The last three weeks have moved us ahead towards operations and "presentability". The fascia that was recently installed has now been painted (for the first time ever!!!). This was holding up the installation of the Loconet jacks around the layout at operating stations, telephones, and card boxes.
The Loconet is now fully installed including the duplex and WiFi radios so that walk-around throttle operation is fully implemented now. Additional power was provided at the jacks to support the battery-saving feature and provide sufficient power to operate the infrared receivers and multiple throttles at the same time.
The other first that has been accomplished is the PABX phone system. Eight phones are scattered throughout the operating "theater" to eliminate the shouting and intercom used on the old layout. It is also tied into the house phone to directly access the outside line--future remote dispatching???
We're pretty much in a position to start unpacking the structures and returning them to their "homes" so I guess I can't avoid scenery anymore!. The mountain needs to be heavily rebuilt as well as the tunnels there.
Now we can mount the card boxes and there will be no excuses about unpacking rolling stock either.
On to more excitement....
Looks great John! Excellent progress. Looking forward to seeing it in person again. The blog is a good way to keep us connected. ~Chris
Great news John, thanks for the photos too. They do show the progress and it all looks great.