Man that is one heavy duty helix. You could walk on that one when finished. Great job John. You should have trouble free operation with that process. Very, very well built.

I have to agree with Louis on the heavy duty helix build. You must have watched Norm Abram's Yankee Workshop. Love the biscuit assembly method. That won't move on you. Following along. I might learn something. By the way, what kind of plywood are you using?

Bernd

Bernd from the looks of that plywood I'd say it is 5/8" Birch Plywood. I even think I saw Norm Abram's building that while doing one of his home shows. That is state of the art building. I love that drill idea as well.

I think you're right about the 5/8" plywood. I used birch plywood in the kitchen cabinets I built. It is called Baltic birch and comes in 5' X 5' sheets and has 13 plys. The plys on Johns looks like about 4 or 5. Still top notch workmanship. Ya, I like that drill idea too.

Bernd

Louis & Bernd....Thanks for your comments. The plywood in the helix is 5/8 nominal thickness. It is 7 ply with a thin birch veneer on two sides, so 9 layers total. The 3/4 plywood on the walls is the same thing. The plywood is an import item and I get it from a place called Texas Plywood Warehouse in Ft. Worth Tx. The prices there and the price of gas in Ft. Worth as compared to where I live makes it worth the 300 mile round trip. I saved over $200 buying there as opposed to making a 130 mile round trip to my nearest orange or blue box stores. The thickness is slightly less than 5/8 inch, it is a metric size but works great.
I have added a few more progress pics and hope every one enjoys.

I am using code 100 track for the helix and staging area and will use code 83 for the rest of the layout.
I have also soldered each piece of track to the next. Track is installed with screws and a washer.

That good looking young man in the photo is my son. He gives a bit of measure to the size of the helix.
Moving along.
An interior view showing track feeders and wiring for turnouts in the helix.
Peco makes a turnout with a 36 inch radius diverging track so it worked well with my 36 inch radius helix.
Yes, those are Tenshodo twin coil switch machines. I was fortunate to purchase about 25 of them (brand new)
for $3 each. They will be in the helix and staging area only. With a CDU, they really flip the Peco turnouts.

Feeder lines hooked to main bus.

This level of helix is going to staging. Finally got rid of the propane tank support.
I like to cantilever my supports over the support legs as this allows
me to move the supports further back away from my aisles and reducing a trip hazard.
More to come later.

Thanks....John

That's a well engineered helix, John. I'd rethink soldering the track together if I were you. Any temperature change will play hell with your track.

George

As George said, "well engineered helix". I agree. I'll be looking at using plywood for my build instead of pine. Any chance of posting larger pictures to get a better look at that beautiful wood work? Thanks.

Bernd

George.....I am hoping by using the #6 screws with a washer as my devise for track hold down, that it will give a bit, to account for any expansion/contraction. I found the curving of the flex track worked better if I soldered the track together in a straight section then pulled the curve. It made a nice smooth continuous curve. I tried leaving a gap and using rail joiners but I always had a small kink at the joint and for me track work in the helix needed to be as near perfect as possible. Time will tell. One thing in my favor is I am located in west Texas and the climate is dry here most all year long.
I'll be posting a few more pics in a day or two and will try making them larger.
Thanks again for all the replies........John

Looks great on a hexagon! I like the speed all thread idea.
My 1st and final attempt ended in the burn pile.Well done!

Philip

I marvel at the woodworking skills some of our members here exhibit.
Very nicely designed and built and thanks for sharing.

Interesting approach to running the nuts on the threaded rod. I would have thought the foam would shred pretty fast (shows what I know!).

I did something similar years ago when I built my behemoth helix. I used a rubber sanding disc in my cordless drill. That's my friend Walt running the drill while I took the pictures.

If you have ever had to run a bunch of nuts down a bunch of rods only then can you appreciate these types of "tools". I was surprised how well the foam held up on my whirly-gig. I tried to trim the foam as round as I could with a pair of scissors and I think that really helped. Foam or rubber sanding disk, hey, if it works for you, go with it.

I can't imagine trying to run those nuts down by hand. Your foam attachment to the drill is a great idea.

George