All posts by bsullivan

RMRRS came, saw(ed) and conquered (worked)

Georgetown Branch related links

A group of guys from my train club (Rockville Model Railroad Society) met at my house last night and helped work on the layout. Accomplishments:

  • Broke down some old benchwork from a members’ old layout (sorry Andy, but it will find a new home elsewhere on the layout – everything, including screws, was salvaged)
  • Built a box frame for the benchwork at one end of the room
  • Sanded the section of spline roadbed that is complete
  • Planned the addition of a small section of spline roadbed to join the existing stretch which is the location of the Government Mapping Agency siding (paper, etc.) and placed an order for some CVMW flexible turnout kits to use here. (There is a slight curve and a conventional straight or curved turnout will not work properly.)

Next up will be installing the siding, installing the box and building out the benchwork, starting the upper deck and working on the helix. Photos from the evening will be posted soon in the Gallery.

Welcome!

News

Greetings and salutations. Thanks for visiting the new Georgetown Branch blog. I’ve set this up as part of a massive redesign of my GB online efforts so that I might translate my progress to the online community more effectively. Programming in HTML can be tedious and when I’ve got little tidbits of news and info to share, I often will divert my attention elsewhere instead of posting updates to the site. So, I’m implementing this new blog, an updated Gallery and a revamped website. All of which will go live very soon. So stay tuned and keep sending me your stories and photos!

ps. Don’t be creeped out if you see old entries here on this new blog! I’m migrating all my old journal entries to the blog so they will be viewable and searchable.

Layout progress & a couple photos

Georgetown Branch related links, History, News

Well, it’s been a long, long time (once again) since my last update here. If you’re regularly checking the Gallery page then you know that I’ve been posting some progress photos of the layout construction. I’m about half way done with the helix but it’s slow going. Mainly due to the addition to my family- a new baby girl! Born on 7/5/06.

In the meantime, I’ve done a couple other things GB related. I was lucky enough to gain access to a wonderful collection of old GB photos and documents which has helped greatly in my research. I also took a tour of the Georgetown Waterfront to document all the changes that are occuring there. And, I’ve posted a couple photos from a site visitor in the Gallery.

The Wm. Duvall Collection

History, Prototype

I recently was lucky enough to scan the negatives of Wm. Duvall, a Chevy Chase local. He allowed me to post them to my site. They are absolutely fantastic photos and give one a really fantastic glimpse back to when trains once ran on the Georgetown Branch. His photos cover from the late 1950s through the 1970s, with a few 1940s (and earlier!) shots thrown in. They are in the Gallery.

I also completed installation of the fluorescent lights in the layout room. I have also been doing tests and planning on the helix which will go under the stairs to connect the two levels. I have tentatively decided on the heights for the two layout shelf levels as 36″ and 57″. I am 5’6″ tall. I continue to refine the track plan and hope to have an updated copy up soon. Pics are in the Gallery.