I picked up 4 sheets of 1/8" foam core. They cost $2/ea at Hobby Lobby. I laid them out on the area where the shelves will be. The shelves haven't been purchased yet, and you can likely tell from the quality of the pictures the track lighting isn't in yet either.
With the foamcore in place I drew out squares at 1 ft. intervals in red.
After looking over the length of the layout and general area it took it seemed like a good project. I went to Caboose Hobbies in Denver and bought all the track for the entire layout. I actually feel this is kind of an important thing which I didn't do with Rio Chama. I wasted a lot of time on the RC not having what I needed.
Knowing I was going forward with the project, I then took the track plan on the computer and drew matching scale 1 ft. squares all over it. I used the computer because it was fast for me to do it that way, but a pencil, paper, and ruler would have done just as well.
With a grid-ified version of the track plan in hand, I used the track pieces I had bought before and traced around the edges to create a life size version of the track plan. This is the same method Iain Rice uses in the Roque Bluffs article series and I have to say it has turned out so far to be ridiculously helpful.
One of the advantages of having a full size track plan is that it's possible to add other elements to the layout see how they're fit. In my case I wanted to see how the under table manual turnout controls would work. I was able to lay them all out, penciling in where abouts they would go.
Having a full size plan also allows some scenery planning to start taking places. You can see (dotted line) I sketched out where the water front would be. I also trimmed the front of the layout to get the layout shape solidified.
Construction time. I purchased one sheet of 1/4" plywood for $20 at my local Home Depot. To fit into my car I had the guy cut it into three pieces. I started by ripping the plywood down into 3" strips.
Here's where the plans become a major help: they are your ruler. Instead of messing with all kinds of measurements, having the full size plan handy means you can place the wood down on the plan and make a mark exactly where things should be cut.
After cutting all of the joists to length, I used a coping saw and cut out small grooves for them to fit together.
I had seen this method in the past, but had initially passed over it because it looked like a lot of work. That disposition has a bit of truth to it. It did take a lot of work to do, however I find that the result is worth the effort.
The pieces now fit together nicely and form a strong web.
I also used Iain Rice's Shelf Layouts book which gives some more tips about construction. Namely, using quarter round molding to reinforce the corners of the joints.
I used my 18 gauge brad nailer to pin the molding in place while the glue dried. Side note: the glue bottle on it's side in the background is the one sold by Fast Tracks. Most wood glue bottles sold at Home Depot have the wide flat tip on them, which is good for general purpose wood gluing. However with 1/4" ply the wood is thin and the smaller glue bottle makes it easier to control the application of the glue.
Again, another mention of the plans: When I was ready to cut the sheet for the top of the layout, I used the full size plans, cutting out the region for the water by cutting up the foam core plan. This worked out extremely well and almost everything lined up on the first try.
I used some extra 1/8" masonite I had left over from the Rio Chama to add a front fascia. I put the fascia on first because the the sheet at the bottom of the water will then be fit into this (it wasn't as exact a fit as I had hoped for).
On the edges of the two sections I used 1/2" ply to hopefully resist dimensional warping. I decided to try out an idea I had for connecting modules together. In addition to having bolts, I also added four 1/2" dowels to form a tendon type of joint, hopefully allowing the section to fit together nicely before having to put the bolts in.
We'll see how that goes. The larger hole in the middle is for wires to pass through, and the two smaller holes on the outer edges are for the bolts.
After a couple working sessions, here's the module back upstairs...
I've got some tweaking to do on the water level, and I need to fill in where the sheet is missing but so far I'm happy with how it's progressing!
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