Ingleton Updates

Ingleton with fascia and Power Cab installed

The last time I posted about bringing the Ingleton shelf back to life, I listed six items to work on in checklist form. Over the last few weeks I have completed the first two.

I saved  a piece of beveled siding that the previous owners used in the bar area of the basement to use as the fascia. After trimming it to the correct length, I couldn't decide how to best attach it to the shelf. It is seen leaning against the shelf in this photo.  Without some form of support, I was convinced that a connection between the 3/4" shelf edge and the narrow beveled edge of the fascia would be flimsy at best. Also seen in the photo is what I decided to do--I glued a 1" x 2" along the bottom of the front of the shelf. My thinking was that would give enough support to the fascia after it was screwed in place. 

Before attaching the fascia, I figured out the appropriate size opening for the NCE Power Cab throttle panel, marked it, and cut it out, remembering that I had limited wire length to work with from the existing bus wire. Also before attaching the fascia, I applied the first coat of SW Andiron, my standard fascia paint color. Then I clamped the fascia in place and attached it with drywall screws and finishing washers before applying a second coat of paint. 

Since the shelf already had the DCC bus installed, completing the installation of the Power Cab system was quite easy. The supplied wall wart cable plugs into the back and the two track wires screw into the green clip that then also slides onto the back of the panel. I found that using a white pencil to mark the screw hole locations on the fascia works best with my dark fascia color. The mounting screws are not included with the package, but I have a collection of screws on hand. I followed the NCE guideline of having the LED to the bottom and plugging the flat wire into the left port. To finish the installation after mounting the panel, I also drilled two holes in the fascia and attached dowels to hold the throttle when it is not in use. This can be seen in the initial photo at the top of the post. In that photo, one can see that a valance is needed to limit the glare from the LED lighting for the Ingleton shelf.

I am hesitant to move much beyond planning for the valance by unpacking rolling stock and structures before I have more presentation or infrastructure work done. Again, looking at the initial photo at the top of this post, more painting needs to be completed behind Ingleton's stud wall. Also, cleaning up the base of this stud wall might be connected to a desire to paint the floor. The green floor paint is starting to get pretty beat up looking. On the other hand, if the desire to run some trains becomes overwhelming, Ingleton is ready!