Revisiting Victorville's Section Houses and Water Tanks, and Building a Frame for Section 8

In this bi-weekly installment we'll revisit the Victorville scene where the section houses and water tanks were, and then we'll look at my recent layout progress in completing the plywood sections and building the frame for Section 8.

I try to find new photos to use when we revisit a scene, but it's hard to top this one from last time, showing a Santa Fe 2-10-2 passing the section houses and water tanks, as shot by Chard Walker:

We can see the two black, steel water tanks, with the section foreman's house in front of the tanks and one of three pump houses with a wooden derrick on top just to the left of there.  There was a 2nd section house just beyond the one we can see.

Here's part of a map from the Santa Fe's Water Service Records for Victorville:

Note the two water tanks in the lower right, the Section House and Pumper's Quarters (later it was the Section Foreman's House) adjacent to the tanks, and the three Wells (pumphouses) above there.

Here's the part of my track plan where I will model this area (looking from the other direction):

Just below the two section houses, the three squares in a row are the pump houses.  To the left of the section houses there was a long bunkhouse for the local track gang, and across the tracks there were two old carbodies by the caboose track; the one on the right was an old passenger car, and the one on the left was an old boxcar. 

My friend Wayne Lawson has modeled much of this area in N scale.  Here is a general view of his scene with the water tanks and pump houses:

In the foreground are two pumphouses (maybe he's skipping the 3rd one) and by the backdrop are two water tanks (only one has been painted so far).  In front of the water tanks are two paper foundations showing where the two section houses will go.  On the left is a mock-up of the long bunkhouse he plans to build.  The 6th Street grade crossing is on the right (it's the only grade crossing in town).

Here's another view of this scene, looking from above 6th Street:

As you can see, there were various other carbodies and tool houses in the area.  The paper foundations for the two section houses are more visible in this view.

Right across the tracks from here, Wayne has modeled the two carbodies that were used by the swing brakemen who rode the trains over Cajon Pass:

As you can see, one was an old passenger carbody and one was an old boxcar carbody.  The area with the water tanks and pumphouses is in the background, and in the far right distance we can see part of the old Santa Fe hotel that we visited last time.

If we zoom in on a color slide of this area, we can see these two carbodies on the right edge of the photo:

The Victorville depot is in the background, across 6th Street, with the two carbodies in the right foreground. 

Let's turn now to recent progress on the lower deck of my layout (the staging deck).  

There were gaps between some of the plywood sections I had laid out on the floor, so I cut out a new Section 6A to fit between Sections 6 and 7, and I bought a new 4x8' sheet of plywood and cut out a new Section 8 from that.  All the sections now fit together very well on the floor, and I was excited to see them all in their future locations, so I shot four photos from various viewpoints.

This first view is looking out from the corner of the alcove, across Sections 1, 7, and 8:

The existing Section 9 (with roadbed) is in the upper right, with the new Section 8 adjacent to it.  Section 7 is to the left of 8, and that's where the Lower Narrows would be on the upper deck.  In the foreground is Section 1, where the Upper Narrows would be.  The other sections curve around the room in the distance. 

This next view is from the laundry room, looking in the opposite direction at Sections 4, 5, and 6:

Section 5 is in the foreground, and that's where most of the cement plant will go on the upper deck.  To its right is Section 4, which has the four-track curve coming out of Victorville.  Beyond Section 5 on the left is Section 6, which has the throat tracks into the cement plant.  It touches the post on the left.  The center of the lower deck is left open for pop-up scenery hatches that will be on the upper deck there.

Here's a view of Section 6 in the foreground and Section 6A just beyond it:

Section 6 is where the throat tracks into the cement plant will be on the upper deck, and the smaller 6A behind it (and against the other post) is leading into the Lower Narrows scene.  I stuck some pieces of masking tape on the floor to mark the aisle edges and the corners of each plywood piece.

This final view is looking back into the alcove, where the entrance to the staging room is located:

Section 6A is behind the post, with the large Section 2 to its right and part of Section 3 in the foreground.  Sections 2 and 3 will hold the central Victorville scene on the upper deck.  Sections 8, 7, and 1, from left to right, are in the distance.

But all of this plywood is only for the lower deck, where as many staging tracks as possible will be located.  A large helix in the staging room will connect the two decks.  I'll have to cut out the same plywood shapes for the upper deck someday.

After all the plywood sections were cut to fit, I began to build a frame to support Section 8, the first section after we leave the staging room.  I cut some 1x4s to fit along the plywood's edges, then clamped, drilled, and screwed them together.  I made a new work table to do this work on, using the large plywood sheet of Section 2 as the tabletop.

When the frame for Section 8 was done, I shot this photo, with many of the tools in the foreground:

The next step was to make legs for the frame.  I cut four 2x4 legs for the corners and three 2x2 legs for the middle.  I added a support block partway up each leg to support the lower deck, and I added an adjustable footpad under each leg.

I clamped the legs to the frame, stood the assembly on its legs, and posed for a photo with the new Section 8 in its final location adjacent to the existing Section 9:

 

The next steps will be to screw the legs into the frame and then cut notches into the edges of the plywood tabletop to allow the legs to pass through.  Then I hope to repeat the whole process with Section 7, as I work my way around the room.