing for the Piedmont Southern. So let's get started!
![Construction of the second model railroad helix - Time-lapse [Trainroom][4K]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/53TQ4Zvz68Y/mqdefault.jpg)
Where we live there is no lumber shortage. Just built a 12 x 20 deck with roof and everything I needed was available. There wasn’t a single empty shelf in the HD lumber section. Prices were 25 to 50 cents more than a year ago. The biggest rip off was plywood. They were almost %25 higher than last year. Now go 500 miles south of us into Florida and be prepared to get ripped off. What I paid for 1 2x6x8 I could have bought 2 at home for the same price. Plywood was doubled. Yes I know this is off subject but it just irks me. Looking good on the build, can’t wait till next Friday.
Yes, the cost of plywood has about doubled here too. It could cost me a couple hundred dollars to build this helix. But I am reminded that after WWII lumber was so scarce that model railroaders took to using steel pipe for benchwork.
You got that done. I would reconsider legs on the outer perimeter at least on the aisle side. You may want to come in 4 to 6 inches from where anyone would be walking to eliminate a kick point. David at MRR has discussed this several times in builds he has done. It was mentioned in the Canadian Canyons build too. Someone is going to kick one of your helix legs, causing an earthquake, derailing trains or snag one with a big foot and trip. Watching to see how this comes out.
As I showed with the module build I do put a shelf along the front of my layout straight sections which keeps folks back about 4-6” and that is one reason in addition to providing operators a place to set their throttles, etc. instead of on the scenery.
Instead of 1*4's I prefer to cut 4" strips from 3/4" plywood. In the 1970's I had some long term warping of pine boards with an L-girder construction. Also, I just built bookshelves for base of my helix for added storage.
Many Thanks Larry, your Helix Construction is certainly coming on well, looking forward to the next Installment. Keep safe.
Just got back fro the lumberteria with 2 sheets of plywood-filming tomorrow.
This was just a very nice instruction video... I am thankful for being past the framing staging with all the lumber challenges and pricing... You are so inspirational to all of us... thankyou... Daylight Dave... and Happy Modeling to everyone!! 😜 🤗
The footings are the weakest point, build it right and do it once👍👍👍. Going with the 1x4 great idea, most people would be cutting strips from plywood .
The 1x4s I've seen at several big box outlets isn't even the previous dry spec of 3/4 x 3-1/2. Each dimension is over 1/16th smaller now.
And beware stock that is stained gray or blackish wider than 1 - 2". These may have been wet after the drying process - basically outside in the rain for some time. There's a lot of that, too.
Finally, as you dig into the pile at the store, if the stock feels damp, it is. It was soaked through after being dried (or wasn't dried right) & may not be stained. A nice straight 1x4 that's damp at the store will warp within hours of being in your house.
Good tips. I checked mine at the store and it hit the nominal dimensions spot on and seems well dried.
Larry Nice wood work looking forward to the future progress
Howzit Larry : Due To An Unforseen Change In Retirement Residency; The ( Sad ) Irony Is That Whilst You Are Assembling Your Helix; I Am In The Final Stages Of Dismantling ( Read : Trashing ) A Fully Operational / OpS; DCC Layout That Took 3 Years To Construct .... Which Included A First-Time; SOLIDLY ( Over-Engineered ? ) Built ( 12 mm / 7-Ply Plywood ) Helix ! I Never Had ANY Form Of OpS Problem Due To The Slow; Sequential and Methodical Construction .... With SPECIFIC Reference To The Helix's Base-Benchwork As You Have Demonstrated. What Took That Time To Construct; Came Down In Just 1.5 Hours; With Good Mate Laurence ( Project Manager ) Applying The Correct and Controlled Amount Of * Brute Force and Ignorance * To Ensure That No Damage Was Done ! In Having Given My Helix ( 34 Inch Radius / 2 % Gradient / 485 mm Height Differetial ) To Another MR-er In Need; We Were Able To Remove The Entire Structure As A Single Unit; Placing It On The Back Of A Pick-Up and Effecting Delivery Some 150 Kms Away. All This Was Possible Because Of The IMPORTANCE Of The Solid Construction Of Both The Base-Benchwork and The Helix Itself. Yeah : Feeling A Tad Nostalgic and Maudlin .... !
Sorry to hear about having to dismantle your layout. I was just telling a visitor last weekend that the modules I built last year were my insurance for the day that I have to move into a smaller retirement residence and I can at least take it with me. So often we work for several years to build these only to have to rip them put when an unplanned move occurs. I think back to the fate of the great John Allen’s Gorre and Defeated which was destroyed in a fire a few days after his funeral. Only a few locos were salvaged. Many other great layouts we have read about in the magazines are now resting in landfills. Alas it is a reality of life that only occasionally can we find new homes for even parts of these great efforts.
@@TheDCCGuy Words Of Truth and Depressing Reality. But Know That The Cape St. Francis + Seal Point RR Will SURELY Rise From The Ashes Of The Nottingham + Spring Grove RR !
Great video Larry, I always learn something new when I watch your shows. Hopefully, you will have a second pair of hands for the next part. Thank you.
No extra hands but it will require a balancing act.
Love this phase, progress is so quick! Having two drills saved me the hassle of changing bits. Plywood I got in Sydney AUS at the big box last year came Chile...the 12mm for sub-roadbed has not been as stiff or climate-stable as it was on a past layout 15 years ago, maybe that can be said about me too.
I actually have another cordless and 2 corded drills but this is my favorite so it gets used the most. My plywood I just bought for the roadbed came from Ecuador.
Great instruction Mr. Larry. i have nightmares about attempting to build one of these
Larry, my last buy was at Lowe's and their lumber came from Finland. Now on the west coast I have seen many rail cars shipping lumber but not much of it is going east. One train had over 55 cars of all sorts of lumber, and this is a daily train. I assume most of if is being used in the western states. And what I purchased was before the pandemic in 2020, and it was still pricey.
Yes, the lumber I used last year for the modules was from Finland and bought at Lowes.
Glad to see you working on the structure with relative ease. The level floor is a plus when building projects. I'm sure there's going to be tons of feedback about this video, whether you're dc or dcc all multiple deck layouts need to tackle this issue!
Thank you for sharing. Enjoyed.👍👀
my 2 cents.... IMHO screw to the wall on both inside edges and then place your outer legs on the inside side of your access point. less chance for tripping and a savings in both time and money. In fact if your radius permits notch the decking and come up in the left inside corner all the way up to provide support to the middle deck. great channel, great advice ENC neighbor
Great job..thanks for sharing and keep up the great work..Lance
Looks good and solid which is so essential for framing of any layout component. But at 13:52... why the plan for so many legs Larry? You have two sides abutting the walls so they are perfect candidates to attach directly to each wall stud. After that you could technically get away with one at the unsupported front left corner (as viewed in this video). However given that the helix base will also support the layout's upper level I'd certainly add a leg midway on each non-wall side but I would think any more than that are unnecessary and that you would be making things harder on yourself than needed leveling and evenly loading each extra leg.
I initially had planned to keep it freestanding but in hindsight opted to cut only 6 legs and will bolt the rest to the corner walls.
Larry, a few nights ago I watched another helix build from another youtuber that I thought had some great ideas, especially how he stacked his levels. I thought you might be interested in checking it out. His name is Ron Marsh and his channel is called Ron's Trains and Things. I was impressed.
Watching you on the floor made MY legs hurt!! Hope you survived the crawl to something for support to get up!! Been there and have the t-shirt, multiple times. Age sucks! 😉
Also, suggestion(s)...next time you're at Lowes/HD, buy yourself another screwgun!! You set up one for the countersink drill, the other for the driver.You'll save a ton of time and frustration.
Also, pick up a box of square drive screws and a square drive bit.
No more stripped out phillips head screws. I haven't used a phillips head driver unless I've had to in 20 yrs.
Nice job so far and look forward to the rest of the build. I love your channel!! You've taught me a lot about DCC in a very "plain English" easy spoken way and taken the fear out of it for this fellow retired builder/contractor guy who is getting back into the hobby after a 30+ yr hiatus.
Thank you!!
Yes, I know Ron and as I remember he used the threaded rod method for his helix. The method I chose follows Jeff Johnston and David Popp’s approach which I think is easier.
If those square drive/head screws are the ones I'm thinking of, the actual name for them is Robertson type. Only three sizes of sockets in the screw heads across all screw sizes(and so, just three driver sizes needed). As well, driver and screw head mate so well, they usually stay together without any magnetism involved.
You have a nice quick release chuck on your drill. Obviously you don’t have arthritis the way you are jumping around, great. I enjoyed watching you screwing. :-)
I took my little blue Alleve pill before doing this and didn’t show you footage of me trying to get back up off the floor.
@@TheDCCGuy 😂 I could do with one of those myself, one of my biggest frustrations is my hands having difficulty gripping things, takes me ages some times to do the simplest of things. I have an electric winch to get me up into the loft where my model railroad is. Great work Larry I enjoy watching you work and find the information you give useful.
Nice video as usual
Here in Australia we have a timber shortage for house building as it seems most of it is being sold to America .
Most impressed Larry that you have the agility to get onto the floor like you have. I would need to sit about a foot above the floor and bend over to reach further to the floor.....still uncomfortable.
Nice you have the level floor. Obviously, you did not consider pva at each join.
I took my little blue Alleve pill before doing this and didn’t show you footage of me trying to get back up off the floor.
@@TheDCCGuy Just the one? That's pretty good. I eat ibuprofen like peanuts!
@@TheDCCGuy I took a tumble to the concrete floor today while working on my model railway. The box I was standing on broke. I survived OK with just a grazed wrist from the baseboard edge.
It doesn't seem like a bad idea to make sure your layout could hold a person or two.
really, you've got to be kidding...
Kool 🚂❤️😎👍
Many recommend "glue and screw" when building benchwork. Is there a reason you only used screws? Good video overall. Looking forward to the rest of the build.
I’ve never seen the need for both and it saves time and mess not to have to deal with both. I’ve used screws on my layouts for 40 years and have had no failures.
Hi Larry, I would like to build myself a console to Group all my switches along with turnouts. Have you ever covered this topic? If let me know which video I should watch. Thanks
Yes, videos 22-26.
@@TheDCCGuy Thank you so much it was just what I needed.
Hello, my name is Bobby. I'm planning building and HO layout in my basement. The layout will be around 130 ft long and somewhere between 24 and 48 in wide. What I need to know is the best overall controller for programing engine and running on his layout. I have done DC before, but this time I would like to switch to DCC. Thank you for any help you can give me. Bobby Buxton
It is not a good idea to have power bus runs longer than 30’ so you may run into some issues. Multiple power buses can be run in a star shape to avoid the issue but that could be a problem if it is an around the wall setup. One work around is to use a distributed power arrangement with a command station at one end powering 2 blocks (1 on either side of the command station) and a second booster located at a distant point also powering 2 adjacent blocks. See my videos on wiring.
Thanks
Very nice construction. Will you be able to use the center square for access inside the helix?
Listen to the video, he said he would...
@@davidcurtis5398 Thank you I did. My thought is given the module is in a corner (blocking side access), under a higher level (stopping him stepping over the helix) and appears to be at quite a low level from the floor (crawling under?), how is this possible?
Hi Larry,off this topic, on your video about DCC concepts ESP, do you need to run a seperate bus wire for the turnout motors, I have the systen and can't seem to get it functioning, no reply from DCC Concepts--Thanks
I know they have been very busy with the show in Bristol over the weekend and getting ready for it so you might give them another try. Which DCC system are you using it with? In my installation I powered the iP Digital switch machines directly off the bus created by the ESP receiver. These have a built-in accessory decoder. If you use different switch machine they will either need to have their own accessory decoder or you need external ones. The system sends accessory decoder commands to the switch machine or accessory decoder.
@@TheDCCGuy Thank you, As I understand it then I will have to run another wire to split the power from the command station and feed the ESPR and then on to the iPZDigital switch machines, keeping the main bus intact
That’s the way I set it up with the ESP receiver split off from the main bus and powering the iP Digitals. I think it is a good idea to separate the main bus and accessory bus. That way you isolate the accessory bus from any electronic noise and intermittent shorts on the main bus.
@@TheDCCGuy Thanks again Larry, will let you know if I get it sorted, I work very slow
Which is easier to program a engine with Digitrax or NCE controller?
By controller do you mean the decoder or the throttle? Decoders are pretty much the same in both cases. As for throttles its not a matter of which is easier, they’re just a little different and have their own idiosyncrasies-you get used to them.
@@TheDCCGuy thanks so much