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Hi all...
I'm diving in the lake without looking..

Start off with the general concept:.a two lane routed/digital(scx) 70ft track with a one lane switchback section due to lack of insight on how much space a two lane turn actually takes up....On a two lane turn I figured 9.5"radius.That gives the outside car 4.5".

the plan:after 7 or 8 drawings,pretty much had it..(foreground photo)

and a few blurry pics of the room and the foundation table,all materials are recycled from a house remodel I,m doing.(pine and hollow core doors)
table dimensions are 4'x15'

I started routing some of the turn sections,got about seven feet routed and the 1/8" bit broke,wasn't even hot...
How long do they usually last?

Hopefully more photos in a few days...

 

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Killerkind-yes I am and you helped

Lala...thanks...I ordered two carbide spiral up-cut types,i'll give them a go....

1 3/2- as soon as I get the basic set,I'll know how to make them...lol

2fer-there's going to be a tunnel under the loop area,this is truly form follows function,I had a vision of what the terrain should look like,but I see now it will change.I would like to have a valley and a few ridges....possibly two bridges....

some more progress,please forgive the camera,think it has a cataract....
in case anyone is wondering what is on the wall,I call it poor man's terrazzo .carpet padding from when I tried to be a rock star

one of the hairpins (5 " radius)

most of the one way sections

The two lane straight which will partially be in a tunnel

 

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I need some racers advice as to where to place the cross overs..
since I am routing them,they can go anywhere..please help!

 

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Not at all,I think the photos are a little deceiving though,once the track is elevated(around 22" at highest)the far right corner(16")is almost a 4' stretch to reach the cars....

 

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First I'd like to say thanx for the comments and suggestions,I understand the blind spot in my design but decided to just work with it.I doubt if more than two racers will ever be on it....
So here are some more progress shots....

Here is a minor mistake,so I cut some thin strips on the table saw,glued and press fit into place.
then rerouted new path..

These two shots are trying too show the different depths for the lane changes(6mm and 10mm)
and another minor change can be seen......I cycled a car with the lane change device in the down position and they work!

I used the plunge router with a counter sink bit and adjusted the depth, it made quick work of it..
And a shot of the section splices (I overkill everything)
Figured there would be lots of torque and torsion when banking and flexing the track..

Most of the pieces spliced

 

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Jens, I added a single lane change where you drew in the red double and another single at the following turn..
Yes it is SCXD.....
And hooking up the power base remotely is fairly straight forward, more later on when I get to that point...

 

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Thanks Joel..
I couldn't make up my mind what kind of track to make,I'm fascinated with the hill climbs and I like the rally tracks
so kinda combined several types .I don't think SCX has ghost cars(have to look into that)Guess I could always tape
up a couple of controllers

alittle searching got me this...
"bswan72 ..SCX Digital does offer a Safety Car which functions as a ghost car on the track."
now if I can change the bodies,that would be cool..

 

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Thanx,I'm gettin' somewhere...

Kerfmania;this should be enough for some bankage EH?

Started messing around with elevations,I had higher expectations,then reality set in...
sorry for the photo quality,camera is on it's last leg,but you get the idea...

I did some more searching for the SCX safety cars,it appears that they are hard to find due to the fact,they are no longer in production!

 

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Thank you for the replies.

First off,I bought a new camera...

This first image is the power track with cover off,the yellow wire is the power for the auxiliaries
(lighted bridge,etc.)I will be using a separate power source for lights and future chrono..
so it was abandoned.So there are only two wires that need to be connected,power and ground.

A shot of the finished wiring harness which is routed under the table to be connected to power base that
sits on a slide out shelf. Automotive insulation was used to make the four wires tidy.
The reed switches were routed deep enough to break through to the slot,and the two magnets
are routed in to within 1mm from the surface. 100% silicone was used to hold everything in place.

A shot of the support system,thought it was a nice visiual..

About 2/3 of the track painted up

A close up of the cars and an example of the painted surface.

Hairpin

Another shot of the paint job,it was done using a roller with several shades of gray and a dry brush technique .
or I should say a dry roller.

Hope you enjoy the fotos
Rice

 

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Thanx for the responses....I'm enjoying this,maybe a little too much,it was supposed to be a winter project when work
gets slow...

2fer-if I wasn't ignoring my work obligations,it would be much slower

datto-thanx,I like what you did with your road surface,I went ahead with the original plan knowing that there are blind spots,the next track will be more for multiple racers.

keller-The hillclimb youtube vids are what got me hooked,I should rename this track the"gtf1hillclimbrallyroadcoarse"

flip-I tested the x-overs and they seem to work smoothly,but I did forget the capacitors that basically make the track digital..

won't be too hard to solder them in place..
I was going to sell the x-overs to get some money back,but by the time I priced the caps.(1.79 ea.)
I decided to pilfer them off the stock track...

 

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mrflippant-well I found out that the caps. are there to stop the brushes from arching when they go through the dead zones
which in turn could damage the mosfet simiconductors. Apparently mosfets are extremely delicate.

Graham thank you,most likely I'll be doing all three along with 10 other things.

jjj-thanx for the link,I'm tempted...

 

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dangit the thing posted twice,now I can't delete it...
uh, more later....

 

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Last night the power went out and when I got up this morning
the computer mysteriously turned itself on.Now the new LED screen looks like a photographic negative...

anyhow...updates
Well I guess this gives me a legitimate excuse for working on the track more

I experimented with some of that foil faced insulation,trying to imitate a basaltic block wall,I'm satisfied with the result so I will use
it on the tunnel face and maybe some shoring.

Here is the same foam,I used a small bonsai saw,mainly with a scraping and gouging method.

Another shot of the columnar jointing

The sky and clouds are finished, enough,I could have over worked it forever

I used the cheapest white interior primer I could find(12U.S.) and prussian blue and lamp black tinting.
Right side

front wall

Here is a final shot of the primed foam piece at it's soon to be new home.

Another angle

Thanks for viewing everyone!
now it off to the coffee shop for my cup of socialness and catch up on the latest gossip....

 

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Thanx SSD,Datto...

Datto...That foam is real delicate you can sand it with your fingers,but after it is sealed with paint and fixative it becomes fairly stong..

p.s. fixed the monitor,it was real hard posting pics when they all looked like color negatives

 

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Thank You everyone,the kind words are much appreciated..

Jens;--If I had a transporter I would be there today

"WILL PAINT FOR------

--"
p.s.---Is this particular flavor part of your forum name?

Ember;-- No,this is going to be permanent,in fact I.m attaching it to the walls...

Slotguy;--With painting yes,on that sky no.It was tricky using house paint though, because of the HUGE color changes between the paint being wet and dry.

 

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2fer;--If I would quit being stingy and heat the room it might seem like spring.......
and the glue and paint would dry quicker...

Ember;--

Lloyd;--I've decided that I'm not a plaster kinda guy,I'll stick to foam..
will finish this part out with plaster though....
also here is one of the concrete bridges..

 

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Thank you dreinecke...
Ocupation;freelance cloud painter..

Camcar

Some vids
Single car driving
Onboard view

Lloyd;After pricing out the insulation foam($39) a sheet,I am teaching myself the art of plaster

(at least on the flatter parts of the track)

Kellerkind;yes after that many it wouldn't matter what it looked like,untill morning...ouch!

 

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Thank you Ember,you do some nice work,I appreciate your comments.
I still can't figure out how you have 2000 more posts than I and you joined 4 months later..

you said you like snakes,here is our most handsome reptile...

 

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Ember...Yes it is,to bad they are becoming rare!

I felt that I finally have gotten enough finished to post some photos..alot of photos!
these are in no order..
hope you enjoy

 

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Thank You all for the positive comments,it truly brings joy to my heart!

I never once thought about the boulders being to scale,some of those are only 150 tons

The Holden was nib, $29 US shipped,couldn't pass it up.
I'm working on the back of the canyon next,there will be a waterfall behind the future bridge and to the right, a large exfoliating dome.
I've already learned two things that should have been done differently:
1-Should have left more space between the walls and track
2-more open flat space for things like,a log cabin,camping area,etc.
I'll have to make do with what I have,cliffs,cliffs,cliffs,and a valley...

E-gad zooks
more later...