| Layout | Maine Central - Portland Division | Owner | Rich Gibson |
| Scale | HO | Era | October, 1951 |
| Train Control | TCS WiFi | Road(s) | Maine Central RR |
| Modeled Location | Mid-coast Maine | Car Routing | Car cards/prototypical waybills |
| Dispatching | TT&TO | ADA | No |
| Web Site | none | Bring | Universal WiFi throttle or smartphone with WiThrottle or Engine Driver |
| Address | Golden | Crew | 12 |
| % Track Done | 100% | % Scenery Done | 60-70% |
| Layout Size | 55x35' (~1900 sq ft), single deck | Distance from Hotel | 22 miles (27-30 minutes) |
| WiFi Throttles | yes |
Description
This prototype-based layout features two branches of the MEC that joined the E-W mainline at Brunswick, ME as well as a portion of the Portland Division mainline west toward Portland. The Lewiston Lower branch heads NW from Brunswick, serving a district with a variety of manufacturing mills situated along the Androscoggin River and terminating in the mill district of Lewiston. The Rockland branch heads east across numerous rivers and tidal inlets to reach its terminus at the port city of Rockland on the Atlantic Ocean. Industries along the Rockland branch include a major cement plant, a coal dock, a large shipyard and associated steel fabrication facility, canneries, and a variety of other small-town businesses. Most of the railroad buildings on the layout are scratch-built based on plans and photographs.
The railroad is single deck and built along the walls of a 55x35' space with two peninsulas down the middle and wide aisles. It is always viewed toward the north. I have tried to follow prototype track arrangements as closely as possible within space confines. Staging yards represent the outside world accessed via the MEC mainline, with east staging situated along one wall behind a half-height backdrop and west staging in the opposite corner of the basement. Trains bound for the Lewiston Lower or Rockland branches originate in either Brunswick yard or west staging and return there once their work on the road is complete. Operations per session (one 12-hour day using 3:1 fast clock) on the Rockland branch include two round-trip Portland-Rockland passenger trains, two round trip local freights, and an additional Brunswick-Bath freight turn. The Lewiston Lower branch is freight only, with one switching-heavy round trip per session, manned by a two person crew. Manifest freights and one local along the MEC mainline between the two staging yards work the towns of Freeport and Yarmouth, and supply cars to the branches via Brunswick yard. A two-person crew operates Brunswick, one person operates Rockland, and there are six road crews. All locomotives (light to medium steam and first generation diesels) have sound and are programmed to use an independent brake function for stopping. The railroad is dispatched using timetable-train order, as was done on the prototype.
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