“Room 4” – South Strong, Maplewood, Fairbanks, and Farmington (still under construction – “In Process” photos)

The hole in the wall, at right center, is the southbound track out of Strong, the one that runs past the Corn Cannery. Trains bound for Farmington will travel from left to right, along the lower level.. The spline roadbed on the upper level (no track yet), is the line from Strong (to the right of the photo) to Kingfield (to the left of the photo). On the far upper level, the section of 2x2, labeled “Kingfield Bridge” is the line from Kingfield north toward Carabasset and Bigelow. The spline roadbed is made from three pieces of 5/8ths-inch square PVC square stock, available from any of the “big-box” (orange or blue) DIY stores.

On the lower level, trains southbound for Farmington will travel from center left to lower right. The turnout toward the lower center of the photo is the switch for South Strong. Observant SR&RL aficionados will notice that this should be a trailing point switch, and not a facing point switch, for southbound trains. The narrow aisle width and the curving nature of the track at this point prevented the proper orientation of the switch, however. On the upper level is the track from Strong (to the right) north to Kingfield (curving around through the center of the photo, and exiting off of the upper right center of the photo). In the center of the photo, on this level, is the passing siding for Starbird’s Mill, with the Starbird’s spur track jutting out to the left of the mainline. Again, this is the reverse of the prototype, but shoehorning in the proper configuration would not have been possible.

Somewhat farther along, the line from Strong (in Room 3 – you can see the Forster Mill in the background) comes toward the camera, and then cuts to the right, across the center of the photo, toward Starbird’s and Kingfield. Kingfield will eventually be in Room 3, above Strong. At the top center of the photo, you can see the northbound line out of Kingfield coming toward the camera, then curving to the upper left corner, on its way to Carrabasset and Bigelow. Just below the edge of the pink foam in Room 3, can be seen the roadbed for the line south to Farmington, up against the far wall of Room 4, coming out from under the masonite backdrop. It will cross over the doorway on a swing gate, and Maplewood station will be on the gate. The track will then swing around the wall (to the right of the photographer), cross the through covered bridge at Fairbanks, and then swing back behind the photographer, on the approach to Farmington.

The final approach to Farmington. The Russell & Estes Box Factory will be behind the photographer, just off of the lower left corner of the photo. The track layout at Farmington is clearly visible. The turntable will sit on the pieces of 1x4 crossmembers, at the center rear of the photo, not yet covered by plywood. No need for spline roadbed here, since the entire area is virtually flat, with a hill rising steeply behind the yard, at the left edge of the photo. Eventually, Carrabasset will be on the high level, along the short rear wall. While Bigelow will be along the wall approximately where the photographer is standing.

One final shot of Farmington. There will be a lot of complex trackwork here, including three dual-gauge crossings, since I doubt that the SR&RL coach will be able to leap over the standard gauge track that is lying on top of the station track. The large piece of paper is the floor plan for the Maine Central Station, while the freight house will occupy the large open space at rear center. Note how the two standard-gauge boxcars tower over the passenger car!

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