Monthly Archives: February 2022

Fast Clocks on the St Charles Branch

Fast Clock in the Layout Room
Fast Clock in the Layout Room

Today I upped the operations realism a couple notches on the St Charles Branch by adding fast clocks!… Ok, with only half the tracks built and with only one partial operating session under my belt, it doesn’t take much to up operations several notches at this point, but the fast clocks are still really cool! While fast clocks are an important part of operating layouts, I was surprised at just how few good options are out there, especially for analog fast clocks. There are digital options available that work with your DCC system (nice feature), but modeling the ’60s and ’70s, I felt a digital clock display would be too gross an anachronism, and I’m working hard to transport operators back in time when they’re on the layout. I even played around with creating my own “analog” fast clock using MS PowerPoint which actually turned out pretty good for what it is–it works, but it was never intended to be a permanent solution. Feel free to download the “Poor Man’s Model Railroad Analog Fast Clock” (below) and play around with it–it will function somewhat online, but it works much better if you download it. You can read more about it and download a digital version as well here.

Fast clock in the crew lounge
Regulator-style fast clock in the crew lounge. The FCC4 system let me retrofit this hand-made clock.

For the real solution, I needed a way to have multiple physical analog clocks all synchronized with an adjustable fast-clock ratio. I narrowed it down to two systems. The first was a WiFi system that offered both digital and analog clocks, but it was limited to a single style of analog clock, and I don’t really need MORE radio frequency waves in my house. In the end, I opted for Mike Dodd’s FCC4 fast-clock system. The FCC4 consists of a control board, three simple switches (run/stop, advance, and reset), and as many clocks as you need running off a two-wire bus. What intrigued me most was how Mike implemented the analog clocks–YOU buy the clocks, and he supplies the replacement mechanisms that will fit in just about any wall clock you can buy today. That feature enabled me to buy a clock for the layout room that had the style I wanted, AND it allowed me to convert a “Regulator” style clock made by my wife’s grandfather into a fast clock for the crew room (i.e., the rec room adjacent to the layout).

Temp fast-clock control panel
My temporary fast-clock control panel (the FCC4 is mounted in the background)

You can save some money by buying the kit version and assembling it yourself, but I decided to buy the assembled and tested versions of the controller and clock mechanisms, and everything worked like a charm (so refreshing in this day and age). I just needed to swap out the two clock mechanisms (a fun 30-minute project), add a few switches, and run several wires. Installation of the wires through the walls was the most difficult part of the project, but even that was pretty straightforward. In the end, I now have two fast clocks set to a 4:1 ratio that I can turn on and off, advance at a 17:1 ratio if needed, and reset to my session’s start time (5:30 AM for now) easily, and if I ever expand the layout into the spare bedroom next door, I just need to run a couple more wires and buy another mechanism to have another clock. I mounted the control board on a stud inside my helix space where it will be hidden from sight but easily accessible via a short crawl for troubleshooting or adjusting the ratio. The controls are on a temporary board for now–I’ll eventually install them in a recessed portion of the upper-level fascia to keep the switches away from little hands and wayward elbows.

If you need an analog fast-clock system, I would definitely check out the FCC4! Not only is Mike Dodd very responsive to questions, but he’s also a model railroader himself, so he’s designed this system from the perspective of an operations-oriented layout owner. I’m looking forward to my first operating session using the clocks where the times on train orders are more than just numbers on a  piece of paper!

 

Blue Sky in St Charles!

Painted lower level backdrop
Painted backdrop wrapping around the helix

There is now a pale blue sky in St Charles, VA! This past week has been “backdrop week” on the layout, and today I finished sanding and painting the blue color on the backdrop. It’s amazing what a difference the backdrop makes in giving shape to the scenes. This is also a big step because it’s one step further than I got with my last layout before I had to tear it down–it’s good to surpass the progress of the previous effort.

Masonite seam
There’s a vertical seam between two Masonite panels in the middle of this pick and an upper screw–can you find them?

The backdrop, like the fascia, is 1/8″ Masonite (or “hardboard” at some stores). I know a lot of modelers like Masonite because of its smoothness and flexibility, but over the years I’ve heard one repeated complaint: “it’s nearly impossible to fill holes and cover seams because nothing will stick to it.” If you’re worried about this, worry no more! I find that lightweight spackling compound (I use DAP Patch-N-Paint) works perfectly on Masonite. A couple of tips. First, make sure you countersink the screw holes so the screw heads are at least 1/32″ below the face of the Masonite to give enough depth for the spackle to work–this is tough to do without going through the 1/8″ board, but don’t worry if you have to patch an extra hole. Next, I apply a layer of the spackle over the screws and across any joints with a plastic putty knife to avoid scratching the Masonite. I clean it up a little with the knife, but messy is ok. After it dries for about 1-2 hours, I use a damp washcloth to scrub off the excess spackle. This usually leaves a bit of a depression in the holes and seams, so I put on a second layer of spackle. After this completely dries, I sand it with 150-grit sandpaper until it’s even with the Masonite surface and wipe it once again with a damp washcloth. Once painted, I have to look very carefully to see the seams, and the screw holes all but disappear.

For the color, I wanted a very light sky blue, enough to look blue but that kind of whitish and hazy blue on the horizon. I stood in Home Depot for 20 minutes with pictures of Appalachian scenes on my phone comparing the color to all the options Behr had to offer. I finally decided on this color in a flat finish (Behr calls it “After Rain”), and I’m pretty happy with it. If anything it’s a little more blue than I’d hoped, but the hue looks pretty natural, and it’s not too dark. Two coats with a roller gave the backdrop a nice even look. The backdrops are all ready to support some scenery forms now.

I must say, I’m going to miss taking pictures of the Mayflower Tipple mock-up with a nice white plastic insulation blanket as the backdrop… ok, no I’m not.