April was a big month for the MVL — the biggest milestone yet, in fact. I missed the update for March, so let's jump right in.

Helix Connected to Lower Level

Four-and-a-half-ish turns later, the staging drawer and the lower level are connected — and with it, trains can now travel end-to-end across both levels for the first time. This is a milestone we've been working toward for a long time. I have to give Dave all the credit and kudos because he did a great job laying all the track (something I seem to not be interested in on the helix...).

The helix runs extremely well in our initial testing. I've done some testing to determine how many cars a consist can pull, but a lot to do there. I need to convince myself to make progress on speed matching more of my fleet to get an accurate picture of train lengths we can support.

The helix building will be on-hold for a bit while we focus on the lower level. The plan is to finish the yard, get all (or most) of the industry spurs laid and wired, then run some mini-operating sessions to test things out before moving to the upper level and continuing the helix.

Helix connection to lower level

Lower Level Mainline Servos

After the helix part one was complete, we got all the remaining servos for the lower-level mainline turnouts installed. There are a couple left for the return loop and helix turnouts to do, but we'll get to those soon (some of the return loop track still needs to be laid).

For the helix, I need to design and print an inverted servo mount since the servos can't go underneath. I'm looking forward to designing those soon.

Janesville Yard Progress

Though it took a backseat for a short period, track laying in the yard has progressed a bit. The majority of the yard tracks have been laid and run smoothly - they just need feeders added and connected to the bus. The west yard lead was connected to the mainline which proved to be quite an interesting challenge, but at last is complete. Cross your fingers that everything plays nice once power is hooked up.

Janesville Yard Lead

Lower-level Industry Spur Planning

Last week, Dave and I spent our Monday night work session doing rough layouts of the industrial spurs for the lower level, which is collectively Janesville. Almost all the industries have some amount of track planning complete, though there will likely be minor changes before track is laid. There are a few spurs I'm particularly excited about: one of which being the Quad Graphics spur which features a switch-back just like its prototype (which I transplanted from Hartland).

Janesville Industry Planning

Off the layout

Progress on the railroad has been a tad slower, but for good reason. April brought the delivery of the cabinets and countertop for my new "work shop." This space is primarily for larger tools and non-modeling projects, but it will also be home to the 3D printers — which should actually speed up parts fabrication for the layout. It's been a very fun and rewarding project so far, and I'm looking forward to having all of my "full size" tools in their dedicated spots.

I don't expect progress on the layout to halt completely, but other spring projects have distracted me a bit as well.

Workshop Cabinets + Counters

What's next

Here are the priorities for May and June:

• Finish laying the yard tracks, connect the east end lead and finish the engine facilities.
• Complete the return loop and connect it to the helix.
• Design and install the inverted servo mounts for the turnouts on the helix.
• Start laying the industry spurs.
• Run some trains in Janesville!

I'm very happy with the progress made so far. We continue making great strides toward our first real operating sessions, and I'm excited to start detailing the Janesville scene once the track is down. I'm confident that even through these next couple busy months, progress will continue. Follow along on Facebook for more frequent updates from both on and off the railroad.